swim bike run

three days until ironman wi.  and i cannot wait.  i am thrilled to be in attendance again this year and support my pal & all the other athletes.  this year, we know more what to expect and how to be better spectators.  it is going to be an awesome time!

many things

several things rank high on the happy meter today.  it was the first day of school for the halfings and it went well.  no notes home (or phone calls) on the younger halfing and the eldest is super happy that the subjects of math and social studies do not begin until next week.  i have been anxious about the school year for both as they have both had some issues over the summer, but today the school year started off great.  i also worked my schedule to not work today, i got some shopping done, had lunch with J and got some computer work done this afternoon.  it was amazing.

i had the mop on my head lobbed off this morning.  i love my new do' and it feels amazing. 

ironman wi is just days away.  need i say more?  i am excited to get my spectator on!

i just read that over 5000 households are without power in our area this evening after a storm rolled through.  i am very thankful and happy that we are not one of them.  simple, right? 

back to school

it's back to school time tomorrow!  yay!!  i am hopeful, anxious, and excited for the school year to start.  i am looking forward to having them back in a much more steady routine and having some additional time to get shit done at home. 

getting hair cut tomorrow.  i cannot wait!!!

thankful for mostly good health

today i am simply thankful for good health.  yes, i am overweight and not in awesome shape.  but i do not have the worries some do as they wage a battle against cancer or some other health issue. 

anniversary

today is our wedded anniversary.  14 years of wedded bliss.  okay so it's probably more like 12 years of wedded "bliss" and 2 years of "something else" totaling it up.  we have had our ups and downs, and more downs recently, but we have worked together and attempted to stay communicating the best we can.  my partner has his moments (as do i) but we make the best we can out of each day.  what more can you ask for?

fish nickels

yes, i am fully aware i have not posted anything in the last three days.  it's been one heck of a weekend, but focusing on the positive has mostly remained strong.  here are the hilights and the lowlights of the last several days.

• both kids have been diagnosed with adhd and we now have both on medication.  (no judgements, if you want to expound about how i shouldn't put my kids on meds, you can quite frankly go shit yourself.)  kidlet 1 has been on meds for some time and the other will start tomorrow.  and i am really crossing my fingers for some positive reaction for kidlet 2.  he really could use it. 
• i seriously am about crafted out after hitting several projects for J's party this weekend.  but i have some artwork to create yet for the following weekend as i participate in the fun sport of Ironman WI spectatorship.
• i do not really talk about my side business much, but i do just have to post a slight rant.  it will make me feel better.  if you are going to contact a travel agent to book your trip and that person indicates that they will monitor for discounts, you do not need to email that person twice in one day to ask about the discount.  that person has taken care of it but has not had the opportunity to email you yet. 
• a friend found out she has a softball size tumor on her uterus last week and will be heading into surgery near the end of this week.  that sucks.  no other words for it.  hoping with all that i have that it is nothing and the surgery is the end of it for her.
• watching Ironman Louisville last evening (thanks to my IM pal, Sep).  what a freaking amazing experience.  it makes me even more excited for Sept 9th
• i read a fb status today in which a child declared "fish nickels" as an expletive and after a session with the developmental pediatrician this morning and further tweaking a plan for kidlet 2, we were in need of a expletive to say as he has been saying some other choice word.  and our family has now adopted "fish nickels" as our family swear word.  it makes me giggle which is the point.  hopefully it will do the same for him.

between a lack of sleep, a crabby-ass partner, a kid with a motor revved on MAX this week...i am ready either dissolve into laughter or tears.  i keep hoping for laughter.  :)  and so onto the next day i go.

long day

i do not have much energy this evening and not sure why i am feeling so flippin' bushed, but it has been a long day.  and one that i am simply thankful to be breathing. 

that is all.

Crazy kid

hard to find

gratitude and happiness at this exact moment are difficult to find.  earlier today, however, was a different experience.  we spent 4 hours at the pool today, doing absolutely nothing.  it was amazing.  i got some reading done, observed some hairstyle ideas (dying to cut it again), and worked on more color (yes, i know tanning is bad for me).  but it was an awesomely perfect afternoon.

less stress

today's gratitude/happiness snapshot is of my new job.  i love the fact that the biggest stressor of my job is a volunteer who gets territorial about their "job" that they donate their time for.  gone are the days of almost daily stress headaches, feeling beat down on a regular basis, feeling not valued by my management team.  now i am told on a regular basis how happy my supervisor is to have me here and i have freedom to try and do new things or to put an updated spin on an "old" way of doing something.  i have freedom to be myself and not censor myself with management for the most part.  i love it.

mental at the dental

today i am thankful and appreciative of dental insurance.  i had to have a cavity taken care of that i have been putting off for 6+ months.  it is the last tooth on the bottom right side, on the inside of the tooth.  the dentist remarked it was one of the most difficult areas to work on.  once the lower half of my face was feeling three times the normal size and nice & tingly, she set to work.  my throat was partially numb and they had to push my tongue out of the way which resulted in a sensation of my throat being closed off.  i could breathe through my nose and had to stay focused to breath in & out to not freak the heck out.  thankfully she took breaks so i could breath through my mouth and feel as if i was catching my breath.  i am glad it is over and super happy to have dental insurance to help cover the cost of this dental adventure.

positivity

positivity is something i have been lacking for some time.  i thought i was on an upswing with it, but after a few lovely chats with various friends over the last two weeks i was reminded that negativity persists.  and so i am on a mission to post at least one positive thing in my daily life for the next 30 days.  and to keep me on it, i am pledging to donate $1 towards a organization that i do NOT support due to conflicting personal views on a personal issue.  the name of the organization i will keep to myself, but i would dread to make a donation to it.  sounds like such positive talk right?  well, it is going to provide some additional motivation.

i am struggling to remain positive throughout the day and avoid letting the little things get to me.  i am tired of whining/complaining and wish to be more gracious for the awesome things i do have in my life. i started a happiness (i just typed happenis and corrected it, not sure where that falls in my positive thoughts today)before and will pick it back up again.

today i am grateful for the following things:  a roof over my head, children who are magical and believe in magic, the internet, and seeing bright stars all weekend.

Olympics

through the eyes of a child

Joining a fellow blogger over at Average Moms Wear Capes with her Foto Friday.  These are all photos taken by one of my children when they snagged the point & shoot when I wasn't looking.  I always chuckle as most of their photos are blurred as they have difficulty waiting the two seconds for the photo to actually take before they are onto the next thing.  And I always love to see what they find interesting enough to photograph.

all out 80's craziness

My husband turns the big 4-0 this year and what better way to celebrate than throwing him an 80's birthday party!  Plans are in place for an awesome shindig, but since he occasionally visits here, I can't share them right now.  But I can't freakin' wait to see it all come together and watch folks have fun!