Im Tired And I Wanna Go To Bed

I woke up in a bad mood today. I literally felt irritable from the moment I got out of bed. At one point this morning, I made myself stop and think of the things for which Im grateful. I was really starting to go down a bad path, but by focusing on the positive the day quickly turned around. Here are a few things that came to my mind.

1. Boys. Ive said it before, but I get mucho enjoyment watching my boys play. Maybe its that I didnt grow up around any boys. Maybe that's why everything they do seems so neat and different and fantastic. Yesterday my boys were joined by Eli and their friends James, Jeremy and Ryan. They spent hours running around outside, chasing after each other with nerf gun and playing with dirt in Seamusland. There is something so terribly sweet about how simple their pleasures are. I never get sick of it.


2. Matt. He spent most of yesterday preparing our house for the torrential rain that is supposed to pound us next week. A little background story: a few years back, our backyard and garage got flooded by heavy rains. At the time of the flood, I was in Scotland enjoying one of my best friend's weddings. Matt, however, was back here (along with his mother and the boys) learning the value of a submersion pump and having nightmares of the garage flooding with mud. I guess it was a pretty bad experience because Matt has never quite recovered from it. When he found out that a week long storm was heading in our direction, he went out and bought sandbags at Lowes. The boys and Eli helped him fill and lay them. He also dug a ditch in the backyard in an effort to keep the garage from flooding again. Anyone who knows Matt and I knows that we are not big planners, but my man is prepared. He is taking care of us well.

3. Reading. I am not a big reader, but lately I have found a feeling of gratification by stealing away in my bed or a chair and immersing myself in a book. My sister Jennifer calls me a book snob. She might be right. I enjoy the actual writing style of a book as much as I do the story. For that reason, I dont enjoy reading just for the sake of reading. I like reading good books. But recently, I seem to get enjoyment from the act of reading: finding a quiet spot and turning off the world. This is a new thing for me and I like it a lot. Last week, I read the book The Reader by Bernhard Schlink and although the story wasnt really an uplifting tale I found myself looking forward to coming home after a day at school and spending a couple hours reading that book. This is a very different feeling for me, but one I could get used to.

4.My big Ikea world map. Im going to segue into the superficial for a bit and talk about how much I love my Ikea world map. Im pretty sure I mentioned wanting it here. Its been on my wish list for a couple years. This Christmas Santa brought me the map and its everything I thought it would be and more. For starters, it pretty much takes up the entire wall in my dining room. I love that. There is something very decadent about a oversized piece of art - or in my case, an oversized map. Secondly, all of us have been getting a kick out of exploring its information. When we sit down to eat, my spot at the dinner table faces the map. I often find myself tuning out the dinner conversation and tuning in to all the faraway places on the wall. Hainan. The Western Siberian Plain. Finland. The Atlas Mountains. Just today Seamus and Finn were discussing how large Alaska looked and Seamus ended up schooling Finn on how large many Asian countries are in comparison. Thirdly, and this came as quite a pleasant surprise to me, the map works as a pretty cool backdrop. Check this out:

5. Big Love. Its a guility pleasure, no doubt about it. And I know there are tons of people who are offended by this show, but I get such a kick out of it. Like many tv shows, this series just started up in January after several months off air. Im so happy its Sunday because that means I get to check in with Margie, Nikki and Barb. I never expected to enjoy Big Love. I was ready to be disgusted by the entire thing. When HBO first began this series a couple years ago, I tuned in purely out of curiosity. But after a while, I truly began to enjoy the characters and their precarious love for each other. Actaully, there have been a few times when where I found myself cheering on their crazy life together. I know its nutty, but I love that crazy polygamist family! ha ha They make my family look very very healthy and normal. :)


Happy Sunday.