Patient husband, naps and our refrigerator

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- A forgiving husband - he seems endlessly blessed with patience and forgiveness for my crankiness when I don't sleep well
- A nap - yes, I probably should have gone to church, but I am pretty sure God understood the necessity of getting caught up on sleep
- A refrigerator full of healthy food - it feels good to be back on track
- Movies that make feel laugh and cry
- The amazing spirit of the kids I hung out with today - cancer survivors that outlasted me on the dance floor - all with smiles on their faces

Dear God, thanks for today - and for all of the blessings in it. I am very grateful for my life - and I know I owe it all to you. Help me to be of service to You and Your kids in the best way possible. Amen.

Sent from my iPhone

Gratitude Quickie

It was a long - but good! - day, but yesterday, we didn't have internet at the house...so, I wanted to post a list for today!

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- A day full of family time in Tuscaloosa
- A husband that likes spending time with me
- Our Internet connection being restored
- A successful work day reporting from the Alabama game
- Neighbor that was quick to help with taking care of the dogs while we were out all day

Dear God, thanks for the blessings in my life - both those listed and the many others. Today was a good day - and I know I owe it all to You. I am going to take this raging headache to bed...but I'll see You tomorrow. Please watch over me and my loved ones as we sleep. Amen.

Bright lights, adjustable mirrors and dangly earrings

You know what I HATE?? People that drive behind me with their high beams on. Part of the reason it drives me so nuts is that there's no way to politely signal them to let them know that they are blinding you. If they were driving toward me, I could just flash MY brights at them, and give them the opportunity to turn them off. Instead, when they are behind you, there's no way to let them know - and they could be behind you for MILES.

Ok - deep breath. Here's a chance for me to try to find something I am grateful for in this situation, so it doesn't ruin my morning. Hmmmm - uou know what I am grateful for? Adjustable mirrors! Maybe it makes me a bad person, but now, instead of being blinded, I can just adjust my mirrors to reflect their ridiculously bright lights back at them. Does it work? I have no idea. Does it make me feel better? Abso-freaking-lutely. Somehow, by doing this, I feel like I am winning in the driving game. Is it very spiritual of me? Nope. But today, I don't care. (Insert maniacal little giggle...)

What else is on my gratitude list today?

Today, I feel gratitude for:

- Dangly earrings - they make me feel so fancy and grown up

- Car dancing - it's fun to be able to let loose and have a little fun in traffic (even more fun to observe OTHER people doing it!)

- To do lists - I would forget to do everything if I didn't have a few "to do" lists

- Online billpay - it makes life so much easier!

Dear God, thanks for the attitude adjustment today. That may not have been what the Serenity Prayers means when it says to have the "courage to change the things I can", but it definitely perked me up. I'll try to be more grown up for the rest of the day today, with Your help, of course. Please keep an eye on E and her mom today, and on my dad today - and anyone else that needs some comfort and/or healing. If I can be helpful or useful, please show me how. Amen.

My garage is awesome

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. ~Cynthia Ozick

When S and I moved in to his house, I had a lot of boxes of stuff that didn't have a place to go in the house immediately, so I put them in the garage. This was a source of contention between my very uncluttered soon-to-be husband and me - he doesn't keep a lot of stuff that doesn't have an immediate use, and I couldn't quite understand what the big deal was to have boxes in the garage.

I insisted that I didn't mind parking in the driveway - "It's easier", I proclaimed, "and besides, I am scared to park in the garage anyway. I don't want to hit the sides of the house when I pull in and out." For my safety, he claimed it was better for us to both park in the garage. His points? If we park in the garage, it would be harder for someone to break into the cars, and if it's raining, wouldn't it be nice to have shelter while exiting the car and going into the house?

OK - he had me there. I hate getting rained on. So, after he made that point, those dang boxes haunted me - especially on cloudy days, when the threat of rain was imminent. Slowly, I unpacked as many boxes as I could and found places for the contents in the house, and finally, anything that didn't make the cut of things that needed to be inside the house, I either neatly stacked in the very back wall of the garage (so that the cars could still fit inside) or put up in the attic, where they would be out of sight and out of mind.

Not only did I have a very happy husband once I finished, I was also able to park in the garage on rainy days (and other days, too - it's gotten less scary as I have gotten more practice.) Now, after months of parking with impunity in our uncluttered garage, I can almost forget that there were many times over the years of living in apartments without garages that I had to RUN from the car to the apartment, attempting to dodge raindrops. And today, when it was raining torrentially, I was super happy to have a garage to park in. I won't take a garage for granted ever again. (Ok, I might...but if I do, I hope someone reminds me that I said that today.).

Another thing that I often take for granted is my access to tickets to fun things like shows that come to town. Since I work in radio, we occassionally get tickets to events like concerts or shows when they come through town. Since I've been in radio for about 17 years now, it can almost seem like a "given" that we get to go to these events, when in reality, it's not a given at all. It's an awesome perk, and tonight, we get to go see one of my f-a-v-o-r-i-t-e musicals, Les Miserables. I have loved this show since I was a preteen, so I am super pumped to be able to go. (I apologize, in advance, for anyone sitting near me if I sing along too loudly.)

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- A garage where I can park my car when it's raining
- A break in the rain for the dogs to go outside right when I came home - perfect timing, Dude!
- A free haircut at a fancy salon - is there anything better than having someone massage your head while they shampoo your hair? Actually, YES! You could also have someone massaging your hands, at the same time! Heaven...
- Tickets to go see Les Miserables tonight - my inner theater geek is bouncing up and down with excitement
- A DVR that can tape "my shows" while we are out at the theater tonight, so I won't miss anything

Dear God, thanks for the blessings you shower upon me - and for the chance to notice them and feel gratitude for them. I am even grateful for the rain that showered all day, because I know that soon enough, it'll make all the plants around us green and gorgeous. On what seemed like a gloomy and yucky day, it would have been easy to dive into matching my mood with the weather - and instead, You made life so good that I couldn't ignore how lucky I am. Keep up the good work! Amen.


What do YOU feel gratitude for today? Anything that struck you today that you might normally take for granted?

Babies, Married Men and Naps

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- A healthy new baby for D and RJ - born naturally, just like they had hoped!
- Downloadable sheet music - I have downloaded a few of my favorite tunes for the piano, and it's been fun to try to play again. I mean, I've got the thing sitting here - and because of my schedule, I have a chunk of time in the afternoon before S gets home...so, no one is affected by my attempts to pound out the notes, other than the dogs. So far, they don't seem to mind!
- Men that love to be married - I saw two guy friends today, having lunch outside together, and both asked how things were going with being married - and I got to thinking about the two of their marriages. Both men often sing the praises of their wives, and are very vocal about the joys of being married to these sweet women. How cool is it to know these men?
- Naps - I am not rubbing it in, but I got to take a 2 1/2 hour nap this afternoon! Awwww, yeah!
- Gorgeous weather - again, not rubbing it in, but I did my reading this afternoon in the hammock in the backyard - sun shining, birds singing, not too hot, not too cold...just right!
- Being able to buy S a present he reallllllllllllly wanted - and getting to see him enjoy it! Although I may never get to see him again unless it is via FaceTime on the new iPad - it's really nice to be in a position to be able to get him something he's wanted for over a year and to see him using it a TON, already!

Dear God, thank you for today - and for the gifts that it brings. Thanks for the gift of new life in W! I'll keep it short and sweet today - please grant me knowledge of Your will for me and the power and courage to carry it out. Show me where I can be of service to You and/or Your kids, and keep a loving, comforting, protective arm around those that need it! Amen.

Second Chances

Last week, I made my unspectacular debut on a regional TV show called "Tide and Tigers Today". It's an hour long show that airs on Saturday mornings from either Auburn or Tuscaloosa to cover the Auburn Tigers or the University of Alabama Crimson Tide home football games, and to talk about college football, in general. My official title is "Tailgate Reporter", which means I am not the girl interviewing the coach on the sidelines, or the person throwing down statistics, facts and figures. My entire job is to report on the other stuff - the fun, human interest type of stories.

After missing opening weekend of college football (because we were on our honeymoon!), I wanted to get down to Auburn and ROCK my first TV show. As it turns out, I should have done a lot more in the way of preparing. I kind of figured I would be able to "wing it" - after being in radio for 17 years, I am accustomed to thinking on my feet and interviewing people. I would drive down on the morning of the game, and chit chat with some folks about their tailgating experience that day. I had also arranged for a friend to bring her son to be on camera for him to talk about how excited he was to be at his first game. I was supposed to verbally spar with the guys back in the studio, and ask them "tough questions" they weren't prepared to answer to see if I cuold stump them. Should be easy enough, right?

Wrong. Due to technical issue, I couldn't hear the hosts back in the studio and couldn't answer the questions they were asking me. Due to a schedule shuffle, my friend's son couldn't come. Due to having no backup plan for if my star interviewee couldn't come, I randomly grabbed a very shy child and ambushed him to being on camera - which turned out just about how you can imagine. Due to being late, I had parked very far away, and had to literally run the mile and a half to the stadium, which left me sweaty and unable to have to time to find other people to put on camera. Due to being late, I didn't have the time I planned to do the research for questions I was going to ask the hosts back in the studio.

Super. Awesome. Fabulous. I failed BIG time...and in front of a lot of people. I hate being bad at something...h-a-t-e it! I especially hate it when it's completely preventable. I considered writing an email to the producers to apologize and quit (or at least, offer to, if they wanted me to!). My husband talked me out of that, and suggested I wait until a few days had passed before talking to anyone about it and to see what they thought of how I did.

It turns out that they weren't thrilled with my efforts - but not as disappointed as I was in myself. They had LOTS of helpful suggestions for how to do better next time, and had even set up a fun interview for me to do while I did the next week's show with the mascot of the school's team. Wait...what? Next time? You mean, you are not firing me?? You mean, I get a second chance? Seriously?

Of course, I was psyched to have a second chance - but also, pretty scared, as well. What happens if I flopped again, even with all of their help?

This morning, I tried to remain in gratitude for my second chance - and it changed everything. I decided that I was going to be grateful for the whole day, and purposefully, thank God for the whole experience, even if I failed again. I even remembered to hit my knees and say a little prayer before I headed out for the day.

Instead of being AWFUL, here's how it went down: My darling husband took me out to breakfast first, and even walked me to the broadcast site, holding my hand the whole time. As we drove down, I wrote out all of my questions in big writing on a clipboard, so that if I froze up, I'd have a little cheat sheet. My interview arrived early, and I got the chance to do some preparation with him beforehand, and clear up some of the questions that could have been tricky during the live shot. The other reporter saw how much fun we were having with the interview, so he made a fun suggestion for how we could do the final segment - and it was a huge hit! The equipment worked, and I could hear the questions they were asking me from the studio.

Can I get a "Woo hoo!!!"? What a difference a grateful attitude can make!

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- Second chances
- A yummy breakfast at Waysider in Tuscaloosa with S - and getting to hear about the tradition
- Getting guidance and help from my coworkers
- Feedback that will help me get even better next week
- Love and support from my husband, family and friends

Thanks, Dude. You are awesome. Thanks for the second chance, and for not letting me blow it. Thanks for the whole day. Seriously, God. I really appreciate it. Now that I can relax for a few hours and reflect, I am also brazen enough to ask protection, guidance, and comfort for my loved ones - specifically, D, C, D & RJ, L, C, and anyone else that is suffering without speaking up. Amen.

"Blah Blah" gratitude

After doing a gratitude list for a while, and trying to be creative about what I am grateful for, I can almost get cocky about the amazing blessings in my life that can almost seem like they are just givens. It's not that I am NOT grateful for them, it's just that as I take stock of my life, those things don't immediately come to the front of my mind, since they are part of my daily life. What kind of things am I talking about? Having a job, having a roof over my head, having enough to eat, and being healthy...just to name a few.

So, when I sit down to do my daily list, I can actually find myself thinking "Ok, I am healthy, employed, and well fed, and I have a safe place to live...blah blah blah. What ELSE do I have going on that rocks?"

This morning, my radio station is broadcasting live from Children's Hospital of Alabama - and it's absolutely breaking my heart to watch these kids and their parents march through the lobby on their way to treatment. Kids wearing masks because it's not safe for them to breathe normal air, parents that look like they've been through war, families that are up at 5:30am and already at the dang hospital because the treatment is going to take ALL day. Small children Good grief, I can't even imagine.

Today, I am going to try not to blah my way through a gratitude list. The "basics" are not givens. They are precious gifts, and today, more than usual, I know that I need to remember that.

Today, I feel gratitude for:
- Being healthy
- Being financially stable to donate money to the hospital to support the incredible work they are doing here
- The fact that this place is open for the kids that need it
- Professionals and volunteers that can make sick kids smile and forget they are sick for a while
- The wakeup call out of the "blah's"

Dear God, please bless and protect these children. Please comfort them and their families as they battle their ailments. Thank you for the wake up call out of the "blah's". Today, K will be in court - I pray for the best possible outcome for her son. Also, it's the home stretch for M, please bring her through with flying colors. Continued prayers for D and RJ, and soon-to-be born baby. For myself, I only ask that You grant me knowledge of Your will for me, and the power to carry that out. Amen.


Your turn: Have you ever "blah blah'd" anything in your life that you should be grateful for? What are you grateful for today?