two weeks of random busy-ness which is ending in a new netflix series

well, april is here. this means that the year is winding down. it has gone by rather quickly, and i know the next 30-some days will fly by! mixed feelings about that, as it is the end of another chapter in my life! let's label that chapter: cabell. it has been a fun chapter, and i will take more time to write a brief synopsis...but today will not be the day for that.

the past two weeks have been busy. but they have been good. last saturday, i woke up and it was a beautiful day, so i went for a short drive-driving tends to clear my mind like walking does (only without the benefits..must begin walking again!), and when i got home, i took the boys out, and then i was reminded in an email that there was a street fair of schools at w.t. white. so i took off to show my support for about an hour. i don't necessarily love going to these types of things, but fortunately i usually see people i know and am fond of-this was no exception; we have some great feeder pattern peeps! stephanie and wendy are among the people i cherish most in this feeder! always encouraging and funny/sarcastic/funny.

the boys-they have loved walking in the late afternoons! 

don't know what i'd do without the witty support of this one!

wendy-i'd pick her to be on my team every game-mvp!

then sunday i spent the day with a friend just getting things done that needed to get done. quality time-check. watched miracles from heaven- if you haven't, i highly recommend stocking up on your kleenex stash! the day was riddled with good conversation-i don't mind small talk with friends, in fact, that's where i learn about some of the interesting facts that shed a little light on people. it's small talk with strangers that kills me. it's been a journey learning about and appreciating the differences in our personalities, styles and even philosophies on friendship-which comes from difference in personality. so many of my friends have been so similar to me, that it has been fun to grow. it's learning to appreciate that sometimes it's the combination of similarities and differences that make life fun. it's the unique perspectives that broaden my horizons and understanding of people.

i had the opportunity to do coffee with another friend after work one day last week, and it was a good chance to just talk about future plans and school-i left to use the restroom and when i came back, the lady at a table not too far from us was talking about how she was the assistant principal at a charter school and finishing up at the teaching trust. it's a small world...and educators like coffee!

shout outs to maria and nicolette for their courageous efforts with the cheerleaders at the pep rally! our students are not super animated and energetic, so they needed some prompting, but by the end, they were getting into it....they just need a little more exposure and practice! (mrs. de la guardia also participated as a cheerleader, and nafia, ms. graves, crystal and rosa were all in a great little skit to pump the students up). takes me back to high school-some of my friends were cheerleaders, and i love them dearly, but i never had the slightest desire to be in cheerleading; i was always on the sports team-basketball, volleyball and one year of softball. had they offered soccer, and four-square, i probably would have been in those as well!

also shout outs to xochitl and olivia for their work with the girls' soccer team! the first game was last night, and the girls put on a valiant effort for only having had one practice-they will get better as they practice!

afterward, we went to trinity groves-first time i'd ever been there, and i loved it-love the area! (note to self, would love to explore the area more). we were out later than i had originally expected, and the boys were none too happy when i got home! but as always, they forgave me! that's what i love most about them.

today i decided that it was imperative that i get some scents from bath and body works to freshen up the place. and since they had a special (don't they always) i went ahead and got several different light/fresh scents to see which one works best for me!

#smellsgood

and as i came back and checked my mail, i had not one, not two, but THREE (count them...3!) letters from friends!! the best part is that they came from three friends from very different periods of my life-one from a high school friend, one from a kamp friend (former kamper), and one from one of my dear college friends. for a letter-writer like myself to receive letters is a big deal! i usually get them few and far between, but when they arrive, it means the world! and did i mention, today i got 3!

and i leave off with the fact that it's a 3-day weekend due to our inclement weather day, which means that in essence today was a freebie! i have been watching netflix instead of t.v. recently (i might as well cancel the cable and stick with local channels and the offerings of netflix, hulu, amazon prime and all that roku offers)...i finished catching up on grey's,  so after one of my friends mentioned parenthood, i remembered how much my friends loved it when it was on primetime...and decided to give it a chance. after watching the second episode, i'm hooked-my friends have good taste.

 hope your weekend finishes strong!

julie

choosing gratitude and re-finding that forgotten enjoyment

ok, so here we are-almost halfway through january.

i need to get up to oklahoma soon to visit with bmayes, because it's been entirely too long. unfortunately this weekend-which would have been a great long weekend to play, she is unavailable...so another weekend it will have to be. that leaves this weekend open for adventure-not sure exactly what that will entail...spontaneity has never scared me! (watch me sit at home, watching t.v. or old movies...gah!) heaven forbid.

i have to go into the dentist once again the day after mlk jr day. mo' money (outta my pocket). it's all good-gotta' get this done and over with.

anyhoo, the other day, i received a very thoughtful gift, and i am pretty sure that i could have filled it all up in one sitting, because i have so much to be grateful for...i am a fortunate person- gratitude is a choice..and i choose it!

#friendsaremyfavorite

 yes, i am grateful for friends... adventure seekers, comfortable friends-[read: i could sit and read or color or just watch t.v., drive for hours, sit on the balcony, or just run errands and be perfectly content], lovers of God, transparent hearts, world-changers[even if it's just your corner of the world], lovers of fun, laughers, food lovers, eclectic music connoisseurs, new-thing-triers, encouragers, lighthouses, solid rocks, listeners, a needed shoulder in rough times, truth-speakers, advice givers...and so much more (lookin' at you bmayes, shea  nika, ally, nicolette, stacey k, brandy, stevie, carmen, erika, sheryl, trish, jo anne, laura, carla, hellen, carrie) <tip of the iceberg, there are so many others i can add too this list..and in another post, i will catch some of the people that i may not have mentioned here, because i can never completely express my gratitude for those friends who have chosen to enter into my life and stay for a bit. again, i am fortunate. i am grateful. to you i raise my glass, because while i try to be, i am not always on my "A" game...in fact sometimes i fail miserably. thanks for sticking around when i do.

i am guilty of not writing many letters as of late- i was doing so well, and then something happened and i have obviously fallen behind...so sorry! the great thing is: i received the perfect stationery to write on, and i will be getting back at it soon! my bad. i have also added to my card-arsenal...so there's that. now just to get the motivation. sometimes i can make a letter out of pretty much nothing....like looking out on the balcony and seeing bruno throw a piece of poop up into the air...for attention #truestory... but lately the ordinary and mundane are so much so, that this passtime which i love has not brought the enjoyment that it usually does...i think it may be kind of like when the lord spoke to haggai, because the people were like: oh...no, we don't want to do that, we're not feeling it...we really don't want to build the temple..the house of the Lord... and God was like...um. what? you have time to do this and that and make good for yourselves, but you don't have time to build my temple? (jerks), and they were like: just not feelin' it. and HE was like: whatevs, just DO IT. commit yourselves to do it, THEN i will give you the desire, after you make the commitment-when it's the idea of doing it because it's the right thing to do...then, i will give you the joy. so yes, i just need to suck it up and get back to what originally brought so much joy not only to me, but to building the kingdom-with the gifts i have been given.

again, thanks, because this is what i needed to kick-start one of the things that i am actually pretty good at. 

 what are the things in your life that you used to really enjoy doing, that now just seem a littleblah?  my challenge to you is to man up/ woman up, whatever, and just do, find your enjoyment again, because life is not meant to be lived in black and white. color. it's time to re-find that which brought color into your life! RE-FIND YOUR ENJOYMENT!

in other news, it is going to be a busy few weeks, both at school and...at school.

choose gratitude, there is so much to be thankful for-find it!
julie

grateful...that's all.

sometimes God brings people into your life to make himself more evident and more known. interestingly enough, he has his perfect way of doing this, and sometimes it's through the most unlikely unexpected people in the most normal of situations. for this i am thankful.

shortly before going to inacol, i went out with some girls from work and we had the craziest of conversations. within the conversation, we discussed church, which was what led to this post. so when i said i texted a friend, i actually texted an acquaintance, who has since become a friend-which i am going to attribute 100% to God and his great wisdom and grace. every once in awhile i meet people outside of kamp, whom i truly wish could have experienced it because they would fit in, hands down...prime example. these are the times i wish my worlds could collide because i hate that friends from both realms don't get the opportunity to appreciate each other, as i know it'd be a freakin' awesome get-together!!

but i digress...living in dallas over the past three years has not been easy, and certainly not much fun. when alisha and bmayes moved away...and the oklahoma crew dispersed, life became much more solitary. while i do need alone time to recharge, when there is absolutely no one apart from the boys, it was getting old, monotonous and borderline melancholy. so the idea of having people around to play with-who actually enjoy several of the same things-makes all the difference.

like i said before, God has a better understanding of what i need than even i do...and he has used it to draw me closer to him. how, you ask? well...i'm a little ashamed of the fact that ever since i moved over to this side of town, and further away from lakepoint, i haven't found a church. i'd visit a few here and there with nika and bmayes from time to time when b was in town, but nothing that ever stuck. and once she was gone, and nika was super involved in a megachurch (which really didn't appeal to me at the time--remember that outgoing introvert thing?)...i really had no desire to go looking on my own. so, finding someone who really does desire to go, who loves music and worship, and who really desires to know God more is a godsend. here's to exciting new adventures-both church and non-church related! 

not only that, but an added bonus: exercise accountability, and trying new things!

yes, please, on a bed of spaghetti squash!

thank GOD my grandma didn't look like this! but also, thank God i've been introduced to this hot chocolate, because it is so like the chai tea i used to sit in the garage drinking while watching the storms roll in! nostalgic.

that said, it was an added bonus to be able to get to spend some time with nicolette and nafia during our time at inacol. i expect that we will be having some authentic conversations and fun adventures in the future!

by the pool-trying to get work done...

so...about a month ago, i agreed to take on a project to help work with curriculum, standards and alignment for a group that is working against the clock to try to pull together some college courses for education. i agreed because of the allure of doing something challenging, and making some money at the same time. the problem is that i didn't realize how involved it would be, and i had little context and zero direction-i came to a point at which it was really consuming me. every time i was with friends and wanting to be fully present, this burden was weighing on my mind. it was so difficult for me to swallow my pride, in part because i didn't want to let them down, after offering to take it on.

the truth is, i felt under-qualified and without having someone close to bounce ideas off of and get immediate in-the-moment feedback to point me in the right direction, i was beyond overwhelmed-especially because i hadn't taken into account how busy things would become over the next few weeks. i bowed out of the project, and in almost the same moment that i hit the send button, my heart and head were just a bit lighter. i knew it was the right decision.

i need to begin making choices from the lens of: life is short-moments count, friendships don't just happen-they are built by intentional acts and people are important-which i want to be so apparent after interacting with others, but sometimes i fall way short (opportunities for growth!).

with only one more day of school before the thanksgiving break, i look forward to spending time with friends-if it all works out as planned. i am thankful for much. i have much more than i need or deserve. one of the gifts that i am most thankful for is the gift of written communication. i speak not of blogging, mind you, i speak more to the art of the handwritten letter. i have said it before, and i say it again because my thoughts have not changed on this: there is nothing more endearing than a handwritten letter, as it holds so much authenticity! i do not write to receive letters, i write to reveal myself, so when i do receive such treasures, my heart melts a little, because it's the sharing of self-i absolutely loved being on the receiving end today-again, God in his wisdom-

one from a kamp friend, one from a classmate. #happyheart

may gratitude overwhelm you as you realize how blessed you are-
jrob

my food coloring is gnome-match for watercolors...and what's up with the affix resources?

tried some watercolor fun this week-tried using food coloring, but i wasn't impressed with the final product, so i purchased some liquid watercolor. tried out the glue/watercolor effect- i may try it again when i have a minute.

yep. gnome food coloring. his face was still on from the last experience...so i updated him.

this morning as i was on my way out the gate, i noticed this sign-they sell cheap pizza from picasso's in front of the main office on fridays. but the sign leaves something to be desired...like maybe.. an understanding of prepositions: - until= through until...how does that work? now, i haven't purchased their pizza this way, in fact, i usually try to avoid eye contact as i get my mail. a few weeks back the kid yelled over at me, "hey! sure you don't want some pizza?" we were in the middle of our weight loss challenge at school, so i yelled back at him. pretty sure it was something lame like, "i can't- i'm in a weight loss contest," but i'm pretty sure it would have been more interesting if i'd said something like, "why's everybody always picking on the fat kid?" or "when you fix your sign, i'll buy your pizza!" hmm.

one of these fridays

 i am currently in a slight dilemma. one of the items that we purchased to help students with their prefixes and suffixes looks like human anatomy..ok, let's just go ahead and say it. it looks a little like a big toe. um. who came up with these things? i am trying to figure out how i can manipulate the item to create something that looks less like...a big toe. kinda' at a loss. i fear our 3-5th graders will never forget what prefixes and suffixes are! and they will tell the story to their grandchildren around the campfire after singing kum-by-ya...

pretty sure whoever designed this concept did it right after they got their walking papers just to spite the company.

 thursday night i went to the last garden coordinator meeting of the year. it was really good. i loved the lesson. it was really about finding evidence and gathering as much evidence as possible if you wanted to come up with the best inference, or even to be able to prove your fact. really good, using trees and insects-two separate lessons.

they use these olla pots to water their gardens now. so we may be at the point soon where it would be wise to make the switch. 

 i need to go out this weekend to get some of the olla pots and some other things that we will be needing in the garden. i have some ideas. so that will be fun-we may have to have a fun garden day sometime in early summer before everyone takes off!

in other news, this has been a good letter month! what does that mean? well, i have sent off several letters, and this month, i have actually received a few choice cards. i love mail-i've said it before, but it bears repeating, there is something very endearing about the hand-written letter, as handwriting is a part of who you are there are certain aspects about handwriting that are tied to your personality, therefore, a letter is precious commodity! i treasure every note!

brandy, traveler that she is, not to mention artist, never fails to amaze with the beautiful cards and stationary, and rachel with my belated b-day card (LOVED IT! your heart always shines through)

 and today when i went to my mailbox, the only thing there was this letter-usually it's all junk mail, so to see a letter made my day!

indira, i cannot wait to meet your boys and just to visit houston and hang out with you!

for those of you in the houston area, i am just going to pass along this info-shameless plug! if you are looking to redo a room, or add on, check it out!

 so, to those of you on my list of letter recipients, thanks for being a part of the letter-writing experiment/adventure/journey! 

i need to purchase a new space heater..this little guy has been faithful, but is on his last legs (personification), the motor...his little heart almost stopped the other day-i let him rest, turned him on his side smacked him a few times, shook him, turned him upside down, and guess what...he worked the next time i tried...so the moral of the story: when you think your loved ones are on their last legs, beat them up  no...um...fight with them ...not it either...fight FOR them! yes, much better!

 it is a meat-locker in my office (hyperbole), if you don't keep moving, your blood might coagulate in there! so yes, i had to periodically put the heater on my lap to warm up today, because the hot air was getting cold before it would reach my core!

good thing the fire marshal didn't come in, he might accuse me of trying to be joan of arc...modern day-death by trying to climb into the space heater...(not as much about fighting for God, but...ok, so terrible analogy)

there really isn't much else to tell tonight, but i'm thinking there might be another weekend post, as i am going to the district health fair tomorrow, and you NEVER know what you're going to encounter when you have to go across town to a district-anything! i can guarantee i will be covertly capturing the best moments for documentation! bwahaha! (i am going, not because i am a health nut...far from...more like, because there is a $500 incentive tied to it and i have completed the other elements).

on that note, fare thee well,
julie

nothing says spring break like buffalo, mo...nothing! (seriously)

picture men in colorful garb with feathers in their helmets and flags hanging from their trumpets with the CREST OF JULIE on them, dut-dut-dut- DUUUUUUU! yes, as a matter of fact, it is spring break. it came early for us this year. and i decided to come to spring break USA....buffalo, mo. creature of habit.

everyone knows the truth of the matter...i just don't want to pay range fees. more about that at the end of this post.

but in all fairness, i do love seeing mom and dad and the dogs enjoy the change of scenery. they always travel like champions! (not champions like rocky balboa making weird grunting noises and yelling, "adrian!") 

so we took our time getting it together, and made it to buffalo around 7pm-and i was tuckered out. all i could think about all the way up here was hurts donuts in springfield. yes, i know...pathetic. i didn't stop, but i certainly thought about it! one of my friends lives in sgf, and i was hoping to meet her there for a donut and a cold one (milk), i rarely drink milk-if i need to induce vomit due to poisoning, or if i am having gourmet donuts...so this is truly a special occasion...or will be. if sabrina gets back in time, hopefully we can catch up-if not, i do not fear going stag-welcome to my world! but by jove, there will be a hurts donut to blame for any additional pound-age i may gain.

so, yesterday was sunday-church. i do enjoy my parents' church. it's a comfortable size. i especially enjoyed the message yesterday, because that is sometimes the way i feel lately. spoiler alert: pastor spoke on Jesus. the heart of Jesus. who Jesus was drawn to  and where he would likely be...hint: not in this church, or probably any other church in the city. he was drawn to those who were outcasts, the untouchables of the city. he could be found among the down-and-out. in my world, who would that be? if the essence of being a christian is to have the heart of Christ, are we missing the mark? do i find myself in the places he would be encouraging and caring for the unloving, those we wouldn't consider befriending? heart-check.

we'd gotten there early, so i had a chance to snap a picture of the cross. there used to be a giant glittery cross, but they decided to switch it out. dad worked up some designs, and this is what he loves to do. there are two smaller ones on either side. #proud

 and we were the last ones out of the building (i don't know if it's because of the saying and they just don't want to be least...), so we went out for mexican with the pastor and his wife. it was good conversation, although maybe we were there on an off-day. my fajita wasn't all i had hoped for. it didn't rank up there with my top 10, and it was about 2,000 miles behind el patio in tegucigalpa (is it even still there? oh to have un anafre!)

i was able to get some letter-writing done, which was on my to-do list...i brought all of my writing supplies...you laugh. i seriously chose a selection of cards, and stationery. markers, pens, 3-d glasses, my addresses, writing log, stamps.... all true. this is part of why it takes me so long to pack-trying to ensure that i have everything i need!

and when i looked out, at one point there were like 12 cardinals outside around the bird feeder! whenever i got close enough to get a pic, they'd fly off! jerks. but the birds are everywhere! one more thing to love about this area!

here you can see four red ones and one brown female. 

this morning after breakfast we went into town for some items, stopped at the post office and i mailed a package i've been meaning to send off for about the past 8 months...finally! and i purchased a new roll of stamps because i was getting low. and as it goes, i get a little anxiety going on when my stamps start to get low. i was even calculating in my head how much it would cost to get 10 rolls, 1,000 stamps...500 bucks! (but a thousand stamps...it would last me about 3-4 years. no worries, i only got one roll. BUT, if i win the lottery, i WILL purchase those stamps!!) but for now.

then we went to a little amish community to check out their wares. we stopped into dad's favorite shop-a furniture store. he loves the wood-working! and they did have some rustic furniture. although most of it looked very much like the next piece. sorry, but the lewis and clark collection was rather reminiscent of the alaskan collection...personally, i was taken in by the flooring. they sell this plank wood flooring that is gorgeous! there was nobody in the shop-not a cashier, no one. not that we were purchasing anything, but still that was a little strange.

we went from there, next door to the food shop and i made some purchases.  dad was going around on his own, as he was not interested in spices and flour. he found the deals: 5 butterfingers bars for $1! and 10 kool-aid packets for $1.00! he's the deal-master. when i got to the register, lady was not overly friendly-reminded me a little of the amish in the murder she wrote series-(so suspicious of outsiders). anyhoo, as she scanned the aleve, she said they were 'buy one get one free'! that's a pretty good deal!

they had all sorts of spices! and dried mango..maple syrup and so much more!

when we got home i took advantage of the beautiful day and yes, went out back to shoot. dad is always updating things, so he fixed up the target board and the slugs were dropping near the target, so i picked a few up; the .22s look so small compared to the 9mm. i've been thinking i'd like a 45...but then, i'm also thinking i'd like a motorcycle...

going to town for more ammo tomorrow.

my dad usually goes out to watch when i shoot, and this time when i finished, he was missing one of his hearing aids (those suckers aren't cheap at $2,000 a piece), so needless to say, we were on our hands and knees crawling around trying to find this little thing that was camouflaged in the leaves somewhere! after about ten minutes, i finally spied it-fortunately it hadn't been stepped on! (dodged a bullet!)

i'll be dropping mom and dad off at the airport on wednesday for their flight to fl, where they will enjoy epcot or disney world and then go on a cruise to the bahamas. i really hope they enjoy it! they deserve a fun vacation!

alright, i'm off to enjoy spring break; will likely write again after hurts!
julie

ingesting, digesting and wasting lempiras...starring the boys

when i arrived home yesterday from school, i was surprised to find the boys chillin' with about 14 lempiras strewn around the living room. when i asked them what they'd been up to,they gave me blank stares. i always know that this means they have been up to something. they looked at each other and bruno finally said,"oh...we were just in the process of making a joke....wait for it..."

i didn't think they were very funny.

then i realized that one of the bills had been chewed off, and the other fourth was nowhere in sight.

pretty sure that he's the culprit...

then this morning, i understood the joke a little better...bruno came running out with chaco and said, "get it?? un lempira ni vale mierda!" ok, i was too shocked that he knew spanish to be worried about the language...then i had them sit and stay, and we had the potty-humor discussion, during which i explained to them that amongst boys it might be funny, but they wouldn't win over many girls with this tactic.not any girls that i know anyway....

I APOLOGIZE! but yes, that IS in fact a whole lempira encapsulated in ... doggie waste.

 again, sorry about that. i am just thankful that there was no blockage and that it did indeed pass through his gastrointestinal tract without a hitch, because the last thing i need is doggie stress!

a couple of nights ago i went to our garden coordinator meeting and they gave us some transplants for our garden-cabbage and broccoli plantlings. in order to plant them, at least one of the beds had to be weeded and turned, so i stayed and did that yesterday because we need to get the plants in this week. i have my little garden crew ready, and whoever can join me early tomorrow morning will come out to help put them in the ground.

this one looks really nice, but don't be deceived!

this is the one right next to it with a couple of tomato plants...that i am having a hard time parting with because...

well, mostly because they keep producing these!! and they are delicious! (note there are a couple of little carrots in there, just so you know, it is NOT a hybrid plant, it doesn't grow carrots, they were nearby).

i went straight from school to the grocery store, even though i was a mess, because of the dirt and compost...don't care! i may have gotten a couple of looks, but again...don't care! so those little hand wipeys at the entrance of the store, i don't know what everyone else uses them for, but it was kinda like a little bath for me...once inside, i wasn't surprised when the card section called...spent way too much; forgot to get the fresh mozzarella for caprese salad. argh. (please with one hand over an eye in a pirate voice...thank you).

and since a little breeze had picked up by the time i got home, i took the boys for a walk. upon our return, i decided that it is high time i give bruno a trim. i have said it for the past month and not gotten around to it. my bad, but when the little boy comes in and i feel like i should be calling him 'jack' because he's hauling a tree around behind him like a lumberjack, i think it's time.

don't even try to tell me it's embarrassing...it's not like toilet paper stuck on your shoe from the bathroom...it's just a little sapling....deal.with.it.

so. what made my heart smile this week? two things-a sweet message via whatsapp from my brandy friend, because let's face it, we all need some sunshine in our lives from time to time, and she provided a little this week :) and the other thing that was heart-healthy was receiving this sweet Christmas letter from kristin. it's the daily small details, that when shared, help me to understand and do life with you long distance-i love this. a lot!

Christmas in september...i'm down with that!

alrighty then, it's closing time!
julie

what do crema, stamps, pigs and rainbows have in common? nothing really.

it's been a minute or two since my last post...i apologize- i've been exhausted! the beginning of this year has been nothing less than expected. EVERYONE's been busy! i've been busy, teachers have been busy, admin has been busy...i don't know how busy some people have been downtown, because when i emailed specialists to see about a district rubric for one of my grade levels, the response i got was a web address to a highlighted google search, which took me to some lady's pinterest account, which took me to Kim's blog, which i had to scour to find the rubric they suggested, which wasn't really what i needed. really? don't waste my time...i KNOW how to do a google search, and i am completely aware of the infinite world of pinterest, i even have several blogs favorited on my tool bar... all i wanted was for my district to provide me a rubric that was perhaps standard for our district (one of the largest districts in the state...just sayin').

something that has been of great soothing to the weary soul is this! i found it at the fiesta grocery store! and of course, when you purchase crema, you must continue to make beans until you run out!

crema catracha!

i fell out of the habit of writing letters awhile back-a hobby i had become quite an expert at back in the day of keeping up with former campers...then, for whatever reason, God laid it on my heart to get back in touch with friends through letter-writing. i know i've mentioned that before, and i have completely enjoyed getting back into the habit! i have to keep track of who i write to and when so that i can think back to what i may or may not have mentioned-i try not to repeat too much of what has been going on around here! anyhoo, this started back around november of last year, and it's been like having an extended conversation.

since then, i have gone through about 1 1/2 stamp rolls (rolls sell by the hundred). i have about 62 people on my list of recipients-and i still have others whom i would really like to be in touch with, but i just don't have their addresses yet. this is nothing compared to when i used to write to the campers in my units over the summer! THAT was ridiculous! but i LOVE having the opportunity to send something in the mail, always that thought of, "i hope it's just what you needed!" knowing at that point that it's out of my hands!

happiness= a new roll of stamps and fun cards! (easily satisfied)

the brighter the colors the better-i'm just hoping it motivates the mail carrier to get the letters where they need to get and maybe make him/her smile!

i don't mind not receiving a ton of correspondence in return-in fact, for the most part, i expect not to, so when i do get mail it's very exciting! unless i get something like this:

i wanted to punch this person in the face.

because THIS was in the envelope.

ok, so for starters, at seeing my name in letters that almost looked handwritten (curses to that font-maker), my heart skipped a beat, thinking i was receiving REAL mail!! but the worst part is what was inside- a "turning 65? medicare" letter...wwwhhhhaaaaaaattt??? way to make a gal feel older than she is! not ready to think about the future yet-still living in today!! leave me alone, jim!

so when i got these little ditties in the mail over the past few weeks, it made me smile! JACKPOT! hit the lottery!! (granted two were from family...) i've gotten a few others over the past 9 months-thanks to brandy, jp, lori and carrie! the most recent ones are actually from 3 iowa gals! (with the caveat that mom isn't currently IN iowa, just from there!)

THANKS!!! i LOVE letters!

and i found these little cutie air fresheners with a sweet note in my box the other day as well! LOVE IT! bruno and chaco approved and they agreed-in a perfect world, every home would have a dog!

and as i was putting one up on the mirrror in the car, i dropped one, and when i bent over to find it, i also found my lucky pig!!! he had fallen out of the alligator's mouth when i turned a corner a bit too quickly a couple of weeks ago.

lucky pig! this pig has been with me for a few years now. we're tight...and the alligator well, he's the pig's guardian! makes my car look tough.

and while lucky pig was a great part of my day, the BEST part of my day was the rainbow this morning! unfortunately i allowed circumstances to get in the way of thinking about the beauty of it and i got frustrated with circumstances instead. must work on this. i'm glad that i grabbed a pic of it this morning so that i did not completely forget about it. annoyed with myself for being so easily distracted from all that is good.

may our rainbows linger in spite of the hectic craziness of our days!
julie