Days 4-7: Catching up

The past few days have been so busy that I've completely forgotten about my little blog.  At first, I tried really hard to think of something that I have four of so I could just count that as four things - one for each day that I've missed - and call myself caught up.  But alas, it seems that I mostly have either one, two, or ten of everything.

Day 4:  Day 4 was Thursday, and since that was the day I took part in one of my most beloved rituals - getting my hair cut and colored - Day 4 seems like a good day to be thankful for my hair.  It's frizzy, has waves in all the wrong places, and has thinned considerably with every baby I've brought into the world.  BUT ... with a little gel, a blow dryer, and some time with a round brush and flat iron, I can usually turn it into a head of hair that would make my hairdresser proud to claim me as a client.  I'm thankful for her, too, by the way.

Day 5:  Monkey toes.  Yep, I have monkey toes.  Don't know what monkey toes are?  Well, according to my parents, who lovingly gave mine that label early in my childhood, if you have a giant gap between your big toe and second toe, you have monkey toes.   Yes, you could drive a mack truck between my monkey toes and yes I have a hard time getting my flip flops to stay on, but I've seen some seriously funky looking prehensile toes out there that make my monkey feet look like super model feet.  I'll keep my primate digits, thank you very much.

               

Day 6:  Teeth.  Six or seven years ago, you would NEVER have heard me say anything positive about my teeth.  My top front teeth were crowded and crooked and, for lack of a kinder term, SERIOUSLY jacked up.  No, I have no pictures.  I didn't allow it.  I was SO very self conscious about showing them to the world.  Every time I talked to someone, or got up and spoke in front of a group, I just knew they were focusing on my dental problems.  If they weren't, *I* was.  

Enter Dr. Angel.  No, that wasn't just a nickname I gave him because he saved me.  Dr. Angel is the actual name of the actual orthodontist who fixed my teeth, sans surgery, when every other dentist had told me it couldn't be done.  It was an uncomfortable, annoying, sometimes painful, and always expensive 22 months, but the day those braces came off and I walked over to the ortho office mirror to see my teeth for the first time, I cried.  I still find myself admiring them in my mirror from time to time because I can't believe they're so pretty and they're MINE!  I love my snappers.

Day 7:  This weekend is what we Mormons call conference weekend.  It happens twice per year.  All 14 million+ of us get to skip church and listen to our leaders speak to us via TV or the internet.  As I'm reminded of where I came from, why I'm here, and where I'm eventually going (hopefully), I am very grateful for the knowledge that my body is a vessel - a temple - that houses my eternal spirit.  I'm grateful that a loving Father in heaven created my body for a purpose, to give my spirit a place to dwell while on this earth and to have all of the amazing human experiences that only a physical body, imperfect as mine is, could give me.  Now, it's time to get ready for more conference weekend ...