reasons to love Monday!

Every week I manage to find that rainbow in the storm... the roses in the thorns... it's time for our weekly episode of Reasons to Love Monday!

1. It's a cool, clear morning... going to have sweatshirt weather all week!
2. I dreamed last night that I bought these awesome boots and looked really good in them... maybe that's in my future...
3. Of course... in the dream... I was an assistant to Sarah Palin... I'm not sure that's a good thing. But it would be interesting... you betcha!
4. Did you see my last post? I've got some awesome things on the menu this week! I'm also doing white chili and curry chicken. Happy eating ahead for this girl!
5. Planning a picnic with a friend this week... picnics always make me happy!
6. My grandma will be 87 this week!
7. We've got Farm Days - a fundraiser for Catalyst Christian Learning Center - ahead on Saturday.
8. After several weeks of almost daily headaches... so far today, I'm feeling fine! Yay me!
9. We bought trick or treat candy *just in case* but didn't have any trick or treaters. Austin - his OCD self - separated the starburst by color and gave me all the orange ones. I have treats for me!
10. In addition to the food I've already mentioned... I've got some of Nadines pesto, chicken salad and pimento cheese for the week ahead. (isn't it odd how much of my "reasons to" involve food? hmmmm)
11. It's No-shave November! Not sure if I'll adhere for the whole month... but it's nice to have the excuse if I'm so inclined!
12. Also in November... my oldest baby will be 24! (please feel free to insert your "you couldn't possibly be old enough to have a 24 year old." comments)
13. Today is PAYDAY!
14. I got my lazy butt up and did another load of laundry this morning. Now THAT's progress!
15. My brother and sister-out-law booked a trip to Prague and Vienna for December... I can't wait to live vicariously thru them on another fabulous trip! I'm sure there will be great photos ahead for us.
16. My living room is sort of clean. I like.
17. The kitty cats have new bells on their collars. Bitty has a harness now, instead of a collar, it works better with the leash. It helps to know where they are... although they were bickering little brats last night and kept waking me up hissing and hollering at each other. I would have rather NOT known where they were at 1am.
18. I bought my first Christmas present yesterday. That's progress!
19. Election day is tomorrow... and I hope that if nothing else, the folks in office will understand that people aren't crazy about being taxed and regulated to death... people aren't loving our "buy now, pay later" mentality... people don't appreciate the "it's not our fault, Bush did it" abdication of responsibility. I've already voted... that's one more reason to love Monday!
20. One last reason... and I don't say it enough.... I gripe about my long work weeks and I celebrate weekends heavily but the truth is I know I'm blessed to be alive, healthy and employed and grateful for the opportunity to go to work.

Two years ago today, my sweet friend Misty left this world... leaving behind three precious children, including tiny newborn Brennan. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of her and remember her kindness to me during a rough time in my life... there's not a day that goes by that I don't recognize the gift of life that I have... it could have easily been me who lost my life two years ago, I felt like I had nothing to live for and Misty had everything to live for. She encouraged me during my darkest hours... and lost her life while I was still struggling to understand why I had lived.

Over the past weekend a girl that I grew up with lost her battle with cancer. The sister of another girl I grew up with lost her battle. Yesterday in Iraq, 120 Christians were held hostage and many of them killed for worshipping God. Life is short, unpredictable and precious. I pray that whatever your life holds today... that you appreciate the opportunity to live through it!

Love and hugs, y'all!