Things I'm happy about

This has been an interesting week, to say the least.  I'm actually pretty proud of how I've held it together so far, and we have less than two full days before my husband comes home.  (I think I can, I think I can...)

I've been trying to focus on the good things, and remind myself that toys strewn all over the living room isn't always the tragedy that I make it out to be. So here, in no particular order, are things that made me super happy today.

~The box of fresh tulips that were waiting on my doorstep when I came home following very long drive from violin lessons.  Somehow, my husband managed to send me flowers from clear across the world, and they couldn't have arrived at a better time.  And they're tulips, which to me are a reminder that Spring might someday actually reappear and melt the three feet of snow that's outside my doorstep.

~Max's new words and expressions.  Our newest laughs all center around his responses when you ask him to do something.  Often, he responds with a cheerful "Sure!"  Other times, like this morning when I asked him to get out of the bath, it was "No thanks."  And a few times, I can tell he's channeling his nine year old sister, because he'll stomp his feet, roll his eyes, and shout "Fine!"

~I may have designed the world's best Pandora station.  I don't care how good yours is.  LIly Allen+Regina Specktor+ just  touch of Coldplay and U2.  Perfect.  I don't even listen to anything else anymore. 

~And thanks in part to the word's best Pandora station, all of my bathrooms have been scrubbed top to bottom today.  Yes, I now have three clean toilets.  You may all come over and ask to use the restroom, and I won't even have to apologize before I let you go in there.  You might have to step over a pile of dirty clothes on the stairs, ignore the 17 balls strewn all over the living room, and pretend you don't see enough peanut butter and jelly smeared on my counter to make a sandwich all while making your way to my sparkling clean restrooms, but who cares!  I even scrubbed behind the toilets.  I may be in the running for homemaker of the year here, watch out.

~Max's head of crazy messy curls.  I should probably cut it.  But I can't.  It's his third head of hair, and this is the longest he's ever gone growing it out before someone takes a razor to it so they can cut open his skull.  Besides, not everyone can work the curls like this handsome little boy.

~Messy faces, the chocolate ice cream cones that make the messes, and the cell phone cameras to document them.  By the time I got this one cleaned up, he had chocolate ice cream behind his ear.  Now that's good ice cream!  

~ The sound of two little boys snoring away heard through the baby monitor.  Time without one little person or another clinging to me has been severely limited lately, so of course, what am I doing?  Blogging about said little people.

~Watching my daughter, who after years of early morning violin practices and tears, is starting to turn into a capable, sensitive musician all on her own.  She has a recital coming up next week, and I was teary-eyed listening to her rehearse the Vivaldi g minor with her accompanist today.

~This picture that I found on my bed this morning.  I am continually surprised that anyone will even talk to me after spending some time with the wicked grumpy mom who takes my place in the mornings, but for Ashlynn to color this for me and suprise me with it after the morning that I had assures her place in heaven. 

~Remember how I have a baby?  He's the easiest baby in the whole world.  (and yes, I did just knock on wood.)  I didn't know babies came this easy.  He sleeps.  For a good part of the day.  And here's the kicker: he puts himself to sleep.  He doesn't want to be rocked, nursed, cuddled, swayed or patted to sleep.  Just swaddle him up and put him in the bed, thank you very much.  It's a little bit weird for me actually.  And he nurses great, but only when he's hungry.  For about five minutes, and then he's done. And his smiles are the cutest thing ever.  I just want to eat his face off.  In a totally not-weird, non-cannibalistic way, of course. Now before you all start throwing poopy diapers at me, I earned this baby thankyouverymuch.  I earned him with the whole first year of Abby's life where she wouldn't sleep for more than 40 minutes a day when we wore a track in our carpet from pacing up and down the hall, listening to her cry for her first 18 months solid.  I still marvel every time I set Ian down in the bed and watch him settle himself in for a three hour nap.  If he would have come first, I would have been convinced that I was the world's best parent.

~Did I mention that my husband is coming home on Sunday?  And that no one has yet had to visit the emergency room or the doctors' office?  (And yes, I just knocked on wood again!)

How about you? What's making you happy today?