8 facts meme, for Nay! : )

Nay tagged me as well, yay!!! : ) And although like I said, I did this one last year, I didn't see the harm of doing this one again! The rules are the same as the post down below! So, I won't cut and paste them again, if that's okay! Anyhow here ya go! And thanks for tagging me Nay! : )

1 One weird/unusual fact, I think I divulged this on another meme on this blog, was that I was a "water baby", my parents put me in a swimming program and I could swim before I could walk. Sounds weird, I know. But, it's sorta how I became a water person. My husband also grew up being a water loving type guy as well. No wonder our kids sorta followed in our foot steps, so to speak, huh? Ha ha ha. Meaning they both like water and swimming too. : )

#2, I was a pinch of a tomboy when I was little, lasted from about birth to about say age 12. You all have heard how I had a favorite climbing tree. How I was the best tree climber on my block. I also loved gardening with my parents, wearing my denim overalls myself, ha ha ha. At Easter and Christmas or for just plain ol' church on Sunday's when my parents made me wear a dress and tights and such, I really hated it. I grew up camping with my family every summer. We would bring tons of food in a cooler. Pop jiffy pop and makes smores at night. Go fishing and "skipping rocks' across the water. I loved throwing in an Oscar Meyer wiener in the fire and eating it straight off the stick! Yumm! Funny because when I got into high school, or my last year of junior high, I was not really a tomboy anymore at all. I became a girly girl, type girl. Ha ha ha. I loved prom, and homecoming. Was in student council, had tons of friends and a really serious boyfriend at the time. Puppy love, ahhhh! LOL.

#3, I'm actually a pretty good horse back rider. I have been riding horses since I was about 4 years old. They are smart and lovely animals. And nothing better then going for a nice horse ride in the Rocky Mountains on a real nice trail someplace.

#4, I have like 3 best friends, that I have had since *I* was in kindergarten! We all went to the same Catholic school. My first and closest out of them all was/is Renee. And then there's Amy and Kim. We've known each other our whole lives. Since before we even lost our baby teeth, ha ha ha! Same first grade, and all the way up until 12th grade. They all went off to Regis Uni (a Catholic uni we were all accepted and expecting to go) and I got cold feet...I wondered what else lay beyond the world I knew and grew up with....last minute I changed to a state uni. And that's where I met my hubs. But, I still see these girls, every chance I go back to Denver. I've been there for some of the births of their babies. And I'm a godmother to Renee's daughter. They love my 2 boys and send them gifts for holidays and I do the same in return. And my kids call them them "auntie" Ha ha ha. I feel lucky to have had friends that have lasted my life time up until now. And I guess that's why I am so glad B has found that type of friendship with Genki! It's a blessing to have friends like that really.

#5, I *loved* to roller-skate as I child. usually with my best friends. We'd cruise the rink. We'd all be *big spenders* with the 5-10 bucks in each of our pockets, lol! I'd buy a pretzel and a coke or maybe a hot dog. And then one of our mom's would pick us up. The mom's would all take turns. And I also loved doing the limbo on roller skates. Oh how hilarious when I think back on those silly times! Ha ha ha! : )

#6 I remember in the summer back when I was growing up, we would have these summer bazaars at the school/Catholic church and I recall since I was like in the first grade on up, always having to help out at these church bazaars. My dad would be making Italian sausage sandwiches with my aunties. And I would be filling up the drinks. When I got older, I also helped with the sandwiches. I loved my childhood and I looked forward to the bazaar every summer! My whole family took part at working/volunteering working it: )

#7, I love all animals.: ) And have owned both cats and dogs. But, I am definitely a dog lover! My first dogs name was Brownie! My second dogs name was Dinky (strange name for such a huge Labrador, lol)...Then there was Joseph (my dad's dog), and then our last 2 dogs belonged to both Noboru and I, were 2 Dalmatians. Named Megan and Andy. Megan was deaf, she was my dog, Andy was Noboru's dog/our dog. Nobody apparently wanted her because she was deaf? People down the block, thought she should be put to sleep.: ( But they asked us if we wanted her, since they knew we owned a Dalmatian already! Absolutely, I said. She was my best dog ever. I learned and then taught her some basics of American sign language. And she was the freaking coolest dog ever. My very best friend! She might not have been blessed with hearing. But she was doubly blessed with smarts, because she was the absolute coolest and best dog ever! Her other senses became sharper, I think then my hearing dog Andy's. My little Meggie Lou!!!! And yes, I even brought her to Osaka one year. She did the whole quarantine bit and all. Sadly she passed away 2 years ago, otherwise she'd be living here with us now. When I walk Branden to the "meet up point" I always run into dogs and their owners along the way, I always have to stop and pet them all! And I even stop and pet the kitty's that lay on the ground too, I guess I just really love animals. : )

#8, My name is obviously Gina. But, I have cousins with names that sorta sound similar with mine. I have a cousin Merina, a cousin Sabrina, and then there's me Gina. And then on my mom's side. My mom's sister (my aunt) named her younger daughter, (she's about 3 years younger then me) she named her Gina too (that made my mom a bit angry, a bit off topic. LOL.) But yeah, it's hilarious, in my family's there's a Gina, Merina, Sabrina, and then the other Gina. They call her "little Gina." And it's even funnier because she's about 7 feet tall (slight exaggeration, lol) and built like a linebacker. But she's "little Gina" Ha ha ha. And they call me, just "Gina" But in any case. there's a lot of "ina" sounding names in my family! Ha ha ha! And no, I don't mind in the least if my aunt named her daughter that. I really don't care about crazy stuff like that at all. Interesting fact though. : )

#9, the bonus fact. It's a little private and something I am quite guarded to say on here. But, my mom had breast cancer and beat it! : ) Noboru and I were just in our first year of marriage and I remember exactly, she phoned our little duplex Noboru and I had in Denver. And she called one evening and she said..."now Gina don't get upset when I tell you this" Okay this made me panic, it sounded so serious. I promised. And she told me. The second she said those words, I don't think I could hear anything after that. Shock set in. We were young newlyweds and so we drove from Denver Colorado, to California for my mom's surgery. She went through, chemo, radiation, having a lumpectomy, she endured everything. She lost her hair and as a woman that was really hard for her. But she survived it. And she's my hero! For that reason, although I have many other reasons but, I always donate to breast cancer research. Buy and wear the pink ribbons. Or buy things that the purchases go to research. Do, I worry someday I might get it? Shit yes, I do!!!! But, I know worry won't get me far! So I hope, pray and I take precautions as best I can. : ) I think for a family dealing with cancer. It's also hard for the family too, because we all felt so helpless. Just at the mercy of the very wonderful doctors and if their body would fight it off. And what type of cancer it was to begin with. For us, I felt really helpless. I wanted to help so much. But at the same time felt there's not much I could do. So, I just started reasearching everything and anything I could about breast cancer. It sorta gave me something to do. Made me feel, I was more helpful and certainly knew the right questions to be asking the doctor and stuff But yeah, we had many a dark days during that time in our family. Could be one reason I am so big with family and togetherness. I think because I have seen first hand, how it all can be taken away so very quickly. So, I don't wanna take anything for granted. Certainly not my family or my family time. : )

Thanks for tagging me Nay! And again, I won't tag anyone, since I think everyone's already done this one! : )