A Magnolia's Heart Beats

This is one of those q&a swaps you’re supposed to do with friends and the theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known. Go ahead, you know you want to blog it too.

1. WHAT TIME DID YOU GET UP THIS MORNING? 9:02 a.m. I made a mad dash to get dressed and out the door so I could be a "walk-in" at the doctor's office. Checked in at 9:20, saw him at 11:20 and was home by noonish. My normal wake-up time is 6:00 a.m. on weekday/workdays, and whenever (usually before 9:00 a.m.) on the weekends or when I am off work.

2. DIAMONDS OR PEARLS? Diamonds are pretty. The only diamonds I own are the solitare on my engagement ring, the ones in the anniversary band, and the ones surrounding sapphires on 2 other rings. I do have some pearls (but they're not the real deal. Don't tell my grandmama, ya'll! In the South, real pearls used to be a must, and she'd be shocked out of her Alzheimer's if she knew. On second thought, tell her! I'd love for the Alzheimer's to go away!)

3. WHAT IS THE LAST FILM THAT YOU SAW AT THE CINEMA? Hmmm.....let me think back. I'm gonna go with Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls. I thought the man never aged, that he was like Dick Clark! However, both are starting to show their age. Indy is pretty nice looking for his age, isn't he? Clark is not un-handsome himself. Don't flame me, just making an observation. Not lusting. There is NO lust here!

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOW? It's actually a series of shows. I love Crime Time Sunday on Hallmark Channel. Begin with Diagnosis Murder, throw in some Perry Mason and Matlock, add a little McBride, Jane Doe, or Mystery Woman and top it off with Murder She Wrote. Aside from that, I find it hard to miss Grant Jeffrey's Bible Prophecy show on TBN on Wednesday nights or Jack Van Impe, the man of a gazillion Bible verses. I love Bible prophecy and both of these men are experts (in my opinion).

5. WHAT DO YOU USUALLY HAVE FOR BREAKFAST? If I am out of Eggo Waffles, I'll go for the chicken biscuit in the cafeteria at work. On the weekends, my habit of 2 blueberry donuts is showing up on the scales, so I'll back off those...

6. WHAT IS YOUR MIDDLE NAME? Ann. It's a family name. Maw Maw is Annie Grace, Momma is Barbara Ann. Or "Bob", as my Maw Maw and Paw Paw used to call her. Oh, how I miss hearing them say that!

7. WHAT FOOD DO YOU DISLIKE? Hominy. Can't stand it. Won't eat it. The smell even makes me gag. I don't know why. It is what it is. I'm not a big fan of waterchestnuts either. Please don't put them in my spinach dip or chinese food. Is that too much to ask?

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CD? If it has praise and worship music on it, it's my favorite. Right now I'm partial to my iPod shuffle, because I can do a mix.

9. WHAT KIND OF CAR DO YOU DRIVE? I alternate between the 2002 Saturn LE (who I named Liberty when I got divorced and retracted her name when I remarried the same man I divorced - that's a whole 'nother post!) and the Kia Sportage. I don't know what year it is. I'm guessing around the same year. The Car Formerly Known as Liberty is my unfavorite car. I am partial to the Kia because I can see better out of it.

10. FAVORITE SANDWICH? I'm a sandwich snob. McAlister's has spoiled me. I prefer corned beef on a croissant with mayo and tomato only. I laid off the tomato back when the scare of e-coli was upgraded to a Level 5 and am just now getting brave enough to let them add it back to it. If I make a sandwich at home, it's likely to be a Lean Cuisine panini or something of that sort. Bring back the days of good old PB&J or Bologna.

11. WHAT CHARACTERISTIC DO YOU DESPISE? In others? I'm not much of a despiser, but be untruthful to me and let me catch you. I'll call you on it to your face and probably show off da ugly. When I'm being lied to, it sends the message, real or not, that the person doing the lying thinks I am a fool. In myself? Lack of spontaneity. If that is, in fact, how you spell it. I'm so not spontaneous. (Shots of decadron and mucinex dm has me second-guessing my spelling ability. I could google it, but is it worth the time, or would you politely just refer to them as typos?)

12. FAVORITE ITEM OF CLOTHING? Ooooh! It's almost time to wear it! A snuggly peach colored thermal knit henley. It's long sleeved, has side slits at the hem, is comfy and goes well with my coloring. Makes me feel purdy, whether I pair it with black slacks for the office or jeans on the weekend. I ordered a new one for this season because mine looks worn. It's primrose pink, dahlin', and if it fits like the other one, it will be my new favorite. The peach one will understand. Because I won't tell if you don't.

13. IF YOU COULD GO ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD ON VACATION, WHERE WOULD YOU GO? Back to the Smokies. I went in '98 with Steve and Kristyn, and had morning-noon-and night-sickness, although I didn't know it at the time. I want to go back and have a grand time. I'd hole up in a cabin with my man and take strolls in Gatlinburg and other places in the Mountains at leisure.

14. WHAT COLOR IS YOUR BATHROOM? Which one? One is pink, the other is wallpapered in a navy floral pattern.

15. FAVORITE HOLIDAY? Christmas Eve.

16. WHERE WOULD YOU RETIRE TO? See number 13. That's unrealistic, though, because I now have grandsons. Wherever they are is where I'd be content retiring to.

17. WHAT WAS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE BIRTHDAY? This last one. My father had surgery on September 9, the day I turned 38 years old. I prayed with all my heart that God would help him make it through the surgery because not only did I not want to lose him; I felt like losing him on my birthday would be a kick in the teeth. He didn't die. He's doing great!

18. FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH? Not a huge watcher of the sports. I am partial to the Winter Olympics, the Super Bowl and whatever games anyone else wants to watch. Oh, the World Series is good, too. I think I love the fellowship more than the games, though. Does that make this point moot?

19. FURTHEST PLACE YOU ARE SENDING THIS? You tell me. I'm posting this on my blog. I'm in Mississippi. If you participate, be sure and put your state here, m'kay? If you don't participate but comment, put your state anyway.

20. WHO DO YOU LEAST EXPECT TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Refer to #19.

21. PERSON YOU EXPECT TO SEND IT BACK FIRST? As my sweet cousin Brooke says, "IDK." That stands for, "I do not know." Or, as we say, "On't know. Jew?" Meaning, "I don't know, do you?" Jeff Foxworthy would love my family.

22. FAVORITE SAYING? "Self!" That's what I call me when I'm talking to myself. I also say, "Get out!" When I mean, "You don't mean it, hush your mouth!" Kinda like saying, "Noooo!"

23. WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY? September 9, 1970

24. ARE YOU A MORNING OR NIGHT PERSON? Morning.

25. WHAT IS YOUR SHOE SIZE? 7.5 ish….kinda creeps me out to answer that. On't know why.

26. PETS? Oh, yes. God bless the fur-babies! We have a 3 year old toy poodle named Wilson who is both as mischevious and precious as the day is long. You can read Wilson's story here. http://magnoliaheartbeats.blogspot.com/2008/07/story-of-wilson-few-have-asked-about.html We had Copper for 10 years. You can read my good-bye to him here. http://magnoliaheartbeats.blogspot.com/2005/04/in-loving-memorycoppierre-copper.html (Get out your kleenex. I hope I regain my laughing mood a couple of questions from now. Now I'm feeling melancholy.) If you read about Copper, you'll see "Good Night, Sir" at the end. Cop slept with us every night and as he would snuggle next to me, trying to get comfortable, I would say, "Good night, sir!" He'd immediately throw his little head down on the bed and lie down. If he'd pick it back up, I'd say it again. He was so funny! Wilson's too headstrong for that to work! Now I'm laughing again since I shared that story. That was quick. Decongestants will do that to you, I suppose.

27. ANY one wish….It already came true. I married Prince Charming.

28. WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU WERE LITTLE? Believe it or not, I actually wanted to be a teacher. Bwahahahahahaha!!!!!!! Teaching GAs and Mission Friends was rewarding, but it let me know that God clearly did not call me into the teaching field. Snort. I have had the opportunity in the past to teach some software classes and loved it! I don't do that anymore, though, as my current job does not require it.

29. HOW ARE YOU TODAY? Better. The Cold has actually been diagnosed as The Sinus Infection with a Hint of Bronchitis and Two Ear Infections. Well, there's not much of a hint to it, but it looks good on paper. Um, computer screen. Well that just sounded wrong! Okay, anyway, I got a shot in the booty of decadron that has me wired for sound, and the Biaxin has killed my taste buds. I can't feel my ears because they're still stopped up, but I'm not coughing so much. That's a good sign, right? God bless the nose-spray and Mucinex DM. How do you make the TM or R with the circle around it? That's what should go after Biaxin and decadron and Mucinex DM, ya know...

30. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CANDY? If it comes in chocolate and doesn't have nuts in it - that works for me! I'm not picky when it comes to the sweet stuff. Just don't give me anything sour.

31. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FLOWER? This is so not sarcastic, but I bet you can guess from the name of my blog. Magnolia's rock! Gardenia's are a close second, and Daisies are the runner up.

32. WHAT IS A DAY ON THE CALENDAR YOU ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO? It's not written on the calendar, but it is coming. The Second Coming of Christ. I cannot wait to hear, "Come up here!" Or hither, or whatever Jesus will say to call us home!

33. WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME? Laura Ann Martin Pierce Martin Pierce. The Martin is my maiden name, which I took back after the divorce. The two Pierce's are because I remarried my husband, less than a year after we had hastily and wrongly divorced. That's another post. But we righted the wrong.

35. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? My mind is racing almost too fast to remember. Oooh! I know! Pick me! A slice of pecan pie.

37. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? That question always makes me laugh. I'm going to go with pink. Because it's my favorite color, not because I think colors actually "feel". It's kind of like that "What are you wearing" question, which, if it comes up, you will also "see" me laugh at.

38. HOW IS THE WEATHER RIGHT NOW? Muggy. It is *so* not feeling like Fall in Mississippi tonight!

39. FAVORITE SOFT DRINK? Sierra Mist Free or the generic version of it at Walmart. Insert the TM's and R's with the circle's around them here.

40. FAVORITE RESTAURANT? I like Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Captain D's, McAlister's, and Bonsai. I'm not really a restaurant snob. As long as it's clean and serves food I can identify, I'm cool with it.

41. SIBLINGS? My parents have an older daughter who is 3 years older than me. She has chosen to dissassociate herself from our family. No bitterness there, though there is a signifcant amount of wonderment (is that a word) about the situation. But this question is not about that. I have a sister who is nearly 13 years younger than me. She is so sweet! I love her to pieces, and she also has a great husband and a precious newborn named Ethan. How long are they called newborns? Ethan was born August 19. Do you lose newborn status when you know someone else who has one newer born than that? Because I have a grandson who was born on October 6. He's a week old today! But this post is not about that either. Although I would like to say he's a little on the jaundiced side but improving and weighs a whopping 5.5 lbs., up 2 oz. from what he had lost from his original birthweight which was 5.9 lbs.

42. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR? I Heart Christmas Eve. It's a time spent with family and worshiping God that is so awesome to me.

43. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD? I cannot choose between all my dolls. No, I just won't do it. It's like asking a parent to choose their favorite child. Which I don't think can be done, either.

44. SUMMER OR WINTER? We have cold and hot in Mississippi. I'll take Cold.

45. HUGS OR KISSES? Depends on who it's from. I like hugs from everyone, kisses only from my husband or family. Everyone is a loose term. While I do hug strangers, I only hug them if they know somebody I know. I have hugged 2 total strangers in the last year because they looked like they needed it. Other than that, when it comes to family and friends, hugs are passed but I'm not a touchy-feely kinda gal.

46. COFFEE OR TEA? Tea. Sweet Tea.

47. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA? Vanilla, please and thank you very much.

48. DO YOU WANT YOUR FRIENDS TO EMAIL YOU BACK? Naw. A link is fine.

49. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? When Liam, the newborn grandson, Nolan was born October 6. Ironically, it wasn't because of him. I had to spank Nolan lightly on the leg, but hard enough to "show him who is in charge". He wailed, I wailed, it was AWFUL! Since then, I have teared up at some blogs I've read, but I don't cry that easily.

50. WHAT IS UNDER YOUR BED? Probably stuff Wilson has hidden. Who looks under the bed (when you don't have kids?) Once, my sister-in-law's 3 or 4 year old ran up to her while she was washing dishes and said, "Momma, whatever you do, DON'T look under the bed!" She gave it 10 minutes and pulled out some undies that he'd had an accident in. If you are a Momma, go look under your bed. If you're not, then you have a good idea of what's under there. No need to look. Move on to the next question, please.

51. WHO IS THE FRIEND THAT YOU HAVE HAD THE LONGEST? Jesus.

51a. WHO IS THE FRIEND THAT YOU HAVE HAD THE SHORTEST? I don't know. I honestly don't know! Why? Now I'm wondering. Hmmm...........let's define friend. In Proverbs 17:17, the transliterated word for friend is rea'. It means, "1) friend, companion, fellow, another person a) friend, intimate b) fellow, fellow-citizen, another person (weaker sense) c) other, another (reciprocal phrase)" You know what? I'm like my Daddy. I rarely meet a stranger, so I'm going to say, "IDK."

52. WHAT DID YOU DO LAST NIGHT? Read, watched Murder, She Wrote, and called a few people to let them know I was going to The Doctor today.

53. FAVORITE SMELL? Babies. Oh, has there ever been a better scent?

54. WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF? I am afraid of elephants. When I say I am afraid of them, I want you to understand that they are my worst nightmare come true. When I was 9 years old I was traumatized by one. Long story short, something must have scared the elephant (surely he was not just an evil elephant?) We were looking at and it raised up it's front two feet (do elephants have paws? must google to see...) onto the small fence inside the larger one and blew it's trunk out, blasting forth a LOUD trumpeting sound that sent me running hysterically for fear I would be trampled. Elephants, big and small, pose a problem for me....They send my heart a'pounding. I tried to work on this phobia and decided that there are just some things God doesn't mind us being afraid of.

55. SALTY OR SWEET? Depends on the day. I'm wishy washy in that respect, I suppose?

56. HOW MANY KEYS ON YOUR RING? More than 5, less than 10. Not going to count. Steve is on the phone, but even if I called up there to ask him, he'd have to walk all the way back here (the computer is in our bedroom) and let me ask my question, because I am missing most of my voice. They are probably with my tastebuds. There but dead, ya know?

57. HOW MANY YEARS AT YOUR CURRENT JOB? Position: 4 years, 3 months, 13 days. Time on the job with da state, 19 years, beginning October 1.

58. FAVORITE DAY OF THE WEEK? If you had asked me that before I started blogging, I'd have said, "Friday!" Now I love "At the Well Monday", "In Other Words Tuesday," Word Filled Wednesday," "Thankful Thursday", "Friday Funnies" and "Then Sings My Soul Saturday." I'm serious! I have a new outlook on weekdays with these memes! They bless my heart, ya'll!

59. HOW MANY TOWNS HAVE YOU LIVED IN? 3.

60. DO YOU MAKE FRIENDS EASILY? Oh yes. I never meet a stranger. I believe God puts people in our lives for a reason and every person I encounter as an aquaintance gets bumped up to friend status quickly.

61. HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL YOU SEND THIS TO? If you read it, consider it sent to you. So at least 1.

62. HOW MANY WILL RESPOND? We kind of already covered this, but I'm not scrolling up to see where. I'm sure the question wasn't worded exactly this way, but it was like, "Who will respond first" and "Who's less likely to respond?" Using Brooke's phrase, "IDK!" Now it's "like, my phrase to, KWIM? IMO, I should probably stop typing now, hah hah!" Um, LOL, I mean.

63. FAVORITE MOVIE? (ONLY PICK ONE) Take a pick at my profile. I have some listed there I enjoy. I can't pick just one. It's like choosing a favorite book, child or doll.

64. FOR ONE WEEKEND OF YOUR LIFE YOU CAN GO BACK IN TIME, GO BACK TO HIGH SCHOOL OR COLLEGE? Are you serious? I would nevah' go back! I rejoice that that part of my life is over! I never did go to college. It's not that I hated high school, it's just that I love my life so much now.

65. BUD LIGHT OR MILLER LITE? Ewe! I don't drink beer because I don't like the flavor. When I go to Red Lobster, I have gotten a Sunset Passion Colada (yeah, put the TM and circle the R) and loved it. Moderation is key to me. I don't get one every time I go, but I do like them.

66. FAVORITE PIZZA? As long as the tomato sauce is good on it, I'm good. I can pick off the stuff I don't like. Which is not much. I'm not a big fan of sausage, and since no one I know orders pizza with anchovies, I'm good to go with pizza.

67. FAVORITE SPICE (OR COMBINATION OF SPICES)? Cavender's. If it's spelled wrong, have mercy and call it a typo.

68. LAST BOOK YOU READ (OR ARE READING)? I am reading several books right now. I'm reading Just As I Am by Billy Graham, Having a Mary Heart in a Martha Word, by Joanna Weaver, Mercy, by Jodi Piccoult (is that one c or 2? my book is up front...), and the Bible. Oh, and I have started Grant Jeffrey's book on Heaven.

70. CLOSING YOU USE MOST OFTEN FOR YOUR LETTERS, EMAILS, AND OVERLY LONG QUESTIONNAIRES: Blessings, Hugs, or Love. Depends. Sometimes I don't use anything, just my name. I used to use quotes a lot. Sometimes a Bible verse. So it varies.

Good night, ya'll. Did you make it to #70? I like that about you! You hung in there! Now, I'm off to vaccuum. I have this burst of energy to where I feel like dusting and cleaning and mopping - So I'll vaccuum and see if it wears off.