Thankful: Day 6

Today I am thankful for this:

 

I have some really great friends.  I have a sweet hubby who makes me laugh a lot.  My entire family means the world to me.  But there is only one person on this earth who:

calls me the morning of the presidential election to tell me she doesn't know who she's voting for  (neither do I)

listens as I rant on about how I don't like a person, place or thing

(neither does she)

lets me yell at her and then pretends that I didn't

(and doesn't even expect me to say I'm sorry)

makes me feel like everything I say, do, feel and think is completely normal

(this is not easy to do)

I'm thankful for my sister.

Thankful: Day 5

Today I am thankful for Yoga Mondays.  Usually when Rob is gone I spend my time being strange and unproductive.  I shop after work, eat takeout in my car and meander home around 7:30 with the intention of running on the treadmill.

Two hours later, I realize I've been sitting on my couch for 120 minutes.  Looking at my phone or computer or both.  And then I sleep there. Sometimes in my work clothes.  Like I said...strange.

But not on Yoga Mondays.  On Yoga Mondays, I spend my working hours drinking the recommended 8 glasses of water.  I go to my natural chiropractor to get snapped back into alignment.  I take the prescribed overdose of Fish Oil and vitamin B, C & E.  And I follow up all this holistic preparation with 1.5 hours at Hot Yoga.  Today I focused on my breathing and I truly completely let go of everything that was annoying me--work, student loans, and Facebook friends who post their political views and affiliation.   I felt so happy, so balanced, so calm.  I think if I'd gotten a deep paper cut, I would have bled green-tea. 

Yoga Mondays are a perfect way to start my week and I'm thankful for them.  It should be noted that this was my first Yoga Monday...but it's not my last. 

Thankful: Day 1, 2, 3, 4

"Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone."
G. B. Stern 

I'm going to use the month of November to show daily gratitude.  Since we're already on the 4th of the month I'll multiply my thankfulness (x) 4 today.  

I'm thankful for routine chaos.  And occasional days of nothingness.

Our schedule changes every week.  Since Rob spends three or four workdays in Dallas, we scramble to get everything in on the two weekdays and two weekend-days we have together.  It's a bit much sometimes, but it keeps life busy and fun.  And it makes me thankful for the days when we have no plans.

I'm thankful for D.E.A.R Sundays.

One or two Sundays a month, when we're in town and not hungover, we walk across the street to  Embassy Suites and pretend we're guests.  Actually, we just walk very blatantly through the front door and make a beeline for the Starbucks counter.  I buy a coffee, Rob takes a "complimentary" newspaper.  And then we walk our little criminal selves back home to DEAR.

(Drop Everything And Read)

I love it so much.  Right now I'm reading The Art of Fielding.  Sofar, Sogood.

 [D.E.A.R aftermath]

I'm thankful for Sunday walks

I'm thankful for Revenge.

 We never miss it.  It's the perfect end to a routine or chaotic weekend and it always gives me something to look forward to on a Sunday night--to keep me from thinking about Monday morning.

A Blog Story

Once upon a time I started a blog.  And then my blog and I went on a break.  Because I needed my space.  And because summer arrived.    

With summer came: 

A new job (yay).

College World Series.  (visitors!)

Toby Keith at Nebraskaland Days. (I’m-like- 1/28 more cowgirl than I used to be.)

5 weddings, 4 weekends in a row (do the math).

My (first) business trip (ever) to FL.

A trip to Lake Michigan.

The Olympics (the first time I’ve sat and watched TV since May-ish. And I gotsta multi-task…) which brings me back to…

My blog! 

I’m sensing some animosity.  I hope my blog doesn’t resent me for going steady with summer. 

Summer is just sooo hot this year. 

sojourning

It’s mid-May.  50% of our travel for the month is complete.  Nashville:check. Chi-ville: check. This weekend Grace is coming to explore the The Good Life, and in just two weeks, we will be heading to Florida's Captiva Island.  I had planned on being super fit for our beach trip, but the aforementioned celebratory weekends killed that dream.

Busy months like this are my favorite.  [Disclaimer: By the time May 30^th hits, all I will want is a weekend full of nothingness, spent on my couch.  But for now, I will tell you…] I love traveling.  I always like something to look forward to and my favorite thing to look forward to is a trip.

I’d been looking forward to Nashville for Emily’s bachelorette party for so long, and now, it’s over.  [Waaaa]   It was, in a word:

A-mustaching-pedal-pubbing-BLAST.

It’s been too long since my abdominal muscles have hurt from that type of oblique-splitting laughter.  My friends are good at making that happen, and with that FL trip approaching, I'll take all the abdominal muscles I can get. 

Here is a little photo essay for your viewing pleasure: A Nashville Story

Here is the bride-to-be:

And girls on a pedal pub: 

Yes, there were mustaches…

…boots…

 …and mini-cowboy hats. 

 There was tap-dancing.

There were sombreros.

 Jean vests.

 And Huskie bests.  

 

And now, I am counting down the days until July 7^th—Em's Big Day. Which will be the first outdoor wedding I’ve ever attended.  And it’s going to be just perfect.

Chicago was an equally enjoyable trip. Much needed family time. The highlight? Family boxing at Sisty-Sistor's gym.  In case you were wondering, I'm an excellent boxer.  I've really mastered the art of jumping around the bag and making fierce faces that perplex and disturb people enough to make them look the other way when I "strike" the target. Boom boom, pow.

 -PROCRASTINATION STATION-

“If you put everything off until you’re sure of it, you’ll get nothing done”

-Norman V. Peale

Well, well, well. What do you know?  It’s April 15.  That’s 15 days past my self-imposed deadline.  Which means that I have been meandering through the first half of this month without any purpose.  Without direction.  Goal-less!  I’ll blame it on ‘The Loony Bin’-which is where I spend my weekdays between the hours of 8:30am and 4:40pm.  What was once an undemanding Reading Teacher position quickly became a headache inducing 6^th Grade Teacher position when a certain Loony did not come back from Spring Break.  Gone are the days of no planning, no grading and no thinking. I now have responsibilities and frankly, I’m not ok with it.  But that brings me to my top goal for April. 

Keep on Keepin on: until the end of the year.  May 18^th.  Just 29 work days left.  I can do it.  And hopefully the 6^th graders will be able to learn something from my meager math lessons. 

Here's the Loony Bin back in its prime.

Other goals for (the remainder of) April are as follows:

Travel: to NASHVILLE! For my favorite Kentuckian’s bachelorette party.  My boots are already packed and ready for walking and pedaling. In THIS…

 can I getta hell ya?

…and then on to Chicago for Mother’s Day and MaryG’s birthday. Both on the same day this year.  Talk about a double whammy.  Better think of a good gift. (My presence is your present?)

Create: some of these

 

as well as some more blog posts.   Because now that I have my fancy header from this guy, who is married to this girl, I can’t NOT blog on the reg.

Read: My book club assignment- Kitchen CounterCooking School.

Get: A new job. The time has come.

Drink: More water.  Kind of a lame goal, I know.  But I am somewhat of a camel.  I often have zero glasses of water/day.   I’m a bit sick right now.  I think I coughed up approximately 8 lungs yesterday.  But I’ve been hydrating more than usual and my skin feels refreshed. Imma try to keep that up after this congestion is gone. 

-resolutions are corny-

I dislike making resolutions on January 1st. They seem too daunting and my feeble attempt at making them results in a piece of paper covered with more doodles than realistic goals. On the first day of the brand new year, I’m pale and freezing. I can’t make positive life changes during a time of so little sunlight and so much snow. I’m partial to Spring Resolutions. This is when I feel excited. When I feel motivated. When I feel warm. I want to get healthy, I want to travel, I want to eat and drink on patios. So now that I am in a resolution-state-of-mind, I am making my monthly goals. And I am sharing them with you. Not because I think you care, but because if I know that you know, I will be more inclined to follow through. (my goal structures are inspired by the new years resolutions found here and here.)

-goals for march-

create: a blog.

I’ve been talking about doing this for months. My inspiration comes from friends and acquaintances. When I say acquaintances, I mean complete strangers who’s blogs I have stumbled upon and, unbeknownst to them, proceeded to stalk follow. Religiously. These “pals” are all uber-crafty or wildly hilarious or professional photographers in training. I’m not any of these things. [Though I do love to fantasize about—one day—doing a craft. And my dream in life is to be one/twentififth as funny as Tina Fey or Kristin Wiig. And my new in-laws did just give us a pretty snazzy digicam.] I’m also not sure that I can “pull-off” a blog. I feel a bit corny. But I live in Nebraska now, and I think it’s in my best interest to embrace all things corny.

travel[near]: to Lauritzen Gardens...

Hubzinski and I have a membership here because the same day we got married, we turned 80. Our motto for success is: “less daydrinking, more botanical gardens.” I love it. But haven’t been there since October-ish. So it’s time to go back and smell the tree-buds.

...and to DeSoto Bend. It’s a bald eagle refuge and I feel like getting patriotic.

travel[far]: to Chi-Ville and Kentucky.

To my favorite city for this:

With my favorite party people:

And to my home-ville for a little bit of this:

And a lot bit of this:

read: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Crazy Love, and (finish) Bossypants. Thank goodness for the book clubs and Bible studies that keep me literate.

run: 7 miles twice a week.

pray: Each day. And be thankful.