Day 346 (Friday)

1. Lunch with my brother, sister, and sis-in-law

2. A cocktail party hosted by some friends.

3. The kids all having a great time making a gingerbread house at my dad's while R & I were out.

Day 345 (Thursday)

1. 2 hour delay to the start of school because of ice which actually translated into a very relaxing morning for all of us.

2. Holiday parties at the elementary school - it's amazing how fun these are for the kids.

3. M having a fun evening while doing good service with his scout troop.

Day 344 (Wednesday)

1. Christmas wishes from my adorable toddlers.

2. The start of three weeks off of work.

3. Feeling like life is finally getting back to normal.

Day 343 (Tuesday)

1. Subbing for a teacher at the preschool at the last minute.

2. Girls night out - actually a lovely evening in at a friends' house.

3. Food, wine, holiday cheer & laughter with the ladies - it deserves 2 notes for the happiness of the day.

Day 342 (Monday)

1. Getting stuff done - bank, cards, emissions inspection, wrapping paper prize deliveries

2. A nice afternoon of M working on a school project and MJ doing an art project while C was at yoga.

3. Finding my phone in the spot on the side of the road where it must have fallen when I got out of the car to drop off on of C's friends.

Day 335 - 341

Not the greatest week, but holiday decorations are everywhere, shopping is almost done, and we had some snow flurries in Atlanta today...

1. Christmas cards

2. Finding a sub, once again

3. My toddlers being excited when I finally made it back to work

4. An evening out helping get ready for the school auction

5. My sweet husband

6. A latte alone while I strolled through Whole Foods - I even did some Christmas shopping there

7. Adorable 1st graders dressed as Gingerbread men for a school performance

8. Taking the girls to a cute little Christmas play with friends

9. Finding a last minute sitter so R and I could go to a very fun Christmas party

Day 334 (Monday)

So it was MJ's turn to wake up with a high fever...

1. C & M finally getting well, back to school for both of them tomorrow.

2. Our family Christmas cards arriving, now I need to get them addressed and in the mail - I'm only sending 40 this year.

3. Finally using one of my house bound days to get some cleaning done around here.

Day 333 (Sunday)

1. Early church service in the chapel, my new favorite service to go to by myself.

2. Seeing 4 little blond girls having fun at Sunday school (MJ was the only one of my kids healthy enough to go)

3. Time alone in a coffee shop with my book while MJ was at a birthday party.

Day 332 (Saturday)

1. A nice outing to the mall, just me & MJ, and I found some cute pants at Nordstrom

2. A quick trip to the playground before it got rainy.

3. A cute romantic comedy

Day (331) Friday

1. A much needed evening catching up with old, old friends over snacks and drinks - not that we're actually that old, but we've known each other for a very long time.

2. A good day at work - so nice to get out of the house after being home with sick kids all week.

3. Christmas decorations.

Day 330 (Thursday)

1. Everyone starting to get better.

2. Getting organized with my PTA stuff for the year so far.

3. A spur of the moment evening out with my husband, thanks Grandaddy!

Day 329 (Wednesday)

Today brought another sick child, and since they still have fevers, we'll be home once again tomorrow...

1. Playing with MJ while her siblings napped

2. A much needed night out for me and MJ catching up with friends

3. Finding a few online bargains, since I had lots of time to sit around the house on the computer today.

Day 328 (Tuesday)

1. Finding a willing sub since I will be home again on Wednesday with a sick child.

2. Watching Kit Kitteridge, An American Girl with C

3. A new episode of Glee to cheer me up at the end of a not so great evening.

Day 327 (Monday)

I hate that poor C is sick, but it was a cold and rainy day here so not bad to stay inside all day.

1. Getting the 2010 Christmas card designed and ordered.

2. A late night trip to Target to get some supplies for another day in tomorrow.

3. Sorting through more old pictures so that C now has a genuine baby book.

Day 326 (Sunday)

1. A leisurely bedtime routine, but kids still in bed by 8 (at least the girls were)

2. Kids getting gifts for each other at the bookstore.

3. Leftovers for dinner - just enough left in the fridge for dinner for all and the fridge is now cleaned out.

Day 320 - 325

The holiday week flew by, lots to be thankful for and happy about, little time for blogging. Here are the highlights...

1. Spending time with my brother and sister.

2. Getting some serious medicine to clear up a terrible bout of poison ivy (did not know it could happen in November)

3. Carrying a sleeping little boy to bed - he's almost too big :(

4. R taking the week off of work.

5. Christmas decorations.

6. Thanksgiving feasts on Wednesday and Thursday.

7. Getting most of the Christmas shopping done.

8. The movie Tangled - so much fun to take the kids, it's a great new Disney movie.

9. A big box of clothes to give away.

10. C's Daisy scout troop, a very sweet induction ceremony.

11. Some time out with my husband thanks to Grandma & Grandpa.

Day 319 (Sunday)

1. A lazy Sunday - I just hope the kids aren't getting sick, they were very low energy today.

2. My brother & sister arriving in town for the week.

3. A nice chat (and picture) with Santa.

Day 318 (Saturday)

1. Catching up with my mom, dad, and sister all on the same day (mom & sister by phone)

2. Christmas decorations - yes, we went ahead and got a few out today.

3. Watching a good movie.

Day 317 (Friday)

1. M & C's excitement about getting to school early - if I could only get MJ on board.

2. MJ talking to Dora & Diego as she watched them on TV, we don't have much time to see them anymore - it was very cute to watch her.

3. A great night out with a fantastic group of women.

Day 316 (Thursday)

1. More shopping at the book fair - books are one of my weaknesses

2. Another Thursday done, 2 day school week coming up

3. Venti carmel brulee latte to start my day (it's a flavor only available at the holidays)

Day 315 (Wednesday)

1. Day 3 - still keeping up with my new workouts

2. A busy afternoon of playdates at home.

3. Realizing that I'm caught up with my happy lists.

Day 314 (Tuesday)

1. A little shopping trip to the book fair.

2. M & R feeling good about their new basketball team.

3. An easy night of getting everyone settled into bed.

Day 313 (Monday)

1. MJ singing a new Thanksgiving song that she learned at school.

2. Starting a new workout routine - maybe I'll keep the holiday pounds at bay.

3. Chicken & dumplings, even if my kids didn't like them - bought from a local market.

Day 312 (Sunday)

1. A successful 4 year old sleepover.

2. A lovely dinner with some new friends, kids all played well at their house.

3. Family bike ride.

Day 311 (Saturday)

1. Family breakfast at Waffle House

2. A new compost caddy from Farmer D organics - one of my new favorite places

3. A birthday party at a jumpy place - always a good time for the kids

Day 310 (Friday)

1. I made it through a long week.

2. Ordering pizza with friends for a quite night in.

3. Getting to bed early on a Friday night (unlike last week on girls' weekend)

Day 309 (Thursday)

1. Another sweet performance at the elementary school - this time 3rd grade, weed costume done.

2. A successful (but expensive) start to Christmas shopping at the American Girl Doll store

3. Taking the week off from the Thursday crazy schedule.

Day 308 (Wednesday)

1. No new ailments in our house

2. French onion soup from Panerra

3. Finishing the laundry after 2 1/2 days of washing everything

Day 307 (Tuesday)

1. Realizing how beautiful C's hair is (as I combed through it looking for lice)

2. A nice girls' lunch at Mellow Mushroom, just me and C

3. Not cooking dinner

Day 306 (Monday)

After almost 300 days, I feel like I have a day without happy thoughts. Girls with lice, a dozen loads of laundry, cancelled plans, you get the picture, but I'll try to look on the bright side of things...

1. A good Daisy Scout meeting

2. Clean sheets and everything else that isn't nailed down

3. The week has got to get better

293-305

Once again I've fallen behind on my happy lists, here is a run down of the events of the last 2 weeks (in no order)...

1. Another happy halloween

2. MJ's bad cough only lasting a day

3. A 10th anniversary surprise to Cirque de Soleil.

4. A visit from my in-laws

5. A fantastic girls' weekend at a friends lovely lake house

6. Our first visit of the year to the Pink Pig - the holiday season is here!

Day 292 (Monday)

1. A morning running errands and having breakfast with my husband.

2. A morning of running errands to help me appreciate the days that I don't have to get in the car.

3. Rediscovering the joys of legos that have been unused for a while.

Day 284 - 291

It has finally happened, I've gotten so far behind (with no good excuse) that I'm now putting together more than a week of happy thoughts so I can catch up...

1. Delicious birthday cake made by a friend especially for me.

2. A lovely trip to Chateau Elan with my sister who was in from San Francisco

3. Leaving the kids at home while my sister and I got away.

4. Getting through another busy week.

5. Family dinner with both my sisters in town - a very rare occurrence.

6. A visit with my grandparents.

7. A great neighborhood fall festival.

8. A fancy evening meeting the illustrator for the Fancy Nancy books.

Day 282 & 283

1. A GREAT trip to the mountains with friends.

2. Kids and adults enjoying North GA.

3. A spectacular hike.

4. A short break from the chaos of the city.

5. Lots of laughs.

Day 281 (Thursday)

1. A night out to see a friend in local church play.

2. A babysitter on short notice.

3. Real southern accents in the play about the south.

Day 280 (Wednesday)

1. Birthday treats from my little toddlers.

2. Cocktails in the library on a beautiful evening.

3. MJ getting to go out to dinner with a friend and hearing that she was very polite while out.

Day 279

1. Birthday hugs from my kids.

2. Lots of birthday wishes on Facebook.

Day 278

1. Finally getting started on the pile of pictures in the basement - 80 of them are now in an album.

2. Haircuts for the kids.

3. $20 at the consignment store, some of my kids stuff sold.

Day 277 (Sunday)

1. A relaxing day to get things done around the house.

2. Playdates for me and MJ, it's great when her friends are the daughters of my friends.

3. Sunday night TV - love the show Brothers & Sisters.

Day 276 & 276 (Fri & Sat)

1. Family camping trip!!

2. Simple pleasures when you're away from all things electronic.

3. Kids' excitement about making smores around the campfire.

4. Getting to make a campfire (I'm such a CJL girl at heart)

5. A fun day with the family at Stone Mountain.

6. 3 day weekends - we've had all this fun and we still have tomorrow to get ready for another week.

Day 274 (Thursday)

1. The start of a 3 day weekend.

2. Surviving all of the crazy Thursday logistics for another week.

3. Both girls getting invited to spend the night with friends who are also sisters.

Day 273

1. R getting back safely from yet another business trip.

2. Everyone getting costumes they love for Halloween.

3. Only one day left before a long weekend.

Day 272

1. Pink polar bear pajamas

2. Hot tea - it didn't help much, but it was a good idea at the time

3. A Billy Joel song on Glee

Days 265-271

I'm falling behind, that's the story of my fall but here are some highlights from the past week...

1. Finishing the school wrapping paper sale

2. A week without homework due to standardized testing.

3. Beautiful weather (at last)

4. A playdate at the park with MJ's class

5. A lunch date at Doc Cheys

6. A great party/fundraiser - fun for the whole family on a Friday night at a beautiful home.

7. Halloween fashion show at Pottery Barn Kids with some pretty cute models

8. Great evening with other moms while the kids ran and played.

9. C's excitement about a sleepover with 2 friends.

10. The movie Marmaduke - so very cute, kids and I loved it!

11. Bookstore with MJ even though she should have been at school

Day 264

1. A productive day

2. More rain

3. A very successful trip to the Gap for new jeans for M

Day 263

1. A little family outing before the afternoon rain.

2. Taking the girls to meet friends (theirs and mine) at a jumpy place.

3. Much needed rain.

Day 262

1. Another fun evening with friends.

2. A lazy day (prompted in part by car trouble)

3. M's excitement about getting a free IPOD dock for opening his first bank account.

Day 261

1. Looking at all of my purchases and feeling like (for once) I didn't over-buy at the consignment sale.

2. An unplanned evening of fun at a friend's house - playdates for all.

3. The weekend.

Day 260

1. Finding some bargains at the preschool consignment sale - I was a rock star mom for finding Pokemon cards for M, princess shoes for MJ, and Rainbow Fairy books for C.

2. The great feeling of teamwork that comes from working a busy night at the consignment sale.

3. A hot shower after a very busy day.

Day 259

1. Getting stuff out of the basement and to the consignment sale.

2. A breakfast date with R.

3. M getting done with a HUGE report (at least for third grade).

Day 256-258

It was a weekend that was more fun than productive which made for a busy Sunday evening...

1. Fun dinner with friends for everyone on a Friday night.

2. A GREAT new vacuum cleaner.

3. A GREAT husband who used the new vacuum cleaner.

4. Fun at a grown-up party.

5. More fun at the Decatur Concert on the Square with lots of friends.

6. Children singing in church.

Day 255

Thursdays are my logistically crazy day this fall, but I've made it through another one...

1. Seeing how much fun the girls are having at gymnastics.

2. Season finale of Gray's Anatomy, the fact that it's on tonight means new episodes next week.

3. A Daisy Troop for C this year.

Day 254

1. An interesting talk for the Wednesday night program.

2. Lunch with my coworkers..

3. A 3 year old inviting me over for a playdate (I told her that I would wait till I had MJ with me).

Day 253

1. A friend taking the girls to preschool spirit night at Chick-fil-a

2. Getting CPR certified for the next 2 years.

3. A little walk with M and the dog.

Day 252

I really like Mondays right now, my day off to catch up while everyone is in school...

1. A great deal on new picture frames at Pier 1.

2. Clean sheets.

3. A little one on one time with M.

Day 250 & 251

1. A relatively unscheduled Saturday.

2. A great night at the Georgia Music Hall of Fame Induction ceremony!

3. A new babysitter who was available on short notice so we could go to the ceremony.

4. Walks with my girls in the stroller.

5. Walk with M.

6. Hearing about my dad's trip to China.

Day 249

1. Homemade lemonade - so good, maybe because of the 1/2 cup sugar per lemon

2. Sleepovers - M gets so excited to have his friend here for the night.

3. Getting started on tagging items for the fall consignment sale which is in 2 weeks.

Day 248

1. Surviving crazy Thursday logistics - gymnastics, karate, and carpool in a car that is too small

2. Finding a sitter for Saturday night on very short notice.

3. Knowing that the weekend is coming soon.

Day 247

1. Walking to work every day.

2. Reading to MJs class.

3. Choir - fun for everyone on a Wednesday night.

Day 246

1. Another trip to Whole Foods, it's addictive.

2. Surviving the 1st day back from a long weekend.

3. A playdate for MJ and one of her best friends (she doesn't really have any great friends in her class right now)

Day 241-245

A great long weekend, our annual Labor Day trip to Ohio...

1. M's cute new glasses (he's getting sick of people telling him he looks like Harry Potter, but he does)

2. Big laughs, I can't even remember why, but I did lots of laughing

3. Fun at the Melon Fest

4. A lovely break from the heat, I got to wear jeans and a sweatshirt!

5. A fairly uneventful drive there and back - all 12 hours each way.

6. Watching my kids have fun on the farm - horses, bunnies and ATVs

Day 240

1. A lovely afternoon with M that included lunch and a trip to the eye doctor - we pick up his glasses tomorrow.

2. A good presentation from C's teacher about her class.

3. Knowing that a long weekend is coming soon.

Day 239

1. Learning how I can help out in the school library (because I need to volunteer a little more).

2. A girls' night out, I brought my husband along.

3. A spur of the moment playdate for M.

Day 238

1. A productive day that included a trip to the mall, long walk, and oil change.

2. A family dinner.

3. A routine (for now).

Day 235-237

A good weekend without much time on the computer which is a good thing...

1. An afternoon stroll with my favorite 8 year old.

2. A break in the heat and humidity.

3. A lovely date night with my husband.

Day 234

1. A better morning complete with a trip to Starbucks with my husband before work.

2. Watching boys have so much fun in today's karate class.

3. An overdue playdate for MJ with one of her BFFs.

Day 232

A long day with a very tired little girl trying to settle into the routine of pre-k...

1. M having fun with a friend after school.

2. Starting choir for kids.

3. Catching up with my neighbors.

Day 232

1. First day of preschool - so many sweet little ones.

2. Playdates - 5 kids played well for an hour this afternoon.

3. Healthy kids (I hope)

Day 231

1. Successful distribution of almost 700 catalogs for the school wrapping paper sale fundraiser.

2. A good report from the dentist, and I love how clean my teeth feel.

3. A great girls' night out.

Day 228 - 230

1. R getting home from his business trip.

2. MJ's illness only lasting 24 hours, it wasn't fun but at least it was quick.

3. A great neighborhood parents-only party.

4. A great kids party (I was sad that MJ couldn't join us).

5. A Sunday lunch date with my husband.

6. Entourage on Netflix with my husband.

Day 227

1. The children's book Olivia, so very cute to read with MJ at bedtime.

2. Creativity in my children.

3. Shopping at the bookstore for great gifts for R to give the kids when he returns from his business trip.

Day 226

1. A visit from old friends - the visit made me happy, I'm sad that they don't still live across the street

2. MJ walking happily (for the 1st time) into her pre-k classroom. Only took 8 days to settle in.

3. A little reading time at the bookstore.

Day 225

1. Looking in the windows at Tiffanys while at the mall

2. A treat of ice cream with my kiddos

3. A good afternoon for all.

Day 224

1. Clean sheet for everyone.

2. Playing with toys in the Toddler Room at the preschool and calling it my new job - I spent 30 minutes testing things out to see if they still work.

3. Pokemon - M has a renewed interest in these cards that he has had for a few years. I don't understand them at all, but at least they aren't a video game.

Day 220 - 223

1. Catching up with friends after the summer (yes, it was at a committee meeting, but still so fun)

2. Getting to the end of a very long first week back at school for my crew.

3. A walk & latte with a friend I haven't seen in a long time.

4. A weekend visit from my mom, catching up with her while she caught up with some old friends.

5. Unplanned Friday night festivities.

6. Lots of walks in high humidity.

7. Toy Story 3 at the Fabulous Fox Theater with my family.

8. A very fun 6 year old birthday party at a friend's house.

Day 219

1. Lots of walking in lots of heat.

2. My 3rd grader.

3. The show Entourage on Netflix with my husband.

Day 218

1. Successful day 2 (although everyone was a little tired).

2. A GREAT seminar about teaching boys, I love my new job.

3. Easing back into a routine.

Day 217

A successful first day of school for all, that's all the happiness I need for today.

Day 216

The last day of summer, tomorrow morning we will get up and start the routine of the new school year...

1. Feeling ready and organized, at least for day 1.

2. Realizing that maybe keeping everyone out a little late last night wasn't such a bad idea.

3. M sitting relatively patiently through a LONG church service at the end of which he got his 3rd grade Bible.

Day 215

1. Ramona & Beezus movie with the girls, GREAT movie based on one of my favorite childhood books.

2. Family night at my dad's house before my baby sister leaves to go back to college, it's been so great having her close.

3. An amazing neighborhood party in my dad's neighborhood. So much for for kids and adults!

Day 214

1. An end of summer lunch out with my favorite kids.

2. Finding a great deal on ski clothes for MJ at the consignment store, now we need to plan a trip.

3. Watching the kids have fun together before they go back to school.

Day 213

1. The wait is over, we found out teachers classmates, etc at the chaos of registration.

2. Going out for ice cream as a family after karate.

3. The ease of childhood friendships.

Day 212

1. One last evening of pizza at the pool before we get ready for school to start (open house & meet the teachers tomorrow, 1st day is Monday!)

2. Watching MJ exercise with her daddy.

3. Another solo morning walk (in 99% humidity)

Day 211

1. A great workout pushing a double stroller in the heat jogging to keep up with M on his bike.

2. Lunch at Panerra

3. Another evening enjoying the rain on the porch with R

Day 210

1. A trip to Whole Foods

2. Friends coming over for lunch.

3. Not feeling guilty about watching bad TV, it was the Bachelorette finale.

Day 209

1. Watching the kids play in an inflatable pool in the front yard.

2. Getting more of the basement cleaned out, I wouldn't have done it on my own, but R is determined to get rid of the "stuff"

3. Another downpour, there might be hope for my lawn, yet.

Day 208

1. Making a cake out of 3 dozen hot and sticky Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

2. A fun and successful (I think) birthday party at M's karate school.

3. M and 3 friends starting to quiet down for the evening with a Star Wars movie in the basement.

Day 207

1. Date Night - the movie Caddyshack at the Fabulous Fox Theater

2. Hours at the pool on a very, very hot day

3. Date Night (it's worth 2 happys)!

Day 206

1. A long morning walk by myself, I feel and look like I'm not getting enough exercise these days.

2. R's company "summer picnic" full afternoon of lunch and exploring at the GA Aquarium with the family - lots of fun for the kids on a hot, summer day.

3. Lining up a sitter for tomorrow night.

Day 205

1. A day in the burbs, fun, but it also made me appreciate living where I do.

2. Dinner with neighbors.

3. Back to school shopping.

Day 204

1. Back to the pool for half the day.

2. Party favors for M's party, done - Pokemon cards and Silly Bands for all.

3. Good friends (neighbors) back in town from a long summer vacation.

Day 203

Another great day...

1. Sitting on the porch listening to the (much needed) rain pouring down enjoying a glass (maybe a bottle) of red wine with my very sweet husband!

2. Did I mention the porch and the rain? After the heat we've had around here, it was great to be outside for a while without breaking a sweat.

3. Really, I can't get past the porch, rain, great house, great family, great time with my husband at the end of the day.

Day 201 & 202

It was a great weekend...

1. A small family hike to beautiful Anna Ruby Falls

2. A brief getaway to the mountains for 24 hours - lots of deer sightings, the kids were so excited to see a baby deer.

3. A lovely time at the Skylake pool, not too cold thanks to the heat wave

4. A great visit with friends and an easy, tasty dinner thanks to Whole Foods

5. My kids very sweetly entertaining a 1 year old visitor.

Day 200

1. A very hot afternoon at the pool.

2. A new job for the fall - 2 mornings a week helping out in the toddler room at the preschool.

3. A quiet Friday night at home with a great family (mine!)

Day 199

1. Evites - it would take so much more effort to actually mail out invitations to M's bday party.

2. Window shopping at cute Decatur stores.

3. Air conditioning - it's too hot to be outside these days.

Day 198

1. Beautiful new Starbucks and bookstore so close to my house.

2. MJ playing and entertaining herself to the High School Musical soundtrack.

3. Getting organized at the church - I would have done anything they needed tonight since they had childcare and dinner for all of us.

Day 194 - 197

Another cluster of days...

1. A great weekend with lots of kid free, girl only time.

2. Kids in camp that they enjoy for a week.

3. A lunch date.

4. An after-dinner swim.

5. A husband who cleans the house while I'm away with the girls, and who also falls asleep putting the kids to bed.

Day 193

1. M's excitement about making a rubber band ball with me - sometimes it's so easy to make a little boy happy if you just take a little time.

2. A video-game free day, it was a punishment for M, but it was refreshing to see him find other things to do at home.

3. A free yoga class for the girls.

Day 192

1. A trip to the mall with my girls - we got great new barbie sheets from PBK on clearance.

2. My parent is my partner day at karate - M & I had a great time working out together.

3. My husband getting home (any minute now) from a week long business trip, and the kids and I survived the week!

Day 191

I'm starting to wonder if my house will ever really be clean again, and the healthiest thing my children ate today was a few apple slices with a McDonald's Happy Meal. All in all it was still a good day...

1. Much needed exercise - I jogged and pushed the girls while M rode his bike to the new Starbucks and then to the Dinosaur Museum.

2. Lots of fun for all at the Gecko exhibit.

3. An after-dinner swim.

Day 190

A much better day than yesterday...

1. 3 clean bills of health from the doctor for my 4, 6, and 8 year old

2. A post doctor visit to Dairy Queen

3. M's green belt!!!! I'm so proud of all of his hard work in karate.

4. Bad TV, a good way to end the day

Day 189

1. Spending 30 minutes writing http://amysdailylatte.blogspot.com/

2. Going to bed knowing that I can start over tomorrow (maybe with a little more patience).

3. Excitement about playdates.

Days 180 - 188

I'm still here, and the last week was very happy - a week at the beach in Hilton Head, SC with 18 other family members! I spent very little time on the computer, but here are some highlights from the week...

1. The beach!

2. Beautiful weather, a little hot at the end of the week but no rain.

3. Lots of long family bike rides.

4. Playing in the ocean with the kids.

5. A tiny private pool to play in.

6. Finally getting to stay in "the big house" on the family trip, made it much easier to visit with everyone while the kids played.

7. Mason trying to take everything he owns since he got to pack for himself.

8. Late night card games.

9. The beach!

10. Family gatherings for another year.

11. Celebrating 8 years of motherhood (otherwise known as M's birthday).

Day 179

1. A great lunch at Farm Burger in Decatur with my family.

2. A little bit of exercise pushing the stroller to lunch.

3. Looking at 3000 wedding pictures.

Day 178

1. An evening at the Botanical Gardens.

2. Watching lots of kids chasing fireflies.

3. Playdates.

Day 177

1. MJ putting on a show for me to the High School Musical soundtrack.

2. A long visit to the jumpy place with friends.

3. A lovely evening for cocktails with neighbors.

Day 176

I'm trying to look on the bright side, even though today brought an expensive refrigerator repair...

1. A husband who came home from work and did some cleaning.

2. The kids playing really well with an old race track of M's that they found in the basement.

3. A relatively quiet day since half of it was spent at home waiting for the repairman.

Days 172-175

I would really like to get back to these posts daily instead of lumping days at a time together, but here goes...

1. A day to myself - pedicure, shopping, lunch with my husband.

2. A beautiful wedding and a great time with old friends.

3. A swim, cookout, and lovely family evening with friends.

4. Window shopping with my husband.

5. A morning bike ride (that included a stop at Starbucks) with M.

6. Going out for a good family dinner.

Day 171

1. MJ's laughs while we played in the pool.

2. M & C having fun while making lots of progress in their swim lessons.

3. Grandma and Grandpa's arrival for a weekend visit.

Day 170

1. A morning at the pool when I was able to relax for a while since MJ was at a friend's house.

2. Playdates for everyone = happy children.

3. The best husband ever.

Days 165 - 169

The crazy, lazy days of summer keep leaving me too worn out to record my happiness each day. Here is a summary of the last several days...

1. A weekend visit from Nana.

2. A great babysitter on Friday night so we could enjoy some grown-up time with Nana at one of my new favorite restaurants.

3. A fun Pampered Chef party.

4. M's love for bike riding (I would love it more if we weren't in the middle of a big heat wave)

5. Great Dads - my kids and I both have them!

6. A lovely evening celebrating an old friend and her new wedding coming up this weekend.

7. Sex in the City 2 with a group of girlfriends.

8. My kids playing fairly well together since there isn't much scheduled right now.

Day 164

1. A cleaner house and clearer mind than I had at the beginning of the day.

2. Movie night for all, but me - I get to spend some time alone in my room.

3. MJ's puppet show.

Day 163

1. Kids having fun getting much-needed haircuts.

2. 1 on 1 time in the pool with MJ.

3. New possibilities.

Day 162

1. The rain to cool everything off, especially makes me happy since our air conditioner picked the hottest day so far this summer to quit working.

2. A very good meeting about wrapping paper sales for the upcoming school year. It was a good meeting because I picked the place (bookstore with a Starbucks and kids area since my kids were all along) and the rep for the company bought my latte.

3. A good excuse (for a change) to go out to dinner - no working AC.

4. M doing a great job practicing his karate.

Day 161

1. A successful dinner, make your own tacos, which was liked by everyone including M's friend.

2. Surviving the first of many days with no plans, the pool in 95 degree weather was a good filler for the day.

3. Catching up with an old friend who is now a new neighbor!

Day 158 - 160

The summer is exhausting so far, lots of happy thoughts though...

1. Friday night at the pool with family and friends.

2. Great pizza after Bible School for all of the volunteers.

3. A quick visit with my brother.

4. An hour by myself that included a quick trip to my favorite store - Finder's Keepers, a consignment boutique. Time alone is a rarity with the summer schedule.

5. Spending Saturday afternoon with my BFF. M played Wii while the girls ran around - the Mamas enjoyed mimosas.

6. Enjoying my dad's birthday party in my beautiful new skirt.

7. Lots and lots of little kids singing the song they learned in VBS last week at church, so very cute!

8. A quiet family afternoon at my aunt's beautiful pool.

Day 156 & 157

1. A trip to the book store & Whole Foods with my favorite little man.

2. Almost surviving the whole week of Vacation bible school.

3. A great babysitter.

4. A coyboy hat from Target - I know, it sounds like an oxymoron, but it's really cute.

5. Tired kids who are finally sleeping.

6. Plans with my brother for tomorrow.

Day 154 & 155

The busy days of summer...

1. Seeing how much C loves the water

2. The chaos of Vacation Bible School

3. Lunch at Panerra once again

4. Glee

5. Ordering pizza for dinner at the pool, great way to spend the evening!

6. Great neighbors

Day 151 - 153

The end of an amazing weekend spent in the mountains with my family and lots of friends at the annual reunion at my old camp...

1. Getting back to my favorite spot for a few days.

2. Seeing how excited my girls are about camp, hoping that will last until they are a little older and can be campers themselves.

3. Realizing (as my husband observed) that, yes, there is a song for EVERYTHING at camp and I know the words to all of them.

4. Shopping at the CJL mall for some camp "spirit wear" - the trading post has come a long way in the last 20 years.

5. Reconnecting with old friends.

6. A fabulous husband who indulged my trip down memory lane.

7. A husband who also insists that we get everything unpacked as soon as we get home. I didn't really want to do it, but I'm so glad that it's all done now.

Day 149 & 150

1. Crazy pool days, but a great way to spend the summer.

2. Grounded Kids yoga classes, my girls are so cute rolling out their mats.

3. A great Starbucks break with my kids.

4. Mountain of laundry - done!

Day 148

1. Glee - a great show

2. A great karate class for M, even after 3 hours at the pool.

3. 3 hours at the pool, another day of the summer routine.

Day 147

1. Full trash bags in the basement - means we've cleaned out some of the kids' things

2. Enough sun for an afternoon outing to the pool for Memorial Day

3. Playing a Yoga card game with C.

Day 146

1. Whole Foods

2. Watching the kids have a water fight in the driveway.

3. A great husband.

Day 145

1. A quiet morning.

2. A husband who enjoys yard work.

3. A lovely afternoon & evening for all of us at a friend's potluck party.

4. C to me at bedtime "Thank you for being my mommy" That's enough to keep me happy for a long time!

Day 142 - 144

The end of the first few non-Disney summer vacation days...

1. Getting into a routine of getting everything together for each trip to the pool.

2. A little cutie proposing to MJ in the baby pool yesterday.

3. The first fireflies of summer.

4. Lots of goodies from Trader Joe's.

5. A banana in the blender with chocolate soy milk for breakfast.

Days 138 - 141

The Disney Days...

I was offline while we took our first Disney vacation, it was exhausting, exciting, fun, and, of course, Magical. Here are happys from the trip...

1. Feeling like a kid again.

2. M telling me it was a great place as he & I left everyone else sleeping to sit outside the hotel and watch the fireworks over Cinderella's castle.

3. C & M wearing their new Mickey ears every second of our visit.

4. Spending some time at my Aunt's beautiful home.

5. The complementary snacks in our hotel lounge.

6. A relatively easy 8 hour car ride (each way).

Day 137

1. Summer Vacation!!

2. A lovely outing with the girls to the American Girl store for high tea and hair styles for the dolls - good thing the store is at a mall that is not very near our house, it makes the trip a very special treat!

3. Summer Vacation!!

Day 136

1. The local meat market.

2. Getting ready for the last day of school.

3. A great husband who came home from work and mowed the lawn.

Day 135

1. Bittersweet last day of preschool for Mary Jane, I'm happy that mornings will be easier for a while.

2. An evening of socials - picnic on the playground at church followed by an ice cream social at C's teacher's house.

3. Clean sheets on all of the kids' beds.

Day 134

1. 2nd grade awards day, very sweet

2. MJ's turn to get her nails done followed by lunch with Mommy.

3. Settling in for an evening on the couch with shows on the DVR and my sweet husband.

Day 133

1. 20 minutes alone with the Mini Boden catalog and an iced mocha while I was getting the oil changed on my car

2. Mani/pedi with the BEST almost-done-with-kidergartener in the world (my daughter C) - she loved getting to pick her own color (red) and getting to sit in the fancy spa chair. They even painted flowers on all of her nails.

3. Turning off the AC and opening the windows for a change.

Day 131 & 132

1. A busy Saturday that involved 2 family trips into downtown Decatur (about 1 mile away) without getting in the car once all day.

2. M walking the whole way home with me last night after a concert on the square. I offered him a piggy back ride, his response "you've walked more than me today, I'm fine."

3. The Varsity for a pre-birthday party lunch with the family. An Atlanta landmark that has way more than hot dogs, I had a bacon cheeseburger with pimento cheese on it today. YUM!

4. The kids' excitement about a pool, every time.

5. Making plans for Disneyworld!

Day 130

This week has been very bittersweet for me as MJ has decided she would rather spend time with me than enjoy her last few days in preschool. This makes for long days for both of us - I wasn't quite ready for the start of summer or the end of preschool.

1. A day that got much better after 4:00.

2. Watching M & C have a great time while getting exercise and raising money for the school.

3. A quiet Friday night for a change.

Day 129

1. An excited six year old bounding into my room at 6:30 this morning for her birthday wishes.

2. A delicious family/birthday cookout.

3. A little downtime with shows on DVR.

Day 128

1. Yardwork - sometimes it feels great to sweat it out a little while raking and moving piles of woodchips.

2. M telling me "Doing good behavior is not so hard once you get use to it. I wonder how C knew hot to do it all this time."

3. Walking and walking once again, part of it while M rode his bike.

4. Wednesday lunch.

5. The kids' excitement, especially MJ, when we told them about an upcoming trip to Disneyworld. MJ's words "That's where the princesses live!"

Days 125 - 127

MJ and I are having a hard time getting into the swing of things these days. The end of the school year and birthday season are making life a little crazy. Here are some happy moments from the last few days...

1. Birthday doughnuts

2. Watching my kids sleep

3. The local meat market

4. Starbucks soy lattes

5. Voting in a special state election

6. Celebrating Mother's Day with the best kids ever

Day 124

1. Another day, another successful birthday party - this one for my almost 4 year old.

2. Dinner and a movie out with my husband, a pre-Mother's Day treat.

3. An active son who wants to be out riding his bike all the time.

Day 123

1. A successful 6th birthday party - 10 girls running around in pajamas. I filled them with pancakes for supper and sent them home at bedtime.

2. The best in-laws ever - the party would not have been a success without all of their help.

3. Another cute book float parade at the elementary school.

Day 122

1. Dinner with friends to end a crazy day.

2. Getting the final plans done for 2 birthday parties this weekend.

3. Looking forward to a good nights sleep.

Day 121

1. Enjoying what has become a weekly mother/daughter lunch with a couple of other mothers and daughters at Panera this afternoon.

2. Helping out at the elementary school.

3. Wednesday night supper.

Day 120

1. Good times with good friends over coffee before a busy day.

2. Feeding the family dinner (sort of) when it seemed like we didn't really have any food in the fridge.

3. Bedtime.

Day 119

It was a very, very rainy day here today - not a great way to start a busy week...

1. A visit with an old friend and her adorable little girl, makes it a little easier to part with another baby item that has been with us for 7 years - the carseat (we still have 3, we're just done with yet another one).

2. Reading to my kids tonight and every night.

3. Going to watch MJ's gymnastics class.

Day 118

1. The children's choir at church (this week it was M's turn).

2. A quiet day (for the most part)

3. Relaxing for a movie with my husband to end the weekend.

Day 117

1. A Saturday without too much housework since I cleaned so much on Friday.

2. Catching up with a friend at a birthday party.

3. A Saturday night babysitter.

Day 116

1. A very clean house thanks to a morning spent doing housework.

2. A great night for a cookout with friends and without too much work thanks to Trader Joes.

3. A good day of exercise just from pushing a stroller to and from school.

Day 115

1. Putting together favors for my grandfather's 89th birthday party.

2. Playing a made-up game with my kids outside on a beautiful afternoon.

3. Walking, walking, walking

Day 114

1. Letting MJ stay home from school and taking her with me to Starbucks and Trader Joes instead.

2. A great selection of kid's books for us to read while we were at the Starbucks next to Trader Joes.

3. Wednesday night supper & choir practice followed by an end of year celebration on the playground.

Day 113

1. Shopping at a small weekly farmer's market - amazing strawberries, cheese, and salsa and all both local and organic.

2. Realizing that there are only a few weeks left in the school year so the drama of school politics shouldn't matter too much at this point.

3. My nightly reading time with M, no more Harry Potter, but I can put the day behind me and enjoy each evening.

Day 112

1. A day without a car - I didn't need it at all today.

2. Bedtime, I'm hoping MJ will finally get caught up on her sleep.

3. A low-key week coming up, I think...

Day 109 - 111

1. Spending time with my grandparents.

2. A family trip to the bookstore on a rainy Saturday afternoon.

3. The children's choir in church.

4. C's excitement about her upcoming birthday party - we check the Evite every 20 minutes for replys.

5. A walk on a beautiful evening.

Day 108

It's one of those days when I feel like I'm working hard to think of 3 things that made me happy, but here goes...

1. A Costco run which made me very happy that I live in town so that I very rarely have to get on the interstate in this town.

2. My kids asking to go play outside just a little longer.

3. The sandbox in our backyard.

4. A great (and clean) screen porch.

Day 107

1. Hearing a GREAT talk on sustainability.

2. Spring - I was worried that we were going to skip right to summer weather, but it was a beautiful day.

3. Feeling like I did my part to get informed about my school and community today.

Day 106

1. Rain to wash the pollen away.

2. A little blog time while C went to yoga and Grandma and Grandpa took M to karate, MJ along for the ride.

3. Getting back into the swing of things for a few more weeks.

Days 100 - 105

I'm still around, I think most of my readers were with me over the last several days, but in case you weren't, I've been in Houston for my brother's wedding. It was fabulous and I'll have lots to say about it in my other blog in the next day or so. Here are some happy thoughts from the last week - please note that most of them do not have to do with the 14 drive each way.

1. Flower girls.

2. Seeing lots of family members.

3. My kids' excitement about a hotel pool.

4. Remembering all the things we needed to have with us for the trip.

5. The best in-laws.

6. A husband who is willing to make a mid-reception McDonalds run for the hungry and tired younger members of the wedding party.

7. Watching 20-something boys play with Happy Meal prizes at a wedding reception.

8. A best-man's speech that really highlighted all of the great things about my baby brother (the groom)

9. A beautiful wedding.

10. Happily ever after...

Day 99

1. Dinner with my favorite 5 year old and my favorite 41 year old. My other favorites stayed home with Grandma & Grandpa.

2. Walking, walking, walking

3. Grounded kids yoga for C - she loves it.

Day 98

These are for Monday...

1. Back to school after spring break.

2. Going out for a beer with my husband and a friend.

3. New t-shirts.

Days 94 - 97

Although we didn't go away for spring break, I guess that I got to busy to list my happy thoughts for the last few days...

1. The kids excitement about a camp-out in the basement. 3 nights in the tent and sleeping bags while I slept in my own bed.

2. A one day mini-vacation to the Tennessee Aquarium.

3. Grandma and Grandpa's arrival which is big excitement for everyone.

4. Walking everywhere with the kids (M actually rode his scooter).

5. A day of not eating out - Whole Foods helped.

6. Catching up with friends while our kids played on a playground.

7. A clean dog.

8. Relaxing in front of a new episode of Brothers & Sisters.

Day 92 & 93

I hate to footnote my happiness, but I have to say that the last 2 days have been clouded (literally) by a fog of pollen covering Atlanta. A pollen count over 150 is extremely high, today the count was close to 6000. Did I mention that the kids are on spring break?

1. The mall - it's pollen free and has a food court and Starbucks.

2. Getting to know my neighbors.

3. The Library - that's what my great neighbors call the area under their cherry tree.

4. A small picnic on the pollen-covered playground.

Day 91

1. A beautiful day at Augusta National.

2. 2 great babysitters (1 of them is my dad) who made it possible for us to leave our kids for 13 hours so we could go and enjoy practice rounds at the Masters.

3. Great friends who invited us to spend this lovely day with them in Augusta.

Day 90

1. A happy Easter for our family, that's enough happiness for the day.

Day 89

1. A long overdue haircut (which also meant a childless hour at the salon).

2. 3 very cute (if I do say so myself) full Easter baskets waiting to be discovered.

3. Lots of time outside on yet another beautiful day.

Day 88

1. Getting into the neighborhood pool after 4 years on the waiting list.

2. Exercise & play on a warm day.

3. Visiting with the neighbors outside under the cherry tree.

Day 86 & 87

1. Kindergarten field trips.

2. The small world of alums from my high school.

3. Lots and lots of playdates.

4. My kids playing in the yard well into the evening.

5. Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

6. A healthy family.

Day 85

1. Exercise

2. Spring

3. Learning more about my neighborhood.

Day 84

1. The preschool consignment sale committee.

2. A beautiful full moon, but it might be partly responsible for MJ's behavior.

3. Undoing some of last week's impulse buys (which meant another shopping trip).

Day 82 & 83

1. Easter baskets - for years the Easter Bunny has been very practical in our house with containers, but this year we went all out to have the right baskets with cute liners for the first of several egg hunts.

2. A perfectly time egg hunt at the church/preschool - with Daddy out of town for a week, we all needed a good Saturday afternoon distraction.

3. Spring trying to make an appearance.

4. The chaos of little kids waving palm branches down the aisle of church.

5. My husband returning safely after what seemed like forever away (a week is a very long time).

6. Feeling like life is returning to normal - whatever that means.

Day 81

1. It's Friday!

2. Finding a great dress and shoes to wear to my brother's wedding, and they were on sale at my favorite consignment boutique.

3. A lovely party at my neighbor's house.

4. It's Friday!

Day 80

1. No fevers in the house today.

2. M doing a great job on all of his homework.

3. Packing away my winter clothes.

4. Blog comments - thanks mom!

Day 79

1. A candy bar - it made me happy for a minute, but then it felt more like the retail therapy impulse buys from yesterday.

2. A lovely dinner out and outside with my kids.

3. Lots of time spent walking, very little time spent in the car.

Day 78

1. The mall, it makes me happy to be there all by myself.

2. Retail therapy (although I should have stayed away from the impulse buys - I guess I'll need another mall trip to make returns).

3. Another beautiful day.

Day 74 - 77

Somehow weekends, sick kids, and lack of sleep are making it hard for me to keep this up on a daily basis. That doesn't mean I'm not having at least a few happy moments each day...

1. Spring arrived and we spent most of the day Saturday outside playing with friends.

2. Starting a 500 piece puzzle with M.

3. Catching up with our neighbors for cocktail hour on the lawn.

4. An easy bedtime tonight.

5. Turbo Tax (our state refund already came through)

6. Paddington Bear - a great little book.

Day 73

Once again, having a sick child in the house makes it hard to have a really happy day, but there were moments...

1. Finding $12 in my pocket (coffee money).

2. Our preschool.

3. Harry Potter - tonight I finished reading the 7th (and last) book in the series to Mason a little less than a year after we embarked on the journey in book one. Amazing books, and I'm so glad that we got to share the experience. (That's actually a bittersweet happy thought).

Day 72

1. Strolling around the gardening store, pretending like I have any gardening knowledge.

2. The discovery that C loves going to Wednesday night choir practice.

3. Weekly lunch at Panerra.

Day 71

1. Another home party - wine, friends, and shopping all in the comfort of someone else's home. It's not a great thing for my marriage, but still fun.

2. The bookstore once again, always a fun outing, MJ along today.

3. Taking a few minutes to think about all of the good parts of my day - today and every day.

Day 70

1. All 3 kids playing well together for an hour before dinner.

2. A great dinner conversation with C - she was telling me all about the politics of getting a turn on the see-saw at wiggle time.

3. A cup of hot tea to end the day and the hope that MJ is feeling better (she seems fine) and will actually sleep tonight.

Day 69

I have to say that "spring forward" is not a happy day for me, I always feel like I've lost at least an hour. That said, it was still a good day.

1. A clean house!!! (and the best husband)

2. Feeling ready for another week.

3. The Buckeyes are a #2 seed for March Madness (that's Rob's happy for the day).

Day 68

1. A very relaxed Saturday with no plans, the kids still seemed to enjoy themselves.

2. Our taxes are done!

3. The elementary school auction - a fun night out.

Day 67

1. Getting paid for spending the morning at the preschool for a change (substitute teaching - it was so much fun.)

2. The excitement of having a best friend over to spend the night when you're 7.

3. A very relaxed Friday evening.

Day 66

1. Letting go of old feuds over coffee.

2. Giving myself permission to let Mason skip karate because we all felt a little over-committed this afternoon.

3. A ballet class of 3 and 4 year little girls - so very, very cute.

Day 65

1. Avoiding carpool line by parking and walking in the rain, MJ likes her rainboots and raincoat - we might as well use them.

2. Really being done with the preschool consignment sale, and celebrating after the last shift with my husband and the committee - thanks dad for watching the kids.

3. A surprise visit with my brother who is on his way over in a few minutes.

Day 64

1. Finally getting caught up on the laundry (for now at least).

2. Yet another beautiful, beautiful spring day.

3. A stop at the park on our walk home from preschool.

Day 63

1. A small square of really good dark chocolate.

2. A walk through the woods on the way home from school on the most beautiful day we've seen in ages.

3. Feeling like I'm going to sleep really well thanks to all of the physical activity I've had today.

Day 60, 61, & 62

It's hard to believe that a preschool consignment sale could leave me so tired that I didn't even have the energy to come up with happy thoughts for a few days. Here they are, things which have been making me happy this weekend...

1. Spring clothes for the girls.

2. A very successful sale.

3. Working with an amazing group of moms and dads at the preschool for a week.

4. An amazing surprise dinner out at a very nice restaurant with my husband.

5. A beautiful day for a long walk with my 3 favorite kids - stops at Starbucks, CVS, and a birthday party.

6. Packing away lots of winter clothes, it's still cool out, but we can put layers with spring attire.

Day 59

1. A successful start to the spring consignment sale.

2. Hearing a great story about MJ using her imagination at school.

3. M's excitement over losing another front tooth (but it makes me a little sad, too - he's going to look much older with new teeth.)

4. Somehow navigating a very, very busy day.

Day 58

1. An all too rare dinner date with my husband.

2. Seeing the rock-star welcome home the kids gave Granddaddy when he came by after being out of town for 2 weeks.

3. My husband visiting with MJ's friend at 8:00 this morning when the little guy came over for a ride to school with us.

Day 57

1. Big snowflakes that looked beautiful coming down but didn't stick around long enough to cause too many problems.

2. Running into friends at Starbucks.

3. Sneaking in a chapter of Harry Potter with M before dinner. Only 7 chapters left in the last book in the series, I'll be sad when we're done.

Day 56

1. A fairly successful Monday, no unnecessary tears or arguments.

2. A trunkload of kids' things purged from my basement to be sold or donated at the consignment sale.

3. One on one time with each of my kids, even if it was only for 10 minutes.

Day 55

1. My girls looking adorable for church in matching ponchos and dresses and wildly patterned, unmatching tights.

2. A clean, clean car (thanks Gene)!

3. Feeling ready for the preschool consignment sale this week.

Day 54

It has been a good 1st half of the weekend...

1. A lazy morning, I was in bed until almost 9.

2. A great, free morning activity - the kids' clinic at Lowe's. The kids all really enjoyed the project.

3. 3 hours at a jumpy place to wear everyone out on a cold day.

4. Pizza with friends - the adults got to have a nice visit while the kids ran around and around the house.

Day 53

1. 4 hours child-free.

2. Family dinner out for Friday night.

3. Bedtime.

Day 52

1. Being (successfully) done with kids' activities - ballet & karate - for the week.

2. MJ looking at 2 restroom doors and deciding that "we are womens, so we should go in this one"

3. C being so excited that she and her best friend have their own secret handshake.

Day 51

1. Home parties - invite me, and I will order. I have a $40 candle to prove it.

2. MJ & C putting on sunglasses and saying "please hold the 'plause"

3. Coffee with the counselor - a great time for moms to visit at the preschool.

Day 50

1. Catching up with old friends, and I don't mean via email or Facebook - we actually set time aside and met for coffee.

2. Getting everyone everywhere on time for once.

3. Gearing up for the preschool consignment sale next week.

Days 47 - 49

I was away from the internet for a few days (which made me happy). Since no one has inquired about the missing posts, I guess no one missed them. Here are some things that made me happy over the last 3 days...

1. Catching up with friends at a birthday party - 40th birthday, kids were invited, too.

2. A really beautiful day.

3. Breakfast in the mountains, pancakes and bacon.

4. A sweet husband who is willing to do things like watch the remake of the movie Fame with me.

5. My kids' excitement at getting to share the loft in the 400 square foot "cabin" we rented.

6. Lots of snow still on the ground only 3 hours from home.

7. Watching my kids ski for the first time - it was amazing to see them navigate their way around during ski school.

8. A husband who insists on getting everything unpacked and put away as soon as we get home from our mini-vacation.

9. A great mini-vacation with my family.

Say 46

Simple things made me happy today...

1. A lunch date.

2. A beautiful day that hinted of spring.

3. Kids playing and having fun in the backyard.

Day 45

1. The bookstore once again, all by myself.

2. Dinner out with old friends (yes, we're getting old).

3. The beautiful crescent moon tonight.

4. MJ's laughs as I kissed her cheek this afternoon.

Day 44

1. Live music in a great little venue while a sitter put the kids to bed.

2. Wednesday reader in C's kindergarten class, I feel like a rock star when I'm there.

3. A clean kitchen thanks to my great sitter!

Day 43

1. Watching Karate Kid with my favorite karate kid who was home sick - he's better now.

2. Making plans for a family get away.

3. Feeling optimistic about getting up early to start a new workout schedule (we'll see how long it lasts).

Day 42

A 4 day weekend is coming to an end, but it will be extended for some since M is now sick. Still, here are some things that made me happy today...

1. Pre-made dinner from Whole Foods that included some really good green beans.

2. The Olympics.

3. My laptop and wireless internet connection.

Day 41

1. My kids - some days (lots of days) there are too many things about them that make me happy to list.

2. Valentine's breakfast out with my family.

3. A little more snow in the forecast for tomorrow which is a holiday so we can stay home and enjoy it.

4. My husband, the best Valentine ever.

Day 40

1. 40 days of sticking to this blog, maybe I'm a happier person than I would be without it.

2. Enough snow for the kids to have a fun morning out sledding.

3. Fun for all with another family who had us over for dinner tonight.

Day 39

1. 3 inches of snow, plenty to go out and make snowmen with Daddy.

2. Playdates - always helpful on a day off from school (the day off was already on the calendar, not because of the snow).

3. M wanted to have a sleepover in his sisters' room tonight on the trundle bed.

Day 38

1. Making plans.

2. The joy of elementary school parties.

3. A cup of hot tea, once again - I have a bad cold so tea is like a drug for me right now and it makes me very happy.

Day 37

1. The Valentine's cards for the kids to take to school are done and ready for school (well, almost).

2. The bookstore.

3. A Facebook-free day, it's nice to have a break.

Day 36

1. Taking our dog to preschool show-and-tell, she was a big hit.

2. ebay.

3. A cup of hot tea at the end of a long day.

Day 35

1. An hour at Costco without kids or crowds - we now have enough goldfish, toilet paper, and sunscreen to last for a little while.

2. M saying that he prefers homemade valentine's to give all of his friends, and then he spent the afternoon working on them.

3. 3 sleeping children

Day 34

1. Being organized enough to get everyone dressed and out the door so they could make it to Sunday school which they love.

2. Taking the girls to a 4 year old birthday party. I couldn't help wondering where the time is going because the 1st birthday party for the same little girl seems like it was just yesterday, and I watched her take her first steps on Valentine's Day, 2007.

3. Very impressive lights show while The Who performs at the Superbowl Halftime show.

Day 33

I'm making my list early today...

1. A Saturday night babysitter arriving in one hour (that could make all 3 on my list of happy things today).

2. 3 kids with 3 beds that all have clean sheets - I was a little bit productive on my lazy morning.

3. Starbucks delivered to me by my husband before he had to go to the office for a few hours this morning.

Day 32

1. The sound of little girl giggles filling the house on a rainy afternoon.

2. Back to back lunches with C then M at the elementary school. They get so excited to have a guest in the cafeteria.

3. Thoughts of a lazy morning tomorrow.

Day 31

I need to start making my happy list as things happen during the day because by the end of some days (like today), what makes me the most happy is thinking about getting into bed, but here are a few other things...

1. A quiet morning.

2. A great preschool community and getting to spend time showing other moms what a great place it is.

3. Thursday night TV.

Day 30

1. I've stuck with this blog for 30 days which makes me happy today.

2. Starbucks has me pegged with a new assortment of organic, healthy kid snacks. My kids loved them (the price tag didn't make me happy).

3. Spending lots of time outside this afternoon on the token one nice day of the week between storms.

Day 29

1. A much need latte with my sister (before she left for California) after a rather stressful morning rush getting everyone off to school.

2. A good lunch with M at school which reassured me that he wasn't scarred from all of the morning chaos.

3. The idea of spring - regardless of what the groundhog did or didn't see, there was lots of spring talk today even though it was a cold and dreary day.

Day 28

1. Spending a lovely evening with family.

2. 2 trips to Starbucks in one day, both to enjoy a latte with my sister.

3. Seeing my kids through my sister's eyes.

Day 27

The end of a good weekend...

1. A lovely ladies brunch with my sisters and my step-mother.

2. Having so much fun playing Wii Fit with my family (I was the best at hula hoop).

3. Yardwork on a sunny (but chilly) day - it's very therapeutic.

Day 26

1. A relaxing kid-free stroll through the grocery store after 2 weeks of having kids with me all the time. (very exciting Saturday)

2. A healthy family.

3. Scattered, smothered, and covered - yes, we went to Waffle House this morning.

Day 25

1. Reading Purplicious to MJs preschool class.

2. It's Friday.

3. A trip to the bookstore with M.

Day 24

1. My husband is back from a week-long trip.

2. The kids & I survived a week without Daddy relatively in tact (lots of eating out).

3. Eating great pizza (Jagger's) on the couch with my husband while we watch American Idol.

Day 23

1. Getting everyone to school on time for a change.

2. A workout with my Wii fit.

3. Knowing that I am done with housework for the day, and somewhat ready for tomorrow.

Day 22

Any readers out there? Feel free to leave a comment and/or follow along here or on Facebook...

1. Pink plastic dollhouses and the little girls who love them.

2. Transportation City - a great feat of the parents at MJ's preschool that the kids find amazingly fun!

3. The look of pride on M's face when he correctly answered a question in karate class today.

Day 21

1. I told M (age 7) that he needed to sign something for school on the signature line, he said "Does that mean that I write my name really fast?"

2. A kid-free morning and coffee with other kid-free moms. Of course we spent the whole time talking about our kids!

3. The laundry is all done, folded and put away before bedtime.

Day 20

1. The movie The Princess and the Frog, my favorite Disney movie, yet.

2. Nordstrom (it always makes me happy).

3. The Princess and the Frog - it was so good, it deserves to be mentioned again.

Day 19

1. The following conversation between MJ (age 3) and C (age 5)

C: "Do you know how to play paper, scissors, rock?"

MJ: "Sure I do. I call scissors!"

And she was scissors, every time.

2. Seeing my 5 year old go in her room and pick out a book to read to herself, it's amazing how much she is learning in kindergarten.

3. Dinner, followed by a huge piece of cake, out with the girls (my daughters that is).

Day 18

After the week I've had, it was the little (and tasty) things that made me really happy today...

1. Venti soy mocha from Starbucks

2. Whole Foods - sushi for me and pizza for the kids

3. A hot chocolate date with my 3 favorite people after M's basketball practice tonight

Day 17

A tough day that is still not over, but here were some things that made me happy today...

1. MJ (home sick again) wanted to curl up for a nap on a rainy morning - a very rare treat in this house.

2. Looking at beautiful flower girl dresses online, a nice break to my crazy day.

3. NO PNEUMONIA! MJ had to have a chest x-ray to find that out.

Day 16

If I have any readers out there, I recommend giving this experiment a try for a few days. It is refreshing to think of a positive note on which to end each day, but it's really not easy...

1. 3 miles with MJ in the stroller on a day that felt more like March than January (we stopped for coffee, shopping, play, and lunch while out).

2. Seeing how excited M was to have such a fun playdate with a friend this afternoon.

3. A fever-free day.

Day 15

1. Making plans with my big sister for her visit in two weeks.

2. Chick-Fil-A drive through, sometimes it is just necessary for dinner and my sanity.

3. At bedtime, MJ put her hands on my face and said, "I love you, Mommy and you're so pretty."

Day 14

1. MJ woke up fever-free. Side note: the fever came back later, but it was good news for a while.

2. Beautiful day for a long walk.

3. Harry Potter - I am having so much fun reading the books to M, we just started book 6.

Day 13

I'll admit, it's not easy to have a really happy day when you're home with a sick 3 year old, but I found a few happy moments...

1. Finding what I thought was a lost tag sticker for my husbands's jeep - sometimes it really pays to clean out junk drawers.

2. Wearing my great new jeans and feeling great in them, even if I never left the house today.

3. Krispy Kreme doughnuts!!

Day 12

1. Taking M & C to experience their 1st musical, "Annie" at the amazing Fox theater! There is nothing better than live theater, and it was great to see them enjoy it as well.

2. Finding the perfect pair of jeans, they are amazingly comfortable and fit like they were made for me - the best denim find for me in years!

3. The perfect jeans were at a consignment boutique which was having a sale so they were a great price, too.

Day 11

1. Elementary school lunch with my favorite 2nd grader (I didn't actually eat, but it was still fun).

2. 20 minutes with a good book and a green tea latte at Starbucks all by myself.

3. Beautiful weather for walking to the afternoon carpool line at the preschool - who knew that 50 degrees could be so nice?

Day 10

1. Singing along to a Billy Joel song on the radio while getting groceries at Kroger this morning - I apologize to anyone who might have heard me.

2. Catching up with other moms while Mary Jane had ballet this afternoon.

3. My bed.

Day 9

It would be much easier, on some days, to list things that did not make me happy during the day. Blog comments would make me happy, and here are some things that made me happy today...

1. Sunshine and temperatures warm enough for a little outside time.

2. My very clean and organized bathroom closet.

3. A little downtime this catching up with my husband and a backlog of average TV shows on the DVR.

Day 8

1. Snow on lawns in front of houses, a rare and beautiful sight in Atlanta - most of it melted this afternoon, but it was still pretty this morning.

2. Fancy Nancy books with my favorite fancy 5 year old.

3. A good report from the dentist!

Day 7

I've kept it up for a week, here's some things that made me happy today...

1. Snuggling with M on the couch for a chapter of Harry Potter while the girls were at a neighbor's house this afternoon.

2. Everyone like the dinner that I fixed - there was no supplementing with plain pasta or extra toast, just jambalaya (from Zatarain's mix in a box) all around.

3. Organization out of chaos in the room shared by two little girls.

Day 6

1. A lazy morning - in my world that means that it was close to 8 before anyone started calling for things, and M slept till 9!

2. Dinner at Granddaddy's house, fun for all.

3. A beautiful new sofa and chair in my living room, I'll post pictures soon.

Day 5

I'm still finding things to be happy about, every day...

1. A great evening with old friends - six kids between us, and they all play so well together.

2. Getting the kids ready for bed before we started the long drive home, they were all asleep by the time we pulled in our driveway!

3. A big bag of trash as I started to clean out and organize my bathroom - I will not miss any of the 5 year old bottles of lotion, perfume, etc.

Day 4

1. 3 southern kids making snow angels in 1/2 inch of the white stuff.

2. Watching a cardinal peck at the snow outside MJs bedroom window.

3. Overhearing C, while watching Aladdin with a friend, say that "love makes the world go round."

Day 3

1. Tying pink ribbons in MJ's blond, curly pony tails.

2. Seeing the kids' pure joy at the snowflakes falling even if it was only for a little while.

3. My sweet husband agreed on the new sofa that I love. Hopefully we'll get it this weekend!

Day 2

I've spent the day trying to look on the bright side of things, and here are my happiest moments of the day:

1. A hot shower on a cold day in an empty house - no one interrupting me to tell on someone else or to ask for a snack.

2. Knowing before noon what I'm cooking for dinner and having all of the ingredients I need.

3. 60% chance of snow tomorrow - the anticipation is big excitement in Atlanta even if it doesn't actually amount to anything.

Happy Thoughts, Day 1

Here goes the first list, just three things that made me happy sometime today...

1. A good "morning rush" on the first day back from the holidays - everyone ate, dressed, lunches packed without any tears or fights. They even wore all necessary layers to protect against 18 degree weather on the way to school.

2. My Wii Fit trainer, I'll call her Betty, kept telling me what great posture I have during my workout.

3. The sight of a beautiful sunset behind the Atlanta skyline as I drove M home from karate tonight.