happy new year!

• an oyster roast at the pond house with some of my favorite people last night. uncle john cookin' up some nice oysters. although i couldn't eat them, the smell was quite satisfying.
• sparkling pomegranate juice.
• mom's 7 layer dip
• a day off on friday with david to just be together. lunch and visits and a movie to reconnect.
• 2007 and all the joy that it brought. reconnections and reunions, trips and visits.
• january to indiana to celebrate dad's big birthday. some stolen time with craig and michelle and some 2 buck chuck at a pottery place.
• april to sedona with denise to celebrate 20 years of friendship. more 2 buck chuck - massages from the massage school, a bit of hiking, a bit of sleeping late, a trip to the grand canyon, a kiss from a giraffe, vegan food and the pool and hot tub at the resort that rocked! 'upgrading' the rental car to a corolla! we were styling! fancy coffee everyday.
• a july 4th week at edisto.
• a floatilla down the river. out with the tide, in with the tide. lemoncello and boiled peanuts. the best day!
• july and august to park city for training and connections with amazing people.
• 100+ club and a diamond for my watch from last year.
• august to atlanta for the braves game with brad, denise, amelia and wesley for david's belated birthday.
• tyler's 2nd birthday. good conversations with cindy this year about him and them and wisconsin. more reconnection time in 2008.
• labor day to hendersonville.
• the move into the new room and the first fire in the fireplace!
• october to orlando for craig's race. holy cow.
• dad and chris visiting in november.
• a quick trip to asheville in november for a baby shower for kevin and cynthia. reconnection with vance! nicholas, craig and michelle and bird (ha) and ani difranco! and dennis kuchinich. amazing. the house, the food, the company.
• mom's wedding in april. the surprise and delight of that day.
• mom in her purple dress. recently at her all girls' xmas party - a woman said to melinda - 'gasp, did she wear black to her wedding?' 'no,' melinda said,' PURPLE!
• melinda.
• angel oak in all its glory.
• my new family - melissa and jimmy and the kids - justine, caden, little jimmy and shaelyn, sam and jilly bean, whitney. my new aunts and of course - poppie.
• monthly gastronomic delights with chandler, melinda and nicole to discover new restaurants in the city.
• david - in all his forms - david. he's quite bossy right now, but i know it's just because he wants to keep us safe. that is a good man.
• hunting season being over today!!! the wind is up so he might not even hunt tonight!
• my 33rd year being quite nice.
• chandler's principalship track - there's light in her eyes and she's a 4.0 nerd! a masters from the citadel - and she says she's not a feminist!
• nicole's first year of nursing school being over and her being a nerd too.
• michelle's orca summer
• craig's triathalon - 15 hours 23 minutes. we're still in awe.
• benjamin going hunting with david and liking it.
• big d and shelbs big adventure - 8000 miles in a car across the country and back.
• kevin and cynthia's big adventure!
• our big adventure
• dr hargrove
• dr hargrove
• dr hargrove
• the support and love we receive every every day through this pregnancy
• an easy and happy pregnancy
• lexapro and its benefits and its graceful exit from my body.
• a 2008 full of a whole new adventure
• june 2, 2008 when baby smoak shows up - hargrove said there's too much junk 'down there' for this to be a girl. so we'll see. . . .
• weekly ultrasounds
• weekly hugs from her and demands and ultimatums she puts upon david. told him friday it was none of his damn business what my weight looked like - i'm doing perfectly!
• a new year's day planned with family and friends and collards and hoppin' john for a prosperous new year.
• dinner reservations at fig next week for my birthday - food is good - fig!
• the christmas tree being down yesterday when i got home from work! all i did was put the rest of the stuff in boxes and 'poof' - the house is back to it's normal - lived in messy self.
• the new room!
• fires in the new fireplace
• david glowing as he shows off the fireplace to all who enter!
• judy blume
• 2008 being a year of new promises to see if delivered in january 2009. january 21, 2009 to be exact.
• a christmas card from angie saying, 'we are thankful to be a member of a community that supporst us and looks forward to more rational national leadership. we are happy to live in a place where the women are strong, the children are children and the town mechanic is everyone's best friend.' may we be blessed with this in the new year.
• and i could go on and on, but most importantly. . . you. may the new year bless you with tidings more than you could ask for, laughter from the soul, joy in your eyes and plenty of collards and hoppin' john to keep your wallet full and your belly content.

a big fat christmas tree!

• the ease of picking out a beautiful tree.
• david's ease in putting it on the stand and stringing the lights.
• the fire crackling as i decorated it. much more to do!!!
• a quick chat with michelle with her in dallas.
• dr hargrove, dr hargrove, dr hargrove
• the potential boy parts we saw yesterday at the weekly ultrasound! way too early to confirm, but she thinks so.
• her support. unending, straightforward, direct, clear, loving, firm. very very firm.
• the hard week of work being over.
• maggie being ok - ok in that the possibility of chrohn's disease is not quite as scary as cancer.
• her blessing of having karen for a mom, dan for a husband and jeremy for a brother.
• life is good
• finding a xmas present i think my little candice will like.
• the farmer's market this morning. pimento cheese and fruit!
• david making sure i ate well this week.
• losing another pound this week. sure didn't think getting pregnant would be a diet! but i'll take it!
• our holiday gala tonight.
• david in a tux!
• you my little pomegranate, you!

june 2, 2008 birthday

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

the best week of the year!

• finding out on tuesday that we're KNOCKED UP!!!! today we're at 5.3 weeks. holy cow.

we've gotten so many cheers and tears and jumps for joy from our families and friends. the support is overwhelming and much much appreciated. david's hoping for twins. . . . . . sigh. . . . one of us will retire early!

• words of encouragement
• confirmations of bits of fear
• bets on boy or girl or both or two of the same
• maternity clothes from mom and pink and blue outfits
• the friends we've yet to call - the anticipation of their reactions
• abbie, sandie and miss peabody being gentle with me already
• david being bossy about what i am and am not allowed to do
• mom being ok with not being attached 'grandmaaamaaa' and being open to something fun like grandma beeds.
• dad getting so excited and telling everyone he knows about being a grandpa
• benjamin calling me 4 times until he got me on the phone to say he is excited about the baby. he hopes it's a girl.
• big d and shelbs not even being able to talk to david on the phone for crying.
• our minister mike (who did a great sermon last sunday about gratitude - inspired by this glog i take it) who said he wouldn't announce to the congregation that i was 'knocked up' - he might instead use the king james version of 'they lay together and she bore a child' and then went on to tell me that he likes to call king james 'king jimmy' because he was gay and died of syphylis (sp) and likes to break that out when the fundamentalists get on their high horse. . . but i digress. . . . .
• flowers from melinda, chandler and nicole
• nicole and karen being in the room with me when i was on the phone with hargrove's office. their faces of joy.
• keena not squeezing me to death - not expected. but all of sr. tequila's knew i was preggo.
• hugs - good ones. long and real
• david

and then a celebration trip to orlando to visit with friends on wednesday and craig's ironman on saturday.

• being able to spend time with craig and michelle before everyone else got there.
• sushi for dinner while craig and i watched michelle and david drink all the shiraz that was meant for me!
• laughter
• hearing about michelle's trip this summer to study whales
• learning about how craig trained and what he ate, how many times a week he exercised, etc.
• michelle's pride and his utter humility. it was just something he decided to do!
• stories from our former lives (lord i was such a nerd) and a few from this one. . . one involves keena and an electric razor. . . . . . . so i guess i've had my teenage years since i turned 25!
• craig's mom carol living so close she could come over to be there for him.
• mom and poppie driving down to party with us and be of support for both of them.
• meeting eric and nicole. they lost katie after we lost carson and tho we'd never known each other, craig and michelle brought us together as friends.
• seeing pictures of katie's baby sister, sarah who is 4 months old and absolutely gorgeous!
• perfect weather on saturday for the race which started at 7:30am.
• being able to brag to everyone that we were in florida for an ironman! our ironman!
• the condo being comfortable and easy to be in.
• the fun we had at the race waiting for craig to come by us at mile 60 and 80 of the bike, the end of the bike, the beginning of the run, mile 12 and 19 of the run and the end!!!!
• the other runners' faces as they ran by and found us cheering and encouraging them.
• people of all ages, shapes, sizes giving all they had.
• a yummy subway lunch and papa john's dinner - and brownies!!!!!
• watching everyone drink beer and knowing i can't for a very good cause.
• great conversation.
• the finish line in 15 hours and 23 minutes.
• the tears all of us shed knowing that craig did something so amazing we still can't wrap our brains around it.
• determination
• mind fitness
• vegetarian athletes
• the hot ironman from atlanta who broke his collarbone and kept going.
• the hot ironman from indiana who blew me away on saturday in a much different way than he did 13 years ago with his hair to his butt behind a drumset watching so quietly and taking it all in.
• all things craig!

fall is in the air

• the start of fall and a saturday at the farmers' market with a crispness in the air.
• seeing chandler and elizabeth and having crepes together
• the ease and effortlessness of asking for donations for the church auction and receiving what i've asked for
• plans tonight for the poetry jam at the moja arts festival
• a quick champagne toast to being the evening here at my house for maggie's 21st birthday! maggie's mom, karen is one of my mentors and heroes and maggie is an amazing woman. she also keeps my avon habit up.
• words, written and spoken
• a clean house - maidpure rocked it out and i am enjoying living in my home again
• the new room being a haven and the space it's created in the rest of the house
• michelle in all her michelle-ness
• big d and shelbs arriving safely home yesterday after 8000 miles around the country
• a big fall packed full of travel, friends and family
• orlando in a couple of weeks for craig's triathalon - team thompson!
• dad and chris visiting in november
• david being able to enjoy this fall day in the woods
• new focus on being grateful and not stressed!
• mr charlie, my next door neighbor laughing at abbie barking at him in HIS yard through the fence and saying, 'that's some dog' - she is - she's my 10.5lb guard dog who will bark behind her back running away from an aggressor.
• miss peabody and sandy minding their manners as my backyard neighbors are having their annual jewish fall festival in their backyard with lots of people.
• you, my little fall crisp, you.

open-ness

• the new room! which has created so much open-ness in the house and ultimately in our lives. david took the sliding glass doors off today and wow! my house is huge and open and we're getting through the clutter.
• finding maidpure.com to come clean next week (which gives me little time to declutter) using only organic cleaners and i am so freakin' excited. this will leave us open to actually invite people over!
• plans for the church spaghetti supper/auction starting to come together and our first meeting tomorrow night.
• a good long chat with mike, our minister today and laughing at him out loud until i snorted. he's simply not a sane man.
• lunch with greg turpin. my sweet dear friend who i let time put between us. until today! good plans with him. getting caught up on his life. potential plans for the 4 of us to do dinner here.
• memories of him in a much simpler and more naive time in my life. his support through the years and the ability to talk with someone who 'gets' me.
• another trip to lowes with david tonight!!!!!! :) can this company get any more of my hard earned money?!?!?! probably on saturday!
• a lovely dinner with good conversation and laughter - david loves to make fun of me and tonight it was fun. the moon must be aligned correctly with my axis!
• craig's grandmother, gigi, who was the spunkiest little lady i've probably ever met. i'm so grateful that he was able to have her this long and that she didn't suffer in the end.
• michelle's fierce protection of craig
• safe travels yesterday for my work trip.
• a big october full of hilton head, orlando, dinner parties and fun.
• collards, lettuce and purple cabbage planted in the garden by my sexy farmer husband.
• tgif! friday and all that brings! it's actually massage friday tomorrow at work.
• david just said, 'people are going to think i don't have a job.' he does and he works a lot. he just goes balls to the wall on his home projects.
• tivo and general hospital.
• miss peabody, abbie and sandy.
• you, my little collard green, you!

a gentle nudge

michelle emailed me that it was time to glog. i've been putting it off until i have some 'time.'
but isn't that when the gratefulness fairies really start working? - when you don't have the time or worse - don't feel all that grateful. . . so here goes. . ..

• the finished room!! the most amazing fireplace i've ever seen and my husband created it. it looks like we're sitting at the grove park inn on our honeymoon in front of their huge fireplaces - to scale mind you. our whole room could fit inside their fireplace.
• the teamwork that we used and continue to create in our marriage and in our projects.
• respectful disagreement. there will be no deer heads in this room.
• or ducks
• or the bobcat attacking the bird
• movement of the furniture throughout the rest of the house with ease. i'm sore today but it's a good sore!
• big d and shelbs on their month long 'across the country adventure' with our friends bruce and peggy.
• a lovely weekend away over labor day to harmon lodge and hendersonville. a short trip but one to see the nature center none-the-less.
• tons of upward mobility at work and all that will come together in the next few weeks.
• tailgating at the citadel game on saturday with uncle john, aunt tina and their crew.
• ricky archambault's attitude about cancer and cancer treatment.
• the week of carson's birthday, the anniversary of grandma's death and both of their funerals being over.
• the weather changing oh so slightly - less humidity.
• sun on my feet from saturday.
• general hospital and tivo for hooking that up for me!
• victor working to get the food for the spaghetti supper / auction donated for me this year.
• in advance - businesses being generous in their auction donations!
• an evening alone while david is in the woods.
• good news from michelle
• the orlando trip in advance for the 489 flute fun we will have!
• dad and chris' vacation being fun and relaxing for them.
• finding vance's myspace page as a link from michelle bryant's. crazy kids - i don't really understand the whole phenomenon but it was fun none-the-less to see his good lookin' mug.
• plans for kevin and cynthia.
• a good salad for dinner.
• david's cheeze-it encrusted crab cakes on saturday night - holy crap they were good! maybe even better as leftovers sunday morning with cheese grits.
• the sweet lady at moe's who makes the best tea in town and takes pride in cleaning the salsa bar and the tables and is always so freaking pleasant. may i be more like her.
• you, my little kick in the pants, you!