1. Halloween--elementary students + costumes + candy = A very festive (if not a bit chaotic) holiday!
2. Making Halloween cupcakes for some neighbors--What is it about this time of year that makes baking so much more fun than usual?
3. Teaching conference--Last Thursday I got a substitute for my class and went to a "Motivating Unmotivated Students" conference in Salt Lake City with some other teachers at my school. While the conference wasn't everything for which I had hoped, it was so nice to have a change of pace and get a chance to bond with some lovely fellow educators.
4. Mornings in bed--On both Saturday and Sunday I woke up around 6:30 a.m. feeling rested and unable to fall back asleep. So ... I fluffed up my pillow, grabbed a book and my computer, and read and wrote e-mails for the first couple hours of my day. I have to admit, there are definitely worst ways to spend quiet weekend mornings.
5. Fall Daylight Savings Time--I remember telling Darren not too long ago that I just need a few more hours in my day. Well, yesterday we got one. :)
6. Snowy weather--I know what some of you are thinking: being grateful for snow is not typical behavior for Mrs. Kate Myler. Maybe it was the mornings I spent in bed, waiting for the sun to rise, and knowing that there was a THIN layer of snow outside while I was safe and warm under my comforter that actually made me smile at the thought of there being snow on my doorstep.
7. Finishing a book--There are few things as sweet as finishing a good book. There is a feeling of accomplishment and time to relish the purpose behind the author's writing. Love it!
8. Starting a new book--The excitement I find in starting a new book rivals the satisfaction I feel in finishing a great one. I'm always intrigued by what an author chooses to write as the first and last lines of a book. I read the first sentence, especially of a book that comes recommended from those I know and love, with all the anticipation of meeting a potential life-long friend.
9. Beautiful writing--My dad has taught me the beauty that can come from clear, simple writing. Occasionally, however, I come across some very flowery writing that is nothing short of delicious. This was the case in the new Book Club book I started reading Saturday morning: The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman. I LOVE her detail! Her first paragraph completely drew me in:
"At dawn in an outlying district of Warsaw, sunlight swarmed around the trunks of blooming linden trees and crept up the white walls of a 1930s stucco and glass villa where the zoo director and his wife slept ... Oriental rugs warmed the parquet floor, where strips of wood slanted together as repeating feathers, and a birch armchair squared one corner of the room. When a breeze lifted the voile curtain enough for grainy light to spill in without casting shadows, barely visible objects began anchoring Antonina to the sensible world."
Amazing!
10. Friends having babies--A few weeks ago, I found out that a good friend is pregnant with her first baby due this May. Yesterday morning, I received a text from another great friend announcing the birth of her first--a precious baby boy. I am so excited for my friends and their new little families. I can't help thinking how lucky these little kids are to have such amazing parents. Congratulations, Tessa (and Paul) and Shelley (and Nick)!!
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