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I wish everyday was my birthday.

or rather

I wish everyday was this birthday.

or rather

I wish I could hold on to this feeling of overwhelming gratefulness

For each and every person

Who crossed my mind and heart today.

Never before in my (now even longer) memory

Has spring come in the dead of winter.

Fall, yes. October, yes.

Grey January?

Nope.

But now, today,

a newness, a hope,

a sense of Him in each step of my past

and a glimmer of light in the future.

And so this grey sky has transformed

from dreariness to

a Lightening of the darkness.

For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made us understand that this light is the brightness of the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Cor 4:6

Tradition.

Not because it's possible that I will get any of these things, but because I do it every year. OK. Maybe it's possible I'll get one of these things.

Merry Retailing.

Today I:

source

Did something I've never done that was important.

and

Cracked a 2nd grader up.

Win, win.

Outtakes.

Christmas card pictures needed to be taken.

I knew I wanted black and white, so I told them

Put on your puffer coats.

I did not notice that Em was wearing shorts.

Dogs tend to get off task during the picture taking process,

and they often take the children with them.

The End of November

Emma had her 9th birthday party and her first "not at home" birthday party. This was a big deal. We had the party at Alley Cats, and they got to bowl, eat pizza and cake and each kid got a game card. It was fun for the girls, I think, and totally easy for me, and not that much more money.

We were going for the "Taylor Swift-ish" look, and I don't even want to tell you how long I spent on this particular hairdo that ended up looking like an old perm. Ugh.

She liked it though.

Em has some really cute friends.

And we have some really cute dogs. Yes. I am aware that they are wearing matching bright shiny purple puffer coats. They were 2.50 at the dollar spot at Target. Maxie loves hers and practically leaps into it. Minnie HATES hers, and will barely move once you put it on her. She just looks totally disgusted. (see above photo where Maxie evidently is being a bit too enthusiastic in expressing her love for her coat and Minnie is feeling precisely the opposite.)

Duh-nah duh-nah duh-nah duh-na BAT DOG!

I had some idea to do a book this year to keep track of all the fun holiday things we do, but perhaps I will just blog a bit more. We shall see.

It was a lovely thanksgiving at Mom and Dad's. Dinner was perfect (except for my rolls, which were underdone. Note to self: take rolls out of fridge a significant amount of time before you bake them.) I had a gorgeous nap on the floor behind the couch and then Bo and I took Bill to see HP7. Loved it yet again. Bo got to ice skate because we got to the mall early and had an hour to kill and they had a 5.00 skate Thanksgiving special. Came home, crammed more turkey and dressing down my gullet and went to bed.

I worked home health for most of the day today, but then we went over to the Tuckers for spaghetti and Elf + White Christmas. On the way to Jen's I did manage to score some black friday bargains at Tarzhey. The 8 dollar crock pot and this lovely throw which I have been coveting and which was half price! Huzzah!

Tomorrow we commence to decorate for Christmas. Wish me luck!

The Goose is Getting Fat

source

Yes, yes. I know it's early.

But the only real time I have to decorate is Thanksgiving weekend.

So there. nyah.

So I'm thinking that I love these candle holders,

and to be honest,

they were the only thing I loved in the new Crate and Barrel catalog.

The Mrs. Shop is another story.

Happy Mid-November!

PS. My daughter is nine. How is this possible?

Show Up.

Isn't it funny what clicks?

This morning the art teacher and I were moaning about Monday and she said that she read something written by a 92 year old woman that she wanted to pass out to the staff. She couldn't remember all of it, but said it was really simple and the first three things were

"Get up. Get Dressed. Show up."

And I was inspired to present in my job today. And it helped because there were some things that needed my involvement.

Show up.

Here's another good list:

42 Things To Always Remember:

1. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

2. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

3. Don’t believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

4. When you say, “I love you”, mean it.

5. When you say, “I’m sorry”, look the person in the eye.

6. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.

7. Believe in love at first sight.

8. Never laugh at anyone’s dreams. People who don’t have dreams don’t have much.

9. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt, but it’s the only way to live life completely.

10. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.

11. Don’t judge people by their relatives.

12. Talk slowly, but think quickly.

13. When someone asks you a question you don’t want to answer, smile and ask, “Why do you want to know?”

14. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

15. Say “bless you” when you hear someone sneeze.

16. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.

17. Remember the three R’s: Respect for self; Respect for others; Responsibility for all your actions.

18. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

19. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

20. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

21. Spend some time alone.

22. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

23. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

24. Read more books and watch less TV.

25. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll get to enjoy it a second time.

26. Trust in God, but lock your car.

27. Create a loving atmosphere in your home is so important. Do all you can to create a tranquil harmonious home.

28. In disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

29. Read between the lines.

30. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.

31. Be gentle with the earth.

32. Pray. There’s immeasurable power in it.

33. Never interrupt when you are being flattered.

34. Mind your own business.

35. Don’t trust a man/woman who doesn’t close his/her eyes when you kiss.

36. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

37. If you make a lot of money, put it to use helping others while you are living. That is wealth’s greatest satisfaction.

38. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a stroke of luck.

39. Learn the rules then break some.

40. Remember that the best relationship is one where your love for each other is greater than your need for each other.

41. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

42. Remember that your character is your destiny.