it's only wednesday but....

I have had a very good week or two…

I have sold every card that I have painted
sometimes before the paint was even dry.

I watched a Christmas cartoon so pretty and poignant
that it made me cry…happy tears…but tears regardless.

Hot, crisp egg rolls.

Sleeping so much better every night thanks to this…
I am telling you, this is like magic for me. I hardly ever hear
the whole twelve minutes and I am out like a light. I have been raving about it
for a while and today Cam texted me to say he tried it last night,
skeptically, but that it worked for him, too! :)

A surprise drive to look at Christmas lights…and
the best house I have ever seen with lights that went in time to music…
I could have stayed there for hours,
or at least, until it felt too creepy to be sitting in front of a stranger’s house…
and the grand finale…a hot fudge sticky sundae with nuts from mcdonalds…
(PLUS I get to check “look at Christmas lights” off my Embrace Winter list)

A yearly tradition of shopping with my mom & sister in law…
I am not a big shopper, I go for the conversation and giggles,
& also because my mom always buys us hot chocolate and a doughnut after
(unless you willingly decide to have spinach…yes..little jab
to my sister in law but she loves me…heehee)
but this year, I spilled half a hot chocolate on my face, shirt, pants & table. Heh.
Can’t take me anywhere fancy.

A surprise gift left for me at work…a charlie brown Christmas tree AND A LINUS BLANKET
TO WRAP AROUND IT!!!

A couple of Christmas lunches with co-workers and friends…and one
where I got to defend my bowling championship (3 years running) but…
by losing it at curling. Blah. Whatever…I am still reigning bowling champion.
You can’t take that away from me.
(PLUS I get to check “try curling” off my Embrace Winter list)

A surprise bag of sweet cookies from someone I sold a card to and then got home
to my neighbor dropping off another unexpected but very much appreciated plate of goodies!!

And … then there was this…
sometimes someone
can surprise you…
can catch you so off guard…
can do something so sweet
& unexpected
that it brings you to tears.

I came home to a FULL TANK OF OIL today
and a surprise gift in my mailbox
from 2 of the sweetest Christmas elves ever…
I am not going to lie
that I might have been a little teary…
this was so something so unexpected
and totally unnecessary but
so incredibly sweet & thoughtful and, well…

I am literally at a loss for words
and I think we all agree that is a rare occurrence.

I might have come in to 2019 with a bit of a rough start
but going out is definitely feeling a little less scary. :)

whatcha readin'? {book 18::goal 25}

This book.

Wow.

The true story of a Canadian woman
held captive for 15 months in Somalia.

It was heartbreaking and terrifying.
I burned through this book pretty quick.

I definitely recommend.
I’ll be watching for the movie…

5 out of 5♥♥♥♥♥s
NEXT UP:: WEB OF ANGELS - LILLIAN NATTEL

embrace winter...

the first day of december…

I have been thinking
that this year
I might try something different.

Every year, I fight winter tooth and nail.
I hate the cold.
I hate bundling up. I hate shovelling.
I hate worrying if there is oil in the tank.
I hate, I hate and I hate.

But this year, I am going to turn that around.

I am going to embrace winter.
(ok. Let me re-phrase that. I am going to try my hardest to embrace winter).

I made a list (cause….you know…I love a good list…)
(plus…added bonus…some of these are also on my fifty before fifty…
so DOUBLE WHAMMY…wait…is a double whammy a good thing? haha)

EMBRACE WINTER

• hot drink recipes

• ice skating

• sledding

• cross country skiing

• downhill skiing (which i should leave til the last cause I will probably break a bone)

• snow shoes complete! ♥

• marvel movie marathon

• bake cookies complete! ♥

• make a snowman army

• make a puzzle

• cut out snowflakes

• go bowling

• winter bonfire

• board game night

• pj party

• walks outside…get sunlight/vitamin d when you can

• try curling complete! ♥

• make a winter playlist

• make snow angels

• get a new candle

• sauna/hot tub nights

• tubing

• make a snow fort

• have a snowball fight

• nap by a fireplace

• bubble bath

• blanket fort pj popcorn cartoon nights

• read SOOO many books

• go look at Christmas lights complete! ♥

I think that should cover this winter. :)
but it occurred to me that A LOT of these would be much more fun
if done with other people soooo…I may be
looking for willing (or slightly unwilling) volunteers…heehee.

I actually took pugsley out for a wintry walk on the trails today
as an attempt to get a good start on this list right away…
and honestly…it was by far the best choice I could have made today.

and see…in the spirit of “embracing” winter,
I bought myself a pretty red shovel.
……………………………………………………….

oh…and unrelated-but-must-be-said…
the response to this story about my geek girl ink cards
in one of our local papers has blown my mind…
in a very good way. :) I was completely surprised
and sooooo incredibly happy with all the comments, likes,
emails, orders and support.

My heart is full. ♥ Thank you!!!!

life is a decision....

i wrote on the very last page of this journal today.

i was hoping it would take me to the end of december
so i could start a new year with a brand new book
but, i couldn’t make it stretch that far.
i need to write in it every day.

i started this journal in 2017.

part of me wants to burn it.

i have never felt that way about a journal before
but this one just holds so much hurt and sadness
and pieces of a broken smashed up heart.

but…
it also holds a fucking ton of progress.

i try not dwell on the past.
i am a big fan of “what’s done is done…move forward…even if it’s just baby steps”
some days, i’ll admit, that is easier to do than others….
but this little red book holds all my baby steps…
and all my backward slides, too.

but backward slides are to be expected.
in the front of the book, once upon a time, i had written
life is a decision.
and it really is.
every day i decide i am going to find at least
one thing that will make me
laugh really, really hard
and honestly, i meet that goal
every frigging day (usually at my own expense, but still…hahaha)

life is way too short to be sad…
there is ice cream to be eaten, books to be read, music to discover
and dirt roads to be explored…candy stores, gravel pits, road trips…
best friends, beaches, shooting stars, rainbow socks, happy meals…

i am grateful for what i had, we had a lot of really good years….
and two of the sweetest bestest kids i could ever imagine resulted from that…
i would have been lost without them…
and i am grateful that there has been no drama, no anger during the separation…
that had made it easier for sure…for all of us…
but now it’s ok to be excited about the possibilities…
what could the next big adventure be, peewee…
life is a decision.
will you turn right or left?
:)

i got this journal last year for christmas from someone special
and last night, i bought a new purple pen
cause…purple just makes me happy.
and i think we have established
i like to be happy.
:)

so bring on the new year….for once, i’m ready early.
heehee

whatcha readin'? 2019 {book 18::goal 25}

I bought this book on a whim
at a book sale…
I feel like I had seen it around the
internet world and the blogosphere
so thought I would give it a go…

Plus…I like orange.
Heehee.

It was a good book. I don’t regret reading it
but it was kind of up and down for me.
There were moments that I loved it
and it made me laugh out loud
and I thought it was very clever…

but then there were moments that I got
completely bogged down by the politics
and confused on who was who and
what was why and where is that one going
with who?

But I also read this in starts and stops
so that may have been my own fault.

And, for some reason, it reminded me a bit of Forrest Gump.

& speaking of movies, apparently this has been turned into one.

4 out of 5 ♥♥♥♥s
NEXT UP:: A HOUSE IN THE SKY - AMANDA LINDHOLM