Let's blow the dust off this thing, shall we. I've been feeling a little....stressed....yeah, that's probably a good word....lately. A little overworked, underpaid, underappreciated. Yesterday I was in the PIT....OF....DESPAIR (100 Gryffindor points to anyone who catches that reference) (wait, is that too confusing to mix my movie metaphors?)

Anyhoo, I've found that there's no better way to drag yourself out of the pit than to count your blessings. So, here goes.

1. My daughter, Punkin, who makes me laugh by acting out commercials for cleansers in the bathtub. "Do you have a problem with dirty tub?" she asked, cocking her head to the side. "Try Scrubbles!"

2. My so creative boy, Bubba, who turns every scrap of paper he finds (even his napkin at dinner) into a paper airplane, who transforms wooden skewers, a bottle top, some yarn, and a piece of cardboard into a catapult, and who devours books like candy -- a boy after my own heart.

3. Gingerbread lattes. The full fat ones, with whipped cream and everything.