A few of my favorite things.

Thank you to the many people that have been praying for Mikey and I over the past 2 weeks.  Most of you have seen the posts / heard that Mike's Dad went home to the Lord last Monday.  He was suffering so greatly that we are honestly thankful for God's swift and ultimate mercy.  Mikey is an only child so over the past week we have worked to begin the process of executing his Dad's estate.  As the sole heir he also holds sole responsibility for making sure that everything is closed out and taken care of.  We feel that we have gotten a good start but it will likely be months before all of the details of the estate are closed.  We were finally able to come home this past weekend.  I arrived late Thursday night because of a meeting on Friday and Mike followed Friday afternoon.  After visiting with some friends Saturday morning I slept most of the day yesterday while Mike continued working on some paperwork.  This morning I woke up to a beautiful sunrise but there was little joy to be found in my heart.  The peaks and valleys of the past two weeks finally caught me and put me on my knees today.  Tonight I am particularly...salty... so rather than hurt over the recent events I decided to make a list of things that have made me happy over the past 2 weeks.  This might give everyone some further insight into how strange I really am.

1.  Subway sandwiches with baked cheddar and sour cream ruffles.

2.  Throwing wet towels over Mama's head and running away before she can retaliate.

3.  Granma looking like she had won the lottery when I brought her a combination plate of fried oysters and shrimp with french fries back from Elizabeth City. 

4.   Mikey sleeping with his arm around me and his hand over my heart.

5.  My Boo.  

6.  Bella   

7.  The way my Aunt Jeannie still kisses me on the lips even though I'm 30.  :)  

8.  Mr. Johnson whispering to me that I look good.  

9.  Holding hands and praying.   

10.  Mike's 47 year old cousin jamming to Jay-Z and Beyonce in the hospital hallway at 1am.  

11.  3am ice cream party with Mike, George, and Mr. Johnson.       

12.  Granma always reaching to hold my hand when she's talking to me.  (Again.. hand holding)

13.  The smell of honeysuckles on the trail during last Sunday's bike ride.  

14.  Looking at baby pictures of Mikey and older photos of his family.    

15.  Ms. Alma Roundtree's homemade chicken and pastry.

16.  Panera Hazelnut Coffee

17.  Talking to my County liaisons.  (They are the best.)

18.  Texts and messages from concerned friends.

19.  My Daddy driving 10 hours to be with us and bringing Mike's Granma some "side meat" knowing that she would fry it up the next day.

20.  My fave waitress at The Border not recognizing me with my hair down, regular clothes, and make-up on.

21.  Dirty rice at 10pm.

22.  Watching stupid Youtube videos with Mama.  

23.  The look my Uncle Cliff had when I gave him a picture of his daddy (my grandaddy) that I copied for him.    

24.  Sleeping with both of my turbo fans running at high speed.   

25.  Discovering that while pictures of people running on the beach look awesome, I don't actually like to run on the beach.  

I feel better.  :)