The Good List 8-28-13

10. The combination of lemon and ginger. So delicious in so many recipes--cookies, drinks, soups, stir-fries. Sweet. Savory. Doesn't matter. Refreshing any which way.
9. Such a fun day last weekend strolling down memory lane in thrift stores and antique shops. Little reminders of my childhood everywhere I turned. I thought about my sisters all day long. (OH, and I found a Totally 80's trivia game for $2. SCORE!)

8. Gracie's latest art project. She even used glitter to make him have "sparkly eyes." :-D

7. Our Aldi is finally open! I'm so excited! I want all of the groceries! ALL OF THEM!
6. The Brothers K. I'm only about 1/3 of the way through it, but it gripped me immediately and continues to captivate. I'm not sure I've ever read anything quite so endearing. (Thank you for the recommendation, Lore!)
5. Cooking all day when it's raining outside. One of my favorite kinds of days.

4. Having Macy serenade me on her keyboard while I cook. Perfect.

3. Friends who eagerly share their garden bounty. I took one look at our summer calendar a few months ago and realized there was no way I had time for a garden. :-/ But I'm so grateful for the fresh cherries, blueberries, corn, cucumbers, squash, zucchini and salsa we've enjoyed over the last few weeks. And I'm not too proud to say, "Please keep it coming, friends!" :-D
2. Macy and her BFF cousin Anna got to text and chat about their first days in middle school today. Anna is actually a year younger, but since middle school begins with 6th grade in Texas and 7th grade in Vermont, they get to go through this experience "together". Pretty cool.
1. A visit today with one of my favorite friends, Anne. She learned early yesterday morning that she has a rather large brain tumor behind her left eye. (Please note this is not the good part.) The *good news* is that it is operable, but because of where it is and how it is positioned, that is really about all they know about it at this point. She is scheduled for surgery tomorrow. Won't you please pray with me that it is COMPLETELY AND UNQUESTIONABLY BENIGN and that the doctors are able to remove every single cell that is any threat whatsoever to healthy brain function. (Side note: Rather than perform a biopsy, which, as you can imagine, is extremely invasive when the brain is involved, they are going straight to surgery to remove as much of the mass as possible. This is due to the fact that even if it is benign, it is large enough to be causing pressure and damage to healthy surrounding brain tissue.) 

Anne, my friend, I am praying and praying and PRAYING for you! And I'm bringing hugs again soon!