Happy Things: Days 8-10 - Finishing Up

This post will complete my 10-day series on daily Happy Things.  One thing that committing to do this each day has done is forced me to look through the mundane and routine, even through the bad (like the flu) to find some good and positive and encouragement.  That is something that I will continue to do and post about for sure!  And even though it's called "Happy" Things, I think it points more towards Joy, which is continuous even in the midst of trials and tribulations, as opposed to Happiness which is circumstance-based and often fleeting.  So in light of that thought, I'm calling this last post:

Joyful Things

The Weekend

Friday

1. Obviously the mere fact that it is Friday is awesome in and of itself.  There is a different air to Friday than there is to Monday.  We all know that.

2. Successful completion of yet another Pep Rally.  Oh the joys (and panics) of being the Cheerleading coach.

3. A group of wonderful teachers, to whom I owe so much, who volunteered to dress up and show off their dance moves at the Pep Rally.  They did the Dougie!  It was hilarious.  I wish I had a picture.

4. A quiet Friday night in, eating Chinese food and watching Mad Men.  I am fascinated by Don Draper.  And the outfits.  And the LIPSTICK.  I love it.

Saturday

1. Sleeping in.

2. A mani/pedi Thank You from my wonderful Mama.

3. Coffee with a former student and cheerleader.  Loved catching up!

4. Organizing drawers.

5. Dinner with my entire family to celebrate my grandmother's birthday!

Granny in the birthday hat! (Shot from my cousin's phone, which explains the quality)

Sunday

1. An interesting and good sermon on marriage.

2. Omelets after church!  Our new thing.

3. At the coffee shop, in my spot, finishing up grades and getting school work done so I can enjoy church tonight and then dinner with the Herndons.

4. Waffle night at the Herndons!

And to top everything off, it's about 50 degrees all weekend long.  

Spring is coming, friends!  

Spring is coming soon.

Happy Things: Day 7

Happy Things

Thursday

1. A school meeting at restaurant!  Instead of the school!  With nachos and diet coke.  That is my kinda meeting.

2. Finally cooking dinner for the first time in a week and a half.

3. New cute shoes that came in the mail (for $6 from Target...a steal!)

 4. Mail from Australia!

 Have I told you my sister-in-law and her family are coming this summer?!  For 2 whole months.

Did you know it's summer over there?

Last year, we had a whole year of winter (because it was winter when we were there in June-July).  This year, they will have a whole year of summer.  

5. Bread in the new bread machine.

And today is Friday.  And that is a Happy Thing all in itself.

Happy Weekend!

Happy Things: Day 6 - Back to Life, Back to Reality

Oh what a better day this was than yesterday.  The flu and its aftermath is finally leaving me alone, forgoodnesssake.  I finally ate an entire meal tonight for dinner, and that, my friends, is progress if I do say so myself.  Here are some other parts of this good day:

1. A two-hour early dismissal.  Anticipating snow that never showed up, this day was already a scheduled two-hour early dismissal but teachers were supposed to stay and work after students left.  The threat of snow allowed us to leave early as well.  Oh my lovely couch; how you never cease to amaze me with your goodness.

2. I wrote on Facebook on a whim that I was thinking about purchasing a bread machine.  And then I had 2 offers for free ones.  One of those free ones was delivered to me tonight!

Complete with instruction manual and folder of recipes.  Yum.

This happened once before when our air conditioner went out.  We posted on Facebook and literally five minutes later our neighbor showed up with a window unit at our door.  Patrick says I should post that I'm thinking about purchasing diamond earrings and just see what happens...

3. I love that often Patrick and I send each other links for funny and good articles we find or read throughout the day.  Today he sent me this one.  I sent him this one.

4. Loved when Patrick called me and said, "I have lots of good things to talk to you about.  Let's talk over dinner."  I love that.

5. Coming home to a new magazine.  Always makes for a relaxing end to the day, curling up on the couch.

Also, that tomorrow is Thursday!  And that means that Friday and the weekend are right around the corner!

Happy Things: Day 5

No pictures from Tuesday.  I was still not feeling so hot, but there were some bright spots:

1. My students were kind and were worried about me being sick so much lately.

2. The other cheer coach volunteered to take the Varsity game for me out of nowhere so I got to go home and take a good long nap.

3. Sonic tater tots.  Enough said.

4. Watching 3 good episodes of Mad Men with Patrick, which is fascinating and so good.

Happy Things: Day 4 and an Interruption

We interrupt this version of Happy Things to bring you something oh-so-unhappy, The Flu.

So the baby shower on Saturday went off without a glitch; it was lovely and wonderful and so many of my favorite people and good friends from my church family gathered in the same place to celebrate our dear friend, Rebecca.

Rebecca is the one in the middle.

So I came home Saturday afternoon feeling a little more tired than usual but thought nothing of it; I had, after all, just played Hostess With the Mostess.  And then 4:30 in the morning came.  I woke up suddenly with the chills and feeling the distinct feeling that all the delicious food I had eaten that afternoon was making it's way back up.

And then it hit.  Over and over again until about 1:00 the next afternoon.

And then the aching.

The chills and then the sweats.

The nausea.

The headache.

Did I mention the aching?

I could not move from the couch.

How have I caught every single illness that has come along this season?

And I thought about this blog and how I have been happily posting all the great things lately and how I could post about the flu in the midst of all the "Happy Things"?

But that is what the Happy Things are about, right?  Finding the daily blessings in the midst of the crazy.  Seeing the joyful in the midst of the pain.  Wondering and awing at the God who shows compassion to the needy and provides rest for the weary, who showers us with blessings in the form of not only possessions, but far better:  advice and encouragement from a friend, a hearty chat with the mother-in-law, and a husband who  provides and cares for me so well.

So, today's Happy Things are about how my wonderful husband showered me with kindness while I felt like death warmed over.

He brought me flowers.

Which I put near the couch so I could see them while I dozed in and out of consciousness over the last 48 hours.

He did the laundry and the dishes. 

And he cleaned out the fridge, went grocery shopping, and brought me these lovely things which seemed to be all I could keep down.

And today, I found these on the counter:

Apparently he snuck in a little something Happy for himself at the grocery store. :)

Have I mentioned that I have the best man out there? 

Happy Things: Day 3

Friday's 

Happy Things

Showing a movie during class as we prepare 

to read To Kill a Mockingbird and discuss the 1930s.

Getting all of my grading done while the movie was playing.

Making these brownies for the baby shower tomorrow. 

And an unexpected and delightful visit with my awesome mother-in-law.

Happy Friday!

Happy Things: Day 2

Happy Things 

from Thursday

After school coffee and strolling through Michael's to get things for a baby shower this weekend.

This purchase, which will keep us busy cozied up on the couch this weekend.

These faces at dinner.
(This picture is from Christmas.  I forgot my camera last night.  But those faces... so sweet.)

Happy Things: Day 1

Because I have been sinus-infection sick lately...  and because I was so out of it I ground up a piece of frozen ginger in my smoothie yesterday instead of the frozen banana I thought I was grabbing...

I needed to concentrate on the happy.  On the many daily blessings I have.  So for the next 10 days, I am going to post about the little happy things I find throughout my day.

Yesterday was Day 1.  Here are my Happy Things:

• The lovely package from my sweet brother I came home to on the porch filled with Trader Joe's coffee
• Wearing new boots bought with birthday money
• Hope, encouragement, and advice from a good friend

What are your Happy Things today?

What to do on a Sick Day:

1. Lay in bed and weigh all the factors for and against you missing today.  Toss and turn repeatedly because if you are laying on your left side, then your left nostil fills.  Shift to the right, feel all the drainage moving to the right side.  Decide how long you will let this go on.  Get out of bed and feel the room spinning.

2. Call for a substitute.

3. Panic because you left the students' desk in a misshapen form on Friday because you were going to use them like that today and now realize that said students' will never do the reading assignment you left them if their desks are in said arrangement.

4. Call your teacher's aide at 6:45 (after debating for 15 minutes if 6:30 was too early to call) and tell her to have the students move the desks back first thing.

5. Go back to bed.  Thank the Lord repeatedly for teacher's aides.

6. Go to the doctor for Round 2 of antibiotics.  Read 2 issues of People magazine in the waiting room for an embarrassing long amount of time.

7. Go to CVS to have prescription filled.  Manage to spend at least another $25 on various "necessities" for sick day like magazines and new body lotion.

8. Come home and make a smoothie to take with your medication because it says "Take with Food" and it's the only thing you can taste.

9.  Knock the blender over and spill said smoothie all over the kitchen.

10.  Laugh sarcastically and say out loud to the cat who is looking on innocently, "Really?  REALLY?!"

11. Re-make smoothie.  Snuggle with cat who totally understands you and loves you unconditionally.

12.  Make soup for dinner.  Manage to spill an entire bowlful of water on the kitchen floor.

13. Yell at yourself like a crazy person so that your husband thinks you have lost your mind.

14.  Throw in the towel (ha, literally) and clean the entire kitchen.  Then feel really good about getting something done today.  Forbid husband who already thinks you're crazy to walk on the kitchen floor

15. Somewhere in the midst of all of it, finish up the last of your grading so at least you can feel somewhat useful and not so much like a huge whimp for missing school.

A New Week

Well, here I am watching the Golden Globes, giving myself a pedicure, and drinking TheraFlu on Sunday night.  I can't decide if it's hilariously funny or incredibly awkward when Ricky Gervais cuts on people sitting right there in the room...

I officially finished Antibiotic Round 1 this morning.  I will be calling the doctor and begging his sweet mercy to give me Round 2.  Because Round 1 DID NOT WORK.  I am still sick.  I cannot hear myself talk (or sing, which the pew in front of me in church this morning will probably un-happily attest to).

But I am not letting that hold me back!

We saw True Grit on Saturday night, which was actually really good!  Patrick was sure I would hate it because it's a western.  Hello, it had Matt Damon in it.  Mustache or no mustache, he is a cutie.

I went to the coffee shop and got TONS of work done this afternoon.  Which enabled me to lay on the couch and drink Theraflu this evening guilt free.

I have made myself some goals for the week, seeing as it will be relatively not busy.
(I love how "not busy" these days means I only have things to do 3 out of 5 days this week instead of 5 out of 5.  That is another story.)

Goal #1: Workout 3 times. 

Goal #2: Finish reading Prince Caspian and begin Voyage of the Dawn Treader so we can hopefully see it in 3-D before it goes off!  I'm one of those who HAS to read the book before seeing the movie.

Goal #3: Vacuum my house.  I'm actually excited about this one now that I have a new vacuum cleaner.  (Is that sad?)

Goal #4: Get up before 6:00 am each day.  So I don't feel rushed in the morning.


Nothing big or dramatic.  I'm easily pleased.

Birthday Weekend

 I have heard some fellow Capricorns out there complain about their hatred of the January birthday.  But I have to say, I, for one, love it.  I love that after the thrill of the holidays is over, the sadness that usually creeps in with the fact that reality is about to restart does not come to me.  I have something else to look forward to.  I was thrilled to learn in church last week that actually the holiday season does not technically end until January 6 because that is the day of Epiphany, which is the celebration of when the Magi brought gifts to the infant Jesus.  So, I love that my birthday happens to fall on this day, because as I am showered with gifts, I am yet again reminded of the ultimate gift of salvation through the birth of Christ.

What a great day and weekend I had!  My students were very sweet and left me notes on my desk and wished me Happy Birthday all day long.  Patrick showered me with gifts all weekend.  He took me to dinner on my actual birthday to a local mexican place and then we got coffee and hung out.  Friday night, we had a real date night thanks to a lovely little gift certicate Christmas present from Dave and Katie.  Thank you guys!

I got not one, but two bouquets of flowers, some bubble gum and other various candy, and an American Express gift card to use whenever I want without having to ask Patrick if I can buy something or has he made the house payment yet....

I also got Martha.

Which was not planned, but a direct result of taking down the Christmas tree and trying to suck up too many pine needles.  Apparently that is bad for your vacuum?  Who knew.

Sunday evening, we had dinner with my entire family.  Granny made my favorite vegetable soup, grilled cheeses (my personal request), and eclair cake, which, let's be honest, was the star of the show.  My family is extremely generous and loving and I received many wonderful cards and gifts.

*And, to top it all off, this year was double special because from now on I will get to share this day of celebration with Micah James Hodgson, born around 3:00 p.m. on January 6 to our dear friends Liz and Matt.  Congrats friends!*

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR MAKING MY DAY SPECIAL AND LOVING ME SO WELL!

Year 28

A verse for my 28th year:

"Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,

for in you I trust.

Make me know the way I should go,

for to you I lift up my soul."

-Psalm 143: 8

Because I want to get back into the habit of meeting God in the morning...

Because Lord knows I need His steadfast love to love on these kiddos daily...

Because we all know the reckless paths I would take on my own...

Because my soul belongs to no other.