Welcome to Friday!
2 Corinthians 4:8 We are cracked and chipped from our afflictions on all sides, but we are not crushed by them. We are bewildered at times, but we do not give in to despair.
Welcome to Friday! Thank God that Friday is here. Thank God that today is an amazing new day with new opportunities, joys, hopes, laughter, memories, and love. Thank God that more than anything you and I have an opportunity to count blessings, make memories, and enjoy the day the Lord has made. So, how are you doing? Tell me how did things go with you? Is everything going well and on track in your neck of the woods this week? What was the best part of your week, and what was the funniest thing that happened to you? How did you do with your own "To-Do" list? I am praying that you are doing well and that you had a really great week. I hope that you accomplished the most important things on your list, felt loved by those you love, and made memories that will last a lifetime.
This week reminds me of a puzzle. You know, each piece of a puzzle looks broken and fragmented, out of place and odd on its own. However, when you put two pieces together, then three, and then more... suddenly something beautiful starts to emerge. First some edges, then something more tangible, and finally enough comes together to make you smile. This was my week. There were some awesome moments, sights, smiles, sounds and tastes and then their was this weird puzzle piece called Wednesday that seemed so out of place.
Monday was magnificent. The morning started out really well, and I managed to get to work early. Our team completed a short release of our next product release. The release was successful and it is my first in my new role. I was very excited about the progress we made and actually got a little ahead of myself and skipped a few steps in our release process. Thankfully, everyone was expecting a few slip ups and I received lots of grace. The girls and I chatted over dinner, laughed at Emma and Ava's antics and joked about upcoming plans.
Tuesday was a terrific day. We managed to keep the momentum of Monday going and cut our normal 2 day meetings down to a single four hour meeting. One of the guys on my team solved an computer problem that was bothering us for months. At home Emma's potty training was gaining more momentum. Trish made an amazing dinner and then I made a batch of cookies. I also made a batch of pancakes for Ava, Paige, Emma and Sydney. Even though they had dinner, I decided to make pancakes to test out a new recipe. Don't tell them, but I secretly hid butternut squash inside of the pancake batter. I had to cover it up with a little bit of cinnamon and sugar. The only persons who suspected anything were Cassarra and Gabbi. Gabbi refused to eat them, but Cassarra tried it and said it was actually really good. Since Gabbi didn't try the pancakes, I made her some mashed potatoes with butternut squash. I covered up the taste by using a bit of 4 cheese blend and a bit of american cheese. The rest of the night was taken up by Cassarra and Gabbi, who were all abuzz about various things coming up in their social calendar. Paige and Sydney were sharing jokes, laughs, and stories about all kinds of random, but funny things. They stayed up in their rooms chatting. When I came to check on them, they tried to pretend to be sleep, but Paige was unable to stop laughing or smiling. She was a dead give away.
But, then Wednesday happened.
Wednesday felt like the piece that just didn't fit. I got up late, had to hustle and scramble to get out on time. Trish and I normally enjoy a coffee date on Wednesday morning, but we had an early appointment and didn't get to spend time chatting over coffee. Instead we frantically tried to get ready for the appointment. In the midst of the chaos, Emma had a potty training accident. Later that day, I lost quite handily at basketball in the first game, and lost the second game 34-24 after being in the lead 24-4. Although we won the 3rd game, it wasn't enjoyable due to some pretty frustrating comments made by one of the guys who plays with us. I don't know why, but it frustrated me for the rest of the afternoon. Even after I got home I was still bothered by it all. Even as I made cookies that looked like mini-cakes (next time I will follow the recipe closely), and even after making bacon I was still bothered. Wednesday just felt like the week was getting ready to nose dive down the wrong end.
Thursday was starting off on an interesting note with Emma getting up early and trying to push her way into my spot on my bed. She rolled and thrashed so much that I finally decided to get up and go down stairs. I scarfed down a cup of coffee, responded to a few emails and watched a bit of news before finally feeling awake. The steps on the treadmill seemed so much harder than normal, and my workout was cut short. Once at work it seemed like Wednesday was till holding on, but then suddenly a breakthrough.
I received a few text messages from friends that brought me joy and changed my focus. A couple of emails reminded me of all the other things that I had to be thankful for.
The day continued to get better when one of my friends and co-workers shared more encouraging words. He even helped me laugh about it all by reminding me that we weren't getting paid to play basketball.
Then Trish sent me a picture of Ava and Emma using corn starch to turn our house into a winter wonderland. It was too funny. She said they even tried to make snow angels in the powder. I can't believe what they were thinking, but it was just the laugh I needed.
The week returned to its rightful direction by Thursday afternoon. Not even bad traffic, or a disgruntle employee were able to derail the day. And as I look at all the pieces I can see that this has been a truly remarkable week. I am thankful that
- Sydney participated in the district science fair and did well. Now she plans to go to the regional fair
- Gabbi and Cassarra continue to do well in school; they both scored well on quizzes this week
- Cassarra got an all clear at the dermatologist
- The girls social calendar kicked off last night as they enjoyed going to a pageant at school
- We had a good Thursday dinner laughing around the table while eating pizza
- I managed to get a small victory over the "I don't like vegetables" crowd by sneaking butternut squash into pancakes, peanut butter cookies, sugar cookies and mashed potatoes
- We managed to get Emma back on track with training, and even managed to go to church while not having an accident on Sunday
- The sermon was a good message to everyone about watching what you listen to, see and read
- Not everything you listen to on the radio or watch on TV is good for your soul
- Don't allow your values and character to be overridden by someone else's lower standards
- Ava and Emma provided huge laughs with their snow storm.
- Paige is getting set to go back to Tae Kwon Do next month
- Sydney and Gabbi did wonderful singing on Sunday. They practiced at home and thankfully they didn't try to take each other's part like they do at home
- Ava sang with the choir, and she seemed thrilled to be up there with her sisters.
- My first release in my new company role was completed ahead of schedule
- Nice encouraging messages from friends and family
- Enjoying a beautiful sunset on the ride home
- Catching a beautiful sunrise on the way to work on Tuesday
- That I have friends and family who make life filled with joy and love
Well, my week wasn't perfect, but it was still really, really good. I like to think that every moment was a blessing in disguise because looking over it with the pieces in the right places, and a beautiful week has emerged.
What are you plans for the weekend? Are you planning to watch the Super Bowl? If so, which team will you be pulling for? We plan to have a small party at the house like we do most years. It's more like a Super Bowl commercial watching party. We don't really watch the game each year, especially when my team is out of it. And well, this year my team is out of it, and I'm trying to stay neutral on the team's playing. Well, I hope you have a great weekend. Find some times to make memories, enjoy yourself, and rest. Have a great weekend and...
Welcome to Friday!
2 Corinthians 4:9 We are persecuted,
but we have not been abandoned.
We have been knocked down,
but we are not destroyed.
Cassius
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