MOM"S TURN

100 Facts about MOM:

1. I absolutely HATE Liver, oysters, fruit cake, pickled beets, pickled eggs, black licorice and Lima Beans!! GAAAGG!
2. When I was 7 years old I sliced my right hand wide open on a corrugated tin fence and had about 30 stitches which you can still see to this day.
3. For years afterward I used that scar on my hand (which by the way is in the shape of a huge smile) to identify which hand was my right one.
4. My first name is Susan, but I almost was named Leslie….when I was a kid I always wished that my parents had named me Leslie…..Susan was so plain!!
5. I absolutely hate the way my voice sounds…….I don’t like listening to myself on tape.
6. I am not a jewelry person…. I love wearing my wedding ring and have to wear a watch……..but a necklace usually bugs me……makes me hot and any other rings just get in the way. Earrings have never touched my ears….they are just a nuisance.
7. I have always wished that I had very long, thick, STRAIGHT hair……not the wavy, frizzy stuff that I have.
8. I hate gray hair, that is why you don’t see mine!!
9. I usually like to shop alone, grocery or otherwise. I don’t like worrying about others waiting for me to get through.
10. I HATE shopping for shoes. I have such fat, flat feet, always have…..my siblings said I had Flintstone feet…..and it is always very difficult to find anything that fits with out hurting. Hence, I would rather wear flip-flops all the time.
11. I have recently discovered that I CANNOT shop and talk on the cell phone at the same time. I can only do one or the other.
12. I played the clarinet in Jr. High and did pretty well, but I don’t think I could even make a sound from one today!
13. I also played the guitar quite well and could do some pretty fine “pickin”. I don’t know if I could even remember how to play a C chord now.
14. I still can play the Ukelele and love it.
15. I prefer to play the piano just for my own enjoyment, but will play for Primary, Seminary or RS when it is needed.
16. I grew up with a horrible “lisp” or “lithp” as I used say it. My name was “Thuthie Willith” It was so bad for so long I had to go to a speech therapist for years to learn to swallow and talk correctly. I still catch myself with my tongue in the wrong position and talking with a lisp.
17. I have stolen one thing in my entire life……….it was a cool toy truck that was sitting out by the sidewalk in our neighbors front yard. I was riding by on my bike ( I was about 8 or 9) and when I saw it just sitting there, I thought it would be a cool thing for my little brother Scott to have. Unfortunately or, fortunately, whichever way you look at it, the neighbors saw my dastardly deed and came to our house and told my Mom. I didn’t get in trouble, but my Mom let me know how very disappointed she was in me. That trick always worked better on me than yelling or spanking.
18. I was and still am a “boob”. I cry very easily, even during certain commercials!!
19. I have always been the type that would do whatever it takes to make things less contentious and uneasy. I still have a hard time saying things that are contrary to the current viewpoint. But I am getting better at it and I usually feel better when I have expressed my own opinions. Occasionally, and unbeknownst to me, and certainly not intentional, I say something that offends others. I can sometimes catch myself and correct the problem, but mostly, I am not even aware of it.
20. I got my hand and arm caught in the wringer to my grandmothers old washer when I was a kid. It was the electric kind that had two rollers and you put the clothes through it and they came out on the other side. I thought my hand was squished flat, but when she got it out, it was just bruised, but it hurt like CRAZY!!

21. I also got my hand caught in my Dad’s grinder at his shop at the school he taught Jr. High shop at. I was only 6 and I still remember everything about it. I did a lot of screaming and my hand was pretty chewed up.
22. I broke my right pointy finger while playing soccer in 5^th grade. It is still bent sideways to this day!
23. Winnie-the-Pooh is my all-time favorite Disney character. “But Rabbit, I wasn’t going to eat it, I was just going to taste it!”

24. My very first job was at McDonalds and I got the job the day I turned 16. I earned a whopping $1.65 an hour!!
25. I worked in a Men’s Dept. store my Jr and Sr year of high school. It was so cool because I worked in the Tuxedo dept and I was in charge of measuring the guys and helping them pick out their tuxes. The measuring was the BEST!
26. I worked one summer as a maid at the Three Bears Inn in West Yellowstone, MT. I never once saw any bears or Goldielocks though, just moose and elk!
27. Just like my kids (and it is probably where they get it from), I am not a big sports fan.
28. I don’t like exercising very much because it makes me hurt inside, but I know it must be done and it does make me feel good if I can keep it up, but it still hurts. I am trying to do better!!
29. I love reading. I have to have a book with me all the time.
30. I hate wasting time, therefore, I keep a book with me all the time.
31. I love it when I have lots of energy and get a ton of stuff done in one day.
32. I like to do things that actually STAY done and I can actually see the fruits of my labors.
33. I love to sew, but only when things turn out better than I had hoped. I hate sewing when it turns out to be a flop or I end up not liking the finished product. By the way, I got a brand new Singer for Mothers Day!!! Something just for me, imagine that!!! Thanks so much Shell!!
34. I have been sewing since I was 12 years old. I made most of my clothes when I was in Jr and High school.
35. Now I love buying clothes………for myself and my family. It is much cheaper and easier!!
36. I LOVE being a Grandma, but I HATE not being with my grandchildren. I am so looking forward to having lots and lots of grandchildren to love and play with, and I hope some of them live close by.
37. I am no good at math. I do ok with basic stuff and simple algebra, but my mind just shuts down at anything harder. Don’t ask me to help with math homework…….I will mess you up horribly!!
38. I love history, most any kind of history.
39. I have always wished that I had a time machine and could go back in time to different eras and really KNOW what it was like back then.
40. Hence, I have always been intrigued by movies that deal with time travel.
41. I HAVE to have the end of the toilet paper roll coming over the top……..It bugs me to have to fish for it from behind the roll.
42. I have never said a swear word, not real ones anyway. I did use a couple of substitutes when I was a teenager……like “oh shift” (used only in jest when I was driving my VW Bug) and “oh heck”, but l am not proud of those words at all!! It was a dumb thing to do. Swearing makes me cringe! Shut up and Stupid were swear words in my home growing up and I still don’t like saying them.
43. The Carpenters and Beach Boys are my all time Favorite vocal groups, but I also like The Association, the Lettermen, the Bee Gees (probably nobody else knows any of these), and the Temptations. My favorite soloist are John Denver, Andy Williams, Frank Sinatra (his early years) Neil Diamond and Nat King Cole.
44. I have only been in one accident in my whole life and it was a fender bender that I caused. No one was hurt and the damage to both cars was minimal, but it made us late for our Stake Roadshows. Seth probably remembers it. I did back our big black van (I hated the thing anyway) into a tree and smashed in the back window and the spare tire holding-thingy the day Seth had his major accident in the blue Festiva. (I was very shaken up by Seth’s accident, you know) And I did back our white van into Shyanne’s friend’s brand new mini van. I don’t consider these two things accidents……….they both happened in our driveway with monster vehicles and I just didn’t see the tree or the van!!!
45. I can’t wait until the last of our Festivas dies…. I am sick of them. (Seth, I will them both to you!!)
46. I really would like to have a Mini van again. I don’t need a sporty car that I would be afraid to scratch!!
47. I think I am generally a practical person, although I think I could get extravagant in some things………like fluffy pillows and blankets, new plush carpeting all over the house and some brand-new comfy furniture for my house……….and I really do want to get things finished and detailed around the house (Seth, maybe I need to hire you for the detail work, since Dad doesn’t like to do it and you do) ……..and maybe I could get into the whole land-scaping thing. But I know none of that will really make me happy…..hey, I have a huge house with no house payments!! That’s the best!
48. I am generally very easy going and don’t get too riled, and I try to keep my cool, but I have lost it several times, and usually only with my children. Why do we loose our temper easier with the ones we love the most? Sorry guys!!
49. I love teaching, especially gospel topics and especially about the Savior. It makes me love and appreciate more what he has done for me. But I only like to teach people younger than myself and ones not as knowledgeable as I am. ( I don’t like being intimidated) I hope I never have to teach Gospel Doctrine. Oh wait, I did do that when I was 20 something……..and it was very scary and intimidating for me and boring for the class!! Good thing it lasted for only a couple of months!
50. I have actually caught, killed, plucked, gutted, butchered, cooked and eaten a chicken all by myself. (I did not eat the whole thing NOR did I enjoy it)
51. Unlike most of my family, I have NEVER eaten raccoon!!
52. I have gone surfing on a real surf-board, in a real ocean, on real waves, in Hawaii….REALLY!
53. I have never gone snow skiing.
54. I love the smell of the big tall pine trees and the sound of the wind blowing through the tops of them. Such soothing sounds and smells!! Oh, and I love the sound of the ocean waves hitting the shore! What a way to relax!!
55. I love sleeping in a tent in the pines…….that’s the best!!

56. I absolutely LOVE the thunder storms here in Missouri…….the kind that rattle the whole house and light up the whole sky all at once!! I have to go outside and enjoy the show!
57. I don’t like having to come up with small talk when I am with people I don’t really know. But I do love visiting with family and friends……..that’s easy to do!!
58. I have never seen an R rated movie and there isn’t one out there that I have any desire to see.
59. I shook Pres Monson’s hand when he was a brand new apostle and came to dedicate our ward building in Mesa, AZ. I was about 6 or 7.
60. I grew up in Mesa AZ and I absolutely HATE the Southwestern/desert/Indian décor that everyone there uses. UGLY!!
61. I don’t mind people knowing my age, or telling people how old I am, or what year I was born. It’s no big deal, really. But I do occasionally have a hard time remembering exactly how old I am! (I am getting old!)
62. I really am a thin person underneath my layers of fat and I cannot wait to see what I will look like when I am resurrected. Yes, I am working on seeing what I used to look like when I was skinny, but let’s face it, those days are never to be seen again, not in this life anyway!!
63. I am NOT afraid of dying, just of pain. I think it will be awesome to pass on to the other side. But I don’t want to die until I have everything ready for me to leave. I mean, who is going to know what bill needs to be paid next, or where the extra checks are kept? And more importantly, who will take care of my husband if I go first? He has to go first, or we have to go together, that’s all there is to it. And, I can’t go until all my children are grown up and are grandparents themselves. I want to see my grandkids and great-grand kids. No, I am not afraid, just not ready.
64. I really don’t have a favorite color, which was obvious when I was planning our wedding reception. I couldn’t decide on one particular color, so I used them all and had all 6 of my brides-maids in different pastel colors.
65. I love old movies……..classics, musicals, comedies, adventure; (and Samuel, I don’t secretly hate sci-fi movies….most of them are ok, really, I just do not like the cheesy ones)…… and I only like movies that are uplifting and make you feel good, or make you laugh, or make you think. I do NOT like horror films, or anything dark and evil, or ones that end on a negative point.
66. I love to eat grapes and I love grape juice, but I do NOT like grape flavored sodas or candy, (except Jolly Rancher jelly beans).
67. I too, am looking forward to serving a mission or two. My secret desire is to be married to a mission president!!
68. I cannot read maps anymore, the writing is way to small, so don’t ask me to be your navigator!!
69. I love traveling, taking road trips and stopping at random places to go exploring, (EXCEPT New York City!!) but I also like to just keep going till we get to our destination. So I guess it is best to travel when we have lots of extra time to play, and a little bit of extra $ to spend. ( How often does that happen?)
70. I love my husband and children more than anything and would give or do anything to keep them healthy, happy, strong, righteous and safe.
71. I think I have THE MOST AWSOME family……. my husband, children, children in-law, grand children, parents and extended family on BOTH sides. How many people can say that they can spend a whole week with 100+ members of one family and enjoy the whole week, let alone live to tell about it!!
72. I have always loved to have my kids kiss me good-night…..but that tradition is quickly fading, as we only have 2 kids left at home, and only one of them will kiss me good-night, well, sort of, if you can call it that……the other one, whom I shall not name (ahemmm, ahemm, Stephen), refuses to comply. I am lucky if I get to kiss him on the cheek. It has been years since he has actually kissed his mother!! He does hug me, though. That works!
73. I don’t really like just having 2 kids left at home, it is boring, but I wouldn’t have my kids live at home when they should be out making their own lives, either!
74. I guess I am a home-body because I like to do things in my own home……..like having 3 of my own children born at home, home-schooling 4 of my kids, we eat 99.9% of our meals at home (we just never have eaten out that much), all my guys have gotten their hair cut at home, and so did the girls when they were living at home, we very seldom go to the movies….we watch movies at home. Yep, home is best!!
75. I drove around a little, blue, tin-can of a Volkswagon bug that my dad bought for $100 and fixed up for me when I was in High School. It was way cool because when you down-shifted from 3^rd to 2^nd, it would back-fire really loud…….a great attention getter. It was the favorite mode of transportation of all my friends, and they each had to autograph the inside of it before we left school our senior year. It was a great boy-chasing vehicle!!

76. I absolutely LOVE living in the country and not having to have to deal with neighbors. I even love it when we get flooded in and can’t go anywhere!!

77. I have lived in 10 states……

California

Arizona

Connecticut

Hawaii (loved it, loved it!!)

Missouri

Utah

Colorado

Kansas

Arkansas

Oklahoma

78. I hate it when people tell me that I look tired or sick when I actually feel great…..what a way to ruin the day!!

79. I love ice cream, any kind of ice cream, except Black Walnut and Cherry Vanilla, but I usually have to stay away from it because it gives me a stomach ache.

80. I like to drive when we are traveling through the night because I don’t have to worry about traffic, and everyone is asleep…no one bugs me about my driving. I like to turn on my oldies and just sing and eat carrots, Wheat Thins and chocolate.

81. I like Spring, but my favorite is the Fall………..no bugs, great colors and a nice retreat from the heat!! I like to open up all the windows and let the breeze blow through the house.

82. I like surprises, but only if I really want what I am getting. I hate getting things that I really don’t want or need. I HATED being surprised with the big, black hearse-of a van that Dad and Seth bought……ppptttthhhh!

83. I have lived in 23 different houses in my 51 years of living. That’s a lot of packing and moving and unpacking! I have lived in our present home now longer than any of my other homes!!

84. I played one of the “pick-a-little, talk-a-little” old ladies in our high school play of Music Man. (Cheep, cheep, cheep, talk a lot, pick a little more!!!)

85. I love music, most any kind, especially Easy Listening and the old big band songs from the 40s and 50s and what you guys call “oldies” from my younger days (the 60’s and early 70’s). I even like “elevator music”. Don’t like the new hard stuff, like rap (it is NOT music), hard, punk and acid rock, anything with screaming and lots of noisy, screeching guitars, etc.

86. I don’t care for Opera………well, except Pirates of Penzance, Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera……..stuff like that.

87. I have read the whole, original, fat, unabridged, French history-packed book of Les Miserables and plan on reading it again some day. Grandma C. has it, if you are interested. She bought it when they lived in France, 55 years ago!

88. I used to bite my fingernails, but I quit when we got engaged. I was determined to not have ugly fingers to put my beautiful engagement/wedding ring on.

89. I am the middle child of seven and loved having the option of being one of the older kids or one of the younger kids, depending on what was going on.

90. I have a thyroid disease that forces me to take a prescription to keep my thyroid in balance the rest of my life. If I don’t have the medication, my mind gets all foggy and I can’t think, I get really lethargic and gloomy, my blood pressure and cholesterol count goes through the roof and I get all swollen and puffy everywhere. Not a pretty site!! Keep those pills comin’!

91. I lived in Connecticut with my family for one summer when I was 10. We lived in a little apartment in a semi-high-rise complex that had the best cemetery across the street from it. It actually had pictures encased in glass on the tombstones of all the people buried there!! I spent a lot of time there. It was very interesting!

92. I can’t stand dirty bathrooms, it grosses me out. But then, it sometimes takes me longer than I like to get to cleaning the bathrooms (we have 4 of them, by the way) and when I am done, I can’t figure out why I waited that long to clean it because it is not that hard of a job!!

93. I like the “tangy zip of Miracle Whip” on my sandwiches…….with just a touch of mustard and lots and lots of lettuce.

94. I love nostalgic things from my childhood and my parents and grandparents childhood, like cars, (I DO NOT include Ford Pintos in that category!!) toys, movies, books, magazines, music, household items, etc.

95. I hate snakes. I don’t run and scream from them, I just walk away from them, but I don’t like them in my path, in my HOME or in my CAR.!
96. I hate being hot. It makes me sweat and I hate sweating because I sweat mostly on my face, head and scalp and it absolutely ruins my hair and my hair looks scary after I have been sweating!!
97. I love teaching seminary but I don’t like getting up at 5:15 every morning and driving 20 min to teach it.
98. I enjoy working with teenagers…… good teenagers. They make me laugh and I am totally amazed at the depth of their spirituality and testimonies.
99. I hate going to ward parties where the only thing you do is eat pot-luck. I mean, what’s the purpose in that? Who wants to stand in line to dish out food that you brought your self or try to figure out what in the world all the other dishes contain (surprise!) and which dozens of other people have picked through and tons of kids have touched and picked at and coughed and sneezed on. Then have to sit at a table that has mostly your own family at it anyway, make small talk and eat all that food that you really don’t know what it is, and watch the kids run around being noisy, spreading food all through the building, making a mess, then having to clean up the building from all that food and go home? I would rather go to a ward party to be entertained or to play games or something besides just eat!!
100. I do love eating at a restaurant occasionally……..ones where the waitress comes and takes your order and brings you your food and drink. The all-you-can- -eat buffets where you eat too much and feel stuffed when you are done, are ok once in a while but I like to be pampered.

I really am glad this whole 100 Random things got started. I have learned a lot about each of you and about myself!! This was NOT easy in any way!!

I TAG SHYANNE!!