Thankful: Days 15 - 21

Wow. The past week is such a blur! I was one of three chaperones that took 45 high school juniors on a three day trip through Texas and into Oklahoma. Needless to say, I was a little pre-occupied and blogging just wasn't an option. The students were awesome. Of the 45, 34 were boys. (There really are only 9 girls in the junior class.) If you haven't been around 16 year old boys recently, let me tell you that they are 234,892 times more annoying and gross than girls of the same age. At one point, I had to yell, "QUIT FARTING ON THE BUS!" Classy, I tell you.

We made it safely home after traveling almost 800 miles, and for that, I am thankful. There were no injuries. (See: boys jumping over anything they can find.) And I've already received an email from a parent detailing how her son talked for an HOUR about the trip, and all that he learned. For that, I am thankful. Boys aren't exactly known for sharing. Plus he (and hopefully others) really LISTENED on the trip. It made the hours of planning so worth it.

After returning home in a semi-sleep-deprived state, Husby was fine with a nice dinner from the Taco Bell drive through. Super thankful for an easy-to-please husband. After a chili cheese burrito (my Taco Bell favorite) and the final two episodes of Wonderfalls, I absolutely had to go to bed. After three morning of super early alarms, the earliest a 4am, I was able to rest. Normally on days off, I'm unable to sleep late. But my body knew I needed rest. I slept 9 hours! For that I am oh-so-very thankful!

Mid-morning on Saturday, we were out the door to a very important first birthday party. This little guy is the sweet son of my BFF of southeast Texas:

Photo by Charissa Foux

Isn't that the cutest picture ever?! I was able to deliver Hayden's cake, and the boy seemed to love Cherry Laurel Butterum cake. He made his mom proud. :) I am so thankful to be able to celebrate the oh-so-important events with friends like these. 

Yesterday, we were able to have lunch with my sister-in-laws family visiting from Spain. Although there was a language barrier (my 8 semesters of Spanish in high school and college didn't really "stick"), we had an enjoyable time with them. I look forward to celebrating our tradition of Thanksgiving with them. It makes me happy to see my sister-in-law loving on her mom and niece. For that I am thankful.  

And then there was today. I decided that the best time to have two root canals done was during my week off. (Note to self: breaks aren't enjoyable when you're in pain. Use sick days next time.) I am thankful that SO FAR it hasn't reached the pain level of Wisdom Teeth Extraction 2010 or Temporary Crown Loss 2009, but it's not super fun. Probably the least fun was the shot in the hard palate. And that happened twice since I had one root canal on each side. BUT my dentist saw it fit to prescribe Valium prior to the procedure. And my 12 year hiatus from laughing gas is over. I didn't see a spinning clown the entire time. Super great! Already I've noticed a difference: I DIDN'T DOUBLE OVER IN PAIN when I drank coffee this afternoon. For that, I am thankful.

The remainder of the week involves two Thanksgiving celebrations, an authentic Mexican dinner with family, decorating for Christmas and spending time with some sweet friends. My wonderful college roommate will visit; we haven't seen each other in forever and busyness has prevented us from connecting in weeks (maybe 2 months!). But we'll enjoy sitting and talking and reading and napping and drinking hot apple cider with twinkle lights glowing in the background. It's going to be a good week. For that, I am thankful.