Looking on the Bright Side

Hard to believe it’s officially December.  Where did 2010 go?  Unfortunately, December brings with it winter, cold weather, bad roads, and students who are more than ready for vacation.  It rained all day yesterday and then I had a big fight with a department store who wouldn’t let me order through their website or via customer service.  We didn’t have any bagels left for breakfast this morning.  Sometimes, things just don’t go the way I plan.  But there are lots of things currently making me smile, too.

1.  Bailey’s new coffee creamer

We never buy stuff like this (and by “stuff like this”, I mean flavored coffee creamer).  We rarely make impulse buys of products we’ve never tried before.  But a couple weeks ago, the new creamers caught our eye, and there was one of those coupon dispensers offering a dollar off, and for some reason, we bought a bottle of Bailey’s Hazelnut Coffee Creamer. Suddenly, the urge to drive half an hour for Starbucks hot chocolate with hazelnut is gone…and my hot chocolate intake is way up.

2.  The electric blanket

It’s almost winter and we keep our apartment pretty cold (because we’re cheap like that). It wasn’t until I started dating Brian and visiting his parents house that I discovered how wonderful electric blankets are.  How did I survive 20 years of my life without one?  Granted, it does make it a little harder to get out of bed in the morning, but its totally worth it.

3.  My hilarious students

They just are.  They don’t even realize that they’re funny.  I am having so much fun teaching this year (it’s much less stressful than my last position).  It’s really nice to have a job that I look forward to going to every day, even when it’s cold out.

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4.  Beard On Food

One of my food-loving friends lent me her copy of Beard on Food: The Best Recipes and Kitchen Wisdom from the Dean of American Cooking by James Beard.  I’ve barely started reading it, but I love what I’ve read so far.  It even inspired to me make hamburgers, of all things.  (They were good, by the way)

5.  Christmas decorations

Yes, I am one of ‘those people’.  I am really excited about all the Christmas decorations and the music that has been appearing over the past couple weeks.  As soon as we got home from Thanksgiving with the in-laws, we put out Christmas tree up and set up the nativity.  And then I wrapped Brian’s presents. Now I’m just counting the days until Christmas gets here.

6.  Christmas music on Pandora

Growing up, my family had a big collection of Christmas music.  Brian and I have a couple Christmas albums, but its not the same.  Luckily, Pandora has a wonderful collection of Christmas music.

What’s making you smile?