Frozen Yogurt

The past few years, in lieu of a toy or something, I have taken my little nieces and nephews out for ice cream or frozen yogurt (their choice).  It was a way of spending a little time with each one and celebrating them at the same time. 

Today I took my 5 year old niece for her first frozen yogurt.  And she loved it.

The bonus is that you can't buy some for the kiddo and not for yourself...  Treat for me!! 

I love frozen yogurt.  It's better for you than ice cream, but just as good (in my opinion).  Though I suppose t could be argued that, once I topped it with all that deliciousness, it wasn't as good for me anymore ;). 

My theory with frozen yogurt is you can eat the same amount you would have in ice cream and feel half as guilty (at least with my favorite ones from Publix).  I usually don't do that, though.  I figure I might as well have FULL guilt for twice as much consumption :).  It's just good stuff.  And Publix brand frozen yogurt in the South?  Holy goodness...  I love the Black Jack Cherry and the Mint Cookie.  While in Alabama in October, we bought some the night before we left.  And I realized there were a lot more flavors than I remembered from when I lived there!  And some that I'd really like to try one day, like chocolate truffle and key lime. 

Until then, I'll enjoy the little frozen yogurt shop and add all my favorite toppings (which usually are mostly chocolate).  Because it totally rocks the Nilla Life.

What are you grateful for today?

Annie E.

It's a wonderful thing to open my inbox and find an email from my dear friend Annie.  And that's just what I did today.

Annie is another one of my wonderful Tuscaloosa friends.  Another person who took a lonely girl under her wing at a difficult time in her life.  And I am forever grateful for this wonderful woman.

I met Annie while working in the Cataloging Department at the University of Alabama.  She sat in the cubicle in front of me.  I don't know exactly how we started talking and becoming friends, but I do know Annie was nice from the very beginning.  But that's just Annie.  I think our friendship really started to blossom when I ran into her at the laundromat one evening.  And I think there was one time after that in which she picked me up and we went to the laundromat together.  I can't remember the reason for it, but I remember it happened.

And after that, we just started talking more at work.  Annie would invite me to join her at the Christmas Party at the President's mansion.  Which was super-awesome, because I would never have gone alone.  I would have felt too awkward and conspicuous not having someone to go with and talk to.  Annie was kind enough to offer both of those things that first year I was there.  And, though that may seem a small thing, it really did impact me a lot.  And I still remember how grateful I was for it to this day.

Annie and I (along with our other friend and co-worker Le) made up Team WEB for Strive for Five.  Basically, we worked toward losing weight as a team, eating well as a team, drinking a lot of water, having happy thoughts, etc...  It was a fun little incentive-type thing the University did, and then we got to enjoy breakfast and a huge group picture inside the huge UA stadium (the one and only time I was in there -- and it is impressively huge).  We had fun participating in this together.

And...  Well, Annie and I were somewhat attacked by a rat together.  At work.  Yeah, it's a great story.  I still laugh about it and can picture Annie screaming and jumping in the air as the rat ran toward (and past) her.  Definitely one of the greatest working tales of all time.

I'm so grateful for Annie.  Grateful that we have kept in touch these several years since I left.  Grateful I was able to see her when we went down in October.  Grateful that she always makes time to see me whenever I am passing through.  People like Annie just make this world a better place, and I feel so blessed to call her my friend.

What are you grateful for today?

The Microwave

On Sundays at our house, we try to keep dinner simple.  It was something my husband felt was important, and I had no problem with that plan.  And nowadays when we have 1:00 church (and get home at 4:30), it makes me super-happy that I don't have to try to make a dinner.

What this  means for us is that we usually have leftovers.  As long as I've planned well through the week and thought ahead. 

In the event I didn't, I keep things like canned chili and hot dogs on hand for chili dogs.  Haha.

But usually we have leftovers.  And that's why I love the microwave.  It makes eating leftovers on Sundays so easy. 

I love the microwave for other things as well.  It's how I boil my water for my hot chocolate (Stephen's mint being the current awesomeness I'm savoring these days, thanks to two amazing friends).  I need to get a kettle, though...  I think this often.

I've recently discovered the joy of making a single serving of mac & cheese (from real ingredients -- though I have nothing against the blue box) in the microwave (thank you Pinterest).

We use it to warm up the water that in turn warms up the bottle for baby girl.

And I use it for the timer feature when I'm either a.) doing something like those crazy good bagels which require multiple timers; or b.) trying to not wake the baby from a nap with a loud brrrrrrrrrinnnng sound.

And, yeah, I know there are many who feel the microwave is a dangerous thing.  I can't say I've done research on it.  I just know that it's been helping me out for many years...  I can still remember our first microwave.  In fact, we were using it up until a few months back when my sister's broke.  So we gave her that one, since the apartment we're living in came with one.  That 20 year old microwave is still kickin' as far as I know.  We got it in 1992 while my mom was away helping out at a Young Women Girls' Camp for church.  I remember being so excited about her coming home to find out my dad had gotten her this present.  Funny the things you remember. 

What are you grateful for today?

Ears That Hear

A few days ago, a friend of mine posted something on her facebook page that impacted me.  She has a niece who is about a year old.  A happy little girl, based on the pictures I saw.  A little girl born the same year as my little girl, just a few months earlier.  And that sweet girl was born mostly deaf.  As I read a little of her story by following the link, I learned that with hearing aids, she can hear noises like jack hammers.  Without them, she can't even hear that.  Which means, even with hearing aids, she has never been able to hear her mommy's voice telling her she loves her.  Never been able to hear her daddy's voice soothing her when she's hurt.

And as I read that, it just did something to my heart.

It made me so grateful for my own ears that hear.  My ears that know the voice of my parents.  The ears that hear my husband call me beautiful.  The ears that hear my darling baby's belly-laugh when I rub my head on her tummy.  Do I realize this gift I have been given my whole life?

And then, probably even more strongly, it made me feel so much more grateful for my baby girl's ears that hear.  Grateful that she looks at me with a smile when I say her name.  That she laughs in the bathtub while playing with her toys when she looks over at me and I say in a singy-song voice, "I see you!"  Even that she startles when she doesn't realize I'm in the room and I suddenly say something to her.

I am reminded of the words of one of my most favorite Primary songs:  Whenever I hear the song of a bird... He gave me my ears that I might hear the magical sounds of things.

And, though I haven't -- to this point in my life -- needed it, I'm grateful for the technology that exists to help those who can't hear.  This little girl, whose story helped me be more grateful, is scheduled to receive a cochlear implant on Valentine's Day.  What an appropriate day for her to hear the words "I love you" for the first time (at least with her ears).

You can read about this little girl here.  And if you feel so inclined to help, please do.  I don't intend for this blog to be a solicitor.  It is meant to be a gratitude blog.  But in being grateful for this, I am faced with the reality that not everyone has it.  And as a mother, I know what it is to love my child with all that I have.  I know what it is to want all the good there is for her.  I know what it is to know I would do all I could to give her the very best (of non-material things).  And though I do not know this little girl personally, nor do I know her family (outside of her great-aunt), I am pretty much 100% positive that her mother feels the same way.  But sometimes we can't do it alone.  And I believe there are those who want to help.  That we are here to lift and help each other.  Because I believe no man is an island.

What are you grateful for today?

Awesome Grocery Store Deals

Seeing as today was payday, I figured it wise to re-stock the house.

And start stocking the can rotater (I think I totally made up that word) one item at a time.  (This time it was chicken broth :)).

I generally attribute awesome grocery store deals to tender mercies from the Lord.  And blessings that come because of choices we make.  I know I have witnessed miracles in my life during times when money was very tight for me, and I was determined to live within my means and not take on any more debt (like when I was in Tuscaloosa).  I could go to the grocery store during the time when rent was due, leaving me about $30 to buy groceries for 2 weeks.  And without fail, I always was able to get everything on my list -- and usually a couple extras.  And I didn't exist on ramen noodles, either.  I know those were miracles, blessings, tender mercies.  And I will forever have a testimony of tithing and how the Lord fulfills His promises because of my time in Tuscaloosa.

But I digress.

True, money isn't as tight for me now as it was then.  But I do still have a budget my husband and I agreed upon.  And I make a lot of effort to stay within my budget when I do shopping.  So I consider it a tender mercy when I know I'm getting low on meat in the freezer and will need to purchase some this pay period... when I know meat is probably one of the most expensive items I purchase... and the ads arrive and boneless skinless chicken breasts are on sale (yeah, I know that's the pricier stuff, but it's the only way I eat chicken... I'm so picky about that) and the lean ground beef is also on good sale...  Well, I consider it a blessing for my budget.  And I go and stock up for those times when it's not on sale. 

And then it's even awesomer (yeah, I made that one up too ;)) to also find some nice looking petite sirloin steaks on a screaming deal...  Buy one, get 2 free!  And so I figure:  why not?  That's a whole lot of food -- meat -- I just plopped into my freezer.  That's a whole lot of meals.  (And I don't generally buy steak, but this was a deal I felt was too good to pass up!)

So yeah...  these types of things are rockin' because they bless my life, but also because it's just fun to feel like I'm getting a good deal and being wise with money at the same time.

What are you grateful for today?

Goals

Part of the fun of a new year is setting goals.  At least for me.

Some people call them resolutions, but I think I've come to prefer the word "goal."  Because the truth is, even though I may want to accomplish something, I'm not always resolved to do so.  And rather than get bogged down in disappointment, if I set that thing as a goal, I don't have to feel like quite as much of a failure if I don't succeed this year... or even next.  And thus, I can continue working toward that goal until I do finally achieve it. 

I was lax in setting goals for myself in 2013.  Which is a shame, really; because in previous years, I did set certain goals -- goals that I felt were attainable.  Things like writing in my journal weekly, planting a garden, setting aside a certain amount of money from each paycheck for savings.  And because I'd taken the time to set those goals (and share them online, in various degrees of specificity), I held myself accountable just as publicly at various points throughout the year...  And then, at the end of the year, I had actually accomplished several of them.  And what a great feeling it was to look back and see what I had accomplished. 

Goals, at least for me, give me motivation and direction.  They help me be a better person in many ways.  When I take the time to ponder worthy goals in various aspects of my life, and when I work toward those goals -- whether I completely achieve them or not -- I grow in knowledge and ability. 

So I am grateful for goals.  Grateful I can set them and work toward them.  Grateful we are counseled by church leaders to set goals.  Grateful I can feel like I live a more purpose-driven life through heeding that counsel and setting worthy goals. 

I haven't completely set all my goals for 2014 yet.  But in talking with my mom the other day, I decided to try something new:  setting daily goals, weekly goals, monthly goals, and yearly goals.  I already set a bunch of goals for today and made a list.  And I accomplished every single one of them.  And I think, as I get more in the swing of things, I will be able to have longer-term goals that I break down into shorter-term goals which will help me keep moving along.  Because seeing that list get all crossed-off today (even though some of the goals were simply doing a load of laundry and making dinner), felt really good, and I felt really productive.  Heck, I was really productive. 

What are you grateful for today?

Hope

Hope is a beautiful thing.

There is hope in every day, if we so desire.  But with a New Year, it just seems like there is an added measure of hope.  Not just because of the resolutions some people set and hope to achieve.  But also because it's a new year.  A fresh beginning.

Hope that the things you aren't pleased with might improve (whether through your own efforts or through tender mercies of the Lord -- or a combination of both!).

Hope that things you've longed for may arrive.

Hope that you can build on your strengths and overcome weaknesses.

Hope that, when life throws challenges, you can hunker down and push through.

In so many ways, hope keeps us going.  It fuels our dreams.

To quote a quote I found on Pinterest:

"Hope is the little voice you hear whisper 'maybe' when it seems the entire world is shouting 'no!'"

Or, another one of my favorite hope quotes:

"Hope sees what is just around the corner."

Yes, hope is a beautiful thing.  And I'm grateful to have hope in my heart as I begin a new year.  Hope for improvement.  Hope for dreams becoming reality.  Hope for becoming better than I was before.

Happy New Year.  And just because it popped into my head...  Here's a great article on hope.

What are you grateful for today?