Happy 101

My friend Ang thinks I'm pretty awesome... either that or she was desperate for another person to give this award to. I'm going to go with the awesome part... especially since I think she's pretty awesome. Either way, receiving this award means I must come up with ten things I really love. We'll see how long this takes.

1. My family. I know, that's quite possibly the most common, generic answer one can give, but it is at the top of my list. They may be my biggest trials in life, but my life wouldn't be the same without each and every one of them. My hot husband. My beautiful kids. My kind and loving parents. My wonderful brothers and sisters and their families. Even my inlaws. They keep life interesting. They are the reason I get out of bed in the morning.

2. Butt warmers. Last year when I went shopping for a new car, this was the number one thing on my list of "must have's". I lucked out by finding a car with fabric seats that came with butt warmers. 99% of the time, it's on before my seatbelt. They are just that important.

3. The Big Bang Theory. We went for years without watching this quirky show on Monday nights, and then one night we found ourselves with nothing else to watch so we turned it on. We had no idea what we had been missing out on all these years. Plus, it cracks me up to hear my son sing the theme song word for word (and if you've ever heard the theme song, you'd know this is no easy task).

4. DVR's. Greatest invention ever, right next to the butt warmers. Best $5 (guessing here?) a month we spend.

5. Caller ID. Third greatest invention ever. Except for the fact that people are now resorting to using their cell phones and I don't always know who certain numbers belong to. I've since learned that if I don't recognize the number, I may not want to answer the phone... especially on Sunday mornings. One never knows what the person on the other end wants.

6. My job. My paying job, that is. Most of the time, anyway. It's mostly stress free, and there are some kids I'd like to drop-kick to China on a daily basis, but for the most part, I love it. I love working with the kids. I love walking down the hall and have them give me high fives, even a few hugs. I love running into them at the grocery store and seeing their big smiles when they see me. I love it when they stop by my office first thing in the morning just to say hi. And as an added bonus, I get to personally work with two nieces and a nephew who I absolutely adore!

7. Mr. Clean erasers. This stuff needs to come in a spray, window cleaner, and laundry detergent, too. Is there nothing it can't clean?

8. Blogging. I've always kept a journal, but I hate writing things by hand. I started blogging years ago, back when few people had ever heard of blogging. I have no idea whatever happened to that first blog I created, and I now have so many for various different blogging purposes, I can barely keep track of them all, nor do I keep them updated (who has the time?). Just for the record, I still have a "paper" journal I try to write in at least once a year, just for something different.

9. Barnes and Noble. I'm like a kid in a candy store when I go in there. I find when I go into town, I have to avoid the mall or take my non-loving Barnes and Noble husband with me when I go to the mall just so I won't be tempted to buy anything. I don't even have time to read most of the books I buy, I just love browsing the shelves, smelling the pages, owning the books. If I was made of money, I'd definitely need to buy a bigger house just to store all the books I'd love to own.

10. Living here. Sure, I live next door to my inlaws in a teeny tiny two stop light town of under 5,000 people, but... I'm less than five minutes from my job... I'm three hours or so from a major airport ... I can tour all of Yellowstone National Park, take pictures of the Tetons from Mormon Row, or hang with the rich and famous in Sun Valley and be home before dark ... there's an Olive Garden, Kohl's, Cafe Rio, Five guys burgers and fries, two Super Walmarts, waterfalls, rivers, lakes, mountains, ski hills, and windmills all within a short drive from my house ... what more could I ask for?

Finally, if you actually read this... consider yourself awarded - you know who you are. Be sure to let me know you did it so I can come see what things you love.