"Oh..."

He's pistachio, I'm vanilla. Pistachio is usually swirling his flavored cream and pistachios right into my vanilla lifestyle. 

I'm a rather routine-oriented person married to ... an entrepreneur. There is nothing routine about our lives.

Can't we just be normal?

Can't we be like the Joneses? We don't have to keep up with them, just behave like we're all on the same planet.

Last night, my plans for the following day were blasted out of the water once again by one.little.word: "Oh..."

"Oh" is a mighty big word in my house. It means, "I forgot to mention...", "you're not going to like this, but...", "I've been thinking..."

And "I've been thinking" is the most frightening phrase that any entrepreneur's wife can hear. It is equivalent to:  "There's a big change coming. Get ready." Even after I hear about the new Master Plan for my life, (a move to England? Southern California? New Jersey?), I'm unsure whether or not I really need to spend days or weeks giving agonizing thought to a plan that may never even come about. After all, he was "just thinking". 

So, for today at least, "I was thinking" didn't follow the "Oh...", so it means my plans FOR THE DAY suffer some mutilation, but I'm not moving to England. Whew.

~Swirled Vanilla

30 Days of Praise: Day 14 & 15

Writing down praises each day has kept in check the usual negative, critical, cynical attitude I lean towards when I am not truly focused on rejoicing and counting my blessings. It’s an active part of being present, something I blogged about a couple of months ago from a desire to live intentionally instead of haphazardly.

Now the goal is to get those praises into my blog each day.

Day 14 praise ...

Meeting friends for Happy Hour and ordering small plates of everything: calamari, spicy shrimp, pork "wings", Italian egg rolls - killer with warm cheese, basil, and tomato served with warm pesto. We topped it off with a bottle of Rodney Strong Alexander Valley Cabernet, and the evening was complete.

Day 15 praise ...

Learning that I can work through a confusing circumstance if I ask the right questions, and learning to be okay when other people become uncomfortable when I ask the right questions. When people are trying to convince me of something I know is wrong or trying to sell me something I don't need, they don't really want pointed questions in return. Get clarity. Ask anyway. Make a good decision.

30 Days of Praise: Day 13

Thankful to find 101 gift ideas over at Broccolicupcake's blog. Broken down into categories like, "Fitness", "Big Gifts" and "Little Gifts", I found great ideas for everyone, (well, there's always THAT one who is difficult to buy for) on my Christmas list.

30 Days of Praise: Day 12

A sudden and unexpected view from atop a mountain road of a glorious sunset stretched across the entire Front Range of Colorado. It was a stress reliever after a day of work, as well as a spontaneous prayer of praise to the Lord, the Creator of all things. 

I wasn't able to get a picture of it, but it is forever etched in my minds' eye, forever reminding me that there is ALWAYS something for which we praise God.

Less than two weeks until our entire family is together again!

30 Days of Praise: Day 10 & 11

Day 10:

Dinner with friends. Blueberry Mead. The best grilled chicken ever. It was best that the wife forgot to pick up barbecue sauce.

Unexpected dinner guests.

Laughter.


Day 11:

Hearing the word of God on the Sabbath

Quiet. Snowfall. Snuggling in front of a fire.

Watching John Wayne's McClintock

30 Days of Praise: Day 9

Egg Nog! Oh yeah!

30 Days of Praise: Day 8

A comment overheard in a restaurant today:

Man reading his fortune cookie: "Look around. Happiness is trying to chase you down." 

Man: "But I'm not unhappy."

~Astonishing to hear in America today