–”My Favorite Things”
Rodgers and Hammerstein

Well, when I’m just having a bummer of a day, the reasons are usually deeper than a dog biting me or getting stung by a bee—that is, unless the dog had rabies or I had an incredibly gruesome allergic reaction to the bee sting!  But like Maria’s character, I often reflect on the many blessings in my life and focus on those rather than allow, oh, say, a visit to the emergency room spoil my parade!

As a matter of fact, I recently aggravated an old sports related injury and spent most of 2009’s holiday season in and out of quick care clinics, emergency rooms and on my sofa highly medicated.  While other people were out shopping for holiday gift exchanges (something I personally don’t participate in anyway, which I will share in another post) or donning fancy dresses, up-dos and Jimmy Choos for a New Years Eve gala, I was struggling around my own kitchen trying to make simple appetizers and open a few bottles of bubbly for my friends who stopped by to welcome 2010 with me.

So when the urge struck me over the holidays to just curl up in a ball and keep taking those oh-so-powerful pain meds, I instead forced myself to reflect upon my life’s many blessings while also reaching out to friends and family for actual phone conversations.  YES!  Remember those?  No texting, no Tweeting or FaceBooking, we actually spoke with each other on the telephone!

Well, I guess a few of my friends could tell from my voice that I wasn’t quite myself (in pain and a bit out of it from the meds) and expressed that they would like to send me a little something to cheer me up.

“What can I send you?” asked my girlfriend from Utah.

Hmmm…my first thoughts went to Eli’s Cheesecake from Chicago or a bottle of Sancerre delivered via singing telegram to my front door.

“Something not food related,” she insisted before the words came out of my mouth.

And I was stumped.

So I’ve put thought into gifts that I would really appreciate receiving by recognizing the things in my life that I’m thankful for.  I don’t need high end shoes, handbags and the like.  I don’t need jewelery although there are a few unique items I enjoy collecting.

I do enjoy working on my house and improving the health of myself and those around me (with the exception of the occassional cheesecake splurge LOL.)

With that said, I decided to create a “favorite things/wishlist” category here for those of you who have also asked me, “So, what can I send you?”

Gift Cards:  They are easy to work with and most can be sent via email.

• Home Depot—I am a do-it-yourself-er.  These days  I especially enjoy adding lighting elements around my home
• Lowe’s—see comment above
• Coach—okay, okay…but there’s always something wonderful that I can find there!
• Balanced Body (Pilates)—I am a fitness enthusiast and reserve a warm spot in my heart for Joseph Pilates
• Banana Republic— During a recent spring cleaning of my closet, I realized 70% of my wardrobe is from Banana Republic
• The Dog Bed Store—No dog should have crummy, deflated beds to sleep in
• Lululemon Athletica—I am often on the run from the gym to running errands so wearing functional and attractive athletic wear is a MUST (this is where almost the rest of the 30% of my wardrobe comes from!)

I will wrap my list up for now until I can think of some more ideas on what types of gifts I appreciate.

The best gift of all, however, is the gift of true, accepting, non-judgmental friendships.

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