Gratitude Project, Day 5

Today I'm thankful it's the weekend!!!

I spent the morning and early afternoon being crafty and putting together a couple projects I've been wanting to do--they turned out really cute! It was nice to just cook breakfast and work on a project for a few hours. So I'm thankful for a creative outlet, and for projects that turned out well. :)

Then Amy and I had tickets to the Holiday Food and Gift Festival, so we met up downtown and hung out. It was SO much fun! I was sporting my Gonzaga hoodie and got to have a couple fun conversations with people about GU--love that! We got into a hilarious conversation with the guy from OMG Olive Oils--the best part was when Amy tried one of them and it was so good she said, "O. M. G." Then she started laughing, because we looked at the bottle and that was the name of it! SO DELICIOUS!! :) I love having Amy and Ster in town--I am so thankful we live close enough that we can hang out fairly often--they are the BEST! :) Amy invited me over for dinner afterwards, so we got some crusty bread to enjoy with our new olive oil and it went great with Amy's homemade soup.

Then, after months of phone tag, my friend Melissa and I finally got in a quick catch up chat on my way home. Funny enough, she was on her way home from her brother and sister-in-law's house! :) I'm thankful we're still friends and still in touch, even though we live far apart and have ever since college.

So that's me. What are you thankful for today?

Gratitude Project, Day 4

Today I am SOOOOOO thankful that it's Friday!!!!!!! Let me tell you a secret--working in a middle school the week of Halloween is NO FUN. The kids are CRAZY, and CRANKY, and it makes for a long stinking week! So I am happy, happy, happy that it is Friday and I get to have a couple days off! This girl needs a break, so I'm thankful to get one (even if it's just the weekend!).

Every morning I've been thinking about how thankful I am for long, hot showers (and I am so thankful water is included in my rent so I don't have to worry if I want to take my dear, sweet time). The cold mornings make me so happy when I get to wake up by jumping in a hot shower.

I love, love, LOVE autumn, and I am thankful for the gorgeous autumn leaves in Portland! In Utah we pretty much just have aspen and cottonwood trees, so the leaves are either green or yellow. In Portland, there is every gorgeous autumn color--oranges, yellows, reds, greens--and driving around is a treat! I've been collecting leaves for an art project I'm going to be attempting, and I can't wait to get started! :)

I'm also thankful for the delicious way the air smells--I walked out of the school today and caught a whiff of smoke from a fireplace. Lovely.

Since we're entering rainy season in Portland, getting to see the stars is pretty rare, so it's been awesome to walk outside with Allee at night to see them glittering in the cold night air. Winter stars are something I really miss about living in Utah.

I'm thankful for some fun plans with my sister this weekend!

I'm thankful for an opportunity to do something nice for a friend who is doing awesome things in the world with her life. :) I can't wait to get it in the mail.

And I'm thankful that my mom made it safely to Montana on her fifth trip up there since May. I'm thankful she has the ability right now to pick up and go when she needs to in order to help out my grandparents as they're going through some tough stuff with my grandpa's Alzheimer's disease, and I'm thankful she's able to drive up there to help. This is a tricky time of year to be driving through the Rockies, so I'm thankful she made it safe and sound with no snow to speak of--hopefully the drive home is just as easy!

Happy weekend, everyone! What are you thankful for today?

Gratitude Project, Day 3

Today I am thankful for the amazing senior boys who are volunteering to teach rugby to my middle school kids. Four high school guys are doing their senior project with me, and they are AWESOME with the kids. High school volunteers are always hit or miss--they might be amazing, or they might be horrible (I have had--and currently have--both), but these four guys rock. They have new and different things for the kids to do each week, they have total control over their group (which is difficult for the adults to do!), the kids love them, they are SO positive and supportive and encouraging with my kids (who are not necessarily always the most athletic or easiest kids)--I can't say enough how great these guys are. I talked to them a little bit about some of the kids who are playing to give them an idea about some of the rough situations the kids are in, and they were so humble and sweet about it. They are making a huge difference in the lives of these kids, and they're having a great time doing it. Such an idyllic partnership. I'm so thankful for these four guys (and my college volunteer who "supervises" them for me).

I'm also thankful for the chance to sit down for a couple hours and have dinner with my cousin, Steph. She's had a rough couple months, and even though we live in the same town (ish), we don't see each other too often, so it was nice to make time to catch up. Plus that chicken curry was DELISH!

I'm also thankful for a fun new recipe my friend Marie sent me this morning for Pumpkin Mac and Cheese--doesn't that sound amazing? I can't wait to try it out! :)

And I'm thankful for this silly cartoon that totally made me laugh this morning! :) Cheers!

What are you thankful for today?

Gratitude Project, Day 2.

Today I am thankful for space heaters. There is no heat in my office at the school, but there are big awesome windows--which is pretty much the perfect storm for a freezing cold room in the winter. But my little space heater packs a punch and keeps me nice and toasty...as long as I pretty much sit on top of it while I work. :) Welcome to Siberia, kids.

I'm also super thankful for the administration at the school I'm working in this year. They are both new to their positions this year (the VP is new to the school), and they are OUTSTANDING. They are both hilarious, down-to-earth, real, powerful, strong women, and I am totally enjoying working with them. They really like me, they appreciate what I'm doing, and they literally let me do pretty much whatever I want at the school, which is awesome. And they recognize me as a professional and trust me as such, but we have a really laid-back, easy relationship. None of our other staff have the freedom I have at our school, and I don't take that for granted for one second. They are awesome, and such good role models, for the kids and for me.

I'm also thankful for my puppy, Allee, who is currently sitting patiently by my side with her toy, waiting for me to stop typing and throw it for her. She is settling down nicely now that she's finally moving out of her puppy phase (although she has her moments), she's awesome. She loves to snuggle, and she never lets me get more than a few feet away from her. If I'm working, she lays right next to me (I'm sitting on the floor right now, and she just jumped up on the couch, laid down, and has her head and front paws on my shoulder--she's seriously SO sweet), and she loves to lay on my toes and keep them warm. Since my life is not really what I thought it would be at this point, it's pretty important to have her as a buddy...I might go a little crazy otherwise! (At least this way I'm talking to her instead of just to myself!) :)

I'm also super grateful to read everyone else's Gratitude Project posts! Talk about warm fuzzies! :)

What are you thankful for today?

USA Women's Soccer!

In September, my sister got tickets to see the US Women's National Soccer Team vs. the Canadian National Team in an exhibition game in Portland. Sterling had to work, so she took me, and it was AWESOME!!! Amy knows some of the girls on both teams because they went to the University of Portland around the same time she did. And it was awesome to watch the famous Hope Solo goal-tend right in front of us! The US girls won (of course!), and it was a blast. Thanks for taking me, Meem! :)

Bon Voyage, Carolyn!

In September, my good friend Carolyn left on a huge adventure. She has been working in Youth Ministry her entire life, has been through some major ups and downs with jobs and things over the past couple years, and has made lemonade out of lemons more than most people I know. She's an amazing woman, and she is such an inspiration.

She just finished school about a year and a half ago, and has followed her heart and the promptings of the Spirit and has joined the Maryknoll Lay Missioners--she will be doing mission work in Brazil for the next three years! She's amazing, and I know she will do incredible things for the people down there. I'm so proud of her for listening to her heart and really, truly praying and asking God for direction, and then following it when it came, even though this is big and scary and totally different than anything she's ever done before.

She left in September for three months of training in New York. She'll be back for the holidays, then off to Brazil to start her new life and new adventure down there. She's amazing and I miss my friend, but I couldn't be more proud of her. Good luck, Carolyn! I can't wait to hear all about how you're changing the world!

The Gratitude Project, Day 1

I've been having a hard time blogging lately, so maybe I'll try the Gratitude Project on my blog, too. :) Two years ago, during the month of November, I posted one thing I was thankful for every day up until Thanksgiving on facebook. Last year, I started calling it the Gratitude Project and some of my friends started doing it, too. This year it makes me so happy to see LOTS of my friends doing it! :) So I'll be doing the Gratitude Project on facebook, but I'll try to post a little something here as well, just to try to jump start my blog lull. (And I totally invite my friends to do the same!)

Gratitude Project, Day 1: Today I am thankful for a delicious dinner and girl time with two awesome friends, to celebrate Jill's big news that she's expecting!; my best friend from college surprised me with a phone call and a 2 1/2 hour chat on Sunday--granted, not today, but still so thankful for our chat!; my awesome family; my best friend April's 2 year old accidentally calling me on the phone tonight, leading to a quick chat with April; and I'm thankful that it's November, in general, and the kick-off of the Holiday Season!

Today I was thinking about it, and here's how I know autumn is my favorite season: every year when September rolls around, I think, "I love September! I love when it's still warm, but starting to get cooler, the leaves are changing, football games are starting--such a great month!" Then October comes, and I think, "I love October! I love all the pumpkin-y goodness, so many fun birthdays, Harvest time, corn mazes, yummy soups and stews--its such a great month!" Then in November, I think, "I love November! November means the holidays are coming, it's almost Thanksgiving (I love Thanksgiving!), lots of yummy warm drinks--such a great month!" And then December (still technically fall until right before Christmas) comes, and I think, "December is the best! I love the holiday season, with the sights and sounds and smells (and a little snow, if we're lucky!)...such a gorgeous time of year!" I can't say I consistently think those kinds of thoughts about the rest of the months of the year. I love autumn, and I love November! :)

So...for what are you thankful?