Day 7: Children's Voices, Oh, How Sweet

Today was the "Primary Program" at church.  Which means that the children aged 4-12 gave the program today.  With a lot of help from some wonderful leaders.

Listening to my children sing and give their brief lines (perfectly) was a sweet (and sometimes funny) Joyful Moment.

Day 6: Remembering Whose I Am

I was able to attend a baptism today.  For a man from the Congo.

I also conducted the music.  A typical baptism program only has two songs--an opening and a closing hymn.

But, for this one, we sang several hymns in the middle, while waiting for him to get ready again after being baptized.

I still struggle to keep time, so this was a little nerve racking for me when I opened the program and saw the list of hymns.  But, after the first 3 or 4, I kind of settled in and felt confident enough to immerse myself more in the spirit of the hymns.  I think it was not a coincidence that this was the hymn we were singing:



This is a song that is often thought of as a "children's song", but really, it's message is for all of us.  And today, it was precisely the message I needed and my Joyful Moment.  I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who finds a way to let me feel His love even when I don't know how.

Day 5: Staying In

Somewhere along the lines over the past four or five months HH started taking me out on dates.

Not that we never went out before that.  Just not all that often.  Probably less than once a month at the most.  And not that it's always his responsibility.

It's just that, suddenly, he made it his responsibility and somewhere along the lines I realized we were going out every week or two.

And it has been super fun.

Who wouldn't love hanging out with this man?  In fact, she tends to get a little jealous when he pays attention to anyone but her.

She may or may not get that from me.

But, tonight, we stayed home.  We snuggled up on the couch and watched a movie.  Jack The Giant Slayer.  Interesting.  I liked the lead character a billion times more in Warm Bodies.

But, Ewan McGregor's hair was seriously amazing.

You can ask HH how many times I commented on it.

Any other man would have lost count.  But, he's an accountant, so I'm pretty sure he kept track.  He does things like that.

Anyway, the point is, even when the movie is kind of silly, hanging out with my best friend was a Joyful Moment.

Day 4: A Girl's Gotta Do

Today was one for the books.

And as I was writing down all that had gone on and I had learned in the course of the day, (in the middle of the afternoon because I've learned that I just have to do things when I have even half of an opportunity, or else they never happen) I realized that I really needed some girlfriend time.

Thanks to an awesome and supportive (dare I say, even a little bit forceful?) HH, I sent out a very last minute invite via my good friend "facebook" and managed to get a few friends on board for a frozen yogurt date.

What can I say?  We girls will go to great lengths for our sweets.

Having a brother willing to share his Butterfinger is a Joyful Moment for any chubby baby.

Having friends who will come at a last moment's notice to offer support is a Joyful Moment of inestimable value.

Day 3: Big Heart

The music studio where the kids take violin lessons has a fun little rewards program to help with motivation to practice.  They earn points (usually about 5 per week) for different effort and achievements.  Then they can cash these points in for prizes.  The higher the points, the bigger the prize.  Sweet P is a saver; Little M is a spender.  But, he actually managed to accrue over 30 points, as of tonight.  When he realized this, he quickly told me he wanted to get a prize.

He came back a while later with this.  It's difficult to see, sorry.  It's a clear heart.  I think it's supposed to look like it's a diamond.  He used 20 of his 33 points to get it and he walked in and told me it was for me.  To put on my purse.  My own heart melted in that sweet Joyful Moment.

I've never been more enthusiastic to add a little bling bling to my purse.

This boy can sometimes make me crazy.

But, he can also totally melt my heart with his sweet thoughtfulness.  He is a rare gem in the world of little boys and I am head over heels in love with my sweet Little M and the nonchalant way he'll still reach out to hold my hand when we're walking together.

Day 2: A Reason For Everything

Parent Teacher Conferences.

Little M has been struggling a bit this year.  Not with his school work, but with his behavior.  So, I was a little nervous about tonight's meeting with his teacher, but it went really well.  Hearing her say, "I love Little M!", was a Joyful Moment to my heart's ears.

Did that make sense?  It was the best way to describe how that felt.  And if hearts really did have ears, that message would have gone straight to them.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I totally cleared that one up for you.

Also, and totally as expected, more Joyful Moments were to be had when I met with Sweet P's teacher. We pretty much just both gushed about how wonderfully sweet she is.  And I about broke down (I think this is the third time since school started a month ago, and every time I've seen her teacher) while telling her teacher just how grateful I am for whatever she is doing that has made all the difference for Sweet P.  Her stress level is pretty much non-existent, whereas I was feeling certain she was going to develop stomach ulcers the way she was stressing all summer!  She loves school and is a happy learner again.

And when her teacher told me that she is a frequent commenter in class, my heart's ears were happy all over again.

Day 1: Re-Starting Over

Yeah, you read that right.

Time to begin again.

I've been feeling that I needed to start this up again for a few weeks now.  But, I was afraid of the commitment.  Shocking for someone as in love with commitment as I am, I know.

But, the feeling isn't going away.

So, here goes.  Another 1,000 Days of Joy.

While watching Darling A stuff her face with noodles was really fun and entertaining, it's not the Joyful Moment I'm choosing to share for today.

Today's Joyful Moment was found in becoming friends with a couple of the neighbor children as I drove them to and from school today.  They moved in a couple weeks ago, and unfortunately, their mom's car broke down, leaving them stranded and unable to get to school.

I won't say that this demand didn't add some stress.  But, in the actual moment of service, it was nice to help them out.  And, as I said, become friends.  And they are good kids and did a good job of expressing gratitude which always makes doing someone a favor that much sweeter.