Five Question Friday

1. What is your favorite fall family tradition?
Does eating donuts count? Probably not since that’s a year-round tradition 🙂 I’d say going to Schwallier’s Country Basket, north of town. They have cider, apples, pumpkins, a corn maze, a wagon ride, goats to pet and feed, bunnies for cuddling, a corn box (a sandbox with corn) and a giant tube slide (and also, donuts). We love going there – though it’s a little crazy on the weekends, still super fun for everyone!

2. If money weren’t an issue, how many kids would you have?
I’d like to say three or four, because if money weren’t an issue, then I’d stay home full time, but our reality is such that both of us work and I can’t imagine a) the cost of daycare for two more kids or b) my husband wanting to take care of two more small children when he’s not at work and vice versa, my having them while he is at work – tag-team parenting as we do it, works for two or less children (at least for us).

3. If you were to get a tattoo, what would it be and where would you put it?
I have a tattoo, it’s the Chinese symbol for happiness on the inside of my left ankle. I got it when I was 22 with my two [then] roomies – Jenny got one on her back and Kara on the outside of her ankle. Jenny and I went first and totally lied to Kara about how much it hurt, knowing that if she really knew, she wouldn’t go through with it because she was a bit of a wimp about pain. Sorry about that, Kara. 🙂

If I were to get another one, it would either be a quote… something short, sweet and meaningful or my kids’ names or initials with a heart all intertwined.

I’m trying to convince my hubby to get one, either a Southern Cross (constellation they see in the southern hemisphere which is also on the Australian flag) or the same Chinese symbol as mine, because the double happiness characters mean marriage.

4. What condiment is a must in your house?
Mustard and barbeque sauce share equal rank in our household with ketchup left in the dust.

5. How did your spouse/fiance propose?
My tricky husband had a big surprise set up for me but to get his plan to work, he had to get me out of the house on that particular Sunday morning, normally this wouldn’t have been a problem as I would be going to church, but I had been sick with tonsilitis that week and wasn’t really feeling up to going to church so he enlisted the help of my BFF Kara (the aforementioned pain wimp) and had her call and arrange for us to go out for coffee after church – ensuring that I would get out of the house for church so I could meet Kara and go for coffee. I knew something was probably up then but I was also feverish so I didn’t think too hard about it. When I got home my surprise was waiting for me (my garage is at the back of the house and on the same level as my basement so when you enter the house, the basement stairs are the first thing you see)… so before me, on those steps, was an array of candles and rose petals and at the top of the stairs was Simon, waiting with a big grin and beautiful ring. I walked upstairs, he proposed and I said yes! And then we ate lunch, which he had picked up from Panera – where we had our first date. And then we called a bunch of people and told them the wonderful news! Happy day (see below)!