Thursday, May 27, 2010

Harmony




Dictionary.com defines harmony as, "agreement; accord." It can also be defined as follows:



"Harmony is the inner cadence of contentment you feel when the melody of life is in tune."


- Sarah Ban Breathnach



Amidst my "internet ramblings" yesterday, I stumbled upon this quote by one of my favorite inspirational authors (ladies, if you've never picked up this book, I highly recommend it. I am working my way through it for the nth time.) I thought this Friday morning would be a perfect time to share it with you :)

Well, how are you, friends?! It's been a whirlwind week over here in "Amy-ville", and suffice it to say, I am SO glad that Monday is a paid holiday for Memorial day. Ahhhh! (remember, this is angel singing...just reminding you in case you've forgotten-- it hasn't been heard on the blog in a few weeks :) Oh , how I am looking forward to sleeping in next Monday-- I feel like this (long) weekend that is coming up will be my reward for making it through this week.



... because this week? Oh my, it's been a doozy.

There have been several (what I will refer to as) 'character building milestones' for me this week, including: J and I surviving our first 'semi-serious' illness as a married couple (J caught the flu, I *knock on wood* am still hanging tough) and my first truly panicked call to the vet (Gracie pranced around a bit too hard on her stitches and bled all over our downstairs. She is absolutely fine. I have about 10 new gray hairs, I think. ... I really hope I am just joking about the gray hairs.)

However, as it always seems to go (thank heavens) there were some really wonderful (or at least funny) milestones that occurred this week as well. You might even say, even with the 'crazies', life remains balanced and, in fact, 'in harmony'. See for yourself:

  • Laurie and I ran together (first time outside of a race), and it was fabulous. I think this may be the one arena where "sisterly competition" is good for us :)


  • We saw a snake on said run, and I didn't scream like the scared girly girl I am a banshee. In fact, I stepped closer to get a better look. ... Trust me bloggies... this is huge.


  • To combat some of the stress, I have been a baking machine. We're talking smothered pork chops, mac and cheese, and the most wonderful (and possibly easiest!) peanut butter cookies I've ever made!

  • I took a nap on Sunday afternoon!

  • I finally tried the infamous "green monster" that has been taking the blog-world by storm! ... After a few tweaks (the first one reminded me that I do not, in fact, like banana flavor. Subsequent 'monsters' masked the banana flavor a bit better, and were a lot more enjoyable :)

  • I finally got the chance to visit the salad bar at "The Raisin Rack" when my Mom and I went there for lunch to celebrate her birthday! It was just as epically wonderful as I had imagined it would be. For those of you not familiar with this store, it's kind of a small scale version of "Whole Foods".

  • While Gracie and I were watching "The Bachelorette", I discovered that she has a sixth sense about such things, and (without fail) would stand on the keyboard (watching via Hulu, so I could spend time with my little girl in the 'Quarantine Room') -- causing the show to pause during the most cringe-worthy parts-- my kitty is brilliant.

  • There was a day this week during which I consumed 5 cups of coffee. ...Not particularly a smart thing, but a milestone nonetheless :)

  • I found the Answers to life's biggest questions. (not really.... this is just a fun link I found via yahoo, while I was checking my email. I thought some thoughts were insightful, while others were at least good for a smile. Enjoy!)

  • I started learning how to use google.documents-- which means I am finding new ways to share things with ya'll!

So, life is chugging right along :) Another important milestone I reached this week was realizing that I have definitely fallen into the "I'll do it when things calm down" trap.



Let me explain: I feel like things have been going at a frantic pace ever since we moved into the new house (at the beginning of April... can you believe it's been almost 2 months?! I sure can't...) and I find that I keep saying, "maybe next week I'll get to it (think about it, do it, etc.) ... when I am not doing x,y,z...." Well, it seems to me that I will always have and X... or a Y... or a Z going on in my life-- and more than likely, I'll often have some combination of all 3.



... And that's a good thing. I need to cling to every moment, loving it for what it is. I need to be truly present. For goodness sake, I need to stop making excuses to myself, and just get up and go. And I'm working on that. I want to be able to fall into bed every night and sleep the sweet, contented sleep of one who has poured her heart into every waking moment and lived in the now, rather than wasting time sighing over certain realities that might not be ideal.

And so, with that in mind, I think it's time for a good list, which is (and always will be) one more step in the right direction :)


Good List


1. J. I know he will help and support me through all the 'character building milestones' yet to come :) Furthermore, I know it will be because of him that I will be able to overcome and push past each one.

2. "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". Ever since I was a little girl I have wanted to sing this with a choir-- as it has always touched me profoundly. Finally, this summer I will have my chance.

3. Waterproof mascara ;)

4. Caprese salads.... mmmm....
5. Ooooh. New peanut butter! I finally got to try this (PB&Co. Cinnamon Raisin Swirl), and it is everything it's cracked up to be.

6. The weather this week has been amazing (haha... until this morning, which has been delightfully warm, but rather overcast.) Oh yes, am I ready for summer!

7. Ponytails and baseball caps.

8. Turquoise. It just says summer to me...
9. 'Birthday $$ financed" mini shopping sprees :)

10. Hope everlasting.


So now that we've covered the 'life-y stuff", the 'big stuff' and the 'good stuff', let's move on to the 'weekend stuff'! This weekend I am looking forward to finishing at least one book tending my (2) flowers, sleeping in late (Saturday, Sunday AND Monday, if I have any say in the matter!), and spending time with our family on Sunday. J and I are also looking forward to a 'double date night' on Saturday, when we'll do dinner and drinks with a friend of mine (gah... who, I just realized, I have known for 10 years?! Crazy... and very, very cool :) We'll be headed to an Italian restaurant in Gahanna, which has garnered some rave reviews (if I haven't mentioned it on 'el bloggy' yet, I am a fan of all things "carb". Love, LoVe, LOVE good pasta and Italian food!)-- I'll give you my take on it next week. Also, maybe J and I will have the chance to go on a "one-on-one" date to the movies this weekend (as you might remember, we were hoping to go last weekend to see 'Iron Man 2'... but then J got sick.)


Do you have any good plans for the weekend? Will you visit family and/or travel? Also, an apropos question for the weekend: what is your favorite picnic food?


Mine is definitely potato salad . .. or s'mores. ... or anything grilled. It's way too hard to pick just one :)






(PS: I apologize for the wonky spacing... after messing with it for upwards of 10 minutes... I gave up....)

1 comment:

  1. OMG- I LOVE the Battle Hymn of the Republic! Yet another reason to LOVE you!!

    ReplyDelete