MBB

Ten years ago today, my high school boyfriend and first love was tragically killed in a car accident.  I honestly cannot believe that it has already been 10 years; it feels like just yesterday that he was here. 
Matt was so full of life; he had so much energy and enthusiasm and anyone who met him was instantly a friend.  Matt was a guy who loved driving around with the top and doors off on his green Jeep Wrangler, playing football for Milton on Friday nights, and laughing with his friends. 
A side some people may not have known was that he also loved singing every word to Hotel California (and occasionally some Nysnc) :), baking perfect apple pies, and eating ham sandwiches with ketchup.   He loved making up silly nicknames like Lil Turtle and Buttercup Butterfly that had no rhyme or reason except they made his girlfriend smile.  Matt loved writing poems to express all that he was feeling inside, and they were so full of heart and insight. 
I learned so much from Matt.  I learned to always believe in myself and to stand up for who I am.  I learned that laughter should be my best friend.  I learned what love was, even at that young age.
I am so incredibly thankful for the chance to have known and loved Matt.  I wouldn't trade my memories with him for anything in the world- they are so precious to me. Matt, I am so thankful to have had you in my life...  I was forever changed by you. 

more time to talk

We just went to dinner after the kickball game and had, to put it nicely, not the best service.  So,  in the spirit of finding things to be thankful for in all situations, I am thankful that our slow service gave us more of a chance to talk tonight!  As usual the girls sat at one end of the table and the boys at the other, so we had plenty of time to chat while and dinner...and I am thankful for that! :)

Patio weather

One of my favorite things to do is eat outside on beautiful days with live music playing.  Tonight I met some friends at Nine in Historic Roswell for dinner and we sat outside on the patio and there was a guy singing...talking about a perfect Tuesday night!  I am thankful that the weather is getting nice enough to sit outside again!  I love patio weather!

staying light later

I am thankful that it is staying light out later!  It makes me so sleepy in winter when it is dark by 6, so it is such a nice change to have the sun still put until almost 8 now! 

Sunny days with my hubby

In case you haven't been outside today, it is b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l!  Richie and I went to church this morning, and then went and sat outside at Cheeky's for lunch to enjoy this weather!  After that, we did a couple of errands and came home to do some stuff we needed to do at home.  We opened the windows as soon as we got home so we could still enjoy this weather even while inside!  I am thankful for beautiful, sunny days and spending them with my hubby!

lilac nails

Again, maybe another silly one, but they make me smile as well. :)  I got a manicure yesterday my mom and in case you have been hiding under a rock, pastels are in this spring!  I am thankful for my lilac fingernails that make me smile when I look at them!

new phone case!

I got the cutest phone case that came in the mail on Friday.  I know it's silly to be thankful for things like a phone case, but it's the little things in life that make me smile, so I am thankful for my cute new phone case!  :)

Claritin

I have allergies...bad allergies.  So I am very tahnkful for seasonal allergy meds, like Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra, etc.  I usually have to switch it up each allergy season so I don't get immune to one drug and I am currently on Claritin.  I must say, for the amount of pollen we have been having, it has been doing a pretty good job.  Minus one pollen-induced headache on Saturday, I really haven't been affected all that much; and for me, that a big deal! I am thankful for my Claritin that is keeping me from sneezing my head off!

soccer practice with a sweet girl

On Wednesday night, I got to take one of my sweet students to soccer practice.  Her family is going through a lot right now, and I asked if I could do this as a simple way for me to help out.  I picked her up from her play practice at school and we just chatted away the whole way there.  I loved getting to watch her play- she scored a goal- woo hoo!  I took her back home after practice was over and we talked some more on the way home.  It was fun to get to spend some one on one time with her and (hopefully) provide some help to her family at the same time.  I am thankful for the chance to attend soccer practice with such a sweet little girl!

Laura!

Today is my wonderful sister-in-law's birthday!  My entire life growing up I wanted a sister more than anything.  Someone to share clothes and secrets with, an "instant friend" on family vacations...you get the drift.  Well I didn't get that growing up, but I did get it 25 years later when my brother married Laura.    She is everything I would have asked for in a real sister- loyal, funny, kind, good taste in clothes (raiding each other's closets is what sisters do, right?)! :)   She truly is one of my very best friends and I am so blessed and thankful to have her as my sister-in-law.  Love you Laura!

Bud and Alley's this summer

Grilling time!

I love grilling out (or rather, Richie grilling out!). It's not our typical choice of meal in the winter though, so I love when it starts getting warm again and we can start grilling out!  Richie grilled teriyaki chicken tonight for sandwiches that were so good!  I am thankful for grilling out weather!

Ginny Owens

I have been listening to Ginny Owens on itunes while I have been catching up on my blog (shame on me for getting behind again!), and I just love her music!  I thnk I said this in another post, but if you ahve never heard her, download her now!  She is a Christian singer, but not a "cheesy" one (that sounds horrible, doesn't it?)  I am thankful for Ginny Owens and her songs that I love singing along with!

St. Patrick's Day

I had probably the most low-key St. Patrick's Day I have had in a very long time this weekend!  I started my day with a morning spin class, then came home and relaxed for a bit and went out with my mom to look for some stuff for Spring Break (bathing suits, etc)  After that I met Richie and Robbie at Old Blinde Dog (an Irish Pub in Crabapple) for one beer, and we walked over to Vintage Pizza for dinner.  Wow, I am so old!  Even though my St. Patrick's Day was extremely tame, I am thankful for St. Patrick's Day and the chance to be outside for a bit enjoying a nice cold beverage!  Plus it Rebe's bday!

my school

I have been teaching at my school for 6 years and every day I feel so blessed to be at the school that I am.  We had our basket raffle on Friday, so there were tons of my current students and parents as well as former ones and I realized how lucky I am to be in such a great community and school.  I am truly thankful for my school and my job... Now I just need to remind myself of that for the next 10 days leading to Spring Break! JK :)

mini cupcakes

I had a CAbi party this week and decided to go very low-key on the food this time.  I did a cheese tray and ordered mini cupcakes from Jilly's.  I had never had Jilly's before, but they were sooo yummy!  They are the perfect size to enjoy a sweet treat, but without the guilt!  I am thankful for delicious mini cupcakes!

Spring has Sprung!

Ok, so I know it isn't officially spring yet, but it sure feels like it outside!  It has been absolutely beautiful the past couple of days!  Even though we had an extremely mild winter, I was getting very anxious for some warmer weather and am very thankful that it is here!

free gym membership!

My school is doing a fitness challenge (actually it ended on Friday, so stayed tuned to see if my team won!) and as part of it, the Lifetime Fitness near my school gave all the staff members that are participating a free 3 month membership! Pretty nice, huh?  I am thankful for my free 3 month gym membership!

handwritten cards

With our world of text messages and emails, it is very rare to get handwritten cards in the mail anymorw.  That's what makes it all the more exciting when you do!  My sweet Nana is good about sending cards in the mail, and I always love opening my mailbox to find an envelope with my name actually written on it!  I am thankful for handwritten cards! When's the last time you sent one to someone you love?

Daylight Savings

I am thankful for daylight savings so it will start staying light later! Hooray for summer coming!

Bridesmaid Dress Shopping!

As I mentioned in a previous post, my best friend Brittany is engaged!!! I am her matron of honor and that entails helping her with whatever she needs for the wedding, which includes super fun things like...shopping for bridesmaid dresses!!!  Our friends Jenna, Stephanie, and I all went to Montgomery on Friday and spent the night so we could go look the next morning.  We tried on tons of dresses and found 3 really pretty ones that come in the color she wants (pink of course!).  Best of all, we got to see her try on her gorgeous wedding dress!!  All in all, it was pretty perfect!  I am thankful for the chance to look for bridesmaid dresses with my best friend and can't wait to do even more wedding things!

iPod

I drove to Montgomery on Friday to see my best friend Brittany (see next post).  I always get so sick of the radio when I am in the car, plus you always get to that point where the radio stations start getting fuzzy but you can't pick up new ones.  I am thankful for my ipod (or really my iphone because I use it on there) so I can just listen to my music from there on road trips!

my father's eye..brows that is

And no, sorry Dad, that's actually not what I am thankful for in this post.  I was blessed with many features from both of my parents, one being my dad's eyebrows.  They are dark and, if I let them be, bushy.  Hence what I am actually thankful for today: eyebrow waxing (I just couldn't bring myself to title my post that!)  There is no way I could ever let my eyebrows grow to what nature intended them to be and plucking kills me for some reason, so I choose to wax.  It's quick, not to painful, and keeps me looking well-groomed.  For that, I am very thankful!

a chance to "help"

My wonderful and inspiring bible study leader (see her blog here) is going through chemo and radiation right now.  It is always hard to see people in your life going through difficult things, especially when you don't know what to do.   I think we look for ways to help as a way to reach out and show we care. I had the opportunity to bring dinner over for her family on Wednesday, and I am thankful for the opportunity to help her out, even in such a simple manner as bringing a meal. Those acts that we do (hopefully) show the love and prayer that we are sending with our hearts during times of need.

coffee

This is the time of year where it starts getting really hard for me to get up in the morning.  My students are ready for Spring Break, I'm ready for Spring Break, and the thought of leaving my bed each morning gives me such dread for some reason.  It's not that I don't want to go into work- I love my job- it's just that I am constantly tired for some reason.  Maybe it's because work is more draining since, as I mentioned before, we are all ready for Spring Break.  Maybe I'm staying up a little later.  Who knows?  No matter the reason, I am very thankful for my cup of coffee in the morning.  I don't think I would make it through my mornings without it. :)

faith

I was thinking today about faith and just wondering how people manage to get through life's trials without it.  I can't imagine going through even the day to day things life can throw at us without having faith in God, but what about when something really big is going on.  Then what do you do and who do you turn to?  You see people in your life who get thrown curve ball after curve ball, yet their faith holds them together and keeps them going through things I cannot even begin to imagine.  I was reminded of that today and I continue to be in awe of how strong faith can make someone.  I am thankful for my faith.

Baby Noa Leigh Borland

My cousin Lindsey and her husband Jared had their baby!  She is a beautiful baby girl, Noa Leigh Borland and is 7 pounds 8 oz and 20 inches.  I absolutely cannot wait to meet her!!!  I am thankful Lindsey had a safe delivery and for a beautiful, healthy new baby in our family!

Isn't she beautiful??

spin class

I went to my very first spin class Saturday morning, and I must admit I was a little nervous beforehand.  You always hear how intense spin classes are, so I had this fear I was going to throw up, pass out, or simply not be able to do it.  Well I made it through without doing any of those things and felt great afterwards (minus the sore booty!) I think I have found my new Saturday morning tradition!  I am thankful that I made it through my first spin class, and that I enjoyed it enough that I want to go back! haha

spring flowers

I saw the prettiest flowers on my way to work Friday morning and snapped a quick picture while I was at a light!  Even though they irritate my allergies, I am thankful for beautiful spring flowers (especially tulips!) and how they make me smile when I see them- even bright and early on the way to work! :)

Fitness "Body Love" Section

Does anyone else rip out the "Body Love" section from Cosmo?  It advertises that it's a 6 minute workout, but it totally takes me more than 6 minutes to do them all!  They are perfect exercises to do while watching tv and each month targets a different area. Since that I am starting to think bathing suit season, I did the "Cellulite Schmellulite" one tonight while watching Revenge.    I am thankful for the Body Love section in Cosmo, so I can get bikini ready and catch up on my favorite shows!