33 ways that my day was great!

It's the end of my birthday, and I've had a great day. So great, that perhaps I can think of 33 things that made it wonderful:

1. I woke up early enough to have a great quiet time.

2. My scripture reading this morning really changed my heart toward the dishes and laundry waiting for me on my birthday - what a joy it is to be able to serve my family, even in mundane ways.

3. Amanda is still not on daylight savings time, so she slept until 8:00!

4. I had so much free time that I made banana and blueberry muffins.

5. Even though the muffins were "healthy" (i.e. whole wheat, flax seed, little sugar, no eggs, etc.) they turned out quite well.

6. Andrew entertained me with knock-knock jokes while I was baking this morning. "Knock Knock" "Who's there?" "Mr. Red"..."Mr. Brown" ... "Aren't you glad I didn't say Mr. Orange." I LOVE it when he just doesn't get the joke, but makes an attempt. It makes me laugh.

7. Andrew could only find one sock this morning when we went to wait for the bus. So, when we got inside, he took the sockless shoe off and proceeded to walk around for the next hour with just one shoe on - "I'm just going to wear one shoe all day." It was hilarious.

8. Scott was speedy and on-time this morning.

9. Even though it was dark when the bus came, the sun rose to make a beautiful day.

10. Scott's bus driver was the second (after Derrick) to wish me a happy birthday. I guess she knew from Facebook and called birthday wishes out the window as Scott loaded.

11. Today was my day to read with Scott's class. What a blessing it is to be with them every Monday morning. I love the glimse I get into Scott's school day.

12. The kids really liked the muffins (even though they were "healthy") and asked for seconds!

13 - 18. Maybe it's cheating a bit, but I read individually with seven kids today. I love seeing their improvement each week. It is so encouraging.

19. Amanda ate four muffins before noon! "Bodie...Bodie" is how she requests bread with butter.

20. Andrew and Amanda took naps, so guess who else got a nap? I love a bit of rest time in the middle of the day. It revives me to have a break from my kids.

21. Amanda's nap was long, so Andrew and I had time to snuggle and read books when he awoke. We didn't have to interrupt every other page to figure out what the baby was in to.

22. We played and played outside all day. At one point, Andrew and I were playing superhero on the pirate ship. I said "Arrrgh!" and was immediately corrected - "We aren't playing pirates." "Well, what do superheros say?" "Charge!" So, we "Charged!" the bad guys and shot them with cannon balls. The bad guys landed in the trees above our heads and Andrew used his rope to lasso them to safety. I just sat on the deck and enjoyed the show.

23. Scott arrived home with a smile and demanded that I ask the question I ask every Monday - "How was your day? Did Miss Leslie come today?" He just loves it when I refer to myself in the third person and ask as if I don't know the answer.

24. My three children and I had a DELIGHTFUL trip to Target after school. We went to pick up part of my birthday present, but before we shopped, we enjoyed $1.50 popcorn and a drink in the snack area. Amanda continued to munch on the popcorn throughout the store, and the boys and I had a delightful time looking and playing.

25 - 29. Exactly five dinners that I did NOT have to make tonight. I had a recipe picked out, but was too busy enjoying the sunshine to go shopping, so Derrick took us out to dinner. It was a bit chaotic, but worth the clean kitchen that I came home to.

30. I received several wonderful calls, including a special message on my phone from a 4 year old that just delighted me.

31. It's almost bedtime! I'll snuggle in bed early to read a bit before turning off the light.

32. Derrick is home from bible study and we'll get a few minutes to talk before heading to bed. He, poor thing, has to stay up to work on report cards.

33. The best part about my day was it was so normal...I think I could find 33 reasons that every day is great if I think about it each evening. Sure, there were some tears when Andrew pinched himself in his carseat, and we had two cranky kids at dinner, but overall it was a great day!