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