End of February Faves

The end of February.....and an easy week to find five faves, thanking God for each one.  I"m joining in with other friends to share them....you can too, by linking up at Susanne's site.

• DINNER DATE!  Last Friday evening, I was in my childhood hometown (out in central NY) to meet my friend Diane for dinner at this place. I hadn't been to one of these in a while so it was fun to try some new menu items and get caught up on the news of each other's lives.  I hadn't seen Diane since we hiked together in October (see photo above), although we do keep in touch by texting, emails and facebook.  It was great to relax, have coffee and chat...about all the things God is showing us, or doing in our families, etc.  I thank God for lasting friendships and the bond we have had in Christ since we were teenagers.

the Mohawk River at Peebles Island State Park

•  LATE WINTER HIKE! Last Saturday was such a gorgeous, mild day compared to what we've had all winter....the sun was shining, the temp got up to 49 degrees F and there was just a little wind.  My neighbor and I decided on the spur of the moment to do an afternoon hike at a state park that is only about 10 minutes from our neighborhood yet I've only been there once, about 22 years ago!!  She goes there all the time with her dogs, but I had only ever been there once with Dave when we were first married.  I didn't even know there were 3 main  trails in the park......we hiked the perimeter trail which took us along the upper ridge overlooking the Mohawk River.  We then took the connector trail through the woods back to the car.  The total was about 2 miles in a large loop.  Peebles Island State Park is where the Hudson River and the Mohawk River come together at a point.  What a beautiful afternoon we had...and the hike gave me a lot of energy and was great for the soul!  I love being out in God's creation and am trying to embrace more of the "winter gifts"  to get me through the season.

along the trail

 

on the ridge

• CHOSEN!!  Our 9th grader (Claire) was one of 6 Russian students chosen to represent the freshmen Russian students from our high school at next month's Russian Olympiada held at the University of Albany.  There are a number of upper classmen competing as well. Basically, our high school sends out 4-6 Russian students per grade.  Keep in mind that our high school has about 450 students per grade and offers 5 languages (French, Spanish, Russian, German, and Latin).  The students who are chosen tend to be the students with the top grades/oral performance.  They will be competing (Russian Orals and Reading) with other students from around the state.  They will  compete for a gold, silver, bronze, or honorable mention.  We told Claire we are proud of her, and even if she doesn't win a medal, it is still an honor to be chosen.  I am so thankful for the school district we live in.  It is large but the courses and various events they offer are top notch.

• LONGER LIGHT!  Just this week we've noticed that it's a little lighter when we are getting ready for school/work, and that the days are staying lighter longer.....it's light now 2 out of the 3 days I have to take Claire to ballet classes after dinner.....always a thing to be thankful for! Now, if the temperature would just creep up to over 45 again!!  Last weekend's temps were great....it felt like early spring...this past week though has brought bitter cold. again!!

photo courtesy of starbucks website

• SKINNY MOCHA AND BOOKS!  Yes....I treated my self to a *bucks peppermint mocha and I was good...I stuck to "skinny" (just skim milk). I dropped Claire off at ballet Wednesday evening, grabbed the coffee and proceeded on down to the town library to browse books and read for 45 minutes.  How relaxing. I'm always so thankful for evenings when I can do this.

That wraps up my week........it was a tough one for the special students I work with each day...the first week back after a week off.... but now that February is basically over, and spring arrives by the end of March, the next few weeks should be full of learning and growing and hopefully making more academic progress.

As for me...I'm going to embrace the gifts God brings us each day, whether big or small, and I"m going to be praying for an end to these cold temps!!

What were your blessings from the week?  Please share in the comment section!