Things to be thankful for....

A friend that I work with told me that she recently decided to try starting out each day by thinking of the things that she has to be thankful for and ending each day by thinking of the things that she did during the day that she can be proud of. I thought that this was a great idea, and it has really helped me to put things into perspective. I have found that focusing on the positives has really helped change the entire tone of my day.

Here are a few things that I have thought of over the past few days:

*Gas prices - I filled up at $1.80 on Monday and was so excited. Gas prices are almost $2 less now than they were a few months ago, and if it stays that will, it will really help our budget.

*The weather - People often joke that in Texas we don't really have seasons, and I guess that they are right to a certain extent, but, I have decided that fall is one of my favorite seasons here. I don't know if this year has been unusually nice, or if I just never took the time to notice before, but it has been absolutely beautiful. It has been in the 70s/low 80s with clear blue skies and I love being able to actually enjoy some outside time with the kids. I've been doing a lot of driving lately since I've been assigned to three schools that are on opposite ends of the district, and the other day, I noticed that some of the trees were actually starting to change color. We don't get the dramatic changes in color that people get in other parts of the country, but the change is nice still.

*My freedom - As I went to vote yesterday (both kids in tow), I was so grateful for the many freedomes that we enjoy in this country, including the right to vote.

*My kids - Yesterday we got the day off for election day. Many of the schools were being used as polling sites and they decided that the lack of parking and increased security issues just wasn't worth it.

I enjoyed having a day off just to spend with the kids, even though it was a bit hectic between doctor's appointments and running a few errands. I took today off, also, because Jacob wasn't feeling well and I wasn't feeling all that great, either, and I really enjoyed having time to just play and enjoy the time with the kids without having to worry about to do lists or errands. It made me realize that I need to do that more often.

I thought I'd share a few pictures from the day:

Riding the carousel at the mall - this has been one of Emily's favorite things for a long time although now she prefers to ride in the tilt-a-whirl type spinning thing, which is why I didn't really get any pictures of her. This was only Jacob's second time riding the carousel, but I think he's hooked. He didn't want to get off the horse, and he threw himself down on the floor and cried because he was so upset about having to leave.

Caught in the act - I took the two pictures above in the morning while Emily was at school. She got a Hannah Montana candy bracelet while she was trick or treating, and that was her "prized" treat. I told her to put it away somewhere up high so Jacob couldn't find it/get to it, but apparently she didn't listen. I'm not sure where Jacob even found it or how he got it open, but I caught him happy as could be munching away! Shh....don't tell Emily! I don't think she's noticed yet and with any luck, she will forget about it altogether!

You may notice that I don't have any pictures of Emily. She was at school for part of the day on both days and isn't that big on having her picture taken these past couple of weeks. When I do try to take her picture, she either makes goofy faces or won't look at the camera. Since I don't have any pictures to share, I thought I'd share a few stories.

*As we were walking out of preschool, she said, "Mom....I like your car." I wasn't expecting that, but I said, "Thanks. I like it, too." Then, she said, "You know why I like it? Because it's like soo many other cars." She's right of course. There are always several cars that look exactly like mine (including the color) and every time we walk into a parking lot, this time included, I end up walking around clicking the alarm trying to figure out which one is mine.

*She always talks about how she wants to be a mommy when she grows up, but this morning, she informed me that she doesn't want to be a mommy anymore. She informed me that she'd been thinking about it, and she decided that she wanted to be a ballerina or a princess instead and she didn't know if a ballerina or a princess could be a mommy, too. When I told her that even ballerinas and princesses can be mommies, she said, "That's great. Then I guess I can be a mommy after all and I think I'll name my baby Krystyna because that's such a cute name, don't you think?" (Krystyna is my sister Melinda's new baby)