August 30th, 2012 - JJ

1. I get to go home tomorrow. Can't wait to get back to the Pacific NW for a few days and see so many friends and family! :) Not to mention getting away from work for a while.

 

2. After today I only have one more really hellish week (god, Tim, & DHS willing...) before things at work calm down more. Hopefully in the next month I'll be able to catch up on observation reports and filing and not feel like I'm doing all my work on a last minute basis anymore.

 

3. Heather, for being wonderful. I'm so glad she's in Milwaukee instead of across the country, although I do wish that Milwaukee was a little more accessible from Chicago than it is (mostly because traffic and crazy midwest drivers get in my way).

 

4. That Derick is also a Behavior Analyst and I can bounce ideas off of him when I get stuck on a plan. It's really nice to have someone at home who competely understands what I do for a living.

 

5. That time flies when you're busy. I can't believe it's already halfway through Thursday. I have a ton more work to do before next Thursday, but I'm happy that it's almost time to go home, and that half of the behavior plans I have to do between this week and next are finished (mostly).

August 29th, 2012 - JJ

1. Derick, for driving me to girls' night last night so that I could drink and not worry about driving home, and Jake for driving me back home afterward when he came to pick up Emily. Gotta love good men! :)

 

2. Work from home days. I love writing behavior plans in my pajamas!!

 

3. Peaberry coffee, and being able to share it with Sandi, our office manager. I hope she likes it as much as I do!!

 

4. Derick, for always knowing when I'm upset about something, even when I'm trying to hide it, and for making me feel better every time.

 

5. That Jessica is no longer way out in the ocean on a cruise and hopefully I'll be able to talk to her again sometime soon. Also for Makayla, who is celebrating her 8th birthday today. I cannot believe she is so old already! When did this happen?!?!

August 28th, 2012 - JJ

1. Erica's spinach pies. She brought some for our Chicago reception over the weekend and they are amazing!! I love them, and her!

2. Girls' night tonight with Erica and Emily! Can't wait!

3. Coffee. Screw it, I'm addicted and this is not the week to quit, so as soon as Jenna gets here I'm going to get an afternoon iced something or other to get rid of this withdrawal headache I've got going on, and help me get through all the paperwork I need to get through tonight. I love coffee.

4. Hair clips! Gotta love 'em!

5. Friends to discuss True Blood with. Because what the what happened on Sunday? and I have to wait until next summer to see what's next!?!  bah!

August 28th - Heather

1. That I keep bandaids in my desk. I gave myself a pretty bad papercut on a folder and was super thankful for the little packs of bandaids that I picked up during the Health Fair last year.

2. Sometimes the food you get for a catered event is boring and not so tasty...the catering menu that I crafted with our catering director for the retreat has been wonderful!

3. The opportunity to learn about cultural training. This year's facilitator has done a wonderful job of leading a great multi-day discussion focused on culture and how we learn and how we teach about culture.

4. That my mom was willing to help me get ready for my trip to Portland by doing my laundry while I worked until 10 o'clock last night. Now I get to head home and pack tonight.

5. Conversations that validate my desire to get my phd in Cultural Anthropology. Being in a room full of professors generally reinforces my choice of career paths...but this workshop in particular, discussing training for cultural experiences has been very powerful.

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August 27th, 2012 - JJ

1. That Derick and Kathy took care of me when I cut my finger and wimped out at the sight of my blood on Sunday. Derick came running as soon as I called for help and I really appreciate it because I couldn't even look at my finger and had no idea what to do next. I was literally jumping from foot to foot nervously with my hand under the faucet and my face turned as far away from the bleeding finger as I could get it. So silly. But they fixed me right up, and Heather even brought me water when I started to feel sick. I'm so thankful I had people there to help me out!

 

2. Peaberry coffee. SO DELICIOUS! I'm trying to get off coffee on weekdays again so I can relaly enjoy my weekend coffee, but it was so hard not to make the peaberry coffee this morning! The stuff is amazing! Thanks also to Heather & Kathy for getting it for me!

 

3. For everyone who came to our Chicago reception this weekend. Especially those who drove or flew in from out of town. It was a lot of fun seeing everyone and getting to entertain at our house, which we really don't do often enough!

 

4. The photobook Emily and Jake got for us and had everyone at the reception sign! I am so excited about it and can't wait to print out wedding pictures and put them in the book. I love it!!

 

5. Fresh pineapple. Yum!

August 23rd - Heather

1.  I just turned in my last assignment for class.  I'm homework free for two whole weeks!!!

2.  JJ for keeping me accountable for my blogging.  The first thing she said to me this morning was to remind me that I was behind on my 5 Things.

3.  Random morning text messages from an old friend.  They say nothing more than hello, but they always make me smile!

4.  Any time that Edward crawls up into my lap, lays down and starts purring....when I don't have food in my hand.  Purring doesn't count when he's begging for the food on my fork!

5.  The guest speaker for the retreat that I'm driving to the airport this coming week is not allergic to cats!  As I've mentioned before, I'm taking Jacob with me to Portland next week and my flight leaves an hour before our guest speaker, so I was concerned that if he was allergic to cats, I'd have to leave Jacob here.

6.  Listening to music in iTunes on my computer....I forget that I don't have all of my music on my iPod and it's so easy to listen to that I haven't really listened to music on my computer since I got my iPod.  But the other night I opened iTunes and reveled in some of my favorite songs!

7.  The little piece of my new wallet (ok, it's a month old now, but have only carried it in Chicago) that broke was easily fixed this afternoon....this Amazing adhesive may really be amazing after all! :)

8.  Driving to Chicago to see JJ and Derick this weekend....and those deep fried avocado fries.

9.  That even though I wasn't feeling well yesterday and even though I couldn't muster the energy for a full work out, I made a full fledged effort!  Work out clothes on....treadmill time clocked.

10.  The new therapeutic heating wrap that I went to bed with on my back last night.  Sweet sigh of relief, that thing felt wonderful!  It was like having a cordless heating pad attached to my back.

11.  Mom finding the Banana Chocolate Swirl flavor of Talenti gelato at a grocery store we don't frequent.  Tammy was so right...it's tasty!

12.  Getting to use my personal library for classwork.  Many of the books and papers off of my own selves have featured very heavily in my coursework for both of the classes I've taken so far.  It makes me happy to use some of the many books that are staring at me longingly from my bookcases.

August 23rd, 2012 - JJ

1. Unexpected work-from-home-all-day days!  All of my appointments for the day got cancelled and my boss said it's cool with him if I stay here and focus on getting my paperwork done. I am so excited! It feels like Christmas. I can't stop smiling!! I love my co-workers, but there are so many distractions in the office (mostly because I am too chatty) that it's hard to get a lot of work done there. My only regret is that I had already showered and dressed before I found out. I could've stayed in pajamas all day!

 

2. My momma for getting me all kinds of fun UofM stuff recently. I have an awesome v-neck long sleeved t-shirt that I've been wearing around the house (because I am pretending it's fall when I'm inside and the AC is on...I'm so done with summer!), and I have Christmas ornaments! Can't wait to put up a tree this year with all the neat stuff we now have to decorate it with!!

 

3. Tammy's apricot jam! I'm eating it on a bagel for breakfast this morning and it's delicious!!!

 

4. My Bahamas Starbucks coffee mug. Makes me miss Jenny and all her awesome friends. :)  I think I might ask her about planning a reunion cruise in the next year.

 

5. Anna.  I just really love her. She cracks me up all the time and is a great person to vent to when things go crazy at work. Also Jenna, who is my other life line at work. I don't know what I would do without these ladies!

August 22nd, 2012 - JJ

1. That I got to spend some quality time with Adrienne yesterday over dinner and that I decided to come in to work late so that I could drink coffee with her and chat this morning. Made it hard to leave the house and come in to work at all.

 

2. My co-workers, for supporting me in not re-writing a certain client's behavior plan just to make his guardian happy since what would make her happy isn't in line with what I think are the client's best interests long term.

 

3. The french press Derick got me for Easter. I love it! It makes such delicious coffee.

 

4. The yummy left overs I get to eat for lunch. Can't wait!

 

5. Dresses. Love being comfy and looking cute. So I'm also thankful for warm weather enabling me to comfortably wear a dress today.

August 21st, 2012

1. Jenna, Jen, and David. I've been in a pretty crappy mood when it comes to work lately but this morning they were able to put a smile on my face and brighten my day. I love getting to talk about True Blood with Jenna, talking about books with David, and getting to know Jen better (she's always in a good mood and I love that about her). I also love that they support my Starbucks habit.  

 

2. A fairly productive morning. I've already gotten several things crossed off of my to do list. Horray! 

 

3. True Blood. Jenna was right, I really needed to catch up!!  I can't believe there's only one episode left before the season is over! This season is much better than the last one was. I'm glad they're back on their game!

 

4. That we get to see Adrienne tonight!

 

5. Feeling thin, which is quite a feat since I'm currently drinking a Starbucks drink that's very high in calories (salted caramel mocha = heaven, especially in my cold ice box office), and eating peanut butter filled prezels. I'm not complaining, though!

August 20th - Heather

1. Google Art Project. So very, very cool!

2. After some very questionable moments, my back did not give out on me today!

3. My treasures from Gurnee Mills...a new purple suitcase that Jake's carrier will easily perch on and some fun paper crafting supplies.

4. Rochester Deli...my favorite is the Rachel (a Rueben with turkey instead of roast beef).

5. That even though the house filled with smoke, I didn't burn tomorrow's lunch and the smoke alarm didn't go off! My little baguette pizzas look perfect...can't wait for lunch tomorrow.

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August 20th, 2012 - JJ

1. Coffee, for getting me through the long drives to and from Michigan this weekend.

 

2. My mom for coming to visit and spend some quality time with just me. Gotta have mom time every now and then!! Wish it could've been a longer weekend.

 

3. Cooler weather. It hasn't been in the 90's for a while now, and I am so glad!

 

4. My Uncle Joe, who is hilarious! You can't help but smile when he's in the room.

 

5. Coming in to the office today to an expense reimbursement check on my chair. Horray!!

 

6. Getting to watch my mom and Aunt Cheryl at the Woodward Dream Cruise on Saturday. They were like kids in a candy store when they were scoping out all the old cars. It was great!

 

7. That I don't have to cat/house sit this week. I was glad I was able to do it last week because I love the family I was helping out, but it will be great to be able to go straight home this week after work and relax in my own space.

 

8. My kitties. They're so cute, and they make me laugh a lot. I can't imagine a life without cats!

 

9. The delicious dinner Derick made for my mom and I last night. It was so good! Can't wait to get to the left overs.

 

10. The ability to work from home in my job, which I am about to take advantage of.

August 17th - Heather

1. Thumbs up from both doctors today!

2. Friday workout. It's been all too easy to blow off working out on Fridays, but stuck to it today!

3. Pampered kitty parade. I could have made that more of an alliteration, but be that as it may... We took the cats out with us for the day and it's always great to see people's reaction when they realize we're not pushing a baby stroller!

4. Beautiful weather today. It was crisp and breezy. Not cool enough for a jacket and not warm enough for shorts...my idea of perfection.

5. A week and half (10 days, but I'm not counting) until I'm in Portland! I can't wait to get my feet back into the PNW!

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August 16th, 2012 - JJ

1. My momma comes to see me today!!!!!!!!!  Can't wait until 6:45 when I pick her up from the airport!

 

2. Compliments. My co-workers are very nice and boosted my ego today and I love them for it!

 

3. Starbucks. Target's treat receipts. $2 venti salted caramel mochas. Etc.

 

4. I get new business cards with my new name on them! YAY!  Also Sandi said she'd take off the part that says BA (it's supposed to stand for Behavior Analyst, but mostly just looks like I'm bragging about having a bachelor's degree. I try to tell people it stands for bad ass but sometimes that's not appropriate to say in certain work environments. bah!) which I'm really thankful for. Very happy to have it simply say "Jacqueline (JJ) Hamilton, Behavior Analyst."

 

5. That I finally feel like the guest room is a cohesive room, not just a place where we throw all the junk we don't use regularly. We got rid of my old, huge, heavy, and obnoxious TV and TV stand and I rearranged the furniture to make a nice little crafting station on one wall. I'm loving that it doesn't feel cluttered anymore! Hopefully I'll actually start doing craft projects again and make good use of the space. The only two things we need to make it really complete are a wall full of pictures of people who have come to visit, and a queen sized comforter to adorn the wonderful new bed that Heather & Kathy gifted us with. :) Btw, it's an amazing bed and now that the room is amazing too you all should come visit me!!!!! I mean it, too! :)

August 15th - Heather

1. Actually looking forward to going to the gym. I did a decent work out and I truly felt better walking out of the gym tonight.

2. Lunch with MB at our favorite little Mexican place around the corner from campus. And they were busy today!

3. A quick and healthy dinner...quinoa, a can of chicken, a jar of eggplant tapenade mixed together and some steamed veggies!

4. Jake, my stoic uncuddly kitty, purred like crazy tonight. I'm so excited to take him to Portland in a couple of weeks.

5. I finally got my new mic hooked up to my computer at work. After a couple of weeks of borrowing my boss's, I bought my own for my weekly web conferences for class. It was under $10 and much easier than carting my laptop or having to borrow someone else's. But when I first plugged it in, I couldn't get the computer or the web conference platform to recognize it. But some fast work on the part of yours truly and the assistance of the help desk on campus, it was up and running before lunch!

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August 15th, 2012 - JJ

1. The dill pickles Tammy made for us! They are so amazing it's ridiculous. I just opened the first jar on Monday and I'm already halfway through it!  :)

 

2. Ice cream. I found Ben & Jerry's Dublin Mudslide ice cream at the grocery store and almost cried with joy! Also, the gelato that Heather Brown recommended (I think it's called talienti??) is so yummy!!

 

3. Self control. I don't have it with the pickles, apparently, but I've been really good about moving through the two pints of ice cream slowly despite long hours at work and a fair amount of stress.

 

4. Starbucks. I didn't go yesterday, but I'm already planning on stopping in at Target to use one of my treat receipts before my first meeting this afternoon. In case you're not aware, Target Starbucks' treat receipts are far more awesome than regular Starbucks' treat receipts. They're good for 14 days, and good for ANY drink, ANY size for $2. And my favorite barristas have been giving me treat receipts even on purchases made with treat receipts. So I am currently VERY thankful for Starbucks.

 

5.  Time in the car. Usually I'm not thankful that I spend so much time in the car, but recently I've been using that time to keep in touch with friends who live far away. Now I get a little excited about having to make long drives because it means I get to talk to people I love.

 

6. My co-worker, Anna. She's great. We have the same style of venting: 2 parts humor, 1 part irritation.

 

7. Derick, for being the person in our house who makes our lunches, takes out our trash, and carries our laundry up and down the stairs to wash it. I'm thankful for these things often, but that's because I really love that he steps up to do the things I hate doing. So this will continue to come up a lot!

 

8. That the Shinners are coming to our Seattle reception! I am so excited! I can't wait to meet baby Keegan in a few weeks!! :)

 

9. The use of company cars. I haven't driven my own car (ok, the car I'm borrowing from my parents) in almost two weeks. Love not having to buy gas!

 

10. That I have no credit card debt. Student loans are bad enough! I'm really thankful that my parents got after me at a young age about the evils of credit cards so I never went too crazy with them.

August 13th - Heather

1. Downton Abby. We devoured seasons one and two over the weekend...staying up until 5 am Saturday night.

2. "The motto of the wise is be prepared for surprises!". I titled my presentation for class this week Around the World in 80 Days so I went to YouTube to see if I could find a clip to include. I haven't found a clip for class, but I've found 14 of 16 episodes on YouTube and have gotten such a kick out of watching the first two.

3. The buffet at Taste of India. Maybe I'm odd for making this connection, but whenever the owner of a business I frequent is the victim of some misfortune, my first response is to spend money at their establishment. When the owners of Pat's Rib Place fell victim to a house fire, I went to their restaurant for dinner. After the shooting at the temple in Oak Creek, I wanted to go to Taste of India. I just feel that if some tragedy is happening in their lives, the least I can is provide patronage to their businesses.

4. The response of the owner at Taste of India! When we left after lunch, he gave my mom and I huge hugs and thanks...because of our patronage and because we took the time to ask if his family was alright after the shooting. It so easy to ask and yet it means so much to the person you're asking.

5. I booked my flight today. I'm going to be so ready to get on that plane!

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August 13th, 2012 - JJ

1. Salted Caramel Mochas and cool enough weather to enjoy them. :)

 

2. I get to see my momma in 3 days! Can't wait!

 

3. Rain. It's been making Chicago feel like home all day.

 

4. A job with flexible hours. Flex time = no work Friday!! woohoo for time to spend with mom!!!

 

5. A mostly clean house.

 

6. My drill. Derick hates it, but it helps me hang things on the walls like poles to hang coffee mugs and new pots/pans from. And so I love it.

 

7. The poles that are on the walls above the kitchen sink now and have coffee mugs hanging from them, as well as those that are on the wall in our pantry where our new pots and pans are hanging.  I love decorative organization. :)

 

8. Ikea. For all of their awesome furniture and also for their meatballs.

 

9. Financial goals, and savings accounts. Hopefully I can soon be thankful for achieving my financial goals and for having money in my savings account...fingers crossed! Sorry, Starbucks. I won't be seeing you for a while after today...

 

10. Company cars, helping me avoid paying a million dollars in gas with all the driving I have to do for work. Horray!

August 9th - Heather

1. This recipe! It totally made my mouth water reading it. Gee, if only I knew someone who had a deep fryer.......

2. Deep fried smores!

3. Deciding to go to the state fair in the rain....so few people....I could actually see the pavement!

4. Not needing an umbrella in the rain...or a garbage bag, I mean rain poncho. It's the Seattle in me I guess. I'm not afraid of a few drops of water.

5. McDonald's tasting bad this morning....ok, this is kind of counterintuitive....you would think I would want my breakfast to taste good. But, if it tastes bad, it's less appealing and if it's less appealing, I'll make an effort to get something more appealing...and healthier!!!!

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August 8th - Heather

1. This video: YouTube. In reference to yesterday's #3, I may have been hesitant, but the finished product did make me laugh...and I suspect it will make you laugh too. And so much for it not being seen far and wide...I'm pretty sure half of campus will have seen it before morning. And I'm okay with that.

2. Pushing through and working out at the gym tonight. I really didn't want to, but did it anyway.

3. My group project went successfully! It was due last night and we had to discuss it during our class web conference today....I was a bit worried, but I think it came across well.

4. Getting to tell JJ about a book that she didn't know about! For mom's birthday, JJ and Derick gifted her with the first two seasons of Downtown Abby on DVD. We haven't started watching them yet, but when I was in Target tonight I saw a book about the real-life Downtown Abby. I predict this book will be a new part of JJ's library before nightfall tomorrow!

5. I've reached the halfway point in my second grad course. I can't wait for the two week respite from classes that awaits me in three weeks! Then it's on to two more classes in the fall!

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August 7th - Heather

I was so cranky this morning...must have been because I didn't do my five things last night....must rectify the situation....

1.  That my love of food is multiregional.  Becuase I was lazy and didn't put my lunch together last night, I had to find sustenance this afternoon.  I had no idea what I wanted.  I thought about Qdoba.  I started chatting with a long lost friend (ok, so she's only been in Mexico for a week....but it felt like she was away from gchat FOREVER) and thought I would just order in.  Then I started thinking about all of the wonderful things I could have delivered to my office in DC on all of those days that I was in the office all by myself and hesitant to leave the front desk to go get food.  All of the sudden I had a tremendous craving for pad thai.  So pad thai it was.  And even though I had to go get it and even though it was only from Noodles & Co....it was still yummy and fed my craving.

2.  My chopstick skills!!!  Thanks to an old friend who taught me how to eat with chopsticks.  I just feel like it's something that's nice to know how to do.  I could have eaten my pad thai with a fork....but it's more fun with chopsticks.

3.  That I took the time to put make-up on this morning.  My boss came into my office unexpectedly with an HD video camera wanting to film me for a bootcamp assignment!  My first thought was Quelle horreur!...but I relented feeling I didn't really have much grounds for objection and knowing that the video wouldn't go far or be seen by many.  (Yes...I'm fine with my words and ideas being put out there far and wide....but nobody needs to see my face in HD!)

4.  Orange tea!  I woke up with a scratchy throat this morning...so I brewed some tea when I got to my office and I'm feeling normal again...well at least my throat feels normal....I'm not sure when the rest of me felt normal last...if ever. :)

5.  A night at home to finally finish my laundry!  Oh what joys I look forward to in the hours of the dwindling sun...laundry and reading for class and dishes if I'm feeling really ambitious!!!

August 7th, 2012 - JJ

A few honeymoon/wedding things, then back to our regularly scheduled program:

 

1. Hydrotherapy!! The resort we stayed at had this amazing hydrotherapy program at their spa. We got to experience the whole thing for free since we booked a massage our first day. It was so awesome! I wish I could do it once a week!

 

2. Massages. I also wish I could do these once a week. Such a great way to relax and start our honeymoon! I loved it!

 

3. My wedding band. It's pretty and makes me smile every time I look at it. I also love that my engagement ring reminds me of gothic architecture because it has little flying buttresses holding up the diamond, and that my wedding band reminds me of Italian renaissance architecture because it looks like the stripes you'll find on churches in Florence and Siena built during that time period. Love!

 

4. Being tan, and the process of getting a tan. I am an unashamed sunworshipper! Laying in the sun is one of my favorite things, and I'm very thankful that Derick, who does not love laying out in the sun, suffered through many many hours of it last week. Makes up for the fact that I have not been to the beach in Chicago once this summer.

 

5. Reading. We did a lot of reading on our honeymoon and I was able to start and finish The Host, which I have been meaning to read for years. Heather Brackett, you were so right! It's GREAT! I couldn't put it down!!

 

And on to the regular thankful things:

 

6. A quiet office. I love Jenna and our current intern, but it's nice to be able to get through stuff without distractions today. Especially since I have a TON of work to catch up on!

 

7. Being able to see target behavior. It's so rare and even though this sounds strange to all you non behavior analysts, I am so thankful when I actually get to witness my clients doing all the awful things that I read about in their incident reports. Makes writing their behavior plans so much easier!

 

8. Coffee. Of course. :)

 

9. Derick, for buying my favorite rainier cherries and then packing them up with grapes in little tupperwares so they're easy to grab in the morning on my way out the door. Also for doing the same thing with carrots, cucumbers, and hummus.

 

10. Movies. We rented Chronicle last night which was much better than I thought it would be. Also thankful that it was set in Seattle, so I got to see the Space Needle and the Sound in the background of a lot of shots. 3.5 weeks till I get to see them in person again! :)

 

August 6th, 2012 - JJ

Here are a few before I have to run to a meeting. More coming later! I have much to be thankful for today! :)

 

1. Honeymoons! Mexico was beautiful, the people were wonderful, and Derick and I were not ready to come home and face the reality of cooking for ourselves, cleaning up our own messes, and going to work during the week.

 

2. Conchitas. I could be spelling that wrong. It's a tiny little Mexican pastry that I am in love with. I used to have the big version, conchas, as a kid in California. The ones in Mexico were DELICIOUS! I need to learn how to make them myself.

 

3. Icebergs. Who would've thought that pouring a little margarita on top of a corona would be the best poolside drink ever? Amazing!

 

4. The awesome service at our resort, and specifically for Enrique who made table side breakfast specials for us, Salvador who made great drinks at the pool bar and did fun bartender tricks, and Pablo & Oscar who made amazing chocolate martinis for me every night.

 

5. Emily and Jake and Erica for taking care of the cats while we were gone. Thanks, guys!!!!

August 5th - Heather

1. Thankful that I didn't completely lose my paper, like I thought I did for a minute there.

2. Having watched all three Lord of the Rings movies over the weekend. JJ and Derick should be very impressed. I now of course have to read the books so I fully understand what I just spent the last ten hours watching...but, I watched the movies!

3. Yarn at the state fair! I know, it's kind if a random place to go looking for yarn. But there is a lady in the local products pavilion that sells alpaca yarn. I got some the first year I went to the fair and I made it a point to find her and get some more this year.

4. Fair food! Not one thing that was over the moon good, but it was a very diverse spread and that always makes me happy.

5. Bedtime! I'm exhausted!!!

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August 4th - Heather

1. Today, I'm thankful for early deliveries....my new case for this lovely little addiction came, along with my textbooks for the fall.

2. My textbooks for the fall....a great reminder that I'm going to be increasing lost in a book until Christmas....really, more likely, until about 2020.

3. Red velvet pancakes. While they were good and evil all on their own, I looked at mom and said these would make amazing pancake balls in the ebelskiver pan! That is so going to have to happen sometime soon!

4. For having a washer and dryer in my apartment. So nice to be able to be at home while doing all ten million loads of laundry.

5. State fair tomorrow. Off to find mind boggling foods on a stick and who knows what other kinds of trouble!

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August 3rd - Heather

1. Sleeping in, even if it didn't completely take care of my migraine.

2. Sales at Macy's, leading to the purchase of a couple cute dresses for a steal of a price!

3. Watching The Lord of the Rings on blue ray. (Yes, Derick, one of MANY off that list of my movie homework that you can check off!!!)

4. My new mask from Lush...it felt kind of weird because of the small chunks of grapes, but it was refreshing.

5. My new keyboard for the iPad came in the mail today...it's so cute and folds up. I decided that I wanted a keyboard separate from the case because I wanted to use the keyboard with both screen orientations. And, as usual, Amazon to the rescue. I got the keyboard and a swivel stand case for less than most places want for a plain case!

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August 2nd - Heather

1. A new blogging tool to be enthralled with!!! Blogsy is a multi-platform blogging app for the iPad. I think I like it! This is my first post, so we'll see how it goes!

2. The conference hotel that I'll be staying at in Portland allows pets....which means one of my Twi-kitties may be making his first trip to the Pacific Northwest in a few weeks!

3. Movie night with momma...ok that's really only funny if you've seen New Moon and hear "movie night with Bella" in your head as you read it! Magic Mike is a good mother-daughter movie, right? Ok, maybe only for me and my sister-mother!

4. The TED app for iPad....I was up quite late watching inspiration videos....not that kind of inspiration. If you aren't familiar with TED Talks go to TED: Ideas worth spreading. Here are the videos I currently have bookmarked: Daphne Koller: What we're learning from online education | Video on TED.com; Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity | Video on TED.com; Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! | Video on TED.com.

5. Hearing the words "I love your five things!". I saw a colleague on campus this morning and that's one of the first things she said to me. It's so gratifying to know that you're out there taking time out of your hectic days to read about the things in my life that I'm thankful for. Those five little words encourage me to make sure I make the time to post every day!

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August 1st - Heather

1.  Breakfast and coffee in pajamas.  I generally take breakfast to work with me and make coffee in my office.  But I was awake earlier than usual this morning, so I sat down and had breakfast.

2.  Discovering the wonderful world of apps for my iPad.  Nothing specific to tout just yet, but it's all very exciting!

3.  Swimming at lunch.  It's the only time I really see one of my coworkers, and so it's nice to swim and chat and still feel like I've swam hard enough to have gotten a workout in.

4.  Two workouts today!  I swam for 25 minutes at lunch and then did the elliptical for 20 minutes at the gym after work.

5.  A proper cool down after a particularly invigorating workout....ac at full blast!