After a weekend like this, I am trying to figure out all the best ways to count my blessings.

1. I am lucky to have a husband that has absolutely no problem with being alone with the kids when needed--especially when the need is for me to go to a friend's house for the evening. I had a fun time at Naomi's on Friday night, helping her "kick off" her new Arbonne skin care business. (By helping, of course, I mean hogging her couch, rudely interrupting with questions she didn't know the answers to yet, and eating all her watermelon and lemon-poppy-seed scones. Okay, I wasn't really this rude. But I certainly didn't have anything to do with setup or takedown. Just being a plain-jane, bump-on-a-log type guest. And I really did ask a lot of questions.)
2. Jude was lucky that all he got when he fell backwards off the poorly-designed playset at the park-at-the-bottom-of-the-hill on Saturday was a scraped and bruised lip and elbow. And he still walked all the way home with Jason and Noah.
3. I am lucky that I have found a way to earn an income over the internet while not moving my bum from my chair--even if it means I had to spend my entire Saturday working while Jason entertained the children. (Fortunately, this doesn't happen all that often.)
4. I am lucky that I have a sense of humour, since as I was mopping up the 2 gallons of water overflowing from the toilet that Noah had just plugged with toilet paper, I realized that someday, I would be able to look back and laugh. Not anytime really soon, but someday.
5. I am lucky that I have the opportunity to make lots of new friends in our new community--even if it hurts like the dickens sometimes to not see a familiar face at the grocery store, or that there is no one at church with which there is shared history. No one who remembers that crazy night of the 30-hour-famine from youth group, or when Dave wore glow-in-the-dark red heart boxer shorts on his head at the Valentine's banquet (same banquet as two posts back), or how I got the giggles at my wedding and laughed all the way through my vows because I couldn't stop, or who knows when my kids' birthdays are or vice-versa, or all the other million little memories that make up community with someone. Yes, I know those things will come (and Burdicks probably both remember the giggles thing), but it takes a lot of bloody time. I miss the safety net. Thank goodness for Amanda--our history almost couldn't go any further back, since we became friends on the first day of Grade One. Now, if only we could get them to move all the way up to Peace River...

I have a confession to make: I love Bif Naked. Okay, I don't know if that blanket statement is completely accurate, as I have really only heard one song of hers. But I do really love the song "Lucky." I first heard it in the college cafeteria, as I was sitting there with Candace over lunch, bemoaning the fact that I was completely in love with Jason, and he so totally was not in love with me (yet.) The music video came up on one of the overhead TVs. I've loved the song ever since.

Recently, I downloaded it from Napster and burned it onto a CD, and Friday night on the way to and from Naomi's party in Grimshaw I played it, like, four times. And, I discovered that after that half-cup of coffee I had at the party, it roughed my voice up enough that I sounded kind of like Bif when I was belting it out at the top of my lungs (minus the lip-ring-induced lisp).

The lyrics aren't much, but it's the strings! and the crescendo! and the percussion! and the guitar! and it's just so amazing! Sometimes, simple lyrics get the message across better than really cleverly-worded ones, as long as the music is as awesome as this song's.

It was a Monday, when my lover told me,
"Never pay the reaper with love only."
What could I say to you, except, "I love you."
And "I'd give my life for yours."

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.

Remember the time we made love in the roses
and you took my picture in all sorts of poses?
How could I ever get over you, when I'd give my life for yours.

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.

My dear, It's time to say I thank God for you.
I thank God for you in each and every single way.
And, I know... I know.. I know.. I know...

It's time to let you know, time to let you know,
Time to let you know, time to sit here and say...

I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones.
I know we are... we are the lucky ones, dear.
We are the lucky ones, dear...

Remember the words of Ram Dass: "Death is like taking off a tight shoe."

Just so you know, Bif is not my usual listening repertoire. My tastes are eclectic, though: from a Looney-Tunes-induced affinity for classical music (with a little help from my dad) to a little Aerosmith here and there (again, only a few select songs), from Josh Groban to Rich Mullins, from Allison Krause to Great Big Sea, from Diana Krall to Chris Tomlin.

Speaking of which, there are two new CD's I've been meaning to mention:

1. Il Divo - This self-titled album from a quartet of sexy, young, vocally-stacked men singing in English and Italian should be called "Il Divino." This was given to me by my mother-in-law. She said, "When you're in the car by yourself, turn it up and they're singing just for you." Well, several months later, when I finally got some alone-in-the-van driving time, I followed her advice. Car music? Pffft! Bedroom music, man!

2. Switchfoot The Beautiful Letdown - I bought this from Costco online sometime this spring. At first listening, I was surprised at the edginess of the music, as all I had really heard of them before was their folkier, calmer stuff. However, I gave it another try, and got totally hooked! My favourite song on the album is "Twenty-four". It is just so... so... [pause while I try to think of eloquent words; bring up online thesaurus; type in "amazing," since I've already over-used that adjective in this post. Ah, here we go.] boss, fab, fantastic, gnarly, heavy, wickedly stupendous! (I'm fairly impressed with this thesaurus! Look at all the cool slang words!)

Rather than boring you with more lyrics in this post, I'm just going to say, you should buy it. Really.

And if you already have it--lucky you, too.