It Was A Very Good Day - Another Long Post - Sorry

I would take 10 bad Mondays for 1 incredible day, as the day I had today. I woke up to the realization that it was my most lovely and beloved bride's 40th birthday and that she has been a blessing in my life now for 24 years! As I sipped my first cup of coffee and went to our front picture window to survey the weather outside I noticed a bunch of black, round objects in our front yard that I mistook for wild-turkeys for a brief moment. Come on, cut me some slack, it was not quite light yet! They were balloons our friends, the Gambles, had lovingly put in the lawn as a reminder of Tammy's right of passage into a new decade of existence.

I finished up my work for the day after posting about Tammy's birthday and kissing the girls goodbye as they left for school. I had a toasted raisin cinnamon bagel and coffee with my morning devotional, which was on Biblical references to listening and very applicable to me and my life. I always strive to be an active and attentive listener, and not interject, but don't always get it right. It's a Giesel trait inherited from my Grandfather and my mother.

I was running a tad late getting into my dear friend, Mrs. Holmes's 4th grade class. I vounteer in her class once a week with some of her students at Longfellow Elementary in Toledo. I've been pretty emotional this week and was so thinking and reflecting about so many things as I drove from my home to Longfellow. As I entered her classroom I was greeted by a sea of signs her students had made to wish me well and encourage me in my upcoming marathon on Sunday. I was overwhelmed by their gesture. This, unfortunately, is but a sample of the signs from the kids as there is no way I could get them all into one picture.
These are primarily from the students that I work with from week to week, but the whole classroom - 30ish of them - had made signs for me. I was moved beyond words, but not beyond tears. You kids are awesome, incredible, thoughtful, and I cannot express to you all enough how much this meant to me and encourages me to do my very best in this race! So... A HUGE SHOUT OUT TO MRS. HOLMES AND HER 4TH GRADE STUDENTS!!! YOU ALL ROCK!!! Thank you all so very much for your support.

I left the Longfellow building in tears feeling totally blessed and headed off to Target to pick up some Powerbar Gels, my running fuel of choice, as they do not carry them at Dave's Running Shop, when I picked up my race packet last night, along with a new pair of SmartWool socks for the race. I found my gels, picked them up, a birthday card for Tammy, and stumbled upon some pretty good deals on running shorts and a long sleeved top, so I splurged and picked them up for myself as well. I then headed to my favorite floral shop, Aldi (for those of you not familiar with Aldi, it is a no-frills grocery store chain that is very inexpensive with high-quality foods and products, including cut flowers), to pick up some flowers for Tammy for her birthday.

I got my flowers and headed off to my next appointment at my chiropractor, Dr. Daryl Lajiness, D.C., at Lifestyle Chiropractic - the best chiropractic office in Bedford Township and the greater Toledo-area. I got the bonus pleasure of seeing Dr. Reyna, Dr. Daryl's lovely wife, who isn't in the office much anymore, and explained to her that I was getting a tune up before my first marathon on Sunday. She wished me well and said they would be praying for me. Dr. Daryl tuned me up and took great care with me and also provided me with a spray bottle of Bio-Freeze for my leg and joints for the race, knowing that I have been babying my right lower leg through the last third of my training. Then, as I was scheduling my next appointment and Angela had overhead that our friend Carol (she's like my non-maternal mother), who was in the office when I came in, say to Dr. Daryl that she had gotten me a massage gift certificate for after my race. The massage therapist is someone who Dr. Daryl's office deals with so Angela provided me with another certificate for a massage! I was again, overwhelmed by kindness and thoughtfulness.

I headed on home around noon and, to my pleasant surprise, Tammy was already home from work. I gave her a kiss, and her flowers, and showed her my purchases and signs from the kids at Longfellow, after regaining my composure from crying... again. We were having her parents over for supper and she was trying a new shrimp and pasta dish and needed to pick up some items for that so, we headed off to Kroger together. I just love being with her. We stopped at our local fruit/vegetable market on the way home and picked up a few needed items there as well and made our way home.

After getting everything put away and dinner stuff ready to go, we had about 40 minutes before the girls got home from school so, we spent some "quality time together" . I want to keep my blog on the PG side so, that is all that I will say about that. :)

Anywhoo... the girls got home from school, Tammy prepared dinner (I know, I know! Shame on me for not cooking for her on her birthday, but she came up with the dish and I am taking her out on Saturday to our favorite restaurant so, again, cut me some slack!) while I cleaned up my office and got some odds and ends done that I have been putting off.

Mom and Dad (her's, but still Mom and Dad to me, too) came over about 5:30, and yes, at this time I was helping Tammy with the finishing touches on dinner. We had a wonderful dinner, my Mom and Dad, who just migrated home earlier this week from their winter-Texan habitat, joined us at 7:00 for birthday pie (Tammy's preference), and she opened her gifts. She got an iPod Nano from the girls and I, an accessory carrier, two pair of Cabela's shorts for summer, an iTunes giftcard from Chelsea, along with a very beautiful and thoughtful card, a dozen yellow roses from Lindsey, along with a cute card, flowers from me, and from my Dad.
It was a very good day. I am so blessed.