how to have a wonderful weekend...

step one, go out for awesome pizza followed by a drum circle.

step two, don't even think about setting your alarm. wake up on saturday morning with just enough time to run an errand that you've really been wanting to take care of, before grabbing your bike and riding it to the gym for water aerobics. this works best if the weather is perfect and there are nice people to say hello to along the way to the gym.

step three, follow your glorious morning with a relaxing afternoon. i recommend going to see an artist that you enjoy, visiting a park and otherwise enjoying the weather. spontaneous running and tree climbing helps, too.

step four, take a friend out for dinner and introduce them to one of your favorite restaurants. bonus points if they like it as much as you do.

step five, break out the christmas music and hot cocoa. stay up way too late decorating the house for christmas. this may require a late night trip to wal-mart. that's ok. holiday decorating is better when you are armed with things sparkly and gaudy. if you're having trouble finding christmas music with just the right vibe, i recommend the judds' christmas album on repeat. but that's just me...

step six, actually sleep in a bit for once (you did stay up way too late with the judds) but wake up in time to go out for dim sum with some old friends. this works especially well if you used to live in china with said old friends. it lends a wonderful sense of nostalgia to the whole experience.

step seven, more hot cocoa, more judds, more decorating. don't forget to step back, take a moment and admire your work. it's perfectly ok to be very proud about how awesome you are at decorating on a budget. oh, and don't forget to add lights. they are a vital ingredient of christmas enchantment.

step eight, cook a good dinner (soup is always comforting), watch a good movie and have good talk with a good friend. that alone is a recipe for a pretty good day, even without all the christmas magic you have just sprinkled all over the house.

step nine, take a minute to reflect on this series of fortunate events. pause to relish the joy in your heart. appreciate your success.

"Pure and simple, any person who is enjoying life is a success." - William Feather

hanukkah

i'm going to take a moment to brag about one of my students and his family. he came into school the day after hanukkah started, talking a mile a minute about lighting candles and bible stories. the conversation went something like this:

"ms. wood, hanukkah, hanukkah, hanukkah!"
"wait, are you jewish?"
"no."
"is your mom jewish?"
"no."
"but you're celebrating hanukkah?"
"yeah, we're learning about it. next year we're going to learn about...another one."
"that's awesome. i mean it. tell your mom i said so, because i think that is really awesome."