Not Just When the Bee Stings

It's been a fun day (there were naps!), and I would like to acknowledge that by sharing a few of my favorite things. And then I have big plans to eat a bowl of ice cream, take a hot bath, and read--because it's Thursday night (which means it's practically the weekend) and half the family is out at a baseball game.

So, a few of my favorite things:

• The Sound of Music--duh. But not the part after "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" when Leisl says "Wheeeee!" because she looks terrifyingly witch-like.
• The new name for the Suburban. Do you remember how much fun we had trying to come up with a name for the suburban after we got it? For quite a few weeks it was the Great White Beast, but that always felt a little long. Then a couple months ago, Bruiser started referring to it as "The Burban"--and it stuck. The Man and I enjoy our snide little jokes about wanting to go get in the Burban after a long day, and it never gets old! We also like the looks we get in public when Bruiser pleads desperately to go get in the Burban. Parents of the year, I tell you!
• Mr Brown Can Moo by Dr Seuss--I know I write about children's books a lot--primarily because they are awesome--but this may be one of my all time favorites right now. Here's why: it's one of the only things in life that can get Bruiser to sit down and be quiet. I don't know what it is about Mr Brown, but when he whispers like a butterfly, miracles occur. Namely, the miracle of Bruiser using an inside voice.
• My library! I checked email on my way out the door tonight to walk the dog with the twins and found that the library had 3 books on reserve for me. I rerouted our walk, tied the dog out front of the library, and ran in and grabbed said books, sans ID because I'm there so often the library people recognize me before I even get through the double doors. It made me happy. So for the record, my library is one of my favorite things, but also Trigger who waited patiently while I ran in, and the twins who were very congenial about the whole thing even though they had no choice since they were strapped into the stroller and I'm the adult.
• Dividing and conquering: the Man took the boys tonight ,and I kept the twins. It was amazing. And I loved it. Twins sans big boys actually pick up their toys, cheerily. There is ten times less whining and hitting and screaming simply because there are half the children competing for my attention. I don't have to hold my temper with the big boys while I'm already holding it with the twins. Amazing, I tell you! The Man and I try to split up the kids fairly regularly so they get a little more one-on-one time, and every time we do: it. is. worth. it.
• April is the Month of the Military Child, and military children are one of my favorite things. I have four of them, and I've known hundreds. These kids are, for the most part, resilient, well rounded, selfless, and generous with their hearts. A large portion of them fall into a group of kids referred to as Third Culture Kids, who are also near and dear to my heart.  The military kid's official flower is the dandelion. If you can tell me why, I'll let you pick my next blog topic. Seriously.

This bee didn't sting, but according to Bee, it was taking the pollen home for breakfast.

Sometimes we count favorite things "when the dog bites and the bee stings", and sometimes we count favorite things as an act of courageous celebration. These are a few of mine. Care to share a few of yours?