200th Post-Another Countdown

First things first, Ally is doing incredibly well. She was released from Stanford yesterday morning and is recovering at home. We're SO thankful that all went so well. She's a special little girl. Such a fighter and such a love. We just love her so much and are thankful she's on the road to recovery. Keep praying for her healing and thank you for praying for her so faithfully!

Now for my 200th post. Ha! I've decided that I like countdowns. It was fun to do one right before Elliana was born and hey, it's been awhile so...in honor of my 200th post, I'm going to take the next ten posts to give you my Top 10 Blog Posts from the last 200. I know I'll be repeating myself. I know it's not new material. But...nevertheless, it'll be fun.

And to kick it off, I thought I'd start with this one, which was originally posted as my 100th post (I'm into being sentimental and celebratory here, can you tell?) I'm going to update it a little but, in essence it's still the same. Here it is: One Hundred.

Well folks, this is my 100th post. It's been about a year since I started this humble little blog and it's become a dear friend where I can get the millions of words floating in my head down somewhere. So thanks for listening...whoever you are out there.

In honor of my 100th post, I'm going to attempt to come up with 100 things about me and our family. Not sure if I'll make it but I'll try.

1. We are Christians and we love the Lord and do our best to follow Him in everything we do.
2. We've been married for almost 9 years.
3. We've known each other for ten.
4. Our fourth, a daughter, was born on our 10 year dating anniversary of 6/25/10.
5. We have three little boys and a little girl.
6. They're all about a year and a half apart.
7. The boys all have Bible names but we didn't plan it that way. We just liked their meanings and so that's how they got their names.
8. We both graduated from the best university in the world...Cal Poly, SLO! Go Mustangs!
9. I graduated with a BA in English.
10. Steve got his BS in Math. I know, I know, we're a perfect match!
11. If my husband is ever gone overnight I simply cannot sleep. I'm so conditioned now to having him next to me, that I'm like a baby who has to fall asleep the same way and I simply can't do it without him!
12. In order to cope with his absence, I've learned to stay up as late as I can making me so sleepy that I'm literally knocked out until the morning without missing him. Good thing he doesn't leave overnight all that often.
13. I love to sing.
14. I love to bake.
15. I love to cook.
16. I love to entertain and have people over.
17. I'm not so great at all of the fun party stuff (I'm not the life of the party) but I can have my house cleaned and food made on time.
18. I don't like cats much at all.
19. But I do love dogs.
20. I love running. It's a huge stress reliever for me. I love running so much that when I'm pregnant, I miss it like I do a close friend. I ran my first Half Marathon in November 2009.
21. Running that Half Marathon was one of the biggest accomplishments I've made since becoming a mom. It was an incredible experience for me.
22. Russian literature is one of my favorite genres.
23. Dostoevsky is by far my favorite Russian writer.
24. Cake and ice cream is probably my favorite combination in a dessert. Or really, anything fresh from the oven with ice cream.
25. I'm a sucker for sweets although I try so hard to have self-control.
26. Speaking of self-control...after I went to college and earned the "freshmen 15" I ended up having to lose 40 lbs total a year after we got married.
27. I did it with Weight Watchers.
28. It worked so well I've used Weight Watchers after every child. So if you count that up, it means that in seven years' time, I've done that program five times. We're old pals.
29. I weighed more at that time in my life than I ever have full-term with any of my four children.
30. As you can see, I stopped running for awhile in college and that's what got me in trouble.
31. I love my friends and am fiercely loyal.
32. I got married when I was 21.
33. I had my first child at 24.
34. I'm pretty stubborn (ask my husband).
35. Yet even though I'm stubborn, God's really worked on me so much that I've learned to willingly submit to my husband. And really, I'm much happier that way. It helps that I respect him tremendously.
36. I don't like shopping because I don't like spending money.
37. Still, whenever we make a big purchase, I make Steve do it and I have a mini heart attack while he's doing so.
38. Did I already mention...I HATE spending money.
39. But I am a sucker for King Arthur Flour and Pampered Chef. I hardly ever buy anything (only accumulate slowly) but I love fun kitchen gadgets.
40. The last thing I ever want to do in a situation is give up. I hate quitting...almost to a fault.
41. I was in numerous plays and musicals in high school.
42. I still love going and hearing a good choir concert.
43. I was a cheerleader for one year in high school and then I was done with that. Too much drama.
44. I was on Homecoming Court as a senior (our school only allowed seniors on court) but didn't win Queen. But my best friend did so I was happy.
45. I didn't have my first real drink until I turned 21. It was a margarita. I wasn't impressed.
46. I'm still not a huge fan of alcohol.
47. I don't really like coffee either unless it's a frappaccino but that doesn't count because you can't even taste the coffee.
48. I like tea a lot and I drink it black. Who wants to waste calories on honey?
49. Good Earth tea is my favorite.
50. I also love a big Diet Coke with some mini York Peppermint patties.
51. Three to be exact.
52. Because you can't just have one.
52. Two is nice.
53. But three makes you feel like you really splurged and got a treat even though they're really little.
54. I love ice cream.
55. Pralines and Cream from Baskin Robbins is my favorite.
56. But I usually eat light ice cream and I measure it into a 1/2 cup and eat it out of the measuring cup with a spoon. Safeway Select Light Moose Tracks is my absolute favorite.
57. I love to fall asleep on the couch. I get this from my mom.
58. I love it when I have fallen asleep on the couch and my husband scoops me up and carries me to bed...even when I'm huge pregnant. I love that.
59. I don't like scary movies or shows.
60. I usually have nightmares after watching shows with a lot of intensity or suspense.
61. My husband has banned me from these shows. Probably because I wake him up in the middle of the night scared with a nightmare.
62. I like microwave popcorn. 94% fat free to be exact.
63. And I like to burn mine just slightly. It tastes oh so good.
64. I like to chew Extra sugar-free gum.
65. Peppermint is my favorite.
66. I picked up that habit in Jr. High as an act of rebellion (we weren't supposed to chew gum in school) and I haven't kicked it yet.
67. All 3 of my boys have gone breech at some point toward the end of my pregnancies.
68. The little girl is the only one who never did. Figures.
69. My husband didn't kiss me until we had been dating for four months. Believe me, he wanted to, but he held out and I'm glad he did. That helped us slow things down enough to make it to our wedding day.
70. I'm Greek and proud of it.
71. I went to Greek School as a kid. I can read at the first grade level (ha ha). I can speak a little.
72. My two favorite Greek dishes to make are Spanakopita (Spinach Pie) and Pastitsio (like a Greek Lasagna, kinda)
73. I've been to Europe three times.
74. I hope to go back with my husband someday. He's never been.
75. Probably won't be until we're empty nesters.
76. Which isn't for a loooooooooonnnnnnnnngggggggg time!
77. I'm the only girl in my family.
78. I have an older brother and little brother.
79. I also have NO girl cousins. So I truly am the only girl.
80. My siblings and I have holiday birthdays. I'm born on St. Patty's Day and my brothers both share the same birthday (8 years apart) and their birthday regularly falls on Thanksgiving.
81. I love football.
82. I seriously enjoy watching football on TV or at a live game.
83. The 49ers are and always have been my team. Good thing I married a 49er fan.
84. We don't have TV so whenever Steve goes to a 49er game (we have season tickets that we share), I listen to the game on the radio or "watch" it on nfl.com so that I know what went on in the game and how to talk with him about it.
85. My older brother taught me everything I know about football.
86. Steve has just reaped the benefits.
87. But all other sports don't interest me much (at least enough to sit and watch them).
88. I once took a Calculus class at Cal Poly as an elective to try and understand my husband's love for math. I was the ONLY English major in that class of engineers.
89. If I didn't have a live-in tutor at the time (Steve and I were married), it probably would've been the only class I ever failed.
90. I got a B-...by the skin of my teeth. And I cried after every exam.
91. I never missed one class in college. Not one.
92. One of my favorite things to do with Steve is to sit outside, on a warm summer evening after the kids have gone down and talk. You know chit chat...you surprised?
93. I hate to iron. If Steve didn't need nice clothes ironed for work I'd never, ever, ever iron.
94. But I don't mind dishes at all.
95. And my kitchen must be spotless with every dish put away or in the dishwasher and the floor swept before I can go to bed. I'm very determined and anal about this.
96. That started when we lived in the country and I discovered that if I wasn't clean, I'd get mice. Yuck!!!! I learned very quickly to love a clean kitchen.
97. I love my husband more than anyone...including my children.
98. I love my children second best but still tons and tons and tons.
99. I love my extended family very, very much.
100. But I love my Savior best of all.