love, sweet love

the other day my mom sent me this precious email with kids' responses to the question,
"what does love mean."

look at some of these responses:

'Love is what makes you smile when you're tired.'

Terri - age 4

'Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.'

Danny - age 7

'Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.

My Mommy and Daddy are like that. They look gross when they kiss.'

Emily - age 8

'Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.'

Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

'If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.'

Nikka - age 6

(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

'Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday.'

Noelle - age 7

'Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well.'

Tommy - age 6

'During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.

He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore.'

Cindy - age 8

'Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken.'

Elaine-age 5

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.'

Chris - age 7

'I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones.'

Lauren - age 4

'Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross.'

Mark - age 6

'When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.' (what an image)

Karen - age 7

hope this brought you a bit of joy today.
xo

foggy mornings

i LOVE foggy mornings!
they're the kind that make me want to stay snug in my bed all day, but once i get up and moving, they're the best.
sweater on, coffee brewing, today show rolling (+ the fog, of course) ... great way to start the day.

joy!
meg :)

chili a la allen, ashtanga yoga, & dancing at radnor

friday night, my friend allen made his famous from-scratch chili and it was amazing!
i've been hearing about this chili for several months and it totally lived up to its hype. i also tried sweet potato pie for the first time on friday night and it was gooood.

saturday, i went to an ashtanga yoga class with all the lululemon girls. it was super intense and challenging, but entirely rewarding; i love that kind of workout. after yoga, we all headed to the store (which will officially open on October 15!!! so close!) to continue unloading boxes, and then we ate lunch.
we got to go to whole foods and choose anything we wanted (wha?! so fun!), and then we parked it on the sidewalk and shared our goals w/ each other. it is amazing to work for a company that is so invested in every employee's personal development; i feel so, so fortunate to have this job.

today, i went hiking at radnor lake for the first time ever since i moved to nashville. i cannot believe it's taken me five years to discover this gem of a place!
the drive there consisted of windows-down perfectness + the lastest john mayer album + great friends and conversation, and the actual hike consisted of some harmonized rounds of kumbaya + a spontaneous dance attack that made onlookers (and ourselves, actually...) laugh a lot :) + solid time with friends, both new and old,
which made for a perfect sunday afternoon.

i love the fall.

have a joyful week!!

just a typical day of fallish whimsy

shalom!
there was nothing particularly amazing about today...
aside from a hundred tiny little things that just made it phenomenal!
here are a few:

unloading boxes at the new lululemon store:
this was fun and it brought me joy simply bc i feel so grateful to have this job and i lovelovelove all the girls with whom i get to work.

carrying undressed male mannequins across a street:
... funny watching people smile and laugh in their cars as i toted the awkward things.

picnic lunch on the sidewalk outside lululemon:
we all ate yummy sandwiches on the sidewalk in the sunshine in a circle.

grocery shopping at whole foods:
tonight i splurged a little and got some groceries from whole foods. i spent like an hour just walking around and looking at everything and left with just a few things, but man... i love that store!

apple cider:
one of the things i got at whole foods was a gallon of homemade apple cider. how perfectly fallish and fun! i cannot wait to drink it over the next week! yum!

dinner w/ steph and austin:
two of my dearest friends met me at whole foods and we all sat outside under the october moon and ate and caught up. i had sushi and chocolate milk.
bam.
joy.

goodnight!

one day at a time!

royale sandwich at the frothy monkey.
bam.
so delicious and joy-bringing.

also,
tonight i got to speak/play for a youth group out in brentwood.
my goal is to have at least 20 speaking engagements throughout this school year.
one down!!

playing the basement!

tonight,
i got to play at this awesome little venue in nashville called the basement.
i had SUCH a blast!!
thank you so, so much to everyone who came out... definitely the joy of my day.
have a great week!

xo.
meg :)

:)

i have the hugest smile on my face right now.

read the previous post and then look at the 'anonymous' comment.

so.cute.

I love you, Dadda!


Joy is the feeling of grinning inside.
-Melba Colgrove

FALL!

guys,
the weather FEELS like fall today!
so much joy in this.

ps: here's a little something i wrote last year about fall:

Do you know what i love? love with every figment and fiber and thread and molecule in my body? It is FALL.

I LOVE the fall. love, love, love, love, love, love, love, LOVE it!

I love the orange of pumpkins and the gold of crunchy leaves; i love the crispness in the air; i love how starbucks starts to serve pumpkin spice lattes; i love that Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas are all within just a few months of each other; i love how fall slowly freezes into wintery blissfulness and mugs of hot cocoa and the smell of cinnamon and pine trees and sugar cookies. I love the chill in the air, freshness of the sky, the silhouettes of the trees as they shed their leaves, the October moon, and the way it starts to get dark and we can cozy in for the evening a little bit earlier.

It's beautiful in life how we can have so many beginnings and endings, you know? These cycles are important. They remind us that we can continually begin again... there are always new beginnings and seasons in which our hearts can change.

and for me, fall is maybe the most profound reminder of this. When the sun rises and it is all of a sudden distinctly fall instead of summer ... in nashville, it seems to have happened just over night... I am reminded of the power of an unchanging, mighty, merciful, and steadfast God who allows second chances and periods of renewal every. single. second.

and praise for that.

happy fall :)

bench talks

bench talk (n.) - a talk with a great friend on a bench in a public place where you can kick off your shoes, people-watch, eat sweet cece's and enjoy the first official night of fall for
as.long.as.you.decide.to.do.so.
hooray!
joyjoyjoy.

wogging and pesto-ness.

today i wogged 6 miles.
do you know what wogging is?
it's walk-jogging.
i tried to run the whole 6, but i had to walk a little bit.
slowly gettin back in the swing...

dinner = pasta w/ pesto.
so, so perfect and delicious.

bedtime!
night!

gas station sign

"Be a little kinder today."

Today, I saw this on a sign outside a gas station sign and just loved it.
Hope you're having a great weekend!
meg :)

bedtime.

today, it is bedtime that brings me joy.
this is not because i had a bad day, nor
is it because feel overly stressed or anything like that;
i'm just simply egg.zoss.ted.
nigh night!

the little things

it's 11:30 pm and i'm
sitting next to a new lavender vanilla candle,
loving the fact that my legs are silkysilkysilky smooth cuz i just shaved,
and drinking a combination of seltzer and raspberry-strawberry juice from a wine glass
while responding to emails and wrapping up the day.

joy in the small things!
meg

man.

today was an all-around great day.
i never intended for this blog to be a tell-all about what i do in my days,
but today's entry is gonna be exactly that.

i worked at burger up all morning (slash til 4).
i love working there.
i love the people i work with, i love getting to meet and talk with so many new people each day, i love that i can sip on diet coke whenever i want, i love that i can eat delicious french fries and other yummies at the end of my shifts, and i really just love the vibe of the whole place.

then i dashed home, changed super fast, and went to hot yoga.
so. so. intense today.
wanted to walk out of there bc i felt like a was gonna die about ten times...
but then it was over
and then i felt great.
i love that feeling of having worked really hard for something, sticking it out, and then feeling great.

at night, i made dinner with some of my girlfriends.
we made pasta with this yummy homemade tomato sauce and a yummy caesar salad w/ lots of parmesan-reggiano cheese and shared a delicious bottle of shiraz,
and then they had vanilla ice cream and i ate a blue ice pop.

as we were sitting at the table and i was taking a sip of wine, i had one of those moments where it was like -
man.

anyway-
that last part is terribly inarticulate, but maybe you get my gist.
i just feel really in a good place right now and i'm incredibly grateful for that.

there have been several times in my life where i have been like
where.
is.
the.
joyyyy?
(and will joy ever really come again? and will i ever get out of this massive black hole of uncertainty and depression?)

... and then i do.

joy is always restored.

xo,
meg :)

jambalaya, the little ones, and playin

the rees family is really awesome.
there are 8 kids.
the 4 oldest ones play in a band together.
the 4 younger ones are the most precious little lovies in the world.
paige makes some meeeean jambalaya.
steve brews his own beer.
max and kolbe do the cutest version (ever) of 'home on the range,' ukelele and all.
(max and kolbe are 6-year-old twins).
angelle ran up to me and said 'you are my best friend in the whole entire WORLD!' when i came in the front door tonight. :)
(angelle is 8).

tonight i went over to this joy-filled home and got to feast on paige's authentic traditional cajun jambalaya.
i also got to play 'maid' with precious mollie girl (who is 4),
and
after all the little kids went to bed,
the big kids plus some mutual friends plus myself went to the band room and had a jam session complete w/ drums, keys, 3 guitars, bass, a bongo and loveeee.

joy was resonating.
music is so cool.

sushi and dead poets

tonight i ate sushi for dinner and watched dead poet's society for the first time.
yes and yes.

:)

zumba, yoga, hot yoga!

today
i got to do zumba, yoga, and hot yoga
all for my job!

i came home after the last class feeling exhausted, but in that
good-exhausted way.
ju know?

joy for today = working for lululemon.
i am loving it!

sleepy time.
meg

east meets wedge

tonight i went to dinner @ pm w/ my friend colbs.
i ate a salad called 'east meets wedge' and it was delish.
good friend(s) + good food = joy :)

laundry day

i need to do laundry more than i think i have ever needed to do laundry in my entire life.

a) i really don't like doing laundry.
b) actually, i normally dread it.
c) i don't want to have a dreadful day tomorrow.
d) joy is way better than dread.
e) help me have a joyful laundry day by posting your (latest) favorite
songs,
pandora stations,
artists,
and
anythingelses
that i must hear.

ps: my joy for today was having tea w/ taisa after a long day of work.

xo.

messy buns and music funs

for the guys out there,
just disregard.

for you girlies, though,
the messy bun that just works the first time?
(i mean, works as in you can just wear it out in public all day after hopping out of the shower and having no time to do anything else with your soppingwetscragglepuff of a head of hair ...
bam baby.

joy numero dos = going to a show at what i like to refer to as the hippest, vibe-iest place in the nash:
my friend molly's apartment.

molly is a friend
(slash super talented musician/singer/songwriter) from vandy, and she and her friend matt recently started this awesome thing called "The Hoop," where, on the first Saturday of every month, they host a house show featuring several artists/writers from around town...
and it is so, so awesome.
... chill, intimate, encouraging, supportive, fun...
awesomecool.

nighty night!
meg :)

"Character is a measure of how you treat people who aren't able to help you, love you, or give you anything at all."
-quote from a little book i saw on a coffee table tonight

acantaloupeorangecottoncandyblueelectricpinksunsetinthetennesseenightsky.

yep.
that's what brought me joy today.
nature is powerful stuff.

i also loved dipping my lunch wrap in a huge pile of yellow mustard (i'm on this weird yellow mustard kick lately- it tastes so. freaking. good to me. all the time), and hearing my friend jade tell me about how she competed in weekly roller skating competitions when she was in fifth grade.

ta ta!
meg :)

trader joe's spaghetti-o's...

mmm.
today was a lovely day!

i got up and went running with my friend taisa, and even though it was still breakfast (ish) time when we finished... all i wanted to eat was a can of trader joe's spaghetti-o's.

now i'd never had these things, but i saw them in the store the other day, and for some reason (most likely connected to the fact that i was always curious about them when other kids would bring them to school for lunch back in the day), i bought a can.

long story short, i ate them for breakfast (ish). (it was 10:30).
they were delicious.
they brought me joy.

another thing that brought me joy today was meeting with / doing yoga with all the girls who work with me at my new job (new job = an educator for lululemon) !! i can't wait to post more about this in the next few days, but suffice it to say that i feel like i have found my soulmate job for where i am in my life right now.
i am so, so excited about it!

joy to you,
meg :)

the plan... revised :)

ya'll,
i have a weakness i'm going to tell you about.
it's called
setting unrealistically high expectations for myself cuz i get so excited and enthusiastic about things very easily and think the sky's the limit and that i will have enough time to do many things in my day... and then getting completely burnt out and rather than just taking baby steps or doing something related to the original project i set out to do, ... shutting down completely.

that's kind of what's happened with this bliggity blog.
i started it at the beginning of they year thinking i would make a video every day and add music and text and pictures and blah blah blah... and i was pumped about that for a while, but then it got to be so, so, so time-consuming, and instead of simply writing a little blurb or posting a picture or doing something a little more reasonable given my work schedj and stuff, i just quit posting altogether.

lame face!

slash human and something that i know a lot of other people out there struggle with as well... but you know what i mean.

so.
here's my plan from here on out:
share my joys in whatever way i can.
(and at least 3-4 days per week).
way more mange.
(manageable).

the intent of this project was (and remains) simply to share the little things that bring me joy in my day,
and that can be done it lots of different ways besides making videos.

so...

the end.
(and the beginning).
joys from today being posted in one sec.

xo.
meg

things i am thankful for today...

1. time
(as in the power of time to heal)
(to heal what, are you asking?)
(to heal brokenness, to heal pain, to heal hurt, to heal sorrow)
2. sunfaces
(as in the way i like to refer to those who bring joy to my life)
3. birthdays
(as in today (!!) bc my baby sister turned 16!!) - chickawha?!?? i cannot believe that!

xx.

JOY #128

today, i wore my old
red and white striped tank top.
it brought me joy.
that is all.

pace (as in pah-chay) and love,
-m

JOY #127: pure old-fashioned fun

ah! today was a lovely, lovely day!
i worked from 11-5 at the burg, then went to
musician's corner, then went to

swing dancing in the park (picture a 1950's big band dance under a huge tent w/ tons of families, precious old couples spinning and dancing like they were still in their 20's, and people from all different walks of life out having a great time together), and thennnn to
and sonic.
mmm mmm mmm!
i tried a cherry limemade freezer or something like that (cherry limeade w/ icecream?!!?)
- super delish.

closing thoughts:
i love having friends who love dancing so much and -
geoff, fishy, luke, etc - i feel so fortunate to some basically-brothers in you.
joyity joy.

meg :)

JOY #126

mmm.
in nashville, there is a tiny popsicle store called las paletas.
they have all sorts of funky flavors including avocado, basil, rose petal, and chai.



xo!
meg :)

JOY #125: the happiest dj in the world. :)

ya'll.
this is a joyful man.



i'm thinking of incorporating this video into my morning routine...
peace :)
megs

JOY(s) #124

hi all! I just returned from a brief stint to nyc/upstate ny and it was so joyful!
first, two of my great friends from college, john nehme and rachel weber, got married.
rache and i were roommates when we studied abroad in siena, italy and john and i had (-ve) a lot of mutual friends.


joys from their wedding:
-the little red doors at the chapel where the wedding took place
-dancing like old times with such great friends at the reception


- hearing a family singing under a bridge in central park
-walking through the theater district and seeing all the famous theatres / reminiscing about lots of theatre-y memories from my childhood
-buying a peach from a fruit-stand on 5th and savoring it while i walked through central park
-popping into St. Patrick's cathedral... ahh! breathtaking!! ... and being there while Adoration was going on!
-making it up to the met(-ropolitan museum of art)
(it was closed, but i just wanted to see it bc it is the setting for one of my favorite childhood books, from the mixed up files of mrs. basil e. frankweiler, in which the main character runs away and hides there :) )
-eating dinner with my aunt and uncle and at a really cool place called the spice market
-the ginger margarita i enjoyed at dinner. so, so tasty!
-walking through the west village (which has cobblestone streets!... that's cool in nyc!) after dinner and seeing all the chic boutique hotels
-getting to snuggle up on a comfy couch in my friend's apartment and crash after a looong but awesome day of exploring.
i love nyc!

joy to you :)
meg

JOY(s) #123

pulling out my college italian textbook just for fun
silly i-photo pics with john and ernie

holding baby walker before bed
finishing an intense interval training workout
and finally, this:


joy!
xoxo
meg :)

JOYs #121 and #122

joys from yesterday:
hearing marc elliot speak
dinner at jackson's + great conversation with marc
laying out with bec

joys from today:
painting my toenails a shimmery mint green-y color
painting my fingernails a lilac-y color
getting to take a long afternoon nap
the feeling after insanity
recording at oceanway tonight!

life is beautiful.
i love simplicity.
ciao ciao!

It's the 4th! i love today!

joys from today:
- red, white and blue breakfast yummy-ness (strawbs, bluebs, vanilla yogurt and muesli) made by ernie.
-simply having the option of enjoying said yummy-ness w/ ernie and john.

i just love having them around all the time.
-mass.
-dogpound field-day hilariousness (including jade and i's win in the 3-legged race).
-freedom.
-friends.
-fourth food.

joy and xoxo.
meg

JOY #120:

things that brought me joy today:

a sweet couple i saw at work.
erin and john visiting me there.
(erin = my sister who is living with me all summer! john = her awesome bf who is like a bro).
'recovery' workout with john and erin.
(we're doing the insanity workout program together this summer.
ju know of dis?
seriously insane).
becca's wing-womanness.
listening to john sing to youtube videos all night. :) hehehe
learning the piano part to asher book's "try."
emailing from bed.
my fuzzy green blanket.
familiarity.
turkey sandwiches + cheetos at midnight.

love.

joy to you. :)
meg

JOY #119: gradge parties.

tonight
i went to the graduation party of one of my really great friends, andres.
andres is from ecuador and tonight, i got to meet his entire family and a handful of his friends from back home - such awesome people!
dinner was at maggiano's and was deeeelish.
everyone spoke in spanish except for me.
afterward, we all stayed up late talking and playing/listening to music.
'twas a great night.

joy!

JOY #118: wendy.

when i was a senior in high school, i participated in a program through which i met a great girl named hope. hope has a younger sister named wendy (who i also got to know toward the end of the program), and wendy has left a comment after
every. single. post. on this blog...
so, so encouraging!

today,
i thank YOU, wendy, for your precious encouragement and thoughtful words.

xo.
meg

ps: wendy has a blog that ya'll should check out, too! click here.

JOY # 117: serving mr. wiseman.

guys.
tonight at work, i got to serve craig wiseman.
juh-oyy.
he is one of the greatest songwriters of all time!

JOY #116: spring cleaning.

sometimes it feels awesome to clean.
tonight was one of those nights.

ni ni!

JOY #115: bedtime reading

it is 10:18 pm and i am
a) in bed
b) about ready to close my computer
c) going to read for a bit
d) gonna get a great night's sleep.

i love making time to read before bed!

joy.
:)

JOY #114: little bitty babies.

today at work,
there was this mama holding a PINT-SIZED (literally) baby.

the mama explained that her baby was 6 weeks old, but had been born 4.5 weeks early,
so basically, the baby was the size of a week-and-a-half-old.
seeing that brand new, 8-pound little life curled up against his mama brought me so much joy!
life is so, so precious!

to all the mothers out there - happy day.
thank you for all you do.

and to my own mama - words cannot express my love. :) you are incredible and i am so blessed to be your daughter.

xo.

JOY #113: getting off work early.

:)

joy #113, part b: this adorable little boy who came into the restaurant tonight
with a full-out fro. so cute.

tomorrow is mother's day!
show yo mama some love.

JOY #112: fish tacos

...from baja burrito in the nash.

little pieces of heaven in my mouth.

ni ni.
:)

JOY #111: swinging.

(as in on a swing set).

i did this today with addie, who is 3.

we then gave some men (who were invisible) some
"haircuts with sprinkles" as they sat in the swings,

and then we played doctor (still using the swing-set)
and addie gave me lots of shots.

:)

joy.

JOY #110: porching.

porching: (v.)
1. sitting outside
on a porch
for an extended period of time
with a group of friends
in the night-time.
1. + enjoying wine,
making up new songs,
being silly,
sharing stories
and
simply living in the moment.

JOY #109: bookstore-browsing.

JOYs 94-108 :)

to my lovely and loyal blog followers:
you know what i was reminded of today?
a simple little quote from my dear friend colleen:
"a life of JOY is a life of sorrows."

in other words,
in order to recognize and appreciate the joys in this life, we must also embrace and appreciate the sorrows.
you know?

i think there's a lot of merit to this this statement.
if life was entirely full of joys, it wouldn't really be joy we were experiencing; it would be some half-emotion that doesn't slightly compare with the beauty of the real thing.
sorrows are beautiful.

-- if you're stuck in a "sorrow period," don't lose hope.
joy is always restored.

anyway... here are some joys. :) no videos for the past two weeks, but i'll totally re-instigate the video-ness soon.
xo.

JOY #94: picking up a happy baby from his crib just after his morning nap.
holding that baby. smelling his baby hair. feeling that baby's warmth against your chest and hugging him for a minute. smiling at that baby. watching his eyes and whole face light up and smile right back. recognizing the preciousness and beauty of life in that baby's little face.

JOY #95: having a good cry.
letting it all out - big sobs. being held by a best friend. mascara running down your face. not caring. smiling at the end bc you know you've got someone who loves you like that.

JOY #96: simpson-zuniga family weddings :)
watching the father of the bride walk his daughter down the aisle. watching the groom wait for his bride at the end of the aisle. watching the 9 siblings of the groom and 10 siblings of the bride stand alongside their soon-to-be-married brother and sis with love and joy just radiating from their faces!
watching the sibs put on a skit at the reception for the bride and groom.
dancing the entire night.

JOY #97: midnight chapel visits.
driving there in the rain. walking inside with a notebook and a pen.
wrapping my hands and arms around my knees and just sitting there for a while.
listening to the rain hit the windows.
watching the little candle by the tabernacle flicker.
pouring out my heart on paper and then at the piano.
trusting fate.

JOY #98: pretending i'm in a beach town as i walk down 21st ave on a sunny, breezy afternoon.
imagining salty air. hearing waves crash in the background. thinking ocean-y thoughts. smiling and taking in a deep ocean breath.
(...it's almost as good as really being there.)

JOY #99: crossing the finish line.
runnin the music city half marathon with my papa.
listening to him yell things like alleluia! and de colores! at random times and seeing other peoples' huge smiles and mid-run laughter because of this.
being able to find him easily in the sea of runners bc of his zoolander-ness.
crossing together!

JOY #100: realizing how much someone loves you. feeling truly, deeply cared for and understood.

JOY #101: voice messages from a littlest sister just calling to say hello.

JOY #102: simple things:
getting gas,
being able to walk into a restaurant, enjoy a meal with friends, and have the resources to pay for it,
having a bed to sleep in each night,
being able to take hot showers...
all such little blessings.

JOY #103: checking things off my to-do list
(including catching up on this long-overdue blog-a-liciousness)

JOY #104: bundling up with big, cozy blankets when it's chilly outside.
wrapping those blankets so cozy and tight.
making sure your toes are tucked in, too.
relishing every second of the snug-as-a-bug-ness.

JOY #105: watching a friend bring to life one of her dreams
(my friend, miranda, just opened a new restaurant, BURGER UP, and ya'll should totally come try it out! it's on 12th south just a few blocks past the frothy monkey and the meat, cheese, produce, buns and everything are all from local farmers and bakers! spread some love!)

JOY #106: hearing the roll of thunder in the early morning.
being able to stay in bed just a little longer and listen to it more.
thinking about the power of nature.

JOY #107:
eating pizza w/ my dadda.
his half had olives and pepperoni, mine just had pepp.
swell.

JOY #108:
watching the holiday with shan and becca.
enjoying dark chocolate m&m's and sipping on ginger ale from wine glasses, just for fun.
laughing and picking out the best quotes from the movie, again just for fun.
being girls and thinking about our future loves... just for fun. ;)

ni night!
meg

JOY #93: flower boxes.

i have no video for today's post
(nor do i have a picture)
bc i was driving when i saw what it was that brought me joy
and
i thought it would be imprudent to simultaneously reach for my camera and try to take footage or photos
so
you're going to have to simply imagine what i saw on my journey home today
and that is
a little balcony lined with little flower boxes overflowing with little daisies intermingled with little vines that spilled over onto a little wall that made for a truly magical
little scene
and
that is all.
good night :)

JOY #92: Ethiopian food for the first time!

JOY #91: champagne toasts!

JOY #90: birthday love.

to those in my life who
sent texts,
wrote messages,
shared wine,
mailed cards,
cooked dinner,
made toasts,
lit candles,
used glitter,
made gifts,
sent packages,
left voice messages,
danced with me,
hugged me,
loved me,
and showered me with oh-so-much joy on this 8,031th day of my life -
thank you so, so, much.
i felt so loved.
:)

JOY #89: trader joe's

i love shopping at this place.

JOYs 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, & 88!

79: count-downs!
80: aunt julie!
81: beth!
82: midnight concerts!
83: spaz-running
84: sunflower seed butter
85: baby bjorns
86: walker
87: warm breezes
88: pool-side talks!

JOY #78: Easter brunch :)

easter brunch:

yummies.
laughter.
music.
dresses.
ties.
jackets.
joy.
william.

ya'll. that kid is my heart.

JOY #77: friends getting engaged!

JOY #76: grandparents' day

today was grandparents' day at william's school.
grandparents' day is an annual event which consists of an hour-long musical performance, a chance for all grandparents/guests to tour the school and meet teachers, and a reception with cookies and punch.

william called me about two weeks ago to invite me to this event (if grandparents are unable attend, students can invite a "special adult friend," and i, as william's babysitter, got to be the lucky pal),
and of course i was excited when i got william's call,
but i had no idea what a big deal this day would be until i got there this morning.

let me give you a few specifics:
1.400 grandparents come to this thing.
they come from all over the country.
no less than 20 valet parking guys are needed to park all the cars.
i got there 15 minutes early and there was not an open seat in sight.

thankfully, a precious grandma offered to squeeze me in her bleacher when she saw me scanning the auditorium for a seat.
"i'd like to still be on the aisle," she said and laughed. "but you can squeeze here."
i totally squeezed.

so much joy :)
meg

JOY #75: birds singin!

JOY #74: patio lunches!

ya'll,
i am in LOVE with this weather!
do any of you feel more joyful just bc it is sunny outside?!
love that feeling!

JOY #73: bein' a littttle bit early :)

JOY #72: earrings from jan :)

jan - i love them!!

JOY #71: this silly commercial.

this made me laugh a little.
i've already been singing the song all morning.

JOY #70: grandpas and granddaughters :)

JOY #69: rice-krispie treats straight from the pot!

deeeeelish!

JOY #68: middle-of-the-night painting

a few weeks ago, i started a painting for my bedroom.
click here to watch that joy :)
last night, i could not sleep, so i worked on it a little more.

joy!
meg :)

INGRID VIDEO!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxkCo1J__c4

watch this many, many times!
if it racks up enough views by SUNDAY NIGHT, (it's gotta be over about 6,000!) it goes to the final round of voting, which puts me one step closer to possibly jamming onstage w/ ingrid! bah!
woo!!

JOY #67: puff-painting!

love,
meghan

JOY #66: fresh flowers :)

my friend christine brought these over last friday.

... definitely little joy-bringers :)

xo.
meg

JOY #65: my high heel falling apart :)

hope this made you laugh a little.
:)
xo.
meg

*ps: i know 'accept' should be spelled 'except' in the video. slight typo. :)

JOY #64: my invitation to grandparents' day :)

to see the cuteness of william in action, watch
joys 22 and 25.

:)

JOY #63: parkway runnin!

JOY #62: nashville.

ya know what brings me joy today?
living here in the nash.

here are some reasons why:
(i could come up w/ 100, but i'll start w/ ten)

in no particular order...
10. saturday night swing dances in centennial during the summer
9. frothy monkey
8. benton chapel
7. sweet cece's
6. hillsboro village
7. quaint little neighborhoods like belmont / hillsboro
5. great mix between east and west coast
4. lots of young families
3. the way all the trees look in the fall
2. fish tacos from baja burrito
1. skyline!

joy to you!

JOY #61: sleepovers w/ stephie!

y'all.
sometimes i just can't keep up with the videos.
tonight is one of those nights.

so...
my joy of the day in written form:
sleepover w/ stephanie!

if anyone tells you post-college girls don't have sleepovers,
they're wrong-o!

joyityjoy,
meg

JOY #61: wisdom.

JOY #60: ernie :)

JOY #59: ingrid's video contest!!

ya'll.
ingrid michaelson is hosting a video contest and the winner gets to perform
onstage. w/. her.

i love ingrid michaelson!
i love making videos!
i would love to perform onstage. w/. her!

!

entrants have to post their videos on youtube and the 10 w/ the most votes by march 29 advance to the final round of voting.
then, the ONE w/ the most votes wins!

i will post my entry when it is finished.
can you all do me a favor and watch it!?
spread some love!

meg :)

JOY #58: birthday brunch!

JOY #57: ernie's africa pics :)

these.
are.
precious.

JOY(s) #56: painting, celebrating others' joys, safe travels

i'll post pics of the painting when it's done, too!

xo.

JOY #55: fast, yummy, easy meals/ zumba!

JOY #54: apples and peanut butter!

JOY #53: "but i have you to catch me"

today,
i felt as if a massive leaden blanket came and plopped itself right down on top of me.

have you ever felt that way?
it's like
where. is. the. joy?

i felt
fragile.
breakable.
absolutely not care-free.
stuck.

so where is the joy in all of this?
for me, it's in believing that there's always someone there to catch me when i do break/shatter.

xo.

JOY #52: nice weather!

JOY #51: this precious couple :)

what a GLORIOUS day today has been!
if this doesn't make you smile...

:)
meg

ps - this couple has been married for 62 years and the husband is almost 90.

JOY #50 - cupcakes w/ my mama!

50th post already!??! i cannot believe it!
i'm having so much fun w/ this and cannot wait to continue w/ the remaining 6/7 of these joys!
xoxo.

JOY #49: watching the sun rise :)

holy cow.
look at this sunrise.
beauty.
beauty.
joy.

ps - song credit goes to mercyme, not newsboys. oops.

JOY #48: mama's arrival!

JOY #47: emails from ernie :)

k - just kidding about ernie's column. can't post after all.
here's a little story about kel down in chile, though!

joy,
meg

JOY #46: pretzel :)

pretzel
by margret rey.
pictures by H.A. rey.

joy,
meg :)

JOY #45: live music

xo!

JOY #44: unexpected run-ins w/ friends :)

today,
i
slept in (joy).
took my dad to the airport (non-joy).
hung out with jackie - (joy).
picked up kira - (joy).
ran into miron - (joy).
brushed my teeth - (joy).

hey. that's in the shape of a star. joy!

JOY #43: runnin' :)

hey all! sorry i'm a day late w/ this post.
enjoy!
meg :)

JOY #42: teeth-brushin.

:)
you know what i love?

emptying my desktop trashcan
clearing out my gmail inbox
getting rid of things i don't need or use anymore
simplifying

also,
today, i brushed my teeth.
well actually, everyday, i brush my teeth.
but today, i brushed my teeth and i got a lot of joy out of it.

:)

JOY #41: Savannah's 911 call

thoughts running through my head right now:

man.
i stink at going to bed at a decent hour.
it's 2:24 am.
i did have to babysit until late tonight.
i have footage from today.
i could try to put together a video and not go to bed for a while longer.
none of the footage is uploaded yet.
i have to be at the nursing home at 9:00.
i need to go to bed soon.
i don't have time to put together my own video tonight.

my grandma sent me the above video in an email the other day.
this is my joy for today.
:)

JOY #40: dad in the nash

JOY #39: fashion advice from the france

tonight i curled my hair w/ a straightener.
frannie, i thank you for your hair and fashion wisdom.

i am wiped out.
video coming tomorrow.
:)

JOY #38: writing :)

mmm!
today was lovely.
i spent most of it in bed trying to rest up for the haiti benefit show tomorrow night,
but around 4, i drove to my guitar teacher's house and dropped off some chord charts bc she is playing w/ me tomorrow night!

i had planned to drive straight back home and hop right back in bed, but along the way,
i was struck with this spontaneous urge to pull over, park the car, sit in it while the rain hit the windows, and just write for a while.

so i did.
oh my goodness - so much joy!!

i poured out the thoughts and dreams and emotions whirring through my head about life and love and blessings and friendships and all sorts of things like that, i listened to a country cd i recently got from a friend (thank you - you know who you are), i
watched the rush-hour traffic seep from parking garages into city streets and finally onto the highways like little ants parading toward a mecca or amazing feast or something big and important like that, and then i just sat for a while.
i watched fat raindrops spatter on my windshield and i talked to God and i smiled for no reason at all (and then i got cold and decided it was time to go home)...
it was a marvelous little afternoon.

joy.
:)

JOY #37: water / theraflu

things that brought me joy today:
sunshine
rain on the windows
eating mexican food
truth
water / sipping theraflu
vegetable lasagna by kate :)

peace.
meg :)

JOY #36: late-night scrabble :)

things that brought me joy today:

- waking up and having dad here in the nash
- his precious efforts to take care of me
-mango vanilla soy creamy from trader joe's
-calls and texts from a few sweet friends
-sweet shannon dropping off an entire case of chick flicks for me
-the fact that vandy almost beat kentucky (ranked #2) in bball this afternoon
(final score: 56-58... SO CLOSE!)
-playing scrabble and hanging out with jim
- the beautiful weather in nashville
-having a bed to cozy up in all day

xoxo.
meg :)

JOY #35: trey's dance moves

this kid can jam.



joy!
meg

JOY #34: sitting in the sunshine

if you haven't already,
1. watch the video from today
2. watch JOY #32 and then click here and/or here
3. download your love is strong (jon foreman)
4. go sit in some sunshine

love,
meg

JOY #33: whitwhit!

in a certain sense,
the only reason i ever got to nashville in the first place was because of whitney.

whitney is one of my 26 cousins on my dad's side.
she grew up in california, i grew up in wyoming, and we always said we wanted to go to college together, so when she headed off to vanderbilt and found it to be a perfect fit (she's a year older than me), i knew i at least had to apply.

so i did.

and then i was wait-listed.
and then i decided that that was just fine and that i would go down and study musical theatre at TCU.
i went to visit TCU and got all squared away w/ a roommate and everything and was PUMPED to go there.
and then
at the beginning of june, i got a call saying that vanderbilt
had a place for me, after all, and would i please like to accept it?!

at this point, i had never visited vanderbilt or nashville or tennessee or any part of the south (except for texas) in my entire life and there was not time to visit before the admissions office needed my reply.
so what did i do?!
i called my whitwhit.

and long story short,
because of her
(slash ... actually because there is an amazing, awesome, incredible, divinely-orchestrated plan for every single person in this whole, humongous, massive crazy world... boggles my mind)
i came to the nash.

so today i'm joyful because whitney was born.
it is clear to me, in so many ways, that she has been a significant part of
my unfolding plan.

i love you, whitwhit!!!
happy birthday!!!!