5Q.

{a favorite childhood toy: see question 1. source}

I stumbled on a random blog one day called 5 Crooked Halos and this blogger has a feature called 5 Question Friday and this week I thought it would be fun to play along.

1. What is one thing you miss the most about childhood?

I have to pick only one thing? That's a toughy. Of course there's, not seeing one bill or that the refirgerator was always filled with food. But, if I'm thinking in terms of my childhood aged 5-teenage years, it would be the simplicity of the day--of my life, really. Hmm, wonder why I named my blog Project Simple Life. Maybe it's because I want a little slice of that back. That carefree, 8-year-old me who would wake up early in the summer, and even before breakfast, would be playing Barbies on the floor of my room. Who would follow the rules her parents set out of only riding my bike on my block and the surrounding block and being perfectly content for hours and hours even though it's the same route. No schedules. No lists. Now, if I have to tackle a part of my life, I can't do it without writing a list, checking off each little handmade box as I accomplish the task. I was satisfied with being myself, not listening to critique or judgments from others. I didn't evaluate what I did {as I do now--hello, college}, I simply did it because it made me happy.

2. Are you still friends with your friends from high school?

My high school experience was unique. I went to school at a small, private, Lutheran high school, that was also a college and seminary. It was unique in the way the students there acted. I was always surrounded by Christian friends and we had deeper relationships than the typical high schoolers do. Since high school ended 4 years ago, and many have moved away, I have still remained close with a handful of my old girlfriends--friends who I can depend on, who I can get advice from. The relationships that we have together have endured recent trials and been built up stronger since our Christian love for one another comes from God. He knows that we need friends who at all times--Proverbs 17:17.

{My sweet high school girlfriends and I: love at all times}

3. Is there a catch phrase, cliche, or word that just drives you bonkers every time you hear it?
This question kind of threw me. I haven't ever though of words as giving me the heebee-jeebees. I know there are words I don't like that have the same affect on me, like when someone scratches styrofoam, words like "raw" and "moist". I also don't like when people overpronounce words: "Chippewa" and "Wisconsin" --big slip-ups in my part of the country. I'm also not pleased that the phrase "Git R Done" is popular, come on, let's talk like intelligent humans here. I have the horrible habit recently, of over-using "It is what it is". Everytime I hear myself saying it, I think "How many times have I said that today?"

4. What is one thing that you think symbolizes America...besides "Old Glory"?
Ironically, I read Ryan's post about the 4th and how products seem to overshadow true patriotism. He mentions that the 4th of July has become a "Made in China" holiday. {Seriously, read it...he does have a disclaimer that he's being sarcastic, but I still thought about how the topic applied to me.} I would think that the Statue of Liberty would be up there, but ever since I started going on family vacations every summer, to me, it's America itself--the beauty of the national parks really stands out to me. The landmarks that we have seen {Niagara Falls, Grand Canyon, Disney World, Space Needle, Boston, Mount Rushmore, etc} make me thankful that I live in such a great country.

5. What are your 4th of July weekend plans?
Well, I can't tell you about the super secret event we having going on tomorrow afternoon, but I can tell you that I get to see my sister and brother. I love when all of us can come together. We are being pulled in a lot of different directions this year, with a baseball game invitation, a cook-out, a traditional fireworks viewing--so we'll have to see if we get everything done. Read about my 4th of Ju-ly memories: here.  The nice thing is that our weekend stretches over Fri.-Mon. I love when that happens.

Happy 4th of July weekend, friends. Go out and celebrate. And eat as much watermelon as you can :)