Gratituesday: March is Marching

Here it is ...Tuesday again and nearly the middle of March.  Steve and I had a night away on Saturday and it was glorious. I took one photo and one video of the band we saw (Steve's current favorite, Houndmouth) and that was all. No social media blitz, just us. We walked in a  beautiful park with hundreds of other folks happy for warm weather, walked to dinner, walked to breakfast and really just hung out, just being together.

Glorious.


Tonight I am taking him to see one of my all time favorite bands, Modest Mouse. Such a treat to see two bands I really like in a span of four days. Spring has sprung and with it, live music again.

March 10 Gratituesday List

• Parents who will hang with our girls while we go recharge our marriage
• Friends who send MMs  with our photos on them as gifts
• Sunshine on Sunday (I have a sunburned  nose)
• Answered prayers in the middle of the night
• Daughters home from traveling safely
• Pure Barre challenge. 20 in 31 days. I am on number 7 in 8 days. 
• Sisters who create workout videos so I can not go to the gym
• Family to miss!  So lucky to have a large family on both sides that we keep up with on social media

Girl cousins

Gratituesday: Exercise and Yeast

Gratituesday started as a plan for me to be present in my thankfulness for my blessings. The little things in life that make me happy or a better person. I am easily bogged down by negativity of others and my own self talk. This is a way for me to "count my blessings" as my ever chipper Grandmomma used to say.

 Gratituesday List

• Nutritional yeast. I have used it to ween off grains by adding it to last night's salmon cakes, this past weekend's waffles, today's frittta...
• Saying "yes" to reading to 4th graders. They all clapped when I finished. I was on cloud 9! 
• Juicing. Not delicious, but I feel amazing after. 
• Steve drinking the juice with gusto. 
• Steve challenging Travis to 100 burpee challenge and me jumping on the bandwagon. Goodbye bingo jigglers! Today is day 43.
• Pure Barre for offering a 20 in 31 challenge. I'm sore already.
• Modest Mouse in Chattanooga. Getting me through my winter-no-music- festival-doldrums! 
• Sophomore year, for not being junior year. 
• 8th grade, for not being kindergarten. 
• Chattanooga Library, for feeding my obsession! 
• March, for reminding me May is almost here.

Cooking: Aging and Yes!

Having come to the realization that I am going to actually age (GASP!), I have decided to make some changes in my life. Yes I, ...the sufferer of Peter Pan  Syndrome, have acknowledged that I will not always be able to bounce back and have started really and truly, aging.


It hit me recently, I might be middle aged. Which only means I have lived half my life with just as much to go.  But, what did strike me is that I better start taking better care of myself this second half. So, I have weened myself for the most part off sugary things. I am in the process of "less grains".  Daily juicing is almost a habit (two weeks in and if I skip it, I miss it). Workouts better planned.

The cute cup and straw make me feel like it is a sassy drink

The other side of that aging coin is that "later" is here. I read a great blog by one of my dear friends cool sister. She is smart and full of life, the type of woman I strive to be, but never seem to actually be.  She started an "I Never" list of experiences.  Her log of what she did "new" inspired me to have a year of "yes". Simple in concept, but not in practice, for me.  I am a lot a little controlling, shy and a little introverted.  The unknown is hard for me. New situations take a lot of energy.  "Yes" is hard.