Grati-Tuesday (including video!)

1. Laying in bed, luxuriating in the twilight that is the hazy time right before you fall asleep, and B just whispers "our life is awesome."

2. Weather where I can break out my leggings and its considered appropriate.

                                              

3. The Muppets are having a moment and I couldn't be more pleased to see them back. Witness here the Fraggles crashing Ben Folds Five's new single:



Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

Currently I am being thankful for:

1. Dawn Dish Liquid. Why? Because my cats are still fleabags, a week after we gave them Frontline and bathed them in flea and tick shampoo. Well, they're better, but I'm still finding one or two fleas every time I comb them. So we decided another bath was in order (the cats were really excited about it. Not.) Rather than use the special shampoo, we decided to go with Dawn Dish Liquid, recommended by the vet. Fleas started falling off in the bath, and then when we combed them that night we got dead fleas. I spotted a few still this morning, but I am much more impressed with the results from the household cleaner than the expensive shampoo.

Via

Apparently it has to be the original blue dish liquid though, so don't go dousing your cats in anything else as I have no idea what it will do to them. Another plus-it made their fur so fluffy!

2. Downton Abbey. I know I'm late to the Downton Abbey train, ok? Especially for someone who is into history. People at the museum have been raving about it since it came to America and I finally found a place to watch it and it is as fantastic as they have all been saying. Now, like everyone, I have to wait until February for the next season. Boo.

Via

3. Funny tumblrs to read over my coffee, such as this one: My Friends Are Getting Married, and I'm Just 25 and Drunk.

Seriously. I laughed till my stomach hurt, which is good because I feel like that counts as part of my workout for the day. Don't worry. I'm going to the gym as well. Hopefully.

Tweet

Grati...Thursday.

So I haven't done a Grati-Tuesday post in a while. But that doesn't mean I don't have anything to be thankful for! So I'm scooting it over to Thursday this week. Behold my thankfulness for:

1. Other Disney freaks on Pinterest, so I can get my fix vicariously through things like this:

Via

Via

2. A vet that is open late so that we can get flea meds when we discover our kittens are infested. Not thankful for fleas or the WORMS THAT APPEAR TO HAVE COME WITH THEM. I just had to have the strays. Thankfully they are indoor cats, so once we take care of the problems they seem to have come with, they should be good to go for the foreseeable future, at least as far as pests are concerned.

3. Cheddar cheese sticks and grapes as a morning snack.

4. Stripes, stripes, stripes.

5. The Free TV Project, through which I discovered a new guilty pleasure: Underage and Pregnant, the British version of 16 and Pregnant. Yes. I will watch this.

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

1. Having B drive me to the train in the mornings. I live within walking distance and walk back in the evenings (and walked in the mornings for the year and a half before he started his current job). He left early today and I walked, which again is usually fine, except it was raining and I guess I stayed and cuddled the kittens too long because I ended up having to run to catch the train. Ugh. Made me appreciate when he drops me off that much more!

2. The smell of a campfire. Actually, the entire experience of sitting around a campfire with people you love. And stuffing your face with s'mores, of course.

3. This poster:

Via.

which single-handedly stopped me from eating a piece of cake AND spending 10 bucks to subscribe to a magazine I don't need yesterday. I want those things NOW, but you know what I want MOST? A healthier body and a healthier savings account.

4. Finding shoes in my childhood closet that I forgot I had that are comfortable and summer appropriate. Jackpot.

 

5. Finding KIND bars at Wal-Mart. I love them but the local Giant doesn't carry them. They're all natural but delicious. So you feel virtuous and they also taste like a treat.

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday and style in three words.

First things first. This week I am thankful for:

1. B's new job! That's right, he's moving up in the world, and I couldn't be more proud of and excited for him.

2. Books on tape. Or cd, rather. I checked out A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson for our little jaunt to the ocean, and it was fantastic. Highly recommend!

Check it out.

3. My kittens. I had to say it. They are so much fun, and I love how they bring out this caring, playful side in B. He'll hate me for saying it, but he makes a good kitten dad, which eventually I'm sure will translate into being a good human baby dad.

4. Having something to look forward to on the weekend. Weather permitting B and I are meeting my parents at their campsite in Harper's Ferry and doing some hiking and s'mores making. Thinking about relaxing by a campfire is helping me get through each workday.

5. Magazines. I love flipping through magazines. I subscribe to 5 (Glamour, Cosmo, Marie Claire, Smithsonian and Archaeology). This month Glamour challenged its editors to sum up their style in three words, which I thought was an interesting exercise and possibly would help me in my quest to purge my closet of clothes that aren't "me". I pondered and came up with: Navy. Stripes. Lipstick. Even though I'm wearing none of the aforementioned today.

What are your three words? I'd love to hear what you come up with!

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

1. Public transportation. Relatively cheap, better for the environment than driving, and I can catch some extra zzzs on the morning train ride (sometimes. If people aren't noisy).

2. Learning that you have enough stuff. The more I focus on making the best use of the material goods I already own, the freer I am to spend my energy, time and money acquiring experiences, relationships and happiness instead of things.

Via.

That being said, I am also grateful for...

3. This maxi skirt. It's super comfortable, cool enough for the humid summer and work appropriate. Also I had a gift card to the Loft and so I got it for free! (Actually, I made money off of it because it cost less than the gift card balance and they gave me the difference in cash. I didn't know anyone still did that!)

4. Books. Hardback, paperback, electronic, audio, I love them all. If you give me a good book, I will devour it. It would probably behoove me to learn how to take my time and savor it so that they last longer but dagnabit, I have to know how it ends!

5. Maxwell House International Coffee. The coffee in the pot at work seems to be too acidic for my oh-so-delicate stomach, but I found the solution: powdered coffee. I don't know why I didn't think about it before, as my mother drinks it every day and has done so for as long as I can remember. I'm back to looking forward to getting to work in the morning so I can have my cup of coffee (which is good, since I need some reason to get out of bed in the morning).



Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

1. Dannon Pure Vanilla yogurt.

2. Baby snuggles and babbles.

3. Mascara.

4. My Nook.

5. Plentiful clean, running water.

WDW Represent! That is a child's tee shirt but I loved it so I just got the biggest size and stuck a tank top underneath.



Tweet

Grati-Tuesday

Today I am grateful for:

1. Free coffee. Sunday before church B and I went to Caribou Coffee. They made my drink iced, though I had asked for it hot, and I was just going to take it and not fuss about it, but the barista noticed, re-made the drink and let us take the iced one as well. Score!

2. The dress code in my office. It's very...lax. So today, when I felt like wearing jeans and no make-up, well, that was perfectly acceptable, even though yesterday I was in a blazer.

Yesterday, lookin' all professional.

3. My mother supplying picnic foods for B and I as well as herself at the concert this weekend. I didn't have to cook, think, or pay for groceries for it. Perfect.

4. Speaking of food, B brought two packages of Perdue chicken home from his parents. We don't normally get to purchase the high-end chicken like that, so it was ah-mazing. And free!

5. I feel like my new workout plan is paying off. And no, I haven't weighed myself or done a before and after picture comparison, I just feel like it is, and that's all I care about.

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

Headed to Subway...

1. Living within walking distance of a Subway.

2. Leggings. Comfy. Cute. Perfect.

3. Barbecues with family.

4. A break in the heat wave.

5. Free T.V. online.

...and back home with dinner.



Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

Today I am thankful:

That I cut my bangs myself and they turned out somewhat okay.

That my Jeep Compass got 30 miles to the gallon on the last leg of our road trip. Sweet!

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Candy Apple

For Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Candy Apple. I've finally found a way to have red lips with a chapstick feel. Success!

For the YMCA where I can't wait to get my workout on this evening.

To live in the good ol' U. S of A. We may have our problems sometimes, but when you stop to consider the alternatives, I for one feel pretty blessed to live somewhere my rights are respected and protected, and where the quality of life is so darn good. Happy Birthday 'Merica! Hope everyone is celebrating appropriately tomorrow. What are your plans?

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

My (parents') doggie, Belle.



My sweet girl, sittin' like a princess.



Another year sans cavities (thanks for instilling good dental hygiene habits, Mom and Dad!)

Watching NASCAR with my grandparents (I don't even follow NASCAR or understand what's going on beyond cars going in circles, but they get so excited about it and that's nice to see).

A weekend worth looking forward to.

Storms that roll in and leave the weather better than when they came.

Tweet

Grati-Tuesday

Headbands on bad hair days (read: most days).

Flip-flops and painted toes.

Imak SmartGloves for days when I do nothing but type. I need that extra wrist support or my fingers ache!

Waking up next to my man after a night apart.

Cool summer evenings.



Oh, those summer nights...on the Outer Banks.



Tweet

Grati-Tuesday.

The local Christian radio station, 95.1 Shine FM, has a feature they call "Grati-Tuesdays" in which listeners call in and say something they are thankful for, large or small.  I thought it would be nice to take my Tuesdays and list 5 things I am grateful for.  You always feel better about life when you think about all the good in it anyway, right? This week I am thankful for:

Air conditioning.

Scarves that make me feel cozy in said air conditioning, and also look great with any outfit.

A boyfriend who cleans the kitchen. Willingly.

Summer fruits (peaches, plums, strawberries, so good).

That I can still be on my parents' health insurance as my job does not provide any (I just made dental and physical check-up appointments and it's such a blessing to have healthcare, amirite?).



A boyfriend who cleans...and is smokin' hot.



Tweet