314/365... enJoy

When we built our home six years ago one of the ways we saved a little money was by forgoing the fireplace. Every winter we've wished we had skimped somewhere else. This year we wondered if maybe we should look into putting one in (also hoping it would make the house a little more appealing for resale in the near future); the idea of a cozy fire this winter was too tempting! Jimmy started asking his contractors for price quotes on all of the various components that go into a project like this one and found that they were willing and eager to do much of the work as a favor to him. This little project of putting in a simple fireplace turned into more than we could have even imagined. His contractors were so incredibly generous to us and have worked to create a whole new wall in our family room, as well as a beautiful set of shelves (with a window seat!) in the playroom upstairs. We are so grateful for their kindness and hard work and can't wait to spend many evenings by our warm fire this winter. 

Kindness, generosity and coziness joy...




(family room pictures coming soon!)

313/365... enJoy

Move over softball, it's time for basketball! Redeemer men are looking strong this season and there's no reason we shouldn't expect big things out of them. Having some very enthusiastic cheerleaders on the sidelines certainly doesn't hurt their chances, either (and yes, at one point there was an actual cheer). As for me, I discovered an added bonus to being a spectator at a basketball game in an indoor gym vs. at the softball field - more containment!  Without the wide open spaces of the softball field causing far to much temptation my little people are more likely to actually sit still for 30 seconds. And when they're sitting still, I get to watch. And take pictures. : ) Go Redeemer!

Basketball and gyms and containment joy...










312/365... enJoy

It's no secret that our dishwasher just hasn't been getting the job done for some time now. Every morning when the kids go to unload it before breakfast I have to reassure them that yes, I did run it the night before, despite all of the evidence to the contrary. At first I just assumed that just a bad dishwasher and expecting it to actually  clean the dishes was expecting too much from her. Then when I actually thought about the amount of abuse that I put her through (at least a load a day, sometimes two, for years now!) I had more compassion and assumed that she was just tired. I know how she feels so I started cutting her some slack.
So when Jimmy did a little reading and discovered that dishwashers who are missing their wheels (Betsy's been missing hers for a while now, thanks to Jack, I'm sure) will fail to actually clean anything, he did one of the most romantic things he's done in a long, long time. He bought all new wheels for Betsy. And a new, non-holey silverware basket! She's running like a dream and I'm remembering why I married him.

Dishwasher wheels and baskets are the new wine and roses and Jimmy Kyker is a heartthrob* joy....


(*thanks to my sister-in-law for reminding me that it's the tiny, everyday things that spell l.o.v.e.!)

310/365... enJoy

Another good economics lessons was learned today at Petco; it takes a whole lot longer to save money for your puppy than it does to spend money on supplies for your puppy. But I think it might have been the best shopping trip the kids have been on in a long time. It was like they were nesting, only puppy style. : )

Spending his hard-earned money (and loving every second) joy...





308/365... enJoy

We tried to lay low and play it cool to make him think we had forgotten. It worked! When Jimmy and the boys came in from basketball practice he was met with a little Marine Corps birthday surprise party. We maintain a Guinness cake tradition every year but things have been a little busy lately and we hadn't talked about it at all (and I normally spend a few days teasing him about the fact that he and his fellow Marines call each other every Nov. 10 to wish each other a happy birthday). He said he hadn't wanted to bring it up and add the cake baking to my ever-growing to-do list, but admitted that he was a tiny bit sad when he thought we'd forgotten it completely. No, there were cards and drawings and cake and I even pulled off my eleventh-hour gift idea of fixing the quilt that I made him years ago out of the abundance of Marine Corps t-shirts that caused his drawer to overflow. Our celebration was a success.

Happy birthday, Marines joy...




307/365... enJoy

Yesterday I got to spend an hour with my favorite cats attempting to capture their adorableness. I think we bonded (and I know I sweated - herding cats is not easy!) and I may or may not have developed a special love for one of the kittens in particular. I'm not sure that I could bring myself to confess that I might actually have a favorite, but if you ask me if it's the sweet little gray one with blue eyes I'll probably smile and wink and nod my head. For my sister-in-law's sake I hope they all find wonderfully loving new homes in a few weeks. For my own sake I can't say as though I'd be too bummed if she ended up having to keep all five of them (and especially a certain little gray one).

There's a reason why people love kittens joy...



306/365... enJoy

There are lots of benefits to having great friends right next door, one of them being an extra kitchen to borrow from when you're right in the middle of your recipe and you remember that you used the last egg for breakfast. So when it was our turn to share this afternoon I decided to give Jack a chance to try his hand at the errand running. I gave him the goods, told him where to take them and then asked him if he thought he was big enough to handle it. He nodded his head and said, "Um, hm. Yep." and then set off to complete the mission. And he was right, he was plenty big enough.

Mission accomplished joy...




305/365... enJoy

For Preschool Monday today the little boys and I gathered the sticks needed to make our traditional Thankful Tree. Let me tell you, if you ever need to gather sticks for anything I know two little boys who would love to help you. Unless you actually want them to give you the sticks. Parting with beloved sticks is very hard for little boys. Thankfully they were intrigued by the announcement that these sticks would be coming inside with us!

We got our tree all set up, cut out the tags and set out a few pens and pencils. A couple of hours later the big kids arrived home from co-op and didn't waste a single second before adding their own thankful-fors. It wasn't long before our branches were bending with the weight of all of our blessings. Have I ever mentioned that I love this time of year?

Thankful Tree joy...