Happy New Year!

Today new beginnings made me smile. Tomorrow the calendar turns and we all get to start anew. I have enjoyed 2008, it brought us our first home, a wonderful puppy and strength to our marriage. It hasn't been without challenges, PCOS and fertility among them but it was a year I wouldn't trade in.

I am looking forward to the new successes and challenges of 2009 though.... where will I be one year from now? Will we have another puppy? Will I have achieved my national board certification? Is this the year I leave the classroom for a literacy coordinator position? Will I be pregnant? Will we have the addition on the house we want? Will DH be in a job where he is happy? So much hope and possibility. New beginnings made me smile today.

#25!!

This is the 25th post on Find the Smiles! That makes me smile in itself. Which brings me to my smile today, celebrations make me smile. Today is DH's birthday and it makes me happy, to make him happy on his special day! Happy Birthday DH!

DH Fake Birthday

We celebrated DH's birthday last night. His actual birthday is on Tuesday but it's such a crazy time of year our friends and family really thought it would be easier to celebrate on a Saturday. We got pizzas, played guitar hero, and just caught up with people. It was really nice and DH had a great time which was really the point. DH's fake birthday made me smile!

Christmas

Today I remember just how blessed I am. I have an amazing husband who loves me with all of his heart, supportive parents and in laws who treat me as their own. A sister and brother in law who are just the best friends you can think of. Two sister in laws and their spouses who always remember to let us know they care and two nephews who always make me smile and who remind me that sometimes things ARE just as they seem. I am so blessed today... I hope you are as well. Merry Christmas!

Hugh Grant

First of all, I just love Hugh Grant in general but I am sitting here watching Love Actually and that little dance number he does makes me smile EVERY time. Seriously, it never fails. THe whole movie is AMAZING but Hugh Grant's dance scene is it for me. Hugh Grant's dance scene in Love Actually made me smile. HOLY COW IT'S ON YOU TUBE!

Elmo

An Elmo joke made me smile today. So as not to butcher it I will post it here...

There is a factory in Northern Minnesota which makes the Tickle Me Elmo toys. The toy laughs when you tickle it under the arms.
Well, Lena is hired at The Tickle Me Elmo factory and she reports for her first day promptly at 8:00 am. The next day at 8:45 am there is a knock at the Personnel Manager's door. The Foreman throws open the door and begins to rant about the new Employee.
He complains that she is incredibly slow and the whole line is backing up, putting the entire production line behind schedule.
The Personnel Manager decides he should see this for himself, so the 2 men march down to the factory floor. When they get there the line is so backed up that there are Tickle Me Elmo's all over the factory floor and they're really beginning to pile up.
At the end of the line stands Lena surrounded by mountains of Tickle Me Elmo's. She has a roll of plush Red fabric and a huge bag of small marbles.

The 2 men watch in amazement as she cuts a little piece of fabric, wraps it around two marbles and begins to carefully sew the little package between Elmo's legs.

The Personnel Manager bursts into laughter. After several minutes of hysterics he pulls himself together and approaches Lena I'm sorry,' he says to her, barely able to keep a straight face, 'but I think you misunderstood the instructions I gave you yesterday...'

'Your job is to give Elmo two test tickles.

The best part about this joke is that every time DH or his Boss (both extremely tall and large men 6'5"+ and 250+) they wiggle their fingers like they're tickling something. LOL It's just too much!

Sisters

My sister made me smile today. :-) My DH did some last minute shopping with his best friend and dad so I was alone and my BIL works on Saturdays so DS (dear sister) was also alone. We met for lunch to catch up and then went back to her house where we played, chatted, and enjoyed eachother's company. We only live about 9 miles apart but we are both so busy we don't get many opportunities to hang out together anymore. Today my sister made me smile.

Shoveling

Yup- shoveling made me smile. I've never really been one to do hard physical outdoor labor but I decided to shovel today as a surprise to DH who has been cranky lately. I thought, well if I get just half done he'll be proud of me and that will save him time... but I just turned on the old iPod and kept rockin'. What a good time. I smiled, danced, and cleaned up the entire driveway!
Shoveling made me smile today!

Near Misses

Actually near misses made me smile on Friday but I've been without power for a few days so I am catching up! One of the MANY giant pine trees around our house cracked under the weight of the ice but thankfully it leaned away from the house and landed right behind our cars. Near misses made me smile.

Free Oil Change

My free oil change made me smile today! :-)

I bought my car 5 years ago (just sent out my FINAL payment this week!) and when I bought it the dealership promised me free oil changes and for all 80,000 I have gotten them. Today was my 16th free oil change! DH is hoping to get me a new car for Christmas, something with four-wheel drive but I am only willing to buy from a place where the dealership will give me free oil changes... :-)

Free oil changes made me smile!

Like Minds

Like Minds made me smile today. I have long been feeling there needs to be some changes in the way we teach today and I happened to find 2 other teachers in my building who felt the same. Like minds made me smile today.

Chinese Food

Chinese food made me smile today. I had a doctor's appointment right at lunch time today so DH and I got take out for lunch. We went to our favorite Chinese place and listen to this- the lunch special comes with soup, appetizer of the day, crispy noodles, entree, rice, and a fortune cookie all for $5.25. If we had eaten in we also would have gotten a pot of hot tea for free. I just love that place. Chinese food made me smile today.

Christmas Tree

Today we put up our Christmas tree. We awoke to light snow coating the driveway and falling still. It inspired us to borrow my dad's truck and head to the tree lots. We picked out the PERFECT tree (I'll edit this post and add a picture tomorrow when my phone is working). We came home, set it up and spent the rest of the morning trimming the tree with that snow falling in the background. It was relaxing, beautiful, and it is helping me get in the holiday spirit. Our Christmas Tree made me smile. (The smell is making me smile right now)

DN (Darling Nephew)

My nephew made me smile today. Actually he's my husband's nephew but potatoes/potatoes... He is six and I teach kindergarten so we are right there. DH and I spent the day with his sister, brother in law and his nephews. His sister and brother in law don't always care to do family stuff so we only see them a couple times a month despite the fact that we live in the same town. It's tough to have a relationship with the boys but we do the best we can.

Anyway, today we were are the store and little T sidled up beside me and took my hand and said out loud to no one in particular- "T's (that's me by the way) my best friend." It made me smile because I just love that kid and it was nice to know he loves me right back! Now I know he will have another best friend by tomorrow but still... so DN made me smile today.

Article about hapiness...

I found this today at work while browsing during my lunch break. It made me feel good about my goals for this blog. Check it out if you get a chance!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28058552/

Mucinex

Mucinex made me smile today. I have been battling a cold and that is the first OTC med that has made me breathe through my nose in a week. Mucinex in, mucus out! Mucinex made me smile today.

TandCookies

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Kindness of others

Today the kindness of others made me smile. I've not been feeling well and my resiliency at work is way down as a result. This afternoon the stress caught up with me and one of my co-workers stood there until I felt better and pep talked me right back into reality.

It's funny, this year my best work friend went to a new job and I thought for sure I'd be isolated and alone all year and work would just be work. I underestimated my coworkers so much. With my old pal gone I've made some new connections and with people I never thought I'd get to know. Instead of having one work best friend I now have a couple and it is so nice. I feel more welcome there than ever before and respected for my opinions and ideas. Today, the kindness of others made me smile.

Microsoft Word

It has been a tricky day to find the smiles... I have a sinus infection, the students in my class are going slightly crazy due to the holiday approaching, I have more work than I can humanly do in one night and I'd also like to blog, take a bath, and spend some time with my husband....

If I dig deep and really think long and hard about my day, learning how to insert comments into a Word Document made me smile. (I frowned when it printed and it turns out it changed my margins and shrunk my font but what can you do?) So learning how to insert and track comments in a Word Document made me smile.

Lice

Not having lice is what made me smile today. There is a small epidemic going through my classroom and I am thanking my lucky stars that I have escaped again. I am afraid though that my number may be up this year- ponytails and hairspray here I come!