New Group

I am grateful to have had the opportunity to listen to a local politician.  It was helpful, interesting and very much worthwhile.  I am looking forward to more conversations and being involved (on a very small scale) in the political arena.  Hmmmm....this could go places. 

Help

I am so very grateful for my son and all his help in my classroom!  He is great! 

The Singer

This has been a summer of reuniting with college friends!  It has been a blast.

Today we went to the beach to meet up with another college friend, the singer!  She is over from Montana for a week staying at a beach house with her family.  We had to make a trip over to spend the day with them!  I am so grateful for her and her family.  They are fun, smart and full of surprises! 

14 years

I am grateful for the last 14 years of my life...it has been spent with my best friend, my lover, the father of my children, chief breakfast maker, head handyman, best kid tickler and poopy-diaper changer champ!

I love you Carlos!
Happy Anniversary!

Memories

Always so good to see old friends.

I am so grateful for their ability to remember (usually way more than I do) and to know that we are still friends regardless of the time in-between. 

Humor

I am grateful for my sense of humor...and my husband's!  After a squabble (with some harsh words and angry venting...) he walked outside and as I looked at him through the window he gave me a quirky-goofy-look and so I stuck my tongue out at him!  We met in the garage and started laughing...questioning each other ("what?", "what?")  Anyway, I am so very thankful and grateful that we (at times) laugh off a really good venting session! 

Zac

Two.
Not so terrible.

Sweet, loving, kind and kissable.
Passionate, fierce, quick and on-the-go.

I am so very grateful for my baby Zac. 

Happy Birthday!

Jake

I am grateful for Joanne's husband Jake.  He is a thoughtful and caring person who is a great listener. He took the time to record something on TV just because he knew I was a teacher and would enjoy it...he is so very thoughtful!  I am very grateful for Jake and his thoughtfulness...and his kindness, sense of humor, love of the river and his big, caring heart. 

Joanne

My mom's friend Joanne has lived on the Umpqua river for as long as I can remember!  We love her place, love the river, love her!  It is truly the most magical place...and full of many years of memories, great times and peace. 

I am very grateful for Joanne.

Dinner with Friends

I really enjoy making dinner at a friend's house.  It is fun and social.  I am grateful for friends that let me try and new recipe out on them too!

Quiet Day

It was a very quiet, low-key, relaxing, no interruptions, mellow and calm day.  Zac and I had fun just hanging out at home, jumping on the "jump-jump", (the trampoline), making yummy meals, playing with our dog and cat, watching Wonder Pets, reading, playing and just being at home together. 

I am grateful for the very wonderful day spent with my son.

Movie with My Mom

It just wasn't that my mom came over to watch a movie...it was that she finished giving Zac a bath while I ran to the RedBox to get a movie, waited until Zac fell asleep (she read happily) and then we got to watch a movie together (The Blind Side).  It was a very nice relaxing evening.  My hubby and oldest were out of town at a sleepover, so my mom and I had a quiet evening too.  I am grateful for the time spent with my mom. 

New Recipe

Today, while surfing blogs and chilling out on the computer, I  came across a new recipe on a blog that I just started reading regularly.  (Confessions of  Pioneer Woman)  I followed the recipe...even measured all the ingredients and added some of my own BAM! and we ended up with a fabulous dinner! 

I am grateful that  my husband was willing to go to the store at the last minute for the sesame oil and hot chili sauce!  Yummy!

2-Hour Naps

I am grateful that Zac still will take a 2-hour nap!  I think I should take him up on this "nap thing" too...when was the last time I napped with him?  It seems like a lifetime ago when I was napping when he was napping..."they" always tell you to do that after a baby is born, but when does that sage advice wear off? 

Lazy Days

This last week and this week have truly been great, lazy summer days.  It may not be what I have been used to in the past, but I am really enjoying these few short weeks of summer.  I am forever grateful that I am in a professional that allows me to enjoy these lazy days! 

Cooling Off

We took a quick ride out to (the outside of) Sheridan this evening to one of our new spots we like to go to cool off...Deer Creek.  I am grateful for the Yamhill County Park Department because a few years ago they started a scavenger hunt called Tangleboxing.  We would have never seen this part if it were not for Tangleboxing and now we love to go out there and play in the water, let the boys swim in the little swimming hole and then have a quick snack-picnic.  The water is in the shade, it is quiet and very cool and clean. 

Bartender

I am grateful that I get to be a part-part time bartender every once in a while.  It brings in a bit of extra cash, lets me mingle with some strangers and I like talking about beer and wine and being around a happy time...usually a wedding or festival. 

OSU...the early years

What a great day today, fun-filled with laughter and a ton of really great memories.  Back in the early years of my college days, back when we had no boundries, no rules and no cares...fun times, fun times! I am grateful for all those who were part of my life then and the few that continue to be a part of my life now.  Great friends!

Grilled Goodness

I am so very grateful for the yummy summer BBQ goodness!  Especially enjoyed with family and friends. 

Relief

A simple phone made things all settle back into place.  It may be a different place, but it is a better place for us now, a new path and things are less stressful. 

I am extremely grateful for the person on the other end of the phone.  He was kind, courteous, compassionate and smart. 

Apology

Fighting with the husband is not fun...at times it is needed, hash things out, get it off our chests, vent...but when the "fight" runs into day 6 it is getting a little extreme.  The root of the fight is not the issue, it is the bigger picture of what is being done about resolving it.  Well, while on the phone with a friend today (I called to ask a very important question and forgot until we started talking that her husband is going through radiation right now)  and while listening to her problems, well...the fight with my husband seemed tiny (almost tinier than tiny).  She advised me to resolve the issue tonight.

The word is perspective. 

So at 11:30 pm, he was watching TV and I was reading...we chatted and got the big stuff resolved.

I am grateful for people (friends, family and just acquaintances) that can put it all into perspective.  

Zac's Vocabulary

I am so incredibly amazed at Zac's increased vocabulary!  He is not only talking up a storm, but using new words everyday.  I am so grateful for his outlook on life and how he is completely passionate in everything he does! 

Football

While I am not grateful for football...I am grateful that CJ is trying a new sport and is really excited about it AND is not going to do soccer this Fall, only football...that I am grateful for too! 

Helpful

I am grateful that I have friends that allow me to help.  I know that sounds crazy, but it is true.  Sometimes there are people who don't like or want help with anything (I sometimes, but rarely fall into the category, but I usually recognize this sooner rather than later and but sometimes it takes my sister slapping upside the head and screaming..."why didn't you just ask for help?")  Anyway today I helped out  my friend setting up her classroom and then helped my sister stain their new pergola.  What a fun day and I had a blast helping others.

Friends' Parents

I am grateful for the parents of my friends!  How great it is to have people who treat you like their own and are also very fun and exciting to be around. 

Thanks Les and Kathleen! 

Me, Myself and I

Today it is  my 39th birthday and as I reflect on the past years, about 35 of which I remember (at least bits and pieces at some level) I am grateful for the life that I have had lived.  I am lived a very blessed and fortunate life in a lot of respects.  I could go on and on about the trials and tribulations, the roller coaster of life and some aspects that I have struggled with, but this is not that kind of post...it is a grateful post and I am grateful for me, I am proud of my accomplishments and I am excited about the direction my life is going.  The thought that today starts the first day of the last year of my 30's...well, it freaks me out!  I am very grateful to be alive, healthy and happy on many levels but to acknowledge almost 40 years of life is going to be crazy and make me feel old!  I do have 365 days to get used to it and come to terms with time marching on. 

Happy 39th Birthday to me! 

Anna

I am grateful for my sister, for many reasons, but for this post...it is because she took the time bake peanut butter bars for my family birthday dinner AND write Happy Birthday Paige on the cake!  When was the last time you had your name on your birthday cake?  I think it was when I turned 10! 

Thanks Anna...it made my day!

Nice People

I am grateful for some very nice people that I have encountered today.  Kindness, friendliness and manners go a LONG way in even the shortest of conversations.  It makes me smile to think of the people who know how to have good customer service.  Thank you!

Trust and Faith

...it will all work out.  I am grateful for the ability to have trust and faith it will all work out.  I am not sure what that means right now, as in the working out part, but we are going to do our best to get it to work out for the best for us. 

Gracie

Happy 2nd Birthday Gracie!  I am so grateful for Gracie. She is funny, smart and a good friend to Zac.  They play together well (they just always need a warm-up time) and have known each other since birth...that also means that I am very grateful for Gracie's mom too!

Gone for the Weekend

The kids and I were gone for the weekend and upon our return...the house was just fine, plants and garden were watered and all was well...Thanks hubby!  I am so very grateful for you!