First Day of Summer Vacation

 I can't believe summer vacation is finally here.  June seemed to come too quickly, but then take her sweet time leaving.  :) It has been a busy month especially with Steve being away and lots of end-of-year special events.  I've enjoyed the talent shows and parties, but today was the day I've been waiting for.

 I know some parents dread summer holidays, especially those parents that work full-time.  Summer vacation becomes a nightmare of arranging care and trying to keep costs down.  Other parents switch custody arrangements during the summer and have to deal with the extended absences of their children.  But for me, I'm super excited about school being done.  Aris will be away a little bit more, but we're used to that now. She will be missed, but it will be nice for her to have some big girl time away from her little brothers.  Since I'm a stay-at-home mom, we're not stressing about care during the day.  The older two will go to dance camp(separately as Aris needed space) for a week each, but other than that they'll be home with me.  And I'm so excited about this!

 We've already started having fun.  Today was a wee bit stressful as I was trying to clean my house, but we had some nice time together.  Aris read more today and the boys were signed up for the library reading program.  Zane and Aris enjoyed quiet time together.  While Kian napped, they got into my jewelry and played jewelry store. Fortunately they cleaned up before Steve discovered all of my necklaces spread out over our bed.  I think I own about 30 necklaces, so it was a bit of a mess.  :) But they had fun and there very little fighting today!  Kian was thrilled to have them home so he was being nice.  Hopefully that will last.  :)

Canadian Please

 Apparently this little gem has been out for a year, but I just found it today.  It feels appropriate as some of my friends and family members are taking the plunge and getting Canadian citizenship.  Check it out here. I've only listened to this about five times now. :)

 As of 3:20 this afternoon, school is officially out for the summer! I'm excited to have my munchkins home for two months and they are looking forward to being home.  Aris asked if she could be homeschooled for the summer. :)  Our plans include participating in the summer reading program at our local library.  I signed Aris up this evening and she has already read her first book, mostly on her own.  We plan to sign up the boys tomorrow.  I'm very proud of Aris' new reading skills and so thankful for her teachers that have encouraged her efforts.  If it weren't for them, she probably wouldn't be reading nearly as well as she did tonight.

 Saying goodbye to her teachers was probably the hardest part of today.  I'm not sure I adequately thanked them enough. It was also hard saying goodbye to our friends.  Hopefully we'll be able to have playdates and barbeques with them over the summer, but I definitely felt the loss even with those friends that I know I'll be hanging out with.  Since I forgot to return the signed portion of the report cards, I plan on visiting the school tomorrow and thanking the teachers that I didn't get a chance to today.

 Yay for summer, good teachers, good friends, and a good last day of school!  Now to convince my children to sleep in...:)

Talent Show

 Zane is officially done his very first year of school! It's hard to believe that the year is already over.  To celebrate the year-end, my children's school held a talent show.  Each class was responsible for a presentation and there were opportunities for individual and group performances.  Aris has wanted to perform a song she wrote with her dad since last year, but she missed last year's audition deadline.  After waiting a year, she made sure to fill out the permission slip and audition.  Even though she didn't have accompaniment, her teacher still said she could perform.

 Today was the big day.  Aris put on a special outfit, found her fanciest shoes and brought along a brush and lipgloss so that she would look spectacular for her solo.  Her dad recorded himself playing her music, sent it to us and we burned it to a disc.  Unfortunately, the cd wouldn't play.  That didn't stop my little girl! Without a microphone, she sang her song loud and clear while dancing.  It was amazing! We were very proud of her performance, persistence and peace of mind.  She did an excellent job.

 It was a privilege to watch today's talent show.  There were many great performers and they all did their best.  This yearly show is yet another reason why we love our school so much.  We are blessed with a great community, amazing staff and energetic, enthusiastic students. :)

Sabbath

 Our family did something today that we haven't done in a long while.  We took off for the beach with no real set plans.  We had a destination, and some friends to see but nothing we had to do, no timeline.  It was wonderful!  I drove through pouring rain past horses, calves and sheep.  We ate at the "best fish and chips on the West Coast(Ontario's West Coast), and waded/swam cheerfully in Lake Huron.  It was wonderful!

 After tucking our children into bed, Steve and I headed next door.  We were celebrating our neighbour's doctorate.  We had a delicious feast with good friends and lots of laughter.  Currently my stomach hurts from laughing so hard.  It was good.  I am blessed.  :)

 I think the best part of today was just resting.  Yes, we were out and about, but this is the first time in a long time that we haven't had a plan or a timeline.  Instead we just were.  It was great.  Especially when the older couple seated behind us at the restaurant complimented us on our parenting.  They said our children were lovely and that we were obviously very child-focussed in our parenting.  That was cool!  Many people have spoke about the concept of taking a sabbath or a day of rest, and whenever I hear about that it feels impossible.  There is just so much to do! But today we took a Sabbath day as a family and it was good.  :)

Nieces that Clean

 I am a horrible housekeeper.  Although I've been trying very hard and perhaps improving a little, my house is still quite messy.  This probably has something to do with the three children age seven and under living in my house, but my poor housekeeping skills don't help.  Neither has being sick the last couple of months.  Although my energy levels seem to stabilizing and the spells of lightheadedness have become much less frequent, I still haven't gotten back to some of the messier spots in my house like Aris' room.  Her room is probably the worst in the house for a variety of reasons.

 Well, Aris' room was cleaned today and it's a bit of a funny story.

 I have one niece.  She is four years old and very very sweet.  This morning she ended up coming over for an impromptu playdate.  We were very happy to have her over as Kian plays very well with her.  It's nice for cousins to play together.  At one point, she asked to play dress-up.  All of our girl dress-up clothes are in Aris' room so I pointed her in the right direction.  After a long while, I went upstairs to check on her.  She had been playing for a very long time and very quietly.  I expected to find her all decked out in various shades of pink, but she wasn't.  Instead she proudly announced" Aunt Grace, I cleaned Aris' bed."  "Oh, you're cleaning her room? That's very sweet of you!" "No, I clean her BED!!!" I went in to check and sure enough, my lovely little niece had taken everything off of Aris' bed(she stockpiles everything there), and then made it back up.  The finished product was quite impressive.  Humbled by a four year old's initiative and cleaning skills,  I began to clean too.  Kian even helped by putting dirty clothes into the hamper.  Aris' room looks much better.  There's still work to be done, but it's nice to see the floor again.  And I have to admit it was very nice to clean with a little girl.  Perhaps she can come over to teach her cousins how to clean. :)

Thankful for Headaches(well, not exactly..)

 My head felt like it was going to explode.  Several doses of medication later, I still felt lousy.  I'm not sure which is worse: the pain or the accompanying symptoms such as dizziness and nausea.  Headaches suck!  But while I was feeling so horrible, I remembered that I hadn't had a headache for much longer than normal.  Typically I get one every couple days, averaging at least two a week.  But Steve was gone for six days and I didn't have a headache the whole time he was gone!  I had a little bit of pain once or twice in the morning, but not a proper headache.  That is pretty cool!  In fact, I think that's pretty close to a miracle! :)

 In addition to be headache-free while Steve was away, I'm also thankful for my wonderful husband who without complaining took over the role of making supper.  By that point the pain was subsiding so the salad ended up being a joint affair and it was good!  I'm also thankful for a mostly pain-free evening.  That was a blessing as well.  Hopefully the weekend will be pain-free as I have a lot planned.  Yay for summer, pool openings, the beach and the multicultural festival! :)

He's Home!!!

 I have survived six days without my husband.  He has safely returned and my world is back to what it calls normal.  We've had a very full six days, but my children are still alive and speaking to me so we'll mark it as a success.  Today we had a playdate with friends, went to the circus with two other families and then welcomed Steve back home around the kids bedtime. It has been a fun full day and I'm so happy that my wonderful husband is back home. Yay! :)

And the countdown is on...

 My wonderful husband will be home in 24 hours(hopefully less)!  I am just a little bit excited about his homecoming.  Just a wee bit.  We've had a very full five days and some very interesting bedtimes.  Nothing like the diaper-wearing two year old getting out of bed twice because he has to use the washroom.  Right. Try using the bathroom during the day and then I'll honour your request at bedtime.  Seriously!  Of course then I feel guilty for stifling his attempts at pottytraining.  *sigh*

 We had a minor miracle last night.  Kian actually slept through which meant I woke up feeling extremely refreshed. Then all three of the kids slept in.  The next miracle was making it to school mostly on time.  We were late, but not late-slip late. :)  It's amazing how good uninterrupted sleep feels.  I was beginning to forget.  Now to get some more sleep...goodnight! :)

Day 4 Thankfulness

 Today was hard.  It started off good and ended good, but had some pretty bumpy spots in the middle.  So here's my list of the good.
-driving down a steep curvy hill to see a plane doing acrobatics against the clouds
-watching the Snowbirds fly overhead
-buying a present for my SIL that she absolutely loved
-a cold can of cola
-walking to church with a good friend and her son.
-having my garbage taken out by a friend when i confessed how much i hate that chore. (it's steve's chore, but i really shouldn't leave the container for 48 more hours).
-my norwex mop and subsequent clean floors
-good friends that laugh with and at me, give me hugs, and bring me yummy food to eat. :)
-video conversations with my husband
-celebrating my wonderful husband, father and father-in-law all great dads and men of faith.

 Happy Father's Day!!!

Day 3 Thankfulness

 Today was the halfway mark.  Steve has been gone 3 days and won't be back for another three.  I miss him.  But I have a lot to be thankful for today.  Here's my list:

-the boys slept until 8am.
-I ended up babysitting only two children instead of three.  We had a great time together.
-sugar snap peas...oh so good!
-leftover pasta salad in my fridge that I ate for lunch.
-dinner at my parents, complete with a bonfire.
-watching my dad help my youngest roast marshmallows.
-good food and lively conversations with my neighbours.
-a mostly clean kitchen that will hopefully be all the way clean tomorrow.

 It has been a full, crazy and good day.  :)

Grandparents...

 are the reason that my boys are still alive.  Today was a bad day.  Lets go with I've been up since 4 am with a little boy having a bad night.  Then said little boy decided that it was morning time at 5:58am.  Then he screamed loudly enough to wake up his brother.  Oh I love my children, I love my children, I love my children.

 Wearily and somewhat despairingly, I skyped my husband and crawled back into bed.  Sometime later he called and prayed.  Right after I hung up, the phone rang.  It was my MIL asking if she could take my boys this morning.  I just about wept for joy!  I got the boys out the door, Aris fed, her lunch made and Aris to school on time, and then I just took care of me.  Wow!  That made all the difference.

 I really really hope that the kids sleep tonight because I'm babysitting three other children tomorrow.  Yes, I am a wee bit nuts.  On the bright side, I won't be bored tomorrow. :)

"Neath Dappled Sun...

 we sit, three mamas.   Our kids run, nurse, cuddle, and playfight with swords as we share our hearts.  Parenting books sit on the patio table as we try to be better mamas, wiser mamas.  Underneath the pines, we share coffee, pizzas, salad and our hearts.  It is good.

 Later in a kitchen with iced coffees in hand, I sit with different mamas.  At an impromptu after-school date we sit around the table, listening to happy children play.  We sit quietly, chatting about summer plans, library programs, grief, death, loss.  We sit quietly, just enjoying the chance to be together, to be valued.  It is also good.

 Life is not meant to be lived alone.  We can't thrive all boxed up, isolated.  It doesn't work.  So I treasure these moments of impromptu feasts when we can be mothers and women together.  We encourage each other, share wisdom.  In these moments, I am blessed.

A Patient Man

 Before supper, I wept.  Waves of grief washed over me and I stumbled up the stairs to my room, pushed aside the pile of clean laundry to be folded and collapsed in a heap on my bed.  As I wept, the patient man climbed the stairs.  He lay down next to me, our heads touching, his hands attempting to calm my heaving body.   My wonderful man tries to calm my heart, not understanding my grief.  He's a man and just doesn't understand the way women work, especially how mean and cruel women can be.  He understands my grief, but doesn't understand the fear of more shame and rejection from our community.  But he waits, patiently, until the storm passes because he loves me.  My wonderful husband sees things I can't see, possibilities for hope that my grief blinds me to.  So he waits and prays, holds me close and tells me about the beautiful land full of promises fulfilled.  I let him be my eyes, be my hope and I grasp tightly.  He prays, hopes, trusts for me when I cannot.  The blessings of patient, God-fearing man are too many to be counted.  As a married couple, we've walked through many storms with the potential of many more to come and within those storms I find more reason to love this wonderful man God gave me.  Now I need to release him as he leaves tomorrow for a conference in the States.  If you pray, please pray for both of us in this challenging time.

We're Back!

 The VB crew is back from a fabulous mini-vacation away.  We had a great time with very little in the way of injuries, no sunburns(that I'm aware of), no lost children, and two children that got completely covered in mud.  Aris was embarrassed,  Zane thought it was okay, and Steve and I laughed our heads off.  But of course we forgot to take pictures.  Steve wants to watch tv that scares me(yes, I'm a wuss), so I'm going to read my book instead.  I'm so tired and yet so happy!  Best part: no meltdowns from the oldest child on the way home or at bedtime! Can you say miracle?  And she asked for a treat of a big cold glass of water!  We are so thankful and relieved by her awesome behaviour! Okay, good night now, for real this time. :)

 I am thankful for a lot right now.  It's been an extremely rough couple of days, but oh am i blessed! Here's my list:
-a wonderful pastoral couple who have walked with us through a challenging 9 months and continue to love, pray, encourage and challenge us.
-rhubarb upsidedown cake with warm vanilla sauce
-afternoon playdates for my older two children
-a baby with adventurous eating habits(he ate sweet corn and shrimp dumplings)
-a lunch date with my love(and the adventurous baby) at spring rolls
-laughter
-rock'n'roll worship
-parents who pray
-a husband who prays
-local delicious carrots all cut up for our mini-vacation tomorrow
-a much anticipated mini-vacation

 My list could be much longer.  I am blessed. Most likely I won't blog tomorrow as we will be in Niagara Falls on a family vacation.  I am very excited!

Books!

 I love to read.  The library was one of my favourite places as a child. Enid Blyton's Famous Five series was one of my favourite childhood series. I also loved the Babysitter's Club, Sweet Valley Twins, Gilbert Morris and Janet Oke as a child.  Last month I was dismayed to find that my library carries very little in the way of Enid Blyton.  I wanted my children to experience her books too.  Then my friend sent out an email that she just purchased some Enid Blyton for resale.  I was so excited! Aris, J. and I went to a nearby town for their community garage sale.  While I was driving around this somewhat unfamiliar town, I randomly found my friend's house.  I was in luck.  She still had 6 books of the series left! I am very very happy about today's find.  Now to start reading. And to collect more both for my collection and for my best friend who was very jealous. :)

Babysitting, Shopping and Poutine

 I'll be honest. Today has been rough.  I woke up early with a headache and eyes that were still sore from crying.  Both my husband and I shed tears this morning, with me crying off and on throughout the day.  We were zombies trying to navigate a changed landscape.  The *funny* part is that life hasn't really changed, we just had our suspicions confirmed.  Still, we had held out hope.

 Last night, Steve's parents babysat for us.  When we came home visibly upset, they sat and listened for several hours.  This morning, my MIL called to see how she could help.  I was hoping to sleep, so she took Kian.  Unfortunately, sleep didn't happen.  Once I'm awake, it's very rare for me to go back to sleep.  But the wonderful J invited me to go to the mall with her.  Her company was exactly what I needed.  We had a good trip.  We both love shoes(and dresses) so we have a great time scoping out the footwear.  J is older and wiser so she gave good advice.  I am so thankful for such a wonderful friend!

 I was very bad today and didn't end up eating until after 1pm.  My sugars were a mess. :( Since I was having such a bad day, I decided to eat delicious, but bad for me food.  Our transfer had almost expired, so we grabbed poutine and a hot dog from the food court and hurried to catch the bus.  J kept sniffing the bag the whole way home. We were both so hungry!  Upon arriving home, we shared lunch at her house.  It was very very nice.  :)

 Today has been rough.  I'm probably going to game more than normal over the next couple of days.  But I'm holding out hope that we will be okay.  My faith is tattered right now, but I'm so thankful for all the little and big blessings in my life.  Even in this difficult time, I am blessed.

Catching Flies

 Yesterday my house was invaded by flies.  It was a fly-free zone in the morning, but home to a colony of flies by the evening.  I was not amused!  Steve and I had fun killing flies before bed, but there were still quite a few left by morning.  Well, there are significantly less flies now.  Aris and Kian have discovered a new passion.  They like killing flies together.  I am very content to let them kill flies. :) And these flies are big enough that we're able to identify and admire various parts such as the eyes and probosicis.  It was pretty cool!  Perhaps I can be thankful for flies after all!

 Tonight's meeting did not go well.  More prayers, please! Many thanks to those who prayed and continue to pray.

Well-behaved Children

 Today was not a good day.  I woke up exhausted and the day went downhill from there.  It wasn't so much that I had a horrible day, as it was that I had enough bumps to be completely emotionally drained.  I've cried or felt like crying a lot today!

 The absolutely best part of my day was the appointment with the optometrists.  My older children had eye appointments after school so off we went.  Now I think I'm not alone in dreading any sort of appointment with children in tow.  Waiting rooms are the worst!  It's not that my kids are bad, it's more that they are very active and not very quiet children.   Waiting rooms are not set up for my type of children.  I keep hoping that they'll morph into bookworms and then waiting rooms will become much much easier.  At first Kian was running around and very upset that he didn't get an appointment too.  He wants so badly to be a big kid!  Then we were led back to the special waiting area that has toys and books.  Oh it was heavenly! The boys started playing nicely(hallelujah!) and Aris found a magazine.  Both Aris and Zane went in without any fuss for their appointments, and all three of them played(or read) very nicely.  They were so good I didn't want to leave when we were done and neither did they.  I seriously considered leaving, but wasn't sure how understanding the staff would be. :)  After the tumultuous day I had, their good behaviour was a soothing balm.  And I enjoyed reading my magazine. :)

 For those of you who pray, please pray for me tomorrow.  I have a meeting set up that promises to be challenging. Thank you! *hugs*

Borrowing Babies

 Babies are on my list of favourite things.  Whenever I'm around friends with babies, I'm typically holding one.  After having two very demanding infants, I have become very talented at calming down babies.  I'm also extra-sensitive to the stressed-out, touched-out mama and love to give them a break.

 Tonight Veronica, Baby M, J and I walked to Starbucks.  It is a beautiful night and we all experienced stress today.  There's nothing quite like an evening walk with friends to get a delicious frozen coffee beverage.  It was quite calming. While we were there, Baby M woke up grumpy.  He wasn't really hungry, just fussy.  His mama had a challenging day, so I swiped him.  It was wonderful!  On the way home, he became fussy again so I held him for awhile in my special "Auntie Gracie" hold.  He loves it when I hold him on his tummy, but won't calm down for either of his parents in the same position.  This makes me feel very special.  It also brings back memories of a little girl who would not stop screaming until I held her in that postion while pacing the floor and singing.  I'm thankful not just for a special touch, but for my own children who have taught me empathy and forced me to learn advanced comfort measures for babies. :)

Paying Attention

 My littlest is rather observant.  On our walk to church this morning, I was focussed on the path when he squealed "bunny wabbit!" very excitedly.  Sure enough there was a bunny bounding across the path.  It was a very special moment.  As we approached the library entrance, Kian had to look for snails.  He loves snails!  Other than collecting them as a child to earn money from my grandfather,  I don't really pay attention to snails.  But Kian is fascinated by them.  On Friday we observed a "mommy swug" for about five minutes. Today we looked closely for snails.  After finding about 5 clinging to the stone, we found one fully extended "strolling" along the sidewalk.  We stopped and watched.  I must confess that after all these years of not paying attention, I'm now finding snails fascinating.  I'm so thankful for my little man who forces me to pay attention.  I notice much more when I'm out with my kids.  This has been and continues to be a blessing. :)

Building a Community One BBQ at a Time

 Several weeks ago, we had a fantastic barbeque with our neighbours.  Such a great time was had that we decided to do it again.  It was a great afternoon spent with new and older friends.  Both Steve and I have been getting to know separately another family at school and we invited them to join us.  Our neighbours invited one of their friends who is new to this region as well.  It was a loud chaotic and very fun afternoon spent out in the sun.  J and I made desserts and a salad together both of which turned out very well.  I was really impressed that the desserts survived since I accidentally left the brownies in 18 minutes too long.  Thankfully both brownies and the rhubarb crisp survived. :)

 I am thankful for good food, good friends, a beautiful day, living next to a forest, finding Kian when he ran away(again!), and for a good God who gives good gifts.  Good night! :)

 p.s. i'm also very thankful for grandparents who take grandchildren for sleep-overs.  steve and i had a very good night's sleep and a peaceful morning.  personally i felt very refreshed this morning even in the midst of chaotic barbeque prep.  nothing quite like attending a school anniversary party while you're supposed to preparing food. :) and on that front, i'm also very thankful for unexpected faith conversations with old teachers. that was neat!

WCI's Fiftieth Anniversary

 My wonderful husband and I went to the same high school.  We didn't meet until later(much later in his case), but have enjoyed sharing similar experiences and teachers.  This year our high school celebrated 50 years.  Steve and I decided to attend one of the many functions as our date night.  We had a great night reacquainting with classmates and teachers.  Not too many of our yearmates were there, but it was still fun. Even better, our children are having a sleep-over tonight so we get to sleep in tomorrow! This is a rare treat. :)

Adaptation

 Being a mother has changed me.  One of the biggest changes has been adaptation.  I'm not good at change and I'm pretty fearful.  I'm also very aware of my limitations.  But I'll try just about anything for my children when they get that look.  Today Aris wanted to make tarts. Specifically rhubarb tarts.  So I got out my crust, found a recipe and then adapted it.  I love to bake, but I still feel new enough at it that I don't like to mess with recipes.  I looked online and in my baking guidebooks, but couldn't find anything to help me. Because I love my daughter, we experimented.  The tarts turned out lovely.  We made 24 bite-sized tarts and then use the leftovers in a small pie.  It was a success, even with using cherry jello instead of strawberry. Yes Mom, I did use your recipe. I'm thankful for the fun we had baking and for the personal growth I'm experiencing because of my lovely littles.  Now I need to make more pie crust for my freezer for the next baking frenzy. :)

Painted Church

  Facebook, how I love thee! No, seriously I do sometimes.  A writer friend from a summer at camp wrote a beautiful note today.  She got me thinking and my initial comment ended up as part of her blogpost.  I've been mulling over her thoughts for the rest of my day.  Thankfully, what started out as a pain day ended up being a mostly pain-free day and I got lots accomplished. Yay!

 I'd encourage you to read my friend's post, because otherwise what follows may not make sense.  It's okay. I'll wait.....I want my life and my impact to be real.  I don't want to be a painted flower, pretty but fake.  A cut flower isn't much better.  Sure it's protected from the elements and stays prettier longer, but in the end it dies without fruit.  This being real means being messy.  My flowers regularly take damage from the elements, the squirrels and the weedwhackers(the lawncare people don't seem to know their flowers).  But those same battered plants do something.  They provide nourishment, oxygenate the air  and beautify my yard.  When crushed, my plants give off fragrance.  I want to be like them.  My life isn't perfect.  For a very long time, I felt that in order to be a good Christian I had to pretend it was.  Until very recently I still wrestled with that concept but in different forms.  Now I'm walking a bare soul road.

 I'd be lying if I said my heart was completely in the right place.  It isn't.  But slowly, so slowly I'm getting there.  And by being so honest, I think that's where that sweet smelling fragrance comes from.  I don't have it all together.  My life and my faith are in fragments.  BUT my wonderful wonderful Saviour hasn't abandoned me.  Instead He's making something beautiful out of this mess.  People keep telling me how much I'm growing and how beautiful my faith is.  I don't get it.  However, I'm so grateful for this beautiful healing, this grace that makes my brokenness something new, something better.

 When the Church and Christians are merely painted flowers, it's hard to get any nourishment.  Taking off the masks and walking bare souled is hard.  Make no mistake, there is a price.  But when the masks come off, grace can come in.   And then what a beautiful garden there is!

Going Postal

 I'm only blogging tonight because I promised a dear friend that I would.  She likes her morning dose of Grace with her coffee. :)  Unfortunately for the second night in a row, I have a horrid migraine.  I hate migraines!  But I have a wonderful husband who made dinner and put the kids to bed, and a wonderful little girl who took care of me while I was puking and told me that I'm the best mommy in the world.  Miss Aris blows me away with her words of encouragement.

  Once I started feeling a wee bit better, I consented to watch tv with my wonderful husband.  We're both huge fans of Terry Pratchett.  If you haven't heard of him, he's a British fantasy writer.  His work is brillant.  Several of his works have been adapted to movies.  Tonight we watched the first half of Going Postal, one of my favourite Discworld novels.  Although it isn't completely true to the book, it is a very good watch.  Brilliant adaptations of my favourite books make me happy. :) 

 Also on the list of things that make me happy comes phone calls from very good friends.   One of my best friends who lives far away called me today.  Just talking to her makes me feel better.  There's something about those very good friends that I've known for a very long time.  Phone conversations are so much different now that I always have kids to chase, but I still treasure them. :)