Broken Hearted

Well, it's a few days before Thanksgiving, and I am thankful to be alive.  Sounds a little dramatic, huh?  But you see, around Halloween I started having these weird heart palpitations and became convinced there was something very seriously wrong with me, because that's just what the way my mind works.  I will make a long story short:  I am fine.  Some poking and prodding and being hooked up to machines has pretty much ruled out anything super serious, so that is good news.  Most likely it was all just stress.  So, I am changing my eating habits and making an exercise plan and taking steps to lower my level of stress.

Thank God we don't have an Elf on the Shelf!  I don't think my heart could take it.

One helpful thing is that our Girl Scout holiday service project is complete except for taking the packages to the post office, which will happen tomorrow.  It is a relief to have that done so early.  Our project last year was GREAT, but was really really overwhelming and it lasted right up to Christmas Break.  Plus, in the same month, we had a big Christmas party, went caroling, took food to the shelter, and marched in the parade.  Too much stuff.  We only have 2 more easy meetings before the break this year, plus a very small Christmas caroling outing (this time, we stand in one spot for 45 minutes instead of going all around a neighborhood for 90 minutes), so I don't have a lot of Brownie stress on my mind.

Also, my school volunteering responsibilities are much smaller this year.  

I am working on saying no to things and asking for help more often.  This is all good.

Another thing that has been helpful is doing fun stuff with my friends.  I think laughing must be good for the heart, because the night I was all hooked up to my crazy heart monitor machine, I went to a friend's house and laughed for about two hours straight with a bunch of people I like a lot, and my test results were great.

Last night, I went with a couple of friends to a painting class.  I have never painted anything in my life.  Above is my first ever attempt at doing so.  I very clearly did not inherit my dad's painting gene, but I had a good time with my friends.  See how cool we are?

We are going back to the studio eventually to work on adding some details that we didn't have time for during the class.  Even though it looks like something Daphne could do, I like my painting.  It makes me happy.

Saturday, I got to spend some time hanging out with Kev.  Even though most of that time was spent stuck in traffice and driving around trying to find a parking space at the ridiculous mall, it was fun.  That makes me happy, too.

Do you know what else makes me happy?  This butternut squash and apple soup that we made today.  Williams Sonoma does it again!  Their recipes never disappoint.

This package makes me happy.  Daphne brought it home from her Project Surprise sewing class.  I have no idea what's in it, but I can't wait to find out.  I love the wrapping.  Pom-poms are awesome.

Pomegranates make me happy, too.  They are delicious.  And good for the heart! 

One more thing that makes me happy is yarn.  I have been knitting like crazy lately.  It calms me down.

I did not knit this big awesome blanket above, but I want to.  I could BUY the big awesome blanket from Anthropologie, but it would cost me $798.00.  I could knit it for about $250.  I love Anthropologie, but sometimes they are ridiculous.  Who pays $798.00 for a blanket?  If you know someone, tell them I'll sell them the same blanket for $500.00.  Then, I could use the profit to buy more yarn to make more blankets to sell, and pretty soon I will have enough money in my jar to go dog-sledding with my family in the Maine back country in real snow for miles and miles.

In a few days, I get to see my parents, Jeff, Scout, Chief, and the good people of my extended family.  That makes me happiest of all.

When you saw this post title, you thought this would be a sad blog, didn't you?

Happy Thanksgiving!