Best Christmas

My daughter says this is maybe the Best Christmas. I think it's because everyone got just what they wanted. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. books

2. movie

3. pillow

4. pillow cases

5. socks

6. photos

7. wetsuit!

8. gift cards

9. house shoes

10. money

Christmas lists

I am pretty much done with all my Christmas shopping. I think all I have left are the stocking stuffers and homemade items. I am excited to be giving some good gifts this year. I will list a few of my favorites at the risk of giving away the surprises!

1. something my husband needs for his next Ironman

2. photos of my husband's first Ironman

3. Groupon for something my husband has been wanting to try

4. jeans

5. Polo shirt

6. Nike socks

7. books

8. bread and hot cocoa mix

9. tool kits

10. fuzzy socks

remodeling

I am so glad our remodeling project is (nearly) over! Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. the old paper is down!

2. bright fresh new paint

3. I learned how to use the sander

4. I learned how to paint the trim with very minor mistakes!

5. the room looks much brighter/lighter

6. clean!!

7. we finished in a week

8. new accessories

9. we did it ourselves (saved money)

10. motivated/know we can do future projects

Ironman

My husband finished his first Ironman triathlon last weekend. I am so proud of him and so happy I was able to join him on race day. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. we flew

2. seeing the Ironman village

3. volunteering for the event

4. seeing and learning so much through volunteering

5. getting to be at the finish line when he crossed

6. seeing his happiness

7. sharing the event with family (his aunt and her cousin finished the triathlon as well, and his mother was able to go to the event with us too)

8. getting to meet some of his extended family

9. getting pumped up to do my own tri's. an ironman one day? we'll have to wait and see....

10. all the support and encouragement from our tri team

neighborhood play days

There are a few things I like about neighborhood play days. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. means the weather is nice

2. encourages family interaction

3. encourages intergenerational interaction

4. kids of all ages play together

5. teamwork

6. encouragement

7. social skills

8. exercise

9. modeling behavior

10. fun!

triathlon relay

Today I was part of a triathlon relay team. I did the swim portion. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. first leg of event

2. I have a wetsuit

3. I beat my goal time

4. not having to save any of my energy

5. not having to pack as much stuff

6. more relaxed

7. able to leave event early

8. getting all the swag for 1/3 of the event

9. making it to church on time

10. getting second in our relay division!

church lunch

I am not always crazy about church pot luck luncheons. But today here were a few of my favorites:

1. soup

2. strawberry spinach salad

3. roasted chicken

4. quinoa and chicken w/ cranberries and white raisins

5. gingerbread pumpkin trifle

6. iced tea

7. lots of choices

8. did not bring home too many leftovers

9. used a few things for feeding youth group

10. not another one for a while!

rainy sunday

It's been a LONG time since it rained all day. Today it finally did. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. the ground needed the water

2. cool weather

3. still able to get my bike ride done indoors on the trainer

4. hopefully wash away some of the pollen

5. maybe cooler weather will stay

6. nice day for a nap

7. things nice and quiet and relaxing

8. hopefully bring some drought relief

9. good blog topic

10. relief for plants and animals

Redman Triathlon:Volunteer

I had a good time volunteering at the Redman Triathlon last weekend. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. seeing my son

2. cheering on my husband

3. cheering on his relatives

4. learning things to help triathletes

5. working in transition

6. seeing all aspects of the race

7. giving my husband a kiss as he ran out to begin his half marathon

8. beautiful weather

9. hearing my husband's name announced as he finished with a great time

10. looking forward to my first 70.3

visit

My son came home from college for the first time this weekend. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. hugs and kisses

2. laughter

3. good news

4. new laptop

5. hearing all about school

6. spoiling with good food

7. lots of dessert

8. heading back in time for activities

9. safe travels

10. looking forward to the next time

menu planning

I have been trying to get back on the weekly meal menu planning boat. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. organized

2. making shopping list easier

3. saves time

4. saves money

5. don't have to decide last minute what to cook

6. rearranging meals is easy

7. easy to get meals prepped early in day

8. if menu is posted, people don't have to ask what's for dinner

9. and if they don't like it can complain to the list instead of the chef

10. things really do go much more smoothly when the meals are pre-planned and ingredients bought

The weather has cooled off a bit bringing some welcome relief and thoughts of fall. Here are a few of my fall favorites:

1. cooler weather

2. smells

3. caramel popcorn

4. gingerbread

5. kids in costumes

6. trick or treating

7. less humidity

8. outdoor activities

9. caramel apples

10. leaves

Crichton Novels

While I have recently gotten into Michael Crichton novels, I thought I would try to list my favorites, or at least some that I still want to read:

1. Prey

2. Sphere

3. The Great Train Robbery

4. The Andromeda Strain

5. Next

6. Disclosure

7. State of Fear

8. Timeline

9. Rising Sun

10. Airframe (not read yet!)

depressive moods

When depression hits, which seems to have become a staple in our household!, here are a few of my favorite strategies to deal with it:

1. exercise

2. read

3. watch tv

4. blog

5. play online games

6. write

7. cry

8. scream

9. a general vent

10. eat chocolate

off to college

In just one week our son is off to college. I am very ambivalent about the whole thing. But I will try to list a few of my favorite things:

1. shopping for dorm supplies

2. the excitement

3. going to a good school

4. getting some good tools (laptop, phone)

5. friends going there

6. looking ahead to the new start

7. growing up

8. relief of tensions

9. ..........

10. .........

Wimberley, TX

We just got back from a long weekend in Wimberley. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. peace

2. quiet

3. away from it all

4. the pool right outside our door

5. privacy

6. all natural snow cones

7. The Root Cellar

8. the salad medley at Linda's

9. the desserts at Linda's

10. being with my husband



(This one is written by Linda, the owner of the best place we ate in town!)

camp cook

While it is a daunting task, here are a few of my favorite things about being camp cook:

1. staying "behind the scenes"

2. staying in our own cabin

3. planning the menu

4. having a great team

5. learning new ideas

6. learning new cooking tips/ideas

7. trying new things

8. most everything worked out ok

9. making new friends

10. when we are done!

hair cut

I always feel better after getting my hair cut. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. fresh feeling

2. she always does it the way I want

3. she always makes me look good

4. just feels better

5. the shampoo/scalp massage

6. being a little pampered

7. a little oasis in a busy day

8. cleaning up the look

9. looking at different hairstyles

10. learning about new products

reconnect

We were able to reconnect with a friend this week. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. catching up with each other

2. seeing how good he is doing

3. a nice dinner together

4. job opportunity for my son

5. catching up on extended families

6. knowing it's a good role model for my kids

7. the baby did not even cry (she usually does around guys she doesn't know)

8. nice memories

9. happy thoughts

10. hope for future

week alone

I recently had a week alone. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. sleep whenever I want

2. eat whatever I want

3. eat whenever I want

4. not much cooking

5. workout whenever I want

6. reading

7. playing on computer

8. quiet

9. phone calls

10. coming home soon

failure

There are some things that were so important to me. Even though I failed at them, here are a few:

1. respect

2. modesty

3. daily bible reading

4. obedience

5. friends

6. healthy eating

7. cleanliness

8. tv/movies

9. music

10. friendship

Combat Tri

Here are a few of my favorite things about a long standing local triathlon:

1. close to home

2. Saturday event

3. affordable

4. shorter distance

5. fun!

6. doing it with husband and friends

7. seeing improvements from year to year

8. meeting new team mates

9. only one or two people passed me on the swim

10. getting fifth place in my age group

7 year old birthday

My young friend turns 7 tomorrow. Here are a few of my favorite things in regard to his special day:

1. trying to find just the right gifts for him-a budding geologist

2. finding geodes for him to crack

3. hoping that they will have some crystals inside

4. and hoping they are not too hard to crack

5. trying to grow my own rock candy; a good idea but only a small layer formed on top

6. my mom finding some pre-made rock candy at a gas station

7. finding pop rocks

8. making a "You Rock" card

9. hoping he loves all his gifts

10. delivering them tomorrow

graduation party

We have been planning a graduation party for our son. There has been some good ideas. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. moon walk

2. snow cone machine

3. popcorn machine

4. making invitations

5. making lists of invitees

6. planning the menu

7. seeing son excited over the idea of a party

8. hoping everyone will come

9. keeping it as simple as possible

10. I only have to do it one more time!

kona eastside tri

I was able to enter my first tri of the year. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. the name "Kona"

2. finally being able to race

3. the small size

4. small age group-not too much getting clobbered in the swim

5. nearly catching my friend on the bike (he had at least a 6 minute start on me)

6. feeling good on the bik

7. being able to run

8. having husband and daughter there to cheer me on

9. finishing 5th in age group

10. no problems with recent injury

senior slide show

We are getting ready for my son's senior year slide show. They are only allowed 40-50 photos! Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. looking through all the old photos

2. reliving good times

3. remembering events and people

4. choosing the best and favorite photos

5. choosing a song to go with slideshow

6. looking through photos alone

7. then looking through them with the kids

8. son picking out some of his own that he wants

9. haven't cried yet!

10. putting the slideshow together to show off

Oklahoma Christian University

We visited the campus of Oklahoma Christian University this weekend. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. all employees are Christians

2. small student body

3. small, but not too small, campus

4. curfew for freshmen

5. bible courses required (including personal finance from a Christian perspective)

6. my sister's alma mater (and seeing her name on the missions map-even though it was misspelled!)

7. seeing an old friend

8. several other kids we know are/will be going there

9. the technology

10. they introduced the visiting TEXANS first! :)

therapy

I have not loved going to therapy over the last several weeks. But I do think it's helping. Here are a few of my favorite things about it:

1. getting stronger

2. learning how to better help myself

3. able to do more of the things I want to do

4. learning where to go for help in the areas I want/need

5. making new friends

6. finding new information

7. taking care of an even older injury

8. passing on my new knowledge

9. feeling the effects of better health

10. it's nearly to an end!

morning ride

This morning I did not want to go on our long bike ride. But I am glad I did! Here are a few of my favorite things from this morning:

1. good weather

2. large group

3. seeing friends

4. sunshine came out

5. wind not as bad as I expected

6. felt stronger

7. nice route

8. loved going over San Luis Pass!

9. able to do a short jog after the ride (found a "padded" sidewalk!)

10. black bean burger w/ guacamole after workout!!

Texas triathlons

If I could afford to do all the triathlons that I wanted (and if I chose to do Sunday events) here are a few that I think would be my favorites Texas events:

1. Kemah (Gateway to the Bay)

2. Houston

3. Austin

4. Buffalo Springs

5. TriGirl Mother's Day Sprint

6. TexasMan

7. Four States

8. Sylvan Beach

9. Kerrville

10. indoor Tri

therapy

I have been going to some more therapy sessions for my foot. While it has been very costly, here are a few of my favorite things:

1. working aggressively to get me well, stronger and able to run again

2. tissue work

3. running on treadmill

4. strength training exercises

5. heat therapy

6. stretches to do at home

7. exercises to do at home/gym

8. including work on an old injury

9. trying to get me out of my orthotics

10. working on getting me healthy

Valentine's Day

We try not to make Valentine's Day a day to spend a lot of money. We thought about going out to eat, but chose to do a few other things. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. early morning workout

2. motorcycle ride

3. picnic in park

4. a few minutes alone with my husband (no kids!)

5. pleasant talk

6. free!

7. chocolate covered strawberries for dessert

8. taking more strawberries to friends and family

9. late evening workout at gym

10. a good night's sleep

college visit

On a recent college visit, we found the experience to be positive. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. seeing how happy the kids are

2. pretty campus

3. attending classes

4. meeting teachers and coaches

5. basketball games

6. seeing the kids hanging out together

7. using the recreational facilities

8. learning about financial aid

9. seeing this is a good step for kids after high school

10. good church within walking distance

fun run

I took my son to a fun run this weekend. Even though I didn't run with him, here are a few of my favorite things:

1. spending time together

2. he got free tickets to a pro basketball game

3. watching his excitement over the tickets

4. hearing his plans about going to the basketball games with his friends

5. free parking

6. he had a good run time

7. seeing him finish at half court in the basketball arena

8. a nice morning together

9. home in time to get some other things done

10. making priceless memories

18th birthday

My son's 18th birthday was a bittersweet event for me. It turned out to be a nice weekend. Here are a few of my favorite things:

1. nice mexican food dinner with mother in law

2. great steak dinner with parents, nephews and son's girlfriend and her sister

3. shopping for just the right gifts

4. finding the perfect cartoon DVD

5. giving the journal I've kept for 18 years

6. seeing baby pictures my mom gave

7. watching nephews look at the baby pictures

8. baby hat from photos given

9. great great grandfather's hat given

10. his reactions to gifts-priceless!

morning speed work

I joined a group bike ride this morning. They were doing speed work. Their regular pace was my speed work! But here are a few of my favorite things:

1. riding with people better and faster than me makes me better and faster (so they say!)

2. late morning is warmer than early morning

3. safer riding with group

4. more enjoyable riding with others

5. learning techniques and tips

6. they are nice to stay back/wait on me

7. at least there is a pit stop!

8. and a "cut off" so that I didn't have to do the full amount

9. getting in a good ride

10. hearing that it really does get easier