The Best Things in Life are Free

   "The best things in life are free."
   It's been said a million times. Probably everyone has either said it, heard it or read it. It's not really an uncommon phrase. Is it true though? I guess it's a personal thing, depending on what you think are the best things in life. I think some of the best things in life are...

• cats
• blueberry bagels with cream cheese and strawberry jelly
• Kit-Kat bars
• books
• astronomy
• makeup
• love
• hair bands (like the thing that holds your hair up)
• hair bands (like that rock music from the 80's)
• music in general
• popcorn
• comfy, oversized shirts
• essential oils
• macaroni and cheese
• fans
• grass
• coffee
• movies
• journals
• sarcasm
• The Holy Trinity (Note: I couldn't decide what to write for this, cause I didn't want to just write God, cause different people see God as different things, and I wanted to include Jesus, cause of the whole salvation thing, but God and Jesus are like the same thing, so I went with The Trinity, cause religion is complicated. Thank you for your patience.)
• lip balm
• Reader's Digest
• technology
• credit cards with the chip in them (Note: Not really. The chip cards suck and everyone hates them for good reason, but I figured they needed some love.)

   So as I wrote this list, I discovered that most of my favorite things actually aren't free. Does this mean that I'm materialistic and the best things in life for other people are actually free? Possibly.

   Pretty much everything costs something. In the bathroom at work, there's a little note card tucked in the mirror. I don't remember exactly what it says, but it's a little prayer. In the middle of the prayer, it says something like, "May what I do with today be important, for I am exchanging a day of my life for it."

   I think that's an interesting thought to keep in mind. Have a wonderful weekend!

Happy Easter

  This Easter was an eventful one, to say the least. I didn't have work on Good Friday, nor did we have homeschool group. We went shopping in the morning to pick up a few groceries. After returning home and putting away the groceries, my brother and I went outside and played a little basketball. That evening, we went to a restaurant for my aunt's birthday.
   We had never been to this restaurant before, and I don't believe we will be visiting again. For how expensive the food was, you would've thought it would have been delicious. I thought mine was okay, and so did my brother, while mom found her food practically inedible.
   We headed out as soon as we got the check. I had work in the morning and it was getting late. On Saturday, we had Easter dinner at my dad's parents. I had work until 4:30 and got home about 10 minutes until we had to leave for dinner. I got changed, brushed my hair, put on some eyeliner and was out the door.
   We were supposed to eat at 5, but half the family didn't show up until 5:30. We ate soon after that. Sometime after dinner, we had an Easter egg hunt. I hunted for Easter eggs along with my brother and a couple of our younger cousins. It was fun.
   After the egg hunt, my aunt, her boyfriend, my brother and I played whiffle ball and volleyball for a while. Another cousin of ours joined us for a little of whiffle ball, and that was that. After the outside games were done, I mostly sat at the kitchen table by myself eating macaroni and cheese out of a plastic cup. It wasn't the most fun I've ever had.
   This morning, I woke up early enough to watch a little TV, then we headed to church. I had childcare, so that means I got to sit in a miniature chair for an hour and a half, watching toddlers waddle about in their Sunday best. It wasn't all bad; I got hold of the bag of pretzels and handed them out to the children, breaking them into small pieces for those who were unable to chew super well.
   Right after church, we went to my grandma's (on my mom's side of the family this time), and had an Easter lunch. It was enjoyable. We played a board game called Sale of the Century, a game based off a game show from when my mom was a kid. It's pretty fun.
   After we left my grandma's, we went home for a little bit, then my brother and I went to gym night. Gym night is a thing our church does at our local high school's gym. After returning home from that, we had pancakes. All in all, I had a good Easter weekend. Busy, but enjoyable. :)

I'm Back + Bentonite Clay Face Mask

   So I haven't posted in a while, I know, I know. I'm going to try and post more frequently. These past few months have been incredibly busy and I haven't really found the time or inspiration to post. To sum up the missed time, I can say it was mostly work, school, sleep and Bible quizzing. Bible quizzing is almost over for the season, so I should have a bit more free time coming up. :)

   I worked a full day today. After I arrived home, I ate dinner while my grandma visited, then my grandfather stopped down. After he left, we went and visited my lovely aunt and her daughter. While we were there, we did bentonite clay masks. It was the first time I had ever done one, and I really liked the results.
   If you would like to try your hand at your own bentonite clay mask, it's incredibly simple. Take a small amount bentonite clay powder and put it in the palm of your hand, then add some water to make a paste. Rub the paste into your skin, then leave on until fully dry. Your face will feel tight when it dries. You can remove the mask by washing off your face or wiping with a damp wash cloth. I would recommend moisturizing, but it is not a requirement. :) If your face begins to itch or sting while the mask is on, remove immediately.

A Field Trip For a Snowy Day

   Today, our homeschool group went on a field trip. We went to a local creamery where they make a variety of cheeses. We sampled cheese curds, looked in the rooms where they age the cheese, watched them make feta cheese and ate a lunch of grilled cheese and tomato soup in an open area in the back. It wasn't a bad tour.
   We were to arrive at 12:45, and the tour started at 1:00. First, we stayed in the main area for a bit, while the lady introduced us to the place and whatever. Turns out, we got to play a game during the whole thing, where if you heard the word 'curd' you had to try and be the first the raise your hand. if you gave the correct definition of what a curd was, you got to wear a cheese shaped hat. Oh yes, a cheese shaped hat. It was terrible looking, and needless to say, I did not raise my hand.
   After that, we went into an employees only area and had lunch, surrounded by the aging rooms. Lunch wasn't bad, though it wasn't like the best food I'd ever had. Grilled cheese (with cheese made at the creamery), tomato soup, two fried cheese curds (which they also made there) and a pickle, severely lacking in crunch (though I still ate my pickle and one of my friends) was what we were served.
   After lunch, they started showing us around the back room which we were in. They showed us where they package the cheese, and how tare weight worked and why it was important. The next rooms we looked into were the aging rooms. The first room was where they were aging Swiss cheese. There were only 6 wheels of cheese in that room, I believe. They had just started making Swiss. The next roomed smelled strongly of mold and bacteria. Why? It was the room with the Havarti and Cheddar. The third and final room didn't smell bad, but it was the specialty cheese, the kinds mixed with herbs and such things.
   Finishing the back room tour, we headed out to the front and watched from a large, observation window into the cheese making room. The woman who was leading the tour told us about what they were doing and such, and after that was finished, the tour was over. The whole thing took about two hours.
   After the tour was finished, I stood and talked with one of the women I used to work with. That was one of the highlights of today. I enjoy her. :) Overall, it wasn't a bad experience. Now I am certain, I don't want to become a cheese maker.