Week end-ed.

What are you up to this weekend?

My sister is coming into town to run her first marathon this Sunday in Atlantic City.  I'm so ridiculously proud of her!

Tonight, we'll slurp down ginormous bowls of Mom's famous lasagna soup and then cuddle up on the couch and watch silly romantic comedies.

Tomorrow we'll drive down to AC in time to catch some college football (go UM!) and fill up on a huge pasta dinner before waking up early for the main event Sunday morning.  My running sneakers are packed just in case she needs a running buddy along the 26.2 mile route.

I hope your weekend is filled with good food, people you love and something to cheer about!

Bless-ed Home.

What is it about going home that makes everything seem right?

Last week Mom and I stayed up late baking caramel pecan squares, swooning over paint colors for her bedroom remodel, and drinking more wine than is appropriate on a Wednesday evening. It was perfect.

Dad filled me in on all of his new projects, and drove me to the train in the morning, waiting with the seat warmers turned up high.

Life is pretty wonderful like that.

Balanc-ed in moderation.

Ah, it is amazing what a restful weekend can do for the soul!  Sometimes there is nothing sweeter than being in bed by midnight with tired legs, a fully tummy, and a happy heart.
Today productivity started strong, and lagged after lunch, though I don't feel bad about taking a little me time today.  The attempted theme of this week is balance, what should be a life theme, I think.  And so I will give myself some blog browsing time if it means I'll bang out the 30 grant payments waiting to be processed tomorrow morning.  I will take the trip home tomorrow night for dinner with baby sis, and maybe fit in a tennis session to feed my need for a good run around before bed.  I will skip the gym for a catch up session with the girls later this week.  I often get lost in the 'need to do,' 'should really,' and 'wish I did's of life.  It's time to recognize the 'sure, why not's.

It doesn't matter how many times it is said, we always forget that the to do list will be there tomorrow.  A good life, like a good drink, should have equal parts sweetness, tart, and spice.  May you be drunk with happiness this week.  But remember, all in moderation.

Peak-ed into the Future.

As my plane landed last night, a sinking feeling began to grow in my stomach.  A sinking feeling that it was over; that our vacation was coming to a close, and reality would tuck away all of the good things in life until the next time we hit the beach.  And a sinking feeling that I'd never leave again, forgetting that I'm lucky enough to have another trip planned two weeks from now.

How do our brains have a way of making everything so final sometimes?

Today sitting at my desk, I had to remind myself there will always be a next new big thing.  That just because one event, one experience, one day is over, it does not mean that there won't be an even better one to follow.  There will always be something to look forward to, no matter how small.  In fact, life isn't always about the big things.  It's about the anxious feeling of cracking open a new notebook on the first day of class.  It's about the dizzy laughter you share over crisp white wine on the first days of summer.  It's about the hugs you get walking through the door back home. 

Life's landscape is not a steady climb, but a jagged, twisting path dipping into valleys and soaring to the peaks above the clouds.  The best climbers understand that there is just as much beauty in the valley as there is from the top.