Birthday Love

Today was easily one of the busiest birthdays I've ever had.  And, honestly, I should be in bed! 

I spent the majority of the day at a vendor event at the local mall -- mostly just getting my name out there and introducing THRIVE Life to people.

Then I had a doctor's appointment.  Which the check-in gal totally messed something up and I waited an hour past my appointment time before I got called back.  Have I mentioned patience isn't my strong suit? 

Then I bought Burger King (dinner of birthday-girls, right?  Eh, not so much, but I needed food fast -- I was fading.) and brought it home and shared with my sister and nieces (and toddler).  My sweet sister came to watch my munchkin so my hubby could go to work while I was still at the mall and then the doctor.  I appreciate her.

Then I went to talk to a couple of other lovely ladies about THRIVE.  And got home after 8.  Showered.  Put the baby to bed.  Made dinner for my husband who isn't such a fan of fast food... ;).  Opened my presents... finally!

Oh, and did I mention I had two gifts dropped off at my house -- both while I wasn't here!

I have said it before, and I'll say it again:  I have the most amazing friends and family.  And today, I felt tons of birthday love.

I also love that my friends know me so well....  book of lists, awesome 80s cereal (some that even have face masks I can cut out, by the way ;)), chocolate...  Oh my.

I am blessed.

What are you grateful for today?

Tweezers

So packing for our 8 day stint away from our apartment was a challenge (just fyi... we're back home now, if you didn't already know ;))...  But I'd say we did pretty darn well with it! 

Because hubby was parking at our apartment complex and walking to work every day (as he usually does under normal circumstances), we were always well aware of the progress of things.  Which was nice.  And so, when he found he could access our apartment (before we were actually allowed to return), he asked me if there was anything I needed from home, since he could now supply it for me.  (Yes, sometimes we're rebels...).  I had only one item:  tweezers. 

Because here's a fun fact for you:  most women have at least one (if not more) unsightly hair they want removed.  And a week + of no proper tweezing can be...  disturbing.  Even if only to the woman in question.  And here's another fun fact:  I'm one of those women.

My husband rolled his eyes at me when I told him.  But I think he knew I was serious when I sent him a text to remind him.  I told him I didn't want to look like a woolly mammoth.  He acquired said tweezers. 

Glamorous, no?  But hey...  I'm getting older (almost 34, people!).  And I'm learning that you may as well just embrace who you are -- unsightly, unwanted hairs and all.  Because we all have our flaws. 

And let's not kid ourselves...  I'm betting there's at least one lady somewhere out there reading this, nodding her head, because she knows. 

Besides, I got a chuckle writing this :).

(I should have written this days ago...  But it's been a crazy month.)

What are you grateful for today?

Credit Card Fraud Checkers

... Yeah, I don't know what the official term or name is...  I just know I'm grateful for it.

Because, as though things weren't crazy enough in our little world right now (still not living at our home)...  Monday morning dawned with a text from our credit card company asking that we check in on some recent charges that were flagged for possible fraudulence.  Because this has happened to a couple of my friends recently -- and for at least one of them, the charges were legit -- I wasn't overly concerned.

But then I found out I needed to be.  Because, sure enough...  That $80 charge to sportsfood for "nondurable goods" sure was not one I made.  Particularly not at 6 a.m. Monday morning. 

And so, I'm ever so grateful that the credit card company is on the lookout for suspicious activity.  I've never had this happen before (other than the time they got a little concerned about all the gas I was buying across the country in 2009...).  But there's a first time for everything.  And this time, my account had been compromised.  Which is a total bummer.  Why must there be so much dishonesty in this world?  It's sad.

But I'm so grateful that we are protected.  That that old account is now closed.  That we have a new account.  That they were willing to send the new cards to our temporary address.  Yeah, it was a bit of a hassle.  But still a huge blessing.

And yes, I know it's true what my husband said:  the credit card company is just covering themselves...  That's fine.  Because they are covering me in the process.  And that's what I need in this world when almost everything is credit-based and not everyone is honest.

What are you grateful for today?

The Generosity of Others

This past week has, once again, been a testament to me of the good people -- no, the great people -- Heavenly Father has placed in our my (and our) life.

I write this from the basement of my dear friend Amalea's home.  It is where my family will call home for the next several days.

Some of you may have read about the lovely stair situation at our apartment building.  Well, progress is finally being made.  But the price of that progress was that we had to be relocated temporarily.  Because this relocation fell during the time I'd been planning to have an 80s party at my (albeit ghetto) digs, I had to notify all my invitees that the party had been postponed. 

And in response, Amalea and her husband invited us to stay with them in their basement.  With only the hope that we'd be out in 10 days max (but who knows?  it could go longer...).  And while my husband is on swing shift.  Which means he gets home around midnight. 

I was beyond shocked -- and humbled -- by her invitation.  By their outpouring of love for our little family in this inconvenient situation.  Their offer saved my husband at least 1 1/2 hours of commute time every day for work. 

And here's the thing:  I know there are others of our friends and family who would have welcomed us as well.  (The landlord would have put us up in a hotel, but that would have been less-than-pleasant with a toddler...)  I know we are so very blessed by the generosity and love of others.  It amazes me.

I recognize that it cannot be easy to have 3 extra people living in your home.  And yet...  And yet they offered without hesitation.  And I don't know if I can ever fully repay them for their kindness and love.  This has meant more to our family than we can express.  It has been a stressful time (trying to figure out what all we need for however long we'll be away from home) -- and today was a bit overwhelming and exhausting (we had to be out this evening for them to begin tearing down all the walkways tomorrow morning).  But having a comfortable and open place welcoming us, full of welcoming, loving friends, has made it less difficult than it could have been.  And so, I am grateful.

What are you grateful for today?

Life -- an Abundant One

Well, here it is.  My 365th post.  My 365th grateful.  I felt it only appropriate, after an entire year of daily gratitude for both the exciting and the mundane, the grand and the less-noticed, to be grateful for my life.  And not only just that I have life.  But that my life is an abundant one.  The past year has shown me that in new ways as I have chosen something each day for which to be grateful.

The fact that I live is an awesome thing.  True, it's not like I really know what the alternative is like...  But each new day comes with new opportunities for me to enjoy life and grow and learn.  Do I always embrace it?  Probably not as much as I should.  Do I always succeed in improving each day?  Unfortunately, no.  But each new day of my life, the opportunity is there.  The potential is there.  The blessing of experiencing mortality in all of its ups and downs is there.  And that's a beautiful thing.

The fact that my life is so full of goodness...  That is also awesome.  We can live and just exist.  But I don't think that's why we're here in this life.  We are here to find and experience joy.  Some days I have a hard time believing that...  But deep down I know it's true.  And so, as I've spent a year chronicling the things for which I am grateful -- the reasons I have to be grateful...  I recognize the blessings.  The people who have made life special and wonderful and fun for me over the years.  The food that I've been able to enjoy and savor (because wouldn't it be less than stellar to subsist on gruel every day of your life?).  The moments I've been able to treasure and turn into memories.

And so, as I ponder over all these things (and millions more I didn't even recognize over the course of this past year), I am left with a song lyric by One Republic to quote:  It's gonna be a good, good life.  (Because, honestly?  It already is.)

And because I know that's true -- that my life will continue to be good and abundant -- I will, from time to time, pop on and write another "grateful."  I just will not be holding myself to the daily blogging here from here on out.  But thank you all for joining me on this journey of gratitude.  It was good for my soul.

What are you grateful for today?

A Living Prophet

Twice a year, members of my faith (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) gather to listen to the Prophet and Twelve Apostle and other church leaders.  It is called General Conference, and it is broadcast from Salt Lake City.  We are able now, with technology, to view it on the internet from home.  I always feel really good inside when I hear the words they speak.  The messages are timely, and I know these men are speaking the words the Lord would have us hear.

Today the Prophet, Thomas S. Monson, spoke briefly in the morning (he will speak more tomorrow morning).  As I listened to his words, what stuck out to me was how he spoke of loving others.  All others.  He talked of how it is a commandment from the Savior to love one another.  And that His disciples are expected to do so.  I'm not sure why that really stood out to me in his brief comments today, but it did.  Because love truly does make a difference.  It changes lives. 

I truly am grateful to know we have a living Prophet on earth today.  To know he receives revelation from God on our behalf.  I'm grateful for the counsel we are given -- to love others, to be prepared in a variety of ways, to recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives...  I find that, when I strive to follow the counsel he gives, I am happier and more grounded in life.  And I'm grateful we can hear him speak at General Conference :).

What are you grateful for today?

Blog Comments

You may call me the biggest dork ever, but seriously...  Blog comments make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. 

And today, I got some of them.  From some very special ladies. 

You see, once upon a time, blogging was all the rage.  And blog comments were more common.  I am guilty myself of not only not blogging as often (other than on this blog, because I set a goal and have kept up with it...) but also not commenting on others' blogs.  And so it is a special treat when I get blog comments :). 

What are you grateful for today?

Guests Who Graciously Tolerate the Ghetto-Fabulous

Because I had a lot of company tonight...  And they all had to do the whole walk-around-the-building thing due to our stairway situation mentioned yesterday.

So as I apologized for our ghetto-fabulous apartment complex...  I was so appreciative that everyone was kind and willing to just go with the flow.

What are you grateful for today?

The Tenant/Landlord Act

Say hello to our apartment complex's front staircase.  Do you see a problem?

So here's the thing:  I don't like to rock the boat.  Like ever.  I am incredibly non-confrontational.  Sometimes this serves me well.  Other times, not so much.

But when I got back from my trip to Utah in August (August 11th, to be exact), the stairs had been taken apart.  Meaning I had to unload the van from below and haul everything up a bunch of stairs.  All well.  It would be over soon enough and the stairs would (hopefully) be improved.

'Tis to laugh.

That picture was taken somewhere in the beginning of September.  And it doesn't look any different today.

This, by the way, was why I had a reason to meet all my neighbors.  Because, though I am not a boat-rocker...  Eventually, this is absurd.  And beyond absurd. 

Here's the thing:  the upstairs neighbors have to walk down a flight of steps, all the way around the building, up the stairs from the car port... just to check their mail.  We can't have company over without making them traipse around the entire building and up 18 stairs to make it to our level.  We are lacking an extra exit (which is hazardous in an emergency situation).  And this is in no way safe.  And...  How the heck are we supposed to move out?  We'd have to move huge stuff down the stairs, but they inserted extra beams which take up extra room on the already-small landing between the flights of stairs.

We got fed up.  Because not only was no work being done...  We weren't even being kept informed!  I even emailed the property manager and asked what the status was.  Their office manager's reply:  They were waiting to find out the status.  What the heck?  If they don't know, who does?

So my husband started researching.  And then we wrote a letter.  A letter that referenced some revised code of Washington.  Specifically the stuff relating to the landlord/tenant act.  A letter that at least lit a fire under the property managers to tell us what the heck was going on.  They taped letters to all of our doors (every single one of the tenants signed the letter -- we've all been fed up!) the day after they picked up the letter at the post office (I got certified return receipt, thank you very much).  Then they mailed us an "official" copy of the letter for good measure.  They said they were in the permitting process.  (We think they started the project without permits -- and the person who was going to do it for them decided it wasn't worth the liability and quit...  leaving them on choice but to get the permits, but being unable to fix anything and so we are where we are.)  They said the project should be done by the end of September. 

Well, it isn't.  But we got another letter yesterday.  Telling us they now have the permits and are making plans.  And that they may have to temporarily lodge us elsewhere (motel) while they do the construction. 

Yeah, this is fun.

So it's a hassle.  But I'm grateful that the tenant/landlord act exists.  Granted, we're still in limbo.  And I'm really annoyed, since I have some get-togethers planned at my place this month (one of them tomorrow) and I was sure we'd have a front staircase by now when I scheduled them.  But at least we had an avenue to pursue.  And it has kept the property managers in communication with us -- which is how it should have been from the start.  

I don't like to be a pest.  I don't like to start stuff.  But it's not okay to take advantage of people either.  And so I'm grateful we had some recourse.  And I guess we still could, if we wanted to keep pursuing it.  But I am hoping they will actually keep moving forward now that they know we're fed up and willing to move forward.  Grrr...

Anyway, rant over.

What are you grateful for today?