365 Days of Blessings

On January 1st of this year I set a goal to recognize a unique blessing every day for a year.  My plan was to document them in this blog. Now that it is New Year's Eve and a new year is about to begin, I can say that I have completed my goal. There is a separate blessing for each day. I made sure if I missed a night to make up for it the following entry and to make each entry different. So on this night, my entry is this blog, a very unique blessing.

It wasn't always easy. Some days I had to think hard about my day to find the blessings, but they were always there. I wanted to recognize that God gives us gifts everyday and to humble myself enough to appreciate them.  I know I still have lots to learn, but I feel like I am recognizing some of those gifts more clear now and appreciating some I didn't before. To complete the blog I had to have an entry even on bad days. Reflecting on those days and finding the good helped me deal with the not so good parts. I also find myself not letting things bother me quite so much. I still lose my temper on occasion but many things roll of my back that would have irritated me before. My assumption is that now I am letting the good outweigh the bad more often because I am opening my eyes to things more easily. Simply put, this experiment of mine has been good for me, better than I expected.

I challenge anyone to try this. You may be surprised at what you learn.  With the new year I won't be posting each day, but I intend to continue to write entries from time to time while working on the next step in this particular journey.  Thanks to all of you that have read and supported This Belle's Blessings, I hope at some point it helped you as much as it has helped me.  Stay tuned!

 

Gravitational constant? Not for us...

Today is another wonderful person's birthday!  I'm blessed to have a unique and interesting friend like Mary.  I can think of no other person I would rather defy the laws of gravity with and float against the current down (or should I say back up) a river!  She even toughed it out and attempted kickball with me. 

 

A little bit extra

Some clients were in the office a few weeks ago and said they had a new computer that had been sitting in the box since June. They didn't know how to switch out the old one and, not being comfortable around computers anyway, the change wasn't something they were looking forward to. My boss suggested that I would help them. I thought it may be a little uncomfortable at first but it actually turned out to be a nice little blessing. It wasn't a hard job at all, only took about two hours. We had nice conversations and even though I said it wasn't necessary, I made a little extra cash. That's going to look good towards paying off a bill I'm trying to make dissapear. There were some yummy baked goods involved too :). 

I really liked this today so I wanted to share. I was watching TV and all the fur babies decided to lay together. All of them resting at the same time together is rare and very sweet!

My coffee

This is my coffee and a large part of my happy place. 

It's a major first world treat but Vanilla Coke is totally a blessing for me. Every once in a while I go on a trip somewhere that doesn't sell it and I realize just how much I really like it. When they didn't make it for a few years it was not fun. Everyone needs a special little treat to enjoy and relax with anyway, and this is for sure mine. ;)

Bowlin'

It's Bowl Season!  As a football girl, I'm blessed to say that BOTH my teams won their bowl games today!!!!  Neither team had a fantastic season so kudos to both of them for pulling off a winning year.  Although it's not just about the winning or losing. The money and the recognition are good for the schools. The more programs and scholarships available, the more people that can get a good education. 

Special games like those usually mean special days at home too.  My mom is good about having special meals or treats for important games.  A good game with a nice win just adds to the experience.  If we're really lucky there will be one of those crazy, history making plays that people talk about for years.  Yup, saw one of those today :) 

Holiday time off

While many people headed back to work today I'm blessed to still have 10 days left of break. Lexi is feeling better, the girls were in great moods today, there are plenty of left overs, and I got to clean a bunch today. My mom only worked a half day and tonight we ate "mess," a fried potato concoction made with left overs. It's actually been a very relaxing day.  As much as I hope to accomplish during these days off, I also intend to enjoy them some too - hopefully this go round all teeth will stay put ;) 

Tidings of Comfort and Joy

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. -Luke 2:11

So many wonderful blessings today to be grateful for.  Of course, the most important of the blessings is the birth of Jesus.  The day God sent his Son to save us.  Let us not forget the true reason for the day.

I love all the calls, texts, posts, visits, and greetings on holidays.  Especially on Christmas.  I really enjoy seeing the pictures of all the fur babies and little ones with their gifts from Santa. The magic of Christmas is still very much alive.  I thought Molly's eyes were going to pop out of her head when she realized she had a squeaky toy in her stocking.  I'm sure all the kids that got new bicycles were happy after several days of rain that we were blessed with some sunshine today. 

Thankfully, Lexi is feeling better today too.  That's a huge blessing.  He has slept most of the day but since he didn't for roughly three days I'm sure he needs it.  Poor kitty cat had a rough week. 

As I type away on my new tablet with my stomach full of yummy food and pumpkin hot chocolate it is important to remember:
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. - Luke 2:14

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

And not a creature is stirring. This day is a blessing. Christmas Eve with family and friends is always so wonderful. Thinking Lexi may be feeling a little more like himself since he's sleeping now. Praying he is all normal for tomorow. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!!

Christmas break!

I'm very blessed that my Christmas break started after a half day of work today!  Looking forward to a long break. Now if Lexi will just get in better humor and stop trying to escape! 

Understanding

Luckily, the world is still blessed with understanding people. An order that I rushed for a customer that has been a real pleasure to work with arrived with one of the glasses completely shattered. The bubble wrap didn't save that one. He was super understanding and of course I will send a replacement glass to him. I'm so sorry it won't be there in time for Christmas, but it's nice to know there are people out there that get that sometimes things happen (especially with shipping) and are willing to work with someone to correct the problem in a reasonable manner.  

The first day of Winter!

December 21st, 2014, the first day of Winter.  It was for sure dreary and cold.  Luckily I spent the day in my flannel pjs, I was very warm.  :)  I also started dozing incredibly early and fell asleep way before normal, hence the post today instead of yesterday.  I did manage to get all the Christmas presents wrapped though!  Looking around at all the decorations while sitting comfortably in my warm seat I couldn't help but feel good.  I'm blessed to spend the Christmas season at home with family and friends.  I even felt relaxed for a minute as I enjoyed the lights and room.  I had a warm feeling inside and out. 

Fondue party

I'm blessed today to celebrate another birthday with one of the best friends a girl could ask for. After more than ten years of shenanigans and trips, good times and bad, and a whole lot of cheese, I'm still lucky enough to have her around.  The yummy fondue dinner tonight was pretty awesome too!

 Happy Birthday, Kelly!

Annnnd...exhale

I'm blessed to say that it's 7:30 pm, I'm in my plaid flannel pj's and Rudolph fuzzy socks watching basketball and all the orders that needed to be mailed for Christmas delivery are out.  As much as I would like to have more orders, I'm looking forward to a restful night. 

12/17 & 12/18

Still working hard on orders (still yay!!) so short and sweet tonight, for two days. 

Last night I was blessed to get a call from an old friend and her little one. Seems like I haven't seen her in forever. It was a very nice surprise. 

Today I was blessed to get quickly through the post office. Doesn't sound like much but believe me, right now, that's a huge blessing. Yesterday, even the self-service kiosk had a line almost to the door, this morning it wasn't working, so this afternoon I was thrilled to get in, have an awesome worker help, and get four orders shipped!

painted gifts and gifts of the heart.

Over the next few days my posts will probably been at random times during the day.  I have a lot of orders to get out before Christmas (yay!) and am going to post when I get a chance.

This post is going to cover the last two days I missed staying up late painting (again, yay!) and then hopefully I will be back on track.

I'd like to say that these orders are more than just orders at this point.  I set a goal of how much I would like to sell for the Christmas season and I'm blessed to say that I'm incredibly close to reaching that goal!  I think this year will be the shop's best year so far!  There have been some pretty creative requests this year too.  Tartan plaid may be the most challenging yet but I'm looking forward to giving it a shot.

After work Tuesday I was running around town trying to find the glasses I needed to complete the orders I have.  Of course they aren't all at one store, that would be way too easy.  I took the wrong on ramp after leaving one of the stores and had to back track a little and had to get off on a different exit to try and reach the right interstate.  While sitting at a stoplight there was a man with a cardboard sign.  He was right next to my car and I did everything possible to not turn and look at him.  I can't even tell you what the sign said.  He was probably just trying to scam people right?  After what was probably no more than 30 or 40 seconds I noticed him moving out of the corner of my eye, walking down the line of cars behind me.  That's when I looked in my side view mirror. Then I remembered something I heard about being kind and generous to everyone, sometimes it may be an angel in disguise.  And then it hit me, angel or not, who was I to pass judgement and assume he was just out for the scam.  He could actually be in need.  Certainly I am not naive enough to believe that everyone panhandling is doing it with an honest heart, but it's not my place to say who is and who isn't just by looking at them.

At this point I reached in my wallet.  I'm not one to carry cash but I did have a little bit.  I pulled out $2 and watched.  He never did walk back my way before the light changed.  I kept thinking about that.  I'm blessed to not be in that situation.  Even if he wasn't out there with the best of intentions, I'm still blessed to not be in that situation.  Of course I know that I won't be able to give money each and every time, but would it hurt me to roll the window down sometimes? Or even make eye contact?  Isn't generosity one of the best gifts there is to the giver and receiver?  Who knows, maybe he was an angel that was sent there to teach me a lesson.    

3 days worth

So, little bit behind. It's been a busy weekend. Also, apparently my blogged got flagged as SPAM so really hoping that's over now. 

Friday I got to spend the day with my friend's kids. I enjoy kids. They're fun, but I'm usually blessed to learn something from them too. Kids see things differently than adults, way less synical and much more enjoyable. Asking a simple question and listening to their reasoning or trying to look through their eyes can give an entirely different perspective. As adults, it's easy to let worries or logic influence our responses, whereas kids don't always have those affecting variables to bias them. We can learn a lot from children if we just listen. 

Then Saturday, while washing towels of all things, the wash machine decides to retire. Luckily, later that night it started enough to drain the water. Anyway, we needed a new machine. Off to Lowes we went. I was not expecting to have a new machine for several days. I was wrong. We were very blessed, two hours after it stopped a new one was purchased, scheduled to be delivered Sunday morning, and we were back home. 

It did come a little later than planned today but it did get here. The machine itself is a blessing. First of all, it has buttons and sings a little song when turned on or off. Also, when it finishes a load of clothes it has another song that sounds like the ice cream truck. I. Love. Buttons. Plus, it's energy efficient, quiet, reduces the necessary amount of soap, and I think the clothes are coming out better. 

So many toys!!

After lots of planning and work today was the office Holiday Open House. It's a day to celebrate the season with our clients and friends. From 12-7 our doors were open to our guests to come enjoy some snacks and holiday cheer. We even had an 'Ugly Sweater' contest. 

The only thing we asked is that everyone bring a new, unwrapped toy for Toys for Tots. That's one of my favorite charities. Every child should have a toy for Christmas. Plus, it is the season of giving and how wonderful to give to the children. 

I am overwhelmed by the generosity everyone showed today.  This is truly a blessing. (I had the picture here but for some reason Google is giving me an error posting it).

So many kids will smile Christmas morning thanks to all those that contributed. That's the Spirit of Christmas! 

Candles

Tomorrow is our big holiday event at work. I'm very excited. I even got to leave early today to get some last minute stuff done including- wait for it- baking. Yes, I baked something. Well, melted some stuff in the oven but, for me, that is baking. Then the girls were so good today that we took a little walk after dinner. I swear Molly looked at the Christmas lights up on our street. We have some decorations too, we are blessed to have some little candles. I have always wanted to be able to have some outdoor lights and my mom has wanted the little window candles forever. We can finally have them here and they really are pretty. Very simple and very pretty.  Next year we can expand, but for now they are just right. 

Meetings and machines

Yesterday was a busy Monday. A coworker and I ran errands to get groceries for our event on Thursday and then after work I had hoped to go to the post office before our Blondes vs. Brunettes meeting but I didn't have any packing tape. I really thought I had some in my car. Anyway, I digress. Last night was actually a BVB Holiday get together with a shirt meeting beforehand. I have been wanting to be more involved with BVB. I'm on the committee but was hoping to be a commitee chair to try and do a little more. I'm blessed to say I am now the marketing chair. Luckily I will have some good help!

So, after getting packing tape last night, I still had to go to the post office this morning. It was a much slower day though. I got some painting done and a lot of cleaning. Our wash machine has been shaking, vibrating, auditioning for a highly rated television dance competition, or something like that, for a while but last week it got worse. I tried to adjust the leg that I thought was making it short but that wasn't it. We just figured it was time to get another one. I have been putting off laundry but today it was time. I was going to try and put some cardboard down to balance it but it wouldn't fit so I turned the leg on the bottom again to try and shorten it just a little and...well...apparently the first time I tried to adjust it I turned it in the wrong direction...yeah. Basically I made a loose leg worse. Not sure what I was thinking. Anyway, it's fixed now, even better than it was beforeand it's a huge blessing we do not have to get a new machine immediately.

 

Plaid, decorations, and the Spirit of Christmas!

It's been a very pleasant day. Went shopping with my mom, gave her an early Christmas gift, got almost all the remaining decorations up, did a little painting, and am rocking some awesome new plaid flannel pajamas (the VA girl still comes out in me once in a while - I LOVE plaid and flannel). Finding places to put our decorations around the house has been fun. We are blessed to be spending our first Christmas in our new home and I'm definitely feeling the spirit of the season.  I just gave a few more gifts to get for family and our Toys for Tots Holiday Open House at work. Now to get some presents wrapped and under that tree!

Oyster Roast

In my twenties I was all about meeting my friends out somewhere, staying out late partying, and then repeating it the next weekend. I can't say I missed much during my college days. 

Then I got a little older and as much fun as it was, I got bored with it. It was time to do some other things. It was time for the next stage. Meeting friends for dinner or game night, of course tennis became a new kind of fun. Doing things with friends and their families is more exciting now than going to the club every night. It's still fun to go once in a while though ;). 

Every December some friends hold an annual oyster roast at one of their homes. Today was the day and I was blessed to attend. The whole thing is very laid back. Watching the kids play and the adults talk  while shucking oysters was soooo much fun. Everyone had a great time. The weather even held out for us. I'm not sure who had more cupcakes, me or my friend's almost 2 year old!  It was a fantastic way to spend a Saturday evening. Bonus - getting home in time for a good night's sleep means a good day tomorrow! 

Furniture

After months of thinking and looking we were blessed today to find the furniture we both like for the living room.  Funny thing - the furniture store was 17 minutes away the entire time. The price is incredibly reasonable for the good quality. It's a great deal for after the new year too. 

I know this is a 1st world type blessing for sure and I'm appreciative of the fact that I'm lucky enough to have these 1st world blessings (and the blessing of that in and of itself). I think the best part is that it is a locally owned family store. We even saw a kid of one of the workers come in with his dinner. The man that was helping us was incredibly accommodating and easy to work with. He deserves the commission he will get. 

Virtual

A friend asked me to speak to her class about my job today. She teaches at a virtual school and the setup was very impressive. While I'm far from being a good speaker I still feel blessed to have been able to talk with her students and hopefully have helped with some of their questions. 

Registered

Huuuump day!  Yay!  I'm ready for the weekend. Looking forward to church on Sunday too. We have been going to the same church for years but never actually registered. I didn't think it made much difference for a long time but then it started to feel like the right thing to do. Finally, the other day I sent in the paperwork. It was very simple and now we are blessed to be registered members. It won't change the reason or the message but it feels good to be considered a member. Hopefully now we will become more active in various aspects as well!

I saw this today and liked it so I thought I'd share:

The 12 Days For Christmas

The computers worked today! - Well, mostly. There was a little issue this morning but it was fixed before 9 so I'm not counting it. Then I had a very productive and satisfactory meeting during which I found out I had an extra vacation day I didn't know about. As a result I'm blessed with 12 days off for Christmas! Woo hoo! That's an excellent time for a break. 

Cyber Monday...

Cyber Monday had a different meaning today at our office- the computers totally went down. I basically couldn't work for most of the day. I knew I was dependent on the Internet but wow. Our IT guy is a blessing. I can send a crazy help me message, yes, sometimes a little panic-y, and I get a good response, sometimes funny. When I left for the day the system was up and running. It's so nice to have helpful people in the world!  

Wheelbarrow

Thanks to our new wheelbarrow contraption we bagged about 20 large trash bags of pinestraw today. That thing is a blessing. It held the trash bag open so it was easy to fill and it took at least half the time to clean up the yard.  It has some cool attachments that make it easier to lift and pull stuff too. Anything to make yard work easier is always a plus!

Fall views

I looked out the window today and was blessed to see this:

Fall may be cold and the leaves may give me allergies, but the colors sure are beautiful. I've been watching the colors change for two weeks and not taken much time to enjoy them until today. So pretty!

O Tannenbaum

Our new Christmas Tree came today!  This beautiful blessing is in the den waiting to be decorated. 

I'm so excited!  My mom has always wanted a tall tree and this one is 10.5 feet. The on/off foot switch we got to go with it is pretty awesome too. 

Gobble, Gobble

For three days in 1621 the first Thanksgiving in America was celebrated. While our celebration may only last one day, it is still a great blessing. How wonderful when family and friends get together to give thanks for each other, God, and the blessings we are given.  

This is our first Thanksgiving in our new home and I'm so thankful to be here. We had a fabulous dinner today. Turkey dressing may be the best thing ever. My mom uses my grandma's recipe and it's always amazing. A friend came by with some amazing cookies today too. Of course Molly and Charlie had no problem taking care of the giblets. ;)

I'm thankful to God for so much and so many people, and I'm thankful for Him. Hopefully, I can continue to carry the Thanksgiving spirit with me, showing gratitude on just one day is not enough.

"A joyful and pleasant thing it is to be thankful." - Psalm 147   

Late nights and good ideas

Tuesday and Wednesday were late nights working on orders this week, (yay!) and I zonked after and couldn't blog. So again, a double dose. 

Tuesday was the latest night. It's all good though because it was a huge order and that goes towards Christmas present purchases. I feel blessed to have extra cash flow for presents. It's hard for many families to put gifts under a tree. Toys for Tots is an important charity to me, I think this year I'll do a little extra. 

As silly and 1st world as this is going to sound, Wednesday I was blessed with Draino. The water around my ankles in the shower was beginning to concern me. It's an easy and convienient fix, totally not a necessity, but it does free up time for more important (and more pleasant) things than digging out a drain. I also think it's pretty cool that someone had the mind to discover something like that. It's easy to take someone else's hard work for granted.   

Gray skies are gonna clear up!

Check out the double rainbow!

After looking out my office window and seeing black as night storm skies it was very nice to see this walking out to my car!  A perfect of example of how God blesses us with something wonderful after something rough. 

Extra

It's rainy like crazy today!  We still went out to get stuff for Thanksgiving. It ended up that there were a lot of sales and we were able to stock up on some groceries and supplies. I feel very blessed to think there is extra in the cabinet when so many have none. That's good to remember this Thanksgiving, and even better to share, the missions will need extra this time of year. 

Last 2014 home game

Great day for a football game!!  This one was the last home game of the season. It was the Senior Game and they did the Military tribute. Thankfully we won and became bowl eligible!!!! Woooooo hooooo!!!  It's been a tough season so to be bowl ready is huge. The best part is I was blessed to spend the day with these fine people!

We had such a good time!!  

Music to my ears

I went with my mom to see the Transiberian Orchestra this evening. As always, they put on an AMAZING show. The lights were even better than last time. The show on its own was a blessing but there were other parts that were blessings too. About 3/4 the way through there was a medical emergency in the floor seating section. People were yelling to turn the lights up and one of the performers got on the mic and did the same. I'm not 100% sure what happened but the person was alert when the EMTs rolled him off to the ambulance. The guy that kinda heads up the orchestra (excellent guitarist) stayed out on stage the entire time and watched. As the ill man was rolled off, the place began to clap in support of him. The leader guy then proceeded to ask for prayers for him and they continued the show. I was really touched by his compassion and prayer request. The orchestra was fairly behind at that point but they didn't miss a beat, even though there was another show after ours and at that point they probably wouldn't get a break. Then they took the time to recognize our active troops and veterans. All this after they donate a portion of area ticket sales to a local charity. Not only is their talent and show a blessing, so is their good nature. Overall, they are very impressive people.

I'd also like to share a message from the story they told.  I really liked this.  You can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone. 

Designs

Oh, happy day it's Thursday!  I'm very much looking forward to this weekend. I'm even ahead of schedule on the weekly cleaning list! (Yeah, yeah OCD). Aside from some fun activities coming up (to be discussed later), I'm glad to get a chance to try some news designs a friend suggested for the shop. I love when people share ideas with me. I feel blessed that they think enough to help the business out a little. This time of year is a great time for that. I'm very lucky that people close to me promote and patron my little store :) 

Little celebrations

Most of today was fairly routine. Then, thanks to a fabulous tennis team, I had a lovely dinner with fine company and even a surcee!  It's another end of season and I still maintain we have the best team there is. I'm already looking forward to the spring season!

Now, I will most likely stay up too late watching a movie that I have seen more times than I can count because today is the 20th anniversary of it's release and, well, it just wouldn't be right not to watch it. :). 

So today is a day blessed with little celebrations. Sometimes it's the little ones that make the best memories. 

Stop. - Break Time.

Today was pretty quiet at the office. Mostly because I was the only one there but, not a lot was going on either. Sometimes it's good to have catch up days like that but since I've had several of those lately it doesn't take long to get stuff done right now. I took the opportunity to try and get ahead for next year. I was also blessed with some lunchtime visitors!  I love good company and I think a change of brain for a little bit during the work day actually helps me to get more accomplished. Even on busy days I need to remember to stop and change my train of thought for a few minutes. 

Working well with others

In different ways today I was blessed to see groups of people pull together to help others. Even with all the fussing and fighting in the world today, people still care enough to ban together for a common cause. Humanity is a complicated and amazing thing. 

Cozy potato stuff.

It's getting pretty cold, probably going to be one of the coldest winters we have had in a while. Yesterday was one of those multilayer days. As much as I don't like the cold I do like that cozy feeling of a good hoodie with a warm drink or some hot apple pie. I think coziness is a little blessing of comfort to help deal with the low temperatures. 

Today was a fairly lazy day.  Had lots of yummy food thanks to being able to eat most things again. When I couldn't eat much I really wanted a ribeye and my moms potato stuff. You always want what you can't have. Today for dinner- ribeye and potato stuff. The food itself was a blessing, believe me, potato stuff is amazing, but the fact that my mom cares enough to take her day off to make the amazing potato stuff is an even greater blessing!

Slurp

I'd like to start with this - I can use a straw again!!! Woooo hooooo!!!!!  I really don't like drinking without a straw. It bugs me. Now that my mouth is healing nicely and the risk of a dry socket is mostly gone, things are starting to get more normal. Healing is quite a blessing. The body is remarkable if you think about the miracle of healing. It's amazing how the immune system works and the way bones mend. Skin grows back and cuts disappear. Very remarkable actually. Of course there are different categories of healing that are just as remarkable from mental healing to healing of the soul. No matter what kind it is we all heal in different ways in different amounts of time. Each time we heal we get a little stronger. God always sends us just what we need, even straws!!!!!

Blackjack

I'm very blessed to have this amazingly creative and wonderful cousin that just happened to turn 21 today. He's very bright, he'll do something that benefits this crazy world no doubt. We share of love of the arts, although he is the better photographer. Hope to get to see him soon after the new year!

Pay attention!

Everyday we witness history and don't even realize it. Today, the world realized it and I'm blessed to say I did too. The probe Philae landed on comet 67P and made history. The dreams and imaginations of great minds became reality for all of us to see and learn from. There are exciting times ahead if we just pay attention. 

Thank you

Everyday, they are a blessing to us all. 

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." --John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Caaaake!

Ever since I can remember these things in stores they have been my all time favorite holiday treat:

CHRISTMAS TREE CAKES!!!!!!!!   

Today I was blessed to have my first one (two) of the 2014 season.  Lots of good memories with these little cakes. They are more than just snack food, they are sign of the Christmas season approaching!

Visits

Love that we were blessed with visitors all the way from WV today!  Amazing how much the little one has changed since July. It was a great way to end my staycation, back to normal tomorrow!

Second half of staycation week

Okay. So, obviously I'm behind. I have good reason though and I will catch up here. Following my tooth extraction, Tuesday late night and early Wednesday morning I had a reaction to that most wonderful pain pill. I got up in the middle of the night, passed out, slammed my head and shoulder into the wall and broke my glasses. A couple hours after that I became nauseated and sick. Luckily, I made so much noise when I fell my mom woke up and was there to help, I was incredibly confused for a bit. Now I'm okay, just bruised and still a little sore.  That was a very long night, and I'm very blessed that I didn't get hurt worse. I'd also like to add that a friend brought pumpkin ice cream Wednesday night - ALWAYS a blessing, as is the friend. 

Okay, so that brings me to Thursday. I was starting to feel better, still colorful, but better. I laid around a lot with the girls and Lexi, they are fabulous nurses. We went to visit a friend that night and on the way home decided to stop at a drive thru. This is going to sound silly but I had a McDonald's Happy Meal and it was sooo good. My very hungry self was blessed to have salt, grease, and meat. I know the soft food was important and I love soup and even enjoyed the jello, had some fettuccine and a baked potato too, but I needed some seriously solid food. It was yummy.  

Friday I was blessed to spend the day with my friend's three boys. They are such wonderful kids. I even made mac and cheese. This is huge because it wasn't Easy Mac, I actually boiled water. I'm very much looking forward to another adventure with them. 

Today was a good day. My friend's little brother got married today. It's always a blessing to be a part of such a wonderful occasion, especially this one. And cake, cake is good. ;) 

Super Dentist

This won't be a long post tonight. I just want to say that I'm blessed to have been able to have a great dentist that was able to remove a not so happy tooth with very short notice. I'm very thankful to have it taken care of.  Since the pain medicine makes me sleepy I'm going to cut it short tonight.  Glad it's nothing more severe and glad I'm on staycation. 

A little woodwork

A friend put together a wood painting class at a local woodworking studio tonight. It was a nice blessing to try something a little different with such good company. It's a pretty cool place. They pre-cut the wood into whatever design you chose to paint and then are there to help with the design if you need it. We turned out to be quite and artistic group!

All time friends and time changes

It was some kind of cold at football yesterday. First time in like twenty years it was that cold at a Carolina football game in Columbia. The snow that hit some areas that morning proved that. It was a big game too. Not just for the importance of the win (we lost) but because a very special friend came with us this week. 16 years (and a couple months) ago on the last day of sorority rush and the first day of lifelong friendships, also know as the infamous "bid day," I met a girl that didn't know anybody any better than I did and we became instantaneous friends. One of the best actually, and one of the best blessings of my life. We've been through lots of goods and lots of bads. I don't have to talk to her everyday to know she is there but we never skip a beat when we're together. I also think we have a psychic connection but that's a long story. Anyway, we froze out rear ends off at the game, the three of us bundled up like we were in the arctic yelling and cheering lasted three quarters before the desire to feel our toes took over. It was worth every frigid minute!

Time changed today. Oddly enough I have a harder time adjusting to the normal time than I have springing forward. So, as silly as it may seem, I'm blessed today that I don't have to worry about getting ready for work tomorrow and that I, without thinking, took my staycation the week the time changed!  I'll sleep much better not worrying that I stayed up too late and won't be ready to get started tomorrow. 

Staycations and glow-pals

At 3:00 yesterday I was blessed to begin my ten day staycation!  I relaxed early and went to bed early. Ideal start I believe!  I have a huge to do list but that's okay because I will relax a lot better when we can park in the garage and the laundry is caught up. 

Today is Halloween and of course it's always fun to see the little ones all cuted out. It's also a special person's birthday. About four years ago I met a lovely lady named Kourtnay for the first time on a brand new tennis team. I had no idea at the time what a blessing she would be for me and my family. Lord knows we never would've survived house hunting without her. We have had many exciting beach weekends and some crazy tennis matches. We are probably the only thirty something's that sing the gloworm song during stressful tennis nights. I'm very lucky to call her friend.  Ready for some more adventures!

There it is, some of that confidence

Before I get started I would like to share what I learned tonight: bugs CAN nest in clay tennis courts.  And fly out. Watch that. 

I've been kinda down on myself tennis wise lately. Basically because I've been awful.  I know it's all for fun but I have self expectations and I've been falling short, that in turn hurts the team too. Anyway, tonight I played with one of the newer girls on the team that just started this season. I wasn't my best but much better than the last few weeks. At the end I asked if she would want to play wth me again and I was blessed to hear that she did because she learned stuff from me. That made me feel sooo much better and really boosted my confidence.  Now I'm ready for next week's match!! 

When the cat's away...the mice work!

The bosses are in training and away this week so it's a skeleton crew at the office. Which is totally fine. I've actually be fairly busy. Normally when they're gone the phone barely rings and no one comes in but the last two days it's been fairly active around there.  I actually don't mind. It's one of those weeks where I feel like I have learned something over the years and can help the clients. Don't get me wrong, I love marketing, but when I'm blessed to actually interact in a helpful or mind-easing way it's kinda awesome, even if it is just a quick answer or helping with paperwork.  

Ball o' cheese

You know how all good cooks have this signature recipe that no matter how close you follow the recipe it will never be the way they make it? Well, my mom has a few but the one that is probably the most popular is her cheeseball. My friends and I have been blessed to indulge in this culinary delight for about a decade now. We have had the cheeseball on vacations, throughout football seasons, multiple holidays, and just cause someone wants one. Charlie had her first sample tonight, it's safe to say there is now one more cheeseball fan. Mom made one of these masterpieces for me to take to work tomorrow to surprise a friend that really needs a little special right now. No doubt there will be lots of "um, where's mine?" texts!  Good for me we have extra!

Kickin' it

Today was the last Sunday for our kickball league. Even though we never won and I am no superstar I still feel blessed to have been a part of the team. Made some new friends and had a great time with some old ones. May even try it again in the new year!

Walk

After a late night it was still a blessing to be up and at 'em early this Saturday. Today was the annual Walk to End Alzheimer's. As everyone knows, I think this is a great cause and like to support it when I can.  Our office walk team raised around $1,000 this year. So thankful to all who supported us and this great cause!

Scarowinds (Delayed)

(Wrote part of this last night and then started to get sleepy so had to finish today...)

Late and awesome night!  I was blessed to go to Scarowinds with some friends. Scarowinds is (this is where I began feeling like I was going to fall asleep and stopped). Scarowinds is annual Halloween experience at Carowinds amusement park.  For those of you that don't know, it is in Charlotte and for a little over a month they turn the park into a haunted house extravaganza and run some of the rides too. All of this starts at 7:00 pm so it's quite a differnt experience to ride in the dark.  The creepers are all over the park, not just in the houses. It's actually a lot of fun for all ages. I laughed so hard at my friends who are a teeny tiny bit jumpy ;)

 

Un-routine

I'd like to start by saying whoever decided to mix salsa and pumpkin is a genius. And my cousin is even more of one for finding and sending it. 

It has been a very non-routine week. Half the office has been sick and half of the remaining half was preparing for today's audit. Nothing bad, just normal practice, but still stressful. Lucky for me during most of the audit I was blessed to play with the bosses' three year old granddaughter.  I love kids but I also felt like I got to help out the office during an important day too; and still stay away from the scary audit process!!

We passed with flying colors and with that sigh of relief came an early dismissal. WOO HOO!  This gave me time to get my contacts, go to the post office, clean the garage, spend some time with the fur babies, and still be sitting down to start the VT football game.  Guess the un-routine was alright after all. 

Paint and play

Late night painting glassware last night. I have an order that's got to go out tomorrow (love orders!) and I had to replenish my glassware stock. Yesterday after work I ran to the stores (yes, multiple) to get the sizes I needed and, to my dismay, one store was out of the glass I needed. 😱 Now, this isn't good.  What to do, what to do?  I decided to come home and dig through some glasses stored in the studio closet just in case there may be one hidden.  Well, there in a bottom box that I'm pretty sure I looked in the other day, sure enough, I was blessed to find the glass I needed!  Totally saved the day. 

Today is Wednesday so that means tennis. I'm in a funk, I can't seem to hit the broad side of a barn lately.  I can hit over and around it though. It was a good time, I got to play with a new team member, and we played against some fun girls. I was hoping to play strong and maybe help some but that's okay. Sometimes it's good to revisit the basics of anything, especially a sport. I think that's what I need to do. Step back and take a breathe.  I think it's actually a blessing in disguise that my playing has been off and with a few adjustments including attitude I'll come back stronger. Probably was getting a little cocky anyway! ;)

Selfless Healthcare

Someone brought something disturbing to my attention today; how much profit will the inventor of a successful Ebola vaccine make?  In turn, how much will it cost to treat the patients?  Will they be like Jonas Salk was with the polio vaccine or will they be greedy?  I hadn't thought about that. I had thought about the cost to make and distribute but never that someone may personally profit financially. This would mean those in third world countries may not get the help they need. 

I was raised in a medical family and taught that the Hippocratic oath means something. Sure, perks in any profession are nice but the practice of medicine is not a business. Is it?

A few hours later a friend told me about a doctor, a specialist, that spent two hours with one patient, a family member of hers, and determined a more accurate diagnosis and suggested a different course of treatment may actually reverse the problem. Then I think about all the doctors and nurses around the world volunteering to help Ebola patients, at great risk to them, and little compensation, some are missionaries working in far less than optimal working environments. I think about how Mom goes everyday to the lab to help those coming through her office. We are all blessed to have these selfless healthcare people working to keep us safe and well. No need to let a few bad seeds ruin the good name, and hearts, of others! I chose to think good sense and compassion will prevail.  

Bunnies

It would appear we have been blessed with some bunnies in the yard!  Well, at least one. Could be more but I've only seen one at a time and it was too dark to see the one tonight. The girls saw it though!  They both were pretty proud of themselves for chasing it under the deck.  

It's like we have our very own special ecosystem, complete with bunnies, butterflies, and even the crazy mole! 

Fair football fun

Football day!!!!!!  And today I was blessed to enjoy it with my mom and a young friend of ours, a very nice little boy going to his first football game. Good thing we won!!  Then we went to the fair and played around a little bit. I think a good time was had by all, I'm still the wack-a-mole queen, and it felt good to share our day with such a wonderful kid!

Yesterday and today

I was feeling better yesterday but not 100% and I was in bed before 8 so I didn't post. Feeling even better today though. Still have a yucky cough and Lord knows I'm grouchy but I'm getting there. 

I have to say that yesterday I was blessed to get through the whole day at work without being sent home and wasn't incredibly grumpy in the process. That's the toughest part sometimes, not being a crazy person when you don't feel good. 

Today I didn't get much of anything done.   I wanted to take a bath in the jacuzzi tub but the settings were off and I managed to flood the bathroom. Didn't get that bath but the floors got a half way decent cleaning. That was interesting. My mom did buy this new refrigerator she has been wanting forever. It will be delivered next week but she is so excited today, it's a blessing to see her like that. I like seeing her excited over stuff, kinda like when I geek out over electronics. 

Allergies can be good too.

Well Mother Nature bit me in the rear again. It's my own fault for not listening to all the little warnings. I'm officially in full blown allergy attack. I could bring in Santa's sleigh in a blizzard right now. I've been sent home from work twice this week - which normally I'd be like "yay! short day!", but for some reason when I'm sick I feel like I have something to prove by torturing myself (and those around me) by finishing out the day.  Anyway, I'm in bed, propped up, hoodie and socks on preparing for, hopefully, more sleep than last night with what's clearly not a great attitude. I do have some fantastic medicine from Italy though. 

Anyway, enough whining and fussing. I'm blessed it's just allergies. I'm blessed that I can be with my family and friends and not quarantined. I'm blessed that I know with time my allergies will pass. I'm blessed to have a runny nose while there are those battling a frightening epidemic. My prayers go out to the people all over the world suffering from Ebola and other sicknesses that wish they just had a cough.  Prayers to their families as well.  

Beauty and the Bully

This young lady is a blessing!  The video will speak for itself but I commend her on taking something so negative and making such a positive out of it. I wish everyone had her strength, and that people would know better than to bully. 

http://youtu.be/0zLteIn7IS0