5 on the 4th

1. My sweet and beautiful "childhood" doggie Shem (the Golden retriever), who left this world, peacefully last night after a long and loving life.

There is nothing like the unconditional love and affection of a dog is there? Love you, Shembly. I look forward to you bounding up to me in heaven. (This dog greeted me as if not a day had passed when I visited him for the first time in eight years a few years ago...sniff).

2. The beautiful blue sky with a few fluffy white clouds thoughtfully scattered here and there for me to stare at while I lay in the dentist's chair today. When I was reclined it was all I could see which made it easier for me to imagine that I was lying on a beach. If only it weren't for the pesky scraping sound...(shudder). Back to the gratitude: NO CAVITIES. Given my past this is no small point of gratitude.

3. The opportunity to be schooled by Benj in an impromptu soccer game this evening. So much fun. Every time I attempt to take him on, I am shocked by the fact that he keeps this up for an hour at a time. I am wheezing after about 2 minutes. It is TIRING stuff, man. And then I have the audacity to yell, "GO!!!!! GOOOOOOO!!! when he has been at it for 45 minutes already. So insensitive! Which reminds me, the other day Finny asked me if I could play soccer. I said that I could and I was especially good at grabbing other people by their arms and/or shirts and hurling them out of the way in order to get the ball into the goal. He looked at me pityingly for a moment and then said somewhat uncomfortably. "That would be what they call a foul, mommy".

4. Hearing my sweet daughter last night telling her brothers when she thought I was not in earshot that they had better eat my soup because "mommy worked really hard on that". And then watching my sweet sons pretend to like it.

5.Laughing until I could hardly breathe for various reasons tonight-my hilarious Bishop (he's the Mormon Conan O'Brien), watching Finny reading a circular (advertising toys) with incredible focus and intensity, a comic on TV who did not seem very promising at first but turned out to be strangely compelling (that's always a relief), saying "I love you" using melodramatic facial expressions and sign language in an attempt make a disgruntled child laugh (from across the room as Aaron read scriptures to us-I am such an example of appropriate reverence) and then watching that child do everything in its power not to smile-(unsuccessfully), watching a video of a laughing baby (thanks Jen Lynn's Jillian et al). Ahhhhhhh...
Laughing like that...isn't it just the most energizing yet relaxing feeling? It's the best.


Bonus: 6. Getting to cuddle and hold my Gabey just like a baby for a long while tonight. He is the most cuddly child and I always feel as though he didn't get enough time being the baby so any extra cuddles I can sneak in before he gets too big for all that (tell me that will never happen??!Please?) feels like a delicious free gift.

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