Life Is Good, Even When It’s Busy

Amidst the craziness that life has quickly become, it’s been delightful to have a slowed-down weekend. It’s given me time to do things like clean the house (which is so therapeutic for slightly OCD me), run errands, read books, go on dates with Kevin, catch up on TV shows on Hulu (did everyone see this week’s Modern Family?), and blog at Starbucks. It’s been glorious.

It also gave me time to reflect on all the good things that are going on right now, which tend to get lost within the busy shuffle. Here’s a quick list of some of the “good stuff” of late:

• The Hunger Games (books one and two). Everyone’s been talking about how these books are so great. Take their word for it. They are. (Plus, the movie soundtrack, which is set for a March 20 release, looks incredible. The Low Anthem, Glen Hansard, The Punch Brothers, Arcade Fire, Kid Cudi, Neko Case, and more? Yes, please! I pre-ordered the album this weekend, which also gets a spot on the “good stuff” list.)
• A glimpse of springtime. Thursday of this past week in Winston-Salem was an unbelievably gorgeous, 70-plus-degree, sunny day. It was perfection. (As my friend Josh said, “I want to take today on a date.”) Lunch outside on the 6th and Vine patio with my favorite co-workers made it even better. It made me excited to wear these new springtime dresses I bought recently (from Macy’s and Target, respectively):

• Deciding on a favorite Winston-Salem Mexican restaurant. The verdict is in, and La Botana is officially the Kellers’ local Mexican restaurant of choice. Kevin and I went for dinner on Friday (we’d been a time or two before) and it was delicious as always. They have wonderful Mexican chicken soup, which is a deciding factor in my book (second only, in my experience, to the soup at Los Bravos in Kevin’s hometown of Conyers, Georgia) and the rest of the menu is extensive and authentic.
• Planning SB2K12. That’s right: Spring Break! One advantage to Kevin being in school is that he gets all the breaks that come along with the academic calendar, and we’ve decided to take advantage of his Spring Break week this year. I’ve taken off Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of his Spring Break week (the week of March 12), and we’re thinking we’ll spend a few days in Charleston. (I’ve never been and am SO excited!)
• Being a better meal planner. Meal planning takes time, and I have been terrible at it lately. Today, though, I decided it was time to get my act together and make an attempt at being more responsible with our finances when it comes to food. Because Kevin and I have pretty unpredictable schedules, it’s rather difficult to plan meals each week. We often don’t know how many nights we’ll be home together (or on time), and so we’ve been bad about grabbing dinner out often because that takes less prep work and thinking ahead. The thing is, though, we have lots of good stuff in our pantry and fridge, and so I took a comprehensive inventory and made a list of meals we can make exclusively using ingredients we already have on hand. I’m hoping this approach will work!

Like I said, this is just a snapshot of some of the many positives surrounding me right now, but it’s always refreshing to assess things and be reminded of how beautiful life is and how very lucky I am. What’s some of the “good stuff” filling your life these days?