Finding a beautiful dress at a vintage second-hand store, that fits my body perfectly (basic black w/ tiny bouquets of flowers in shades of pink, red & violet).

my tomato soup. who knew tomatoes, onion and garlic could be so good when blended with basil and sour cream? nom nom

I found my niece!

My oldest brother and his first wife had a daughter in 1965 (I was born in 1963). They divorced, and the wife remarried, moving away with my niece when she was about 6 or 7. We completely lost touch, including my brother. From time to time, I would think of Lesley but I didn't think it was my place to look for her while my brother was still alive. It also seemed like a verboten subject. I couldn't understand not knowing at least where your child is, whether or not you have contact, but that's the way it was.

My brother died in 2006 and after discussing it with my remaining brother, I set out on the search again. To make a long story short, a new group formed on
Facebook for people searching for lost relatives, and as a long-shot for giggles, I wrote one of the first messages with my search. Someone wrote me back and said "I believe this is your niece!", with a profile. The woman's name, parents' names, and locations matched! So, I carefully wrote a message, expecting either a cold brush-off or nothing.

When I got home today, there was a message saying "That's me! I'm your niece!" She shared memories of my parents (her grandparents), and still has a picture book with their writing in it that she kept for remembering them. Her mother's new husband was the "dad" who raised her, but she had thought of us growing up. She remembered me as a little girl, more like a sister than aunt and niece.

I have a feeling a reunion of a different sort will occur ;).

Hearing a familiar and much loved bird that I didn't know lived in NC...

and...

A gorgeous spring cardinal singing in the tree as I left for work :)

Getting buzzzz bombed by a very pretty momma hummingbird. She let me know she came back for spring.

Text messages from the lady!

Not a cloud in the sky allll day!! And being able to walk without pain.
Another thing that brought me joy yesterday was, when I met my new Acupuncturist at my regular clinic, she offered me to visit her at her practice free of charge because she was so moved with how my Lupus affects me. My joy came from her compassion, her offer and the huge progress I have had since September of last year.
I've made some hard decisions but it's all been worth it.

Good friends and good food!

Knowing that I am loved unconditionally no matter what!

Well...nothing went as planned today, but that's perfectly ok because as usual around this town, never ever plan anything because something always gets changed. It's still been a wildly fun and very adventurous day!! ...but instead of fishing, we are all on our way to pick out baby pigmy goats!! They are 2 months old :-) ...
And another joy was, getting to share a very rare treat, a freshly made hot soft pretzel with dippin cheese with my buddy. This is a once a year treat.

A stunning beautiful day..
Filled with so much laughter my ribs hurt.
I can't wait to see the babies!!

Today is a good day. I sat on the patio watching my fur kids run and play then chase birds that they cant catch then play some more. While all this fun was going on I was siting on a lawn chair eating a large frosty from Wendy's one slow bite at the time, yes it was that good.

It's all subjective, right? Today: fever seems to have abated, able to not sleep all day. FU Flu.

Eating left over cake!!!!

The JD :-)

Watching my 2 year old nephew ride the ponies. His smile melted my heart.

Chatting with old friends and getting encouragement , just makes me feel good!

Getting a call from a state office today to tell me they have reviewed my disability paperwork and that they've made a decision, the paperwork is in the mail!!! This has been a huge hurtle since it's so hard to get into the specialists I've needed. A weight is lifted!

Sending some flowers to some awesome Employees!

Seeing a car with New Hampshire plates...

I love to see my fellow New Englanders down thisaway!

A good morning text the moment u open ur eyes.... What a way to start my day...

My lady....

she was eating lunch and I was doing paperwork...

I looked up to see her watching me and smiling. She reached over and said, "I'm SO glad you're here with me today."

I confess...it made me a tad weepy...I may not be visiting her any more per my agency.


(w)

Making myself a pretty breakfast

Breaking in my new mower. Mowing is like therapy for me.

Surrounded by freshly cut Lavender..it was heavenly

Waking up to Grace's head on my pillow. She was snoring up a storm.

Spending time with family.
Cute text messages.
Dessert porn pictures lol

appreciation and hard work
 

Fresh potatoes straight from the ground (which were so worth the few fire ant bites I had to endure)...
Fresh picked tomatoes, greenbeans, and cucumbers...
Getting to nurture a large patch of fruit vines that have 'baby' cantaloupes ...so looking forward to the first ripe ones...
A watermelon plant that my neighbor planted just for me...
Several hundred strawberry plants and a bunch of heirloom cherry tomato plants (of several different kinds) just full of soon to be ripe fruit...

A long awaited, very important phone call. :phonegab:

Having a text wake me up saying "I am boarding the plane". She will be here for 2 weeks!! Joy! :)

My niece learning how to cook. She's so funny!

Not having a squishy kitchen floor

An amazingly delicious supper

My son has been collecting coins he finds on the ground outside... he's got like $4 bucks... what a smart kid!

Seeing and hearing the kids I'm babysitting today have fun and their laughter and smiles. They're awesome kids!

Talking to the mom of one of my daughters friends... knowing she's finally finding friends who have things in common with her.

The beautiful sunset.

Typically, I detest details in all their various forms....
 

....as I'm much more of an overall picture sort of thinker. However, today they were a respite from larger looming certainties (and uncertainties).

Losing myself in the day's minutiae was a joyous and passionate love affair.

And I feel really good as a direct result.

Getting the pictures we took via her cell phone sent to my cell phone so I can post our pics from Saturday!

holding my cat Zoe.:hk34:

My best friend's excitement when they told me about the hummingbird they watched feed from my feeders today.

Getting home after a long day in town.

The response from a friend when they saw the frozen treat and soft pretzel I bought for them.

Calling for positive energy and getting so many wonderful responses.

Speaking to a local friend and finding out their organic blueberries will be ready by the gallon full in a couple weeks...and sharing this news with my favorite elderly neighbor lady. She's gonna swap old recipes with me in exchange for my homegrown eggs.