Heartwarming

When I was a teenager growing up in a small town in Ohio I spent a lot of time daydreaming about what my adulthood would be like. Never in this daydream was I sitting in a lawyers office just two signatures away from declaring what's to be done in the event of my untimely death. Nor were there computer viruses. Also absent was the paperwork associated with setting up inherited IRAs. And in these fantasies my face was never numb from having 3 cavities filled - there was definitely no lidocaine hangover the next morning.

Real life can be sobering. And it can be pretty darn sweet. When I pause to look around me I'm pretty darn happy with what I see. And while my real adult life is sometimes messy and doesn't exactly match my teenage imaginings I think this is a pretty good sign. Let's face it, my scope back then was pretty limited. My fantasy didn't really know where to go beyond infinite dating, doing whatever I wanted, and cute shoes that didn't hurt my feet. My teenage daydreams also didn't include Ada, my career, my cats, my home, Tim = my life. Proves to me that things turning out not quite how you expected can be a good thing and sometimes the best thing.


Amidst the computer virus, cavities, will, and IRAs this beautifully woven life has carried on to provide some heartwarming moments at just the right times:

We had dinner with Courtnay and Steven on Thursday night complete with a little Sequence. Simple, down-home dinner as Courtnay and I both had dental work that day! What are the odds? It occurs to me that even if we hadn't had dental work done it wouldn't have mattered. It was more the company than the food, more the sentiment than the product on the plate. My kind of people. I love that.

Friday we had dinner with Ted & Leah. Isn't it funny how some random decision you make in your life doesn't seem like it will alter your course....and then you make friends. This is how it seems with Ted & Leah. We don't get to spend nearly enough time with them but the moments we do have are cherished. Some of the loveliest people I know.

I also love how this

can turn into this

using this

Finally, I am a woman. I thought that buying major appliances like a washer and dryer might do it. Or the Calphalon pans or the whole grow-a-baby and then push-that-baby-into-the-world thing might have covered it.
No.
No, no.
My Kitchen Aid stand mixer has officially ushered me across the threshold of womanhood. Thanks Dad!

I had a great assistant

Even though she took a break to talk to Grandma Judy on the phone, that's OK because I still adore her. I'll make her shred carrots when she is older.

Dang. She moves fast. We need a better camera!! As an aside: there were two cakes. I made one on Thursday with C, S& C and then another on Friday for T & L. That cake was so good that Ted had  a second piece. I shared some with Steve upstairs too. And I kind of want to bake one just because. Sweet!

The computer virus thing wasn't a lie. We had it bad. Well, bad for us. We're super computer dumb so it doesn't take much to throw us off. Luckily, Colin has an aptitude for computers, lives close by, and is amenable to promises of visits from his favorite (and only) niece. After swimming on Saturday went over to Berkley to beg help from Colin. Colin and Maiken live in a new pad now - moved in last week. Auntie Maiken has a new J.O.B. Good Luck Maiken!! You're going to do GREAT!! We seem to have a knack for descending upon them shortly after they have moved. Sorry, guys :-(
Great location, awesome backyard!! Ada had another experience with grass and also discovered squirrels, daisies, sunlight dancing through the leaves of a deciduous tree, a gentle warm breeze, and what happens when you never quite get around to having a nap. She also got some damn good love from her family.

Sweet, sweet baby. Wispy hair, soft cheeks, gentle demeanor....my dream and my very own heart.  Thanks be to God for NOT listening to me when I was 14 years old.

The valleys where the frustrations, inconveniences, and disappointments lie are separated by the peaks. Aahhh!! The peaks! I live for the peaks. Thank God that my life is dominated by the peaks and my valleys are comparatively shallow most of the time.