Eight Cubed & Mary Squared on Follow Friday - 40 & Over

It's time for FOLLOW FRIDAY - 40 and Over with JAVA over at NEVER GROWING OLD and I'm linking up with her today.  It's a great way to make new friends and find wonderful new blogs to read.  If you are visiting from there or someplace else,  WELCOME!  I'm so happy you took some time to stop in and visit me today.  If you haven't linked up with JAVA today or visited her wonderful blog, why don't you head over there when you leave here and tell her that I sent you.  You will be glad you did!

What is this post  "Eight Cubed and Mary Squared" about, you ask?  

This is a story about a Mary and another Mary tagging me in a game of Eight Cubed.  What is Eight Cubed, you ask?  Eight cubed is where Eight people get to answer Eight questions and then tag Eight of their friends with Eight questions of their own.  Get it?  Got it!  Good!

So I struggled a bit with this when Mary at Food Floozie first tagged me.  While the questions she posed seemed much easier to answer than the questions she had answered herself,  I tend to over-think things and I always like to add photos which is time consuming.  Then Mary at Life in a Small Town tagged me with eight more and she told me that she answered her questions by not "over-analyzing" them.  I am taking her advice and answering them now.  Hopefully, you will stick around to the end and get to know me a little better.

 First for Mary at Food Floozie's questions -

What is your favorite work of art?

I am a lover of art in many forms.  I don't have a particular work of art that is my favorite.  Photography, I think, is my favorite form of art.  There are so many gifted photographers out there and I love to view their work.  

When I visit museums, the Renaissance art section is a must-see.  This summer we were able to view a special exhibit in Houston of Charles Russell.  He was a painter in the late 1800's and early 1900's whose subjects were the landscapes of the western United States, the Native American and the Cowboys.  I was blown away at his use of light in his paintings.  He was like the Thomas Kinkade of the western art world.  Looooved it!!

What do you collect, if anything?

Nothing!  At least, I don't collect anything intentionally.  I do have several "like" items....but I am in the process of weeding through those.  We are simplifying our lives by simplifying our possessions.   I hope to have a lot fewer "like" items when it's all said and done.

What faith were you raised in? 

And do you still belong to that one, or have you found another, or ...?

I was raised in the Christian faith and I still follow that.  My family belonged to the Southern Baptist denomination; but I don't consider myself that at all.  It has been many years since I've attended a Southern Baptist Church on a regular basis.   The last organized church that I attended was Assembly of God.  Now, my husband and I are followers of Christ and fellowship with a body of believers in a home atmosphere...not in an organized church.   I think it's more about relationship for us than it is about "religion" and "denomination". 

What is your favorite flavor of jelly/jam to use for a PB&J?

Grape....if I have to buy it. 

Growing up, my mother and grandmother always made our jelly, jams and preserves and I longed for store bought jelly.  My neighbor always had the best Grape Jelly and I loved eating at her house so that I could have some of that yummy stuff.   I still like it a lot and it's my choice of anything commercial.  Now, I long for my mom's Strawberry Figs and my Mamaw's Pear Preserves...and that wonderful Mayhaw Jelly.  I can find that around here locally and it's great....but it's not my Mamaw's. 

What song did or would you play for your first dance 

together at your wedding reception?

My husband and I didn't have a wedding reception.  In fact, we didn't really even have a "wedding".  We eloped and got married at a Courthouse by the filing cabinets with not one person that we knew with us.  Someday we will renew our vows with our family and friends and if we have music and dancing and a reception, I would choose "Me & You" by Kenny Chesney.  It just says so much about our relationship and our love for one another.

What is your favorite charity?

My favorite charity is a local mission called Grace Place.  They run a soup kitchen and clothes ministry and just minister to the community in the most incredible ways with the love of Jesus.  I am blessed every time I step onto the property there and every time I write my check and send it to them.

Nuts in brownies -- yea or nay?

Yea.....definitely......once upon a time, I wouldn't touch a brownie with nuts...but now, I love them!

What is your favorite cookbook, the one you rely on time after time?

I don't have one that I go back to time and again.   I love cookbooks and I read them like books....but when it comes time to prepare something, I rarely use one.  If I have to choose my favorite that I enjoy looking at, it would be this one....

Now for the questions from Mary at Life in a Small Town:

Did you play a sport in high school?  If so, which one(s)?

No, I didn't.  No sports for me.  I played basketball in junior high and hated it.

If you watch Food Network, what is your favorite show and 

who is your favorite personality on the network?

Favorite???  I have to choose a favorite????   I want to eat at Bobby Flay's house....hands down.....although I love to follow Guy Fieri around when he does Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.  That is how we found Niko Niko's!  Not that I have anything against Giada and Ellie and Aarti, understand.  Looove them too!  And now, I've gotten a free preview of the Cooking Channel that is about to go away in like 6 days.....and oh my.....I sure wish that I could do "a la carte" on my satellite.

What is the job around the house that you dislike the most?

That would have to be either dusting.....or putting away the clothes.....or anything outside these days!  Thank God David doesn't mind the outside heat.

Name one person or defining moment in your life 

that made you who you are today.

Although meeting David was a pivotal point in my life and a lot of things changed...including me.....my decision to follow Jesus has definitely been more instrumental in making me who I am.

Who/what do you look toward for you inspiration?

I look to my faith for inspiration.  Anything else for me leads me down the wrong path.

Are you one of those women who insists on wearing 

makeup before you step foot out of the house?

YES!  I am my mother's daughter.  Occasionally, I might sneak out without my "face fixed" completely....but that's rare...and I have to be going someplace out of the way....like the pool.

What is the one item of makeup that you never do without?

Just one?  Please God don't let me just have to live with one item of makeup!  Daily, I wear foundation, powder, lipstick, eyeliner, mascara and sometimes shadow.  If I have to choose one of those, it would be eyeliner.  I am scary without it.  My eyes look sick. 

What is your favorite story in the Bible?

My husband and I have been talking a lot about Joseph lately and how God allowed his dream to die or so he thought.  It's very relational for us right now because we feel that the Lord gave us a dream about five years ago and we thought it was really imminent....and then it died.  We really thought we missed God with that one and we moved forward with life.  Recently, this dream has been revived in a new way and with a new passion and understanding.  I told David recently that I felt like that initial dream that we had was a desire put into our hearts by God but that we weren't ready for it at the time He gave it to us.  If we had gone forward at that time, we would have messed it all up big time.  He knew we weren't ready at that time.   Consequently, the dream had to die, circumstances had be put into place, we had to do some growing and changing before He could resurrect it and bring it to fulfillment.    We were reminded recently that the same thing happened to Joseph.   God showed him his future early but he was not ready and that time wasn't right.  Many things had to happen and Joseph had to get to the place that God needed him to be in order to use him.  Not that we have anything so great in our future....but the concept is the same.  God's timing isn't the same as ours.


So those are my Eight Cubed answers thanks to Mary Squared.  If you are still reading at this point, thank you for hanging with me.  I hope you got to know me a little better. 

Now for the part you have been dreading anticipating! 

Who am I going to tag and what will I ask?

My questions....

1.   When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up and are you living that dream?

2.   Do you have a Bucket List?  If so, what is the one thing on that list left to fulfill that means the most to you?

3.   What is the best thing you ever ate? 

4.   What is your most memorable birthday?

5.   Who was your best friend when you were a child and are you still friends?

6.    What was the best piece of advice your Mother ever gave you?

7.    If you had a child today, what would you name him/her?

8.   Tell me about one of your favorite family holiday traditions - any holiday you choose.

I'm going to name Eight people because as I've told you before, I'm a rule follower these days.  If you are tagged and don't want to play, that's okay.  I release you from the obligation!!  If I didn't name you and you would like to play along, please feel free to do so...but please let me know so that I make sure and see your answers.  I am interested in hearing from each and every one of you!  If you would rather answer in the comment section than do a blog post, by all means, go right ahead!

Now for my Eight.....

Coffee Junkie

Jessica @ Heart on Homestead

Gypsy Heart

Carol - The Gardener

Cranberry Morning

Kate @ Southern Belle Simple

Diane Estrella

Kelly @ Blessed Mommy, Blessed Wife

Have a great weekend everyone! I'm off to see Java and the eight lucky winners.