Today, in the cafeteria, when I saw that they were serving broccoli-cheddar soup, I was excited -- who doesn't just love that soup? I saw that the serving pot had run low -- there was still soup in there, but it was near-impossible to scoop out with the ladle provided. No worries, I thought, I'll just ask the really nice cafeteria guy if they can bring more from the back (he's always super-nice and always smiling!). He made a face, and said he was pretty sure they were all out of broccoli-cheddar and would have to replace it with something else, but he would go check.
Something else? Who wants something else? I want broccoli-cheddar!
Alas, when he came out from the back, he WAS carrying a pot of soup -- but also a sign reading "loaded baked potato." They truly were out of broccoli-cheddar.
I told him jokingly that I was going to have to show him my sad face.
He smiled back at me and said, "I don't want to see your sad face -- you just wait!"
He proceeded to lift the pot of broccoli-cheddar and pour it into a bowl for me -- it was exactly a bowl-s worth of soup at the bottom of the pot!
The ladle never would have been able to scoop it out, but the good-hearted cafeteria guy was able to make it happen.
We both parted with smiles on our faces, and now I have a belly full of warm broccoli-cheddar-y goodness. :)
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Monday, April 29, 2013
Achoo! Sniffle...
As I sit here in a medicine-induced haze, it's easy to feel crankypants about the fact that I suffer from allergies every spring and fall (and frankly, much of the summer in between as well). Who wants to feel like the have a permanent cold for over half the year? So many of the meds I take don't really work, and the ones that do work are so expensive, and my body often adjusts to them, which leads me to start the process of finding good meds all over again.
However, instead of marinating in the nuisance that is allergies, I'm thinking of how lucky I am to be otherwise extremely healthy. It's been quite some time since I've had even a cold, and much longer since I've suffered from anything more severe than that.
I'm also thinking of how blessed I am to live in a country with such easy access to medicines that treat our illnesses. I imagine I have thrown out more expired drugs than people in some countries have access to in a lifetime. And while I may complain about the cost of my pills, I've never had to choose between wellness and a full belly.
I'm especially lucky to have a job (at a time when so many people don't) that not only provides me with the necessities, but offers fantastic health insurance. As does my husband's. While so many can't afford the most basic insurance, we have a CHOICE. And should that dreaded serious illness ever occur, this insurance will enable treatment for us.
I'm able to choose to pop a pill to make my leisure time outdoors more comfortable -- because I have leisure time in the first place.
So, while the sneezes and sniffles are a minor nuisance, they remind me of a long list of things I am lucky to have.
However, instead of marinating in the nuisance that is allergies, I'm thinking of how lucky I am to be otherwise extremely healthy. It's been quite some time since I've had even a cold, and much longer since I've suffered from anything more severe than that.
I'm also thinking of how blessed I am to live in a country with such easy access to medicines that treat our illnesses. I imagine I have thrown out more expired drugs than people in some countries have access to in a lifetime. And while I may complain about the cost of my pills, I've never had to choose between wellness and a full belly.
I'm especially lucky to have a job (at a time when so many people don't) that not only provides me with the necessities, but offers fantastic health insurance. As does my husband's. While so many can't afford the most basic insurance, we have a CHOICE. And should that dreaded serious illness ever occur, this insurance will enable treatment for us.
I'm able to choose to pop a pill to make my leisure time outdoors more comfortable -- because I have leisure time in the first place.
So, while the sneezes and sniffles are a minor nuisance, they remind me of a long list of things I am lucky to have.
Monday, April 8, 2013
Attitude of Gratitude...
Katie, over at Hems for Her posted today about having an attitude of gratitude.
Like Katie, gratitude is not something i consciously think about all that often. Sure, I say "thank you" when it seems appropriate -- and I mean it! -- but there are so many things in life that we are so fortunate to have that we simply take for granted.
I think that ties in closely to the purpose of this blog. After all, if we are consciously thankful for the things in our life, it makes it rather hypocritical to criticize those same things, no? Katie's post made me realize that in automatically seeing the worst in the things around me, I was inherently taking them for granted.
Frankly, this just doesn't jive with the person I want to be.
So here I am, keeping on with my mission to be more positive in life.
Thank You, Katie, for reminding me to be grateful!
Like Katie, gratitude is not something i consciously think about all that often. Sure, I say "thank you" when it seems appropriate -- and I mean it! -- but there are so many things in life that we are so fortunate to have that we simply take for granted.
I think that ties in closely to the purpose of this blog. After all, if we are consciously thankful for the things in our life, it makes it rather hypocritical to criticize those same things, no? Katie's post made me realize that in automatically seeing the worst in the things around me, I was inherently taking them for granted.
Frankly, this just doesn't jive with the person I want to be.
So here I am, keeping on with my mission to be more positive in life.
Thank You, Katie, for reminding me to be grateful!
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Gone, but not Forgotten...
despite my not having posted here in a while, i have not forgotten this space or my goals to become a more positive person. life has been a series of ups and downs, but i choose to focus mainly on the positives, only looking at the negatives to learn the lessons they were put there to teach me. i don't always learn the lesson, and yes, sometimes i dwell a little too long in the anger/sadness/etc surrounding them. but i'm trying.
recently, i have been opening my eyes to something that has truly held me back in life -- myself. more specifically, my fears. i have always thought of myself as a cautious person, a realist. but i've come to realize that much of the rationalizing i do only serves to make me fail at things before i even attempt them.
recently, i have been opening my eyes to something that has truly held me back in life -- myself. more specifically, my fears. i have always thought of myself as a cautious person, a realist. but i've come to realize that much of the rationalizing i do only serves to make me fail at things before i even attempt them.
don't take that leap, you might fall.
don't sing that song, you might be off key.
don't speak up, you might be wrong.
but then, there's this:
i have been making a conscious effort to face my own fears, even when i don't realize that it's fear i'm feeling.
whenever i catch myself saying "no" to something, i try to ask myself why. quite often, i realize that the only reason i hold back from trying something is my fear of failure...my fear of making a fool out of myself.
but y'know what?
saying "yes" in the face of fear has landed me an amazing husband, a house i love, and a job that, while trying at times, i think i'm kicking a little bit of butt at.
my fears are like a river, and i just need to build a bridge and get over it.
don't be scurred.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Far Too Long, but Far Too Fortunate...
So many wonderful, amazing things have been happening in my life, and while I haven't made note of them here in quite some time, I have taken the time out in the real world to express my gratitude to those involved and to thank God for the blessings he has bestowed upon me.
I am still trekking along the Weight Watchers path -- and to date I have lost 47.6 pounds! It's amazing to me that I have been able to exercise the willpower and strength to stick to this plan. But when you see a pound or two fall away each week, and those one-or-two pounds add up each month, it's easy to see that the changes you make are working. I am so grateful to my friends and family for supporting me on this journey, and I'm immensely proud of myself!
Also, in the last few months, I've sold a house, bought a house, and moved!
My husband, our parents and I spent several weeks fixing up my old house after it was trashed by my last tenant. His parents worked especially hard, and I can't express enough gratitude to his father for all the hard work and late nights he spent drywalling, even when we weren't there. We got a decent offer on the house and were able to close quickly. Most importantly, I was able to make enough money off of the house to roll into a downpayment towards a new house, which was the whole purpose of selling in the first place.
Hubby and I started looking online at homes in our area and absolutely fell in LOVE with this house. It was a little farther out than we ideally wanted, and it was at the higher end of our price range, but everything about this house was perfect. We took it as a sign that I made just a *little* more money from selling my house than we had anticipated, so we JUMPED at the chance to put an offer on this house -- and it was a good thing, too, because there was already another offer! Thankfully, our offer was accepted, and we closed a month later.
We started moving in a few weeks ago (many thanks again to our families for helping us move!) and are slowly getting settled into our new home.
Our first home as a family. It puts a smile on my face to say that...to know that this is the home in which we will raise our kids someday.
I am so proud of us for buying this gorgeous place, so thankful to our families for the help they provided us in getting to this point, and, most importantly, so grateful to God for the grace he has put into our lives. It is that grace that has gotten us to where we are, and we know we wouldn't be here without him.
We are truly blessed.
I am still trekking along the Weight Watchers path -- and to date I have lost 47.6 pounds! It's amazing to me that I have been able to exercise the willpower and strength to stick to this plan. But when you see a pound or two fall away each week, and those one-or-two pounds add up each month, it's easy to see that the changes you make are working. I am so grateful to my friends and family for supporting me on this journey, and I'm immensely proud of myself!
Also, in the last few months, I've sold a house, bought a house, and moved!
My husband, our parents and I spent several weeks fixing up my old house after it was trashed by my last tenant. His parents worked especially hard, and I can't express enough gratitude to his father for all the hard work and late nights he spent drywalling, even when we weren't there. We got a decent offer on the house and were able to close quickly. Most importantly, I was able to make enough money off of the house to roll into a downpayment towards a new house, which was the whole purpose of selling in the first place.
Hubby and I started looking online at homes in our area and absolutely fell in LOVE with this house. It was a little farther out than we ideally wanted, and it was at the higher end of our price range, but everything about this house was perfect. We took it as a sign that I made just a *little* more money from selling my house than we had anticipated, so we JUMPED at the chance to put an offer on this house -- and it was a good thing, too, because there was already another offer! Thankfully, our offer was accepted, and we closed a month later.
We started moving in a few weeks ago (many thanks again to our families for helping us move!) and are slowly getting settled into our new home.
Our first home as a family. It puts a smile on my face to say that...to know that this is the home in which we will raise our kids someday.
I am so proud of us for buying this gorgeous place, so thankful to our families for the help they provided us in getting to this point, and, most importantly, so grateful to God for the grace he has put into our lives. It is that grace that has gotten us to where we are, and we know we wouldn't be here without him.
We are truly blessed.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Happily Wasting Away...
I joined Weight Watchers at Work about 3 months ago, and in that time I have lost 16 pounds -- maybe more, as my next weigh-in is today. I am amazingly proud of the success I have on the program so far, and I am excited to see how far I can go. Different methods work for different people, but this program has been perfect for me -- just enough structure and rules to guide me, but it isn't so rigid that I feel like I am missing out on anything.
My husband has made a few comments about how good I look, calling my his "super-skinny wife," and my parents have been very supportive, especially my mother, who has battled with her weight for as long as I can remember.
It has been a bit annoying in a strange way, since I thought at the beginning that by now my clothes would be baggy on me, and I'm not feeling that. I haven't yet dropped any dress sizes, but I suspect I was on the verge of going UP a dress size when I started.So I just keep reminding myself of that when I start feeling a little down.
While it's wonderful to feel the support from family and friends and essential to be motivated and proud of yourself, sometimes the best boosts are the ones that come from unexpected places.
This morning, a woman in my office commented on my weight loss. I really only know this woman in passing -- we don't work together or for the same company, and honestly I couldn't tell you her name, but we work in the same area of the building and sometimes chat about little things like the weather or the day's offerings in the cafeteria -- but as we got to the office door at the same time, she said, "Wow, you are really dropping down, aren't you?!" It took me a minute to realize that she had noticed that I had lost weight, and once it dawned on me, I couldn't help but blush. Here is this person who barely knows anything about me -- certainly not that I have been on WW@W -- and she can see the changes in my body.
So maybe I haven't noticed the changes in my body, but I guess that's because we are our own worst critic.
And maybe I shouldn't take my husband's compliments so lightly. He clearly sees something that I just haven't seen yet.
I'm ready to keep on being a loser.
Onward and downward!
My husband has made a few comments about how good I look, calling my his "super-skinny wife," and my parents have been very supportive, especially my mother, who has battled with her weight for as long as I can remember.
It has been a bit annoying in a strange way, since I thought at the beginning that by now my clothes would be baggy on me, and I'm not feeling that. I haven't yet dropped any dress sizes, but I suspect I was on the verge of going UP a dress size when I started.So I just keep reminding myself of that when I start feeling a little down.
While it's wonderful to feel the support from family and friends and essential to be motivated and proud of yourself, sometimes the best boosts are the ones that come from unexpected places.
This morning, a woman in my office commented on my weight loss. I really only know this woman in passing -- we don't work together or for the same company, and honestly I couldn't tell you her name, but we work in the same area of the building and sometimes chat about little things like the weather or the day's offerings in the cafeteria -- but as we got to the office door at the same time, she said, "Wow, you are really dropping down, aren't you?!" It took me a minute to realize that she had noticed that I had lost weight, and once it dawned on me, I couldn't help but blush. Here is this person who barely knows anything about me -- certainly not that I have been on WW@W -- and she can see the changes in my body.
So maybe I haven't noticed the changes in my body, but I guess that's because we are our own worst critic.
And maybe I shouldn't take my husband's compliments so lightly. He clearly sees something that I just haven't seen yet.
I'm ready to keep on being a loser.
Onward and downward!
Monday, June 13, 2011
Things Big and Small...
Small:
Today I had one of my favorite sandwiches for lunch. So very tasty...
Big:
My dad has been in the hospital for a little while now and has a bit of an uphill battle ahead of him in his recovery. I was able to see him this weekend, and I was happily surprised with how well he looks. I am hopeful that HE stays positive, since that will be the key to regaining his health.
Today I had one of my favorite sandwiches for lunch. So very tasty...
Big:
My dad has been in the hospital for a little while now and has a bit of an uphill battle ahead of him in his recovery. I was able to see him this weekend, and I was happily surprised with how well he looks. I am hopeful that HE stays positive, since that will be the key to regaining his health.
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