G r a t i t u d e + S u n d a y

In my continued effort to be more positive and work toward self improvement, I'm joining Taryn at Wooly Moss Roots for Gratitude Sunday. In her words: "Sunday's heartfelt tradition. A time to slow down, to reflect, to be grateful. A list of gratitudes."

This week, I am grateful for:

* -- Spring Break! I know last week I was worried it would mess me up, and I know by now that it has totally thrown off my schedule, but wow, it was needed. I had time with my pets, time to read, and time to do some photography and writing.

* -- all the time I had to clean. I don't know how people keep their houses clean everyday. Between school and work, it's basically impossible to keep my place looking like a person lives there and not a herd of pigs. I try to clean at least one room or space each day, but sometimes I'm just too exhausted. At least I got to catch up a little bit.

* -- that I haven't yet figured out how to fix my clippers. At first, this was making me so angry: I removed the blade to clean out the little pieces of Sól's hair (he's a big dog, it takes a while to shave his whole body). But now I can't figure out how to get the blade back on. However, it's gotten so cold again -- snow, in Kentucky, in late March...! At least Sól still has all of his leg hair attached so hopefully he isn't too too cold when we go outside.

* -- getting to video-chat with my best friend, Sean! I know he reads this and his head swells every time he sees his name. I like contributing to his future cerebral explosion.

* -- a friend telling me about where she buys her henna hair dye. I've tried different henna dyes in the past, even Lush's, and they've never worked for me; the Lush brand even fried my hair like box dye! Her hair always looks amazing and she was nice enough to tell me her source. She also gave me lots of good tips that help protect her hair from drying. I hope I'll be able to afford some henna soon.

* -- exciting plans made with an old friend from NYC. I'm sure there will be more said about this next week. It will be her second time visiting me in Kentucky!

* -- my dad sending me an old charger from his computer. It seems to work fine in mine, so that saves me around $80 replacing the one I broke, if the prices are still the same from 4-5 years ago.

* -- my dog for being incredibly silly and sweet. There were a lot of laughs this week at his antics, and even more so because he looks pretty funny with poofy, curly legs and a shaved body. It is one of the best things waking up with him snuggling in bed (or sometimes standing above me, gently wagging his tail, wanting to go outside).

* -- finally finding chicory coffee in Kentucky!! (I could go on with exclamation points). I found out that the local Kroger now carries Luzianne brand chicory coffee from New Orleans. I seriously cannot wait to wake up every morning now! So many memories are tied to that taste, and a little piece of me gets to walk down La Rue Chartres with each sip. I can't wait for the next time I go to back to NOLA, and it's exciting because I have no idea yet when that will be.

* -- my church. We celebrated Ostara (the Spring Equinox) yesterday. I love being able to see them and wish I lived closer! I won the scavenger hunt, got a promising message about my plans for container gardening from my egg divination, and got to spend time with lots of great friends. I took lots of photos, but haven't had a lot of time to go through them all, so I will definitely write more about that in a few days.

* -- Clint being able to help me with the cost of getting out to the Ostara celebration yesterday. I only had enough money for gas, so I couldn't afford our food contribution for the potluck dinner. I would have felt terrible showing up without food, so I'm so glad that he agreed to pay for the food if I paid for the gas and drove.

* -- being able to take home some rhododendron from my church's seed exchange. I've never grown it before, but they all assured me it would do well in containers. I'm going to start researching it and I really hope I can afford some flower pots and soil soon. I know it's going to be getting hot quickly, so I'd love to get some plants started on the deck. I want to have a fruitful year, literally!

(Update : it's not rhododendron, but philodendron. Can't you tell how black my thumbs are...)

♥ Spring Blessings ♥