A great song, math, warm day

1. Hearing a song I love that I hadn't heard in years.
   
   
2. Getting everyone's math checked before they start to nag me about it.
   
   
3. A day so warm that the kids can spend all afternoon down at the creek, and it's still just February.
   

The smell of Spring, living upstairs, smile

1. It felt like Spring outside today. We had some warm days in January, but today it felt like Spring was really coming. It was still a bit chilly, but sunny, and the birds were singing, and it somehow just smelled like Spring was coming.
   
   
2. With the kids sleeping upstairs again (now that the really cold weather is over), my living room stays pretty clean without much effort.
   
   
3. My oldest finished a drawing she was working on a for a contest, and we took it to the post office to get the right postage on it. I let her drive on the driveway and across the bridge. To get something big accomplished and mailed, and then to get to drive---I don't think she could have had a bigger smile on her face.
   

Taxes finished, creek, package in the mail

1. I have essentially finished working out all the forms we need for our income tax refund. With foreign-earned income and not enough withheld to cover our child tax credit, there are several extra forms to fill out. Fortunately, I had the same forms and then some last year, so the research is done. This year we didn't even make enough to bother with itemized deductions, so that helped. At least I didn't have to worry about being self-employed since I didn't make any money in 2006.
   
   
2. The girls have been spending quite a bit of time at the creek, but they are still getting finished with school. The creek is often dry in the summer, so it's good they can get in some wading time now.
   
   
3. A package from Amazon with my new software. Hooray!
   

Three great songs we sang today in church

1. "My Redeemer Lives," from Hillsongs
   
   
2. "Glory to His Name," words by Elisha A. Hoffman and music by John H. Stockton.
   
   
3. "My Savior's Love" ("How Wonderful, How Marvelous"), words and music by Charles H. Gabriel
   

Relaxing, time off, Daddy

1. I have a few things to do for clients today, but it's been an easy week. I spent all week telling people that I was busy so that I could have time at the end of the week to relax. I realized that I was working entirely too much over the weekends.
   
   
2. My husband doesn't have to work either day this weekend, for the first time in quite a while. Last weekend he had to work both Saturday and Sunday.
   
   
3. I talked to my dad today, and he was having a really good day. I love you, Daddy.
   

"All That Jazz," new software, "Stardust"

1. I spent my afternoon on the couch watching Chicago. What a fun movie, and all that jazz!
   
   
2. I wanted to buy SAS statistical software for my business, but I thought it would cost several thousand dollars. I found what I wanted for sale on Amazon for only $125.
   
   
3. Tonight as I was driving to a meeting, I saw the most amazing sunset with a beautiful purple sky. I put in my new Harry Connick, Jr. CD, and I hear, "And now the purple dusk of twilight comes." Perfect.
   

Three New CDs

1. Martina by Martina McBride (with the song "This One's for the Girls")
   
   
2. 25 by Harry Connick, Jr.
   
   
3. Wow Worship Aqua
   

Wordless Wednesday #13

New laptop, French subtitles, warmth

1. I have a new laptop for my business. I think I bought the last possible XP machine (just kidding), but I did get a really good price. It's a good machine, lots of space and speed, but just no Windows Vista. I spent the afternoon working on slides while watching movies on the sofa with my feet up. Aaaaaah!
   
   
2. I finished my test of the Spanish CDs that I was doing. So now I'm back to French. I watched a movie today with French subtitles, and as much as I could, I read aloud along with the French.
   
   
3. It was warm here today, but I kept the fire going. My goal is to be able to heat the house without the heat pump on at all tonight.
   

Our bread store, funny stories, hawks

1. There is free (almost-expired) bread at our post office. My husband used to talk about going to the "library" for bread, and we had to keep reminding him that it was at the post office, not the library. Now he just calls it the "bread store." So today when he came home from work, he told me that he had mailed our Netflix movies and picked up some tax forms for me at the bread store. It's nice that we have so much available from just one small post office.
   
   
2. My husband now also comes home with more than the usual funny stories from work. There is a new guy who seems to be quite a bit short on common sense, and it leads to funny situations. I just hope the guy doesn't hurt himself seriously working around all the ovens and such.
   
   
3. There are lots of hawks out today, more than I've seen in one day in a long time. It's warmer today, and a bit breezy. I don't know if their prey is out more today because of the warmer temperatures, or maybe they are just having fun on the warm air currents and the breeze.
   

Icy tall grass, helping at children's church, snowball fireworks

1. Driving to church early this morning, there was a coating of ice on the tall grass in the field. We drove past it while the sun was behind it, and it was really sparkly. It was waving a little bit in the breeze, and there were little rainbows and streaks of light everywhere. Really beautiful.
   
   
2. The children's pastor at our church told me today that my youngest daughter did a great job of helping out at children's church this morning. She is helping with the singing, and she was in a skit today, too.
   
   
3. The girls had fun this afternoon throwing snowballs at the ice on the pond. They like the way the break and scatter like fireworks, so they tell me.
   

Big snow for us, bean soup, free time

1. Today we've had our biggest snowfall of the year. I'm not crazy about snow (as I've mentioned before), but I like the way it makes everything look so clean and white. In the city, snow gets all brown and yucky. Tomorrow it will be sunny here and above freezing, so the snow never lasts that long. I know that in East Tennessee when I was growing up, if the snow stayed on the ground for three days straight they would say that is was "laying for another one" and that almost never happened. I don't think this snow will be here long enough for another snow to come. And in the meanwhile, I don't have anywhere to go, so I can sit inside and look at all the pretty white.
   
   
2. We had navy bean soup today for lunch. I've had a run of bad luck when it comes to cooking beans the past few months, but I think my streak is broken. It turned out really good, and everyone was happy for warm soup and cornbread for lunch.
   
   
3. I had a lot to do today for some clients, but it all went smoothly and I had some free time today.

Singing, cooking help, new television

1. There is a family of birds nesting in the bushes below my office window, and on nice sunny days like today, they like to sing.
2. My older girls finished school early today, and they were able to help around the house some. My middlest daughter even cooked Stuffed Jumbo Shells for dinner.
   
3. We bought a new television to celebrate Valentine's Day. We watch so many movies, we really felt it was good to have a reliable television. Our old set was 18 years old, and our spare set is even older. This evening we will break it in officially by one of the World War I movies I rented because the kids are studying that in history. In the meantime, my husband has discovered that the local stations come in much more clearly with the new set.
   
   

Movie music, big feet, busy days

1. My brother and sister gave me an MP3 player for Christmas, and it came with free downloads. I spent a long time last night going through all the songs I had saved, and I finally downloaded them. Some of the really fun stuff on the list is movie music from some of my favorite composers, like James Horner. I already own the Braveheart soundtrack, but it was nice to pick and choose, so I could skip Titanic and Braveheart, for example. This morning my oldest and I are listening to over three hours worth of new movie soundtrack music we downloaded last night. It's fun to listen to.
   
   
2. I also downloaded lots of Fats Waller because I've had trouble finding him on CD. I even found a copy of Nell Carter singing "Mean to Me." And if "Your Feet's Too Big" doesn't make you smile, then something is wrong.
   
   
3. Today is a busy day, filled with clients and helping the girls. Some days it's nice to have some time for unpacking, cleaning, and scrapbooking. But on some days it's nice to keep busy and know that your business and your family are doing well and that they need you.
   

Blurry white hills, dancing snowflakes, sun on icicles

1. My husband wants to plant trees on the west side of the house, and I know that's a good idea so the house will be protected from the weather. But I enjoy watching the weather come this way (and I enjoy watching the sunsets). This morning I could see a patch of white that was blocking the far hills, and I could watch it get bigger and bigger, and the hills around get kind of blurry as the snow got closer.
   
   
2. It was a light, dry snow, and I love the way the snowflakes dance around in the corners on the east side of the house.
   
   
3. Driving into town, all the rock faces had icicles hanging down. The sun was shining, and they were really pretty.
   

Encouragement, Abraham Lincoln, Alvin York

1. A congratulatory note from a good friend and a former boss. When I first went to work for him, I thought he would drive me crazy. Now I'm so thankful for his support and encouragement.
   
   
2. I told the girls that we were having Chinese food yesterday because Abraham Lincoln liked Chinese food. Tonight we had another one of Abe's favorites: Jambalaya. I like thinking about President Lincoln, even if I do have to make up stuff. I think that tomorrow we'll have pizza because President Lincoln loved to have pizza for Valentine's Day, I bet.
   
   
3. I'm also enjoying the book we're reading right now for history about Alvin York. The girls and I get tickled by phrases like "I just done done it" and "That was right smart." He also uses the word "takened" instead of the word "took". But in the midst of all the Tennessean language is a really interesting story about an ordinary guy who lived a really extraordinary life. When we finish the book we're going to watch the movie with Gary Cooper.
   

A bad cold

1. Cold medicine
   
   
2. Extra-strength Tylenol
   
   
3. Diet Doctor Thunder (with caffeine)
   

Warmer than expected, hanging out, relaxing

1. Today was much warmer than the forecasters were predicting. It was 51 degrees in town this afternoon.
   
   
2. I had a really nice afternoon with the girls. After church we did some grocery shopping and then hung around in town until time for youth choir practice.
   
   
3. My husband took care of supper tonight so I could relax and get caught up on email (and blogging).
   

Cookies, white hot chocolate, warmth

1. Hot heart-shaped, pink cookies made by the girls.
   
   
2. Hot chocolate made with white chocolate.
   
   
3. Sunshine and the wood stove to warm up the house.
   

Medicine, shower, nap

1. Medicine to dry up my sinuses.
   
   
2. A warm shower.
   
   
3. An afternoon nap.
   

Health insurance, spoiling the postman, my baby brother's birthday

1. My husband went to orientation this morning, in the hopes that he would be hired on permanently very soon. It turns out that he was already on permanently, as of Monday, and we have health insurance now, for the first time in almost two years. Hooray for us!
   
   
2. I got a book today that was shipped from China. I saw the postman pull up in his car and went out to meet him. He said he'd never seen anything like my package. He'd never seen anything shipped from China before. He was really impressed. He told me, too, that I spoil him by coming out to the driveway to meet him instead of making him come to the door. I just love getting packages. Why wouldn't I go out to see what it is?
   
   
3. My brother turned 40 years old. Now he's old like me. (I love you, baby brother!)
   

Wordless Wednesday #12

Quiet, blue jay, free time

1. There was some excitement in the valley yesterday as some people came to put up new telephone lines. Today we're back to our usual peace and quiet.
   
   
2. There was a flock of about 20 robins in our yard, and in among them was one blue jay.
   
   
3. After several really busy weeks with my consulting business, I've had some time to read and work on my scrapbooks again.
   

Snow in the sunrise, hibernation, customer service

1. We had some sun yesterday and the snow melted in our pasture. But across the valley, there is still snow on the north side of the hills, and when the sun came up this morning, the opposite hills were all sparkly and shining.
   
   
2. I saw our woodchuck in the yard yesterday, and I wondered why he wasn't hibernating. Then I realized that I hadn't seen a squirrel in a really long time.
   
   
3. I had some problems on a web site sponsored by the American Statistical Association, and I expected really lousy customer service (which gets on my nerves after all the dues I pay). But I was pleasantly surprised. They called me up to discuss the problem and fixed it for me right away.
   

Capitalism, chicken and cheese, email to friends

1. Today we celebrate that great capitalist holiday: the Super Bowl. Because we all know it's not about the football game---it's about the advertising. To be in the spirit of capitalism, I bought some special food for this evening when I was at the grocery store last week. Then I don't have to cook, either, just heat some stuff up in the oven.
   
   
2. I did cook for lunch today, and we had one of my favorite chicken casseroles with broccoli, cheese and stuffing. Hmmmm, stuffing, chicken, and cheese.
   
   
3. My oldest saw a friend today and was able to exchange email addresses. It's always nice to see a friend around here.
   

Melting snow, logic, finished lesson plans

1. Warm afternoon sun to melt the snow.
   
   
2. Getting a package from Amazon, some new school books in logic for the girls.
   
   
3. I finished lesson plans for next week early.
   

New snow, tracks, microphone

1. The snow they were predicting earlier came last night. Though I'm not crazy about snow, it does look nice, and we're all safe here at home with nowhere we have to be for the weekend.
   
   
2. Some mysterious creature left tracks in the shape of a big heart in our backyard that I can see from my kitchen window.
   
   
3. I bought a microphone for the computer so that I could record my playing the piano so that the girls can practice a song they are working on for Fine Arts Festival. I thought we might have to move the computer closer to the piano, but it worked fine just to record the piano from the office. Very cool.
   

Dusting of snow, music practice, Daddy

1. The one to two inches of snow that they were predicting---the snow that was going to shut down the area---turned out to be just a dusting. I love it when that happens. I don't like snow.
   
   
2. All three girls practiced their piano and their guitar.
   
   
3. My dad was moved out of ICU and into a room on the cancer ward.