Ordinary Moments Make Extraordinary Days

I've always been convinced that extraordinary days are days made up of ordinary moments we choose to cherish. And if that's really the case, then this week was extra extraordinary! The week started off last Monday with the workman showing up to start work in the basement on our epoxy floor. Ten years ago our basement took on water, quite a bit of water, and we had to have the basement people come and put in an Ever Dry System. This of course meant that we had to tear out the finished portions of our basement. Due to vehicle break downs, major appliances dying, and other such things, it took us this long to be able to put our basement back together, so the flooring being completed puts us oh so close to being finished which is definitely worth cherishing.

Next, I decided to use up the orange marmalade our neighbors bring us back from Florida each spring. I don't have the heart to tell them we don't like orange marmalade, so I've had a few jars sitting in the cupboard for a while. When I searched for recipes on Pinterest, I found one for orange crockpot chicken. This seemed a perfect way to use up the marmalade and to cook a few recipes my mom handed down to me. As the holidays draw near, I more keenly feel her loss; so making fried rice and chicken won tons to go with the orange chicken brought me comfort.

The following day, Emily was invited to a bowling birthday party. She put particular time and effort into making a card for her friend, and as usual, I was blown away by her creation. She looked for art samples online and found one she liked. Her modified version was so beautiful, Bobby even suggested she should keep the card and make another for the b-day girl. She just laughed.

I also received a wonderful package in the mail from Mrs. Jene Daub and the North Tama second grade class. The kids sent me letters telling me how much they enjoyed my Quack and Daisy stories. One of my favorites ended with the following, "Warm regards from your friend illustrator Tyler." My hope is that all of Tyler's illustration aspirations come true.

And I ended this extraordinary week by reading one of my friend's, Josh Funk, picture books titled Dear Dragon. It is the story of how two very different teachers conspired to get their two very different classes to practice the art of letter writing and poetry by assigning each of them a pen pal. George and Blaise write each other diligently and can't wait to meet in person at the end of year picnic. You can imagine their surprise when they discover just how different they are, but they don't let that stop them from becoming the best of friends. This adorable book is a definite must read!

Ammi-Joan Paquette, Josh, Funk, and Me

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Also be sure to drop by Literacy Musings Mondays for more great blogs as well as my personal website Fun With Aileen where you will find more on reading, writing, and my very own chapter and picture books. And finally, you can find me on twitter  @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.