Good news in our family has abounded this week, along with life's simple pleasures. I want to celebrate all of it!
My brother, David, has had an amazing few days! I am so happy for him and proud of him, and I know how long and hard he has worked to come to just this point. Over the weekend, he took Ashley up to a B&B in Lake Arrowhead: he proposed and she said YES!
Then today after Toastmasters he found out that he has been chosen for a CFO position at a company in Santa Monica. This company composes music for television and movies, and it is an amazing opportunity. David has been persistent in his job search for many months and has had an entreprenuerial career since college graduation. And now... a CFO! He will be such a success, and I am so proud of him for never giving up on his search.
So in the span of a week, David has found a job and become engaged!
My week hasn't been quite that life-altering, but it has been full of joy. Little moments here and there...like clapping and screaming in delight at every Christmas lawn decoration we see while driving around. Or our daily afternoon ritual: eating candy canes by our Christmas tree while singing Christmas carols.
The rainy grey day yesterday was entirely cozy. After our toddler class, in which we made a cute jingle bell necklace, we came home and worked on gifts and watched the rain. I love our traditions, and I love being with Katie and Bill so much in this life.
Toastmasters was fun today, as well. My dad won the Table Topics award today, and I won the prize for my formal speech (on the Celsus Library in Ephesus and the importance of speaking one's truth). Of the three formal speeches, I thought Steve J. might win, actually, so I was pleasantly surprised.
The next few days are devoted to preparing for the McGaugh Christmas party, which is on Saturday. I am of course going to involve Katie as much as possible in all the prep, though there is much still to be done... so I am wondering how I am going to balance it all while being attentive as a mother. She will do most of the cooking with me, so that will help. Still there are gifts to finish wrapping, formal tables to set... And we've got music class in there somewhere and also a Santa event on Friday night... I guess the moral of this tale is that I need to remind myself to meet these challenges with gracefulness and a positive spirit. We can only do the best we can do, right?
