Fantastic Five Meme

Five steps, five questions...I stopped at Tug and Regina and saw this meme. I enjoyed reading Regina's answers and thought it would be fun to do since I'm in need of material to blog about (as if four kids aren't enough). I would also enjoy the chance to interview other bloggers! Regina came up with some really neat questions.

Here's how it works:
1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. I will respond by e-mailing you 5 questions.
3. You update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You include this explanation and an offer to interview others.
5. When you receive the comment from another, you will send them 5 questions.

Here are Regina's questions and my answers:

1. How did you come up with your blog title and, since I didn't know the old blog, why did you create a new one?
::Prosapia Vita means Family Life in Latin. If it is incorrect and someone familiar with Latin knows better, please please correct me! I chose it because I was in a hurry and couldn't come up with anything more creative but I wanted it to be a little unique and also reflect my Roman Catholic roots (thus the Latin). Also, the blog was/is not meant to be so much about me as it is my family. This is a sort of diary for me and for my children. The old one was "[our last name] Six" but my husband was uncomfortable with our name being in the url and the title, so I changed it to reflect his wishes for a little more privacy.

2. If you had one mulligan (do-over) in life, but the ending would still be where you are now (in terms of husband, kids, etc.) what would it be?
::I would definitely have finished college. I would have chosen an easier major, stuck with it, and finished for the sake of finishing. I started out in Fisheries and Wildlife and studied that for a year, decided that I wanted to teach high school science, changed to the Teacher's College, stayed there for two years, and then decided that I loved Geology so much that I wanted to study that, which I did for about a year and a half. The last semester that I was in school, I took Chemistry II, Calculus, and Geochemistry (Calculus + chemistry) all in the same semester. It was the most difficult semester of my entire career. I barely left campus except to work (I was also working full time), cried a lot, and missed more sleep than the mother of a colicky newborn. I made it all the way to finals week, showed up for my Calculus final, and decided that I couldn't do it. I left campus, went home, and went to bed. A few months later I got married and then we had children.

3. What do you like best about living in Nebraska?
::First and foremost, we live here because our families are here. That being said, I love the sunsets. I love the smell of the prairie grass and the cornfields when they're hot from the summer sun. I love the rivers and the rolling hills. I love the spring when everything is turning green and the fall when the trees and shrubs are changing from green into brilliant golds, reds, oranges, and every other color under the sun. The people here are a lot like me; most Nebraskans are Catholic (or more than any single denomination), and most are conservatives like me. We also have a Unicameral non-partisan legislature. If you don't know what that is, click the link to read about it. It's interesting.

4. You seem to do a great job in the preschool teaching department, what made you decide to send your kids to Catholic school and not homeschool?
::Thanks for the compliment; I always feel like I'm never doing enough. We decided together to send our children to our parish school for several reasons. We believe that no matter whether we homeschool or send our children to a school that we are their primary teachers. I have confidence in myself as a teacher and believe that if all of my children were of school age, I could homeschool without a problem. I also trust the faculty at our parish school. I know the teachers and I know the parents of the other students. I trust my children with the teachers and with the other students. I feel that at this point, as demanding as my smaller children are, that my girls get more out of being in a classroom setting than they would from me trying to corral Isaiah and Noah while teaching them in broken 2 minute increments (sense the frustration in that statement? This is what crafts and homework time feels like). In addition, our parish school is very affordable at a mere $100 per year per child plus books. I love being part of its community!

5. If you could witness anything in the Old Testament, what would it be and why?
::I didn't even have to think about this one: I would witness creation in fast forward. I believe that God created the earth and that science is an explanation of how He did it. I believe that creation happened not in seven 24-hour days but over millions of years, slowly evolving, with God tweaking things here and there. I believe that God created man this way, breathing a soul into man at a point where His creation pleased Him enough to bestow this supernatural gift. I want to see the stars and planets formed. I want to see the mountains being built (orogenies for you Geology hounds) and the evolution of creatures from water to land and for some, back into the water. I want to see the continents dividing and the early days of man and his beginning. I want to see how He did it!

So...that's my Fantastic Five. Any takers!?

Update: Regina's follow-up question is, "so if family weren't an issue (will follow you wherever you would go), where would you rather live (i think i have a pretty good guess on this one)."
::My answer? Colorado, Colorado, Colorado. Preferably in the house that was hiding right behind the evergreens in the picture that's in the header of the blog. I took that picture back in 2005 between Salida and Buena Vista. I also realize that just because this part of Colorado is a Heaven on Earth for me that it isn't necessarily perfect. Moms there still have to get up and make breakfast, change diapers, and wipe food off of the floor five times in a day. I just think that it would be even better to do all of these things with such a breath taking view. Luckily, I one of my sisters lived in Salida for a few years and I was able to stay with her about once a year. Then my sister-in-law got married. Her husband's father has a ranch near Buena Vista which we are welcome to visit. I love to be in Colorado. I love the feel of the air, the smell of the evergreens and the Aspens. I love the clear rivers and the daily thunderstorms. The mountains make me feel very small and that's a good reminder of who's really in charge.