I am riding a wave of overall excitement heading into this weekend. There really isn’t anything particular that’s given me this merry kick-in-the-butt, but I’m loving it—and hopefully you aren’t scared off by my inevitable cheerful banter to come.

Sorry, but actually—I’m not sorry.

I’m generally feeling very thankful recently, and I am a firm believer that a little bit of gratitude goes a long way. Gratitude humbles us, it relieves the stresses of every day life, and it helps us realize that despite all else, we really do have it pretty good.

That’s why this week, for Friday Favorites—I’d like to do a little bit of a spin on my weekly round-up of wonderful things. As inspired by the weekly tradition of one of my favorite running bloggers, Ali on the Run, I’m going to recount some things I’m thankful for recently. It is kind of in the same light as my favorite things, but this week I’m vying to offer up some genuine thanks for some awesome things in my life.

On that note…

I’m thankful for faulty weather reports.

Wednesday had the promise of rain written all over it throughout the entire day. I was pouty because I was planning on/needed to run that day, and although I have handled the rain before—many times in fact—I was resounding myself to the fate of the treadmill. Alas, no rain came.

And in fact, the weather forecast could not have been more wrong. Apparently “gusts of wind with a 90% chance of rain” actually means “50 degrees and a lovely, windless sunset.” I merrily covered 8 miles in 64 minutes and relished in the weather people’s incompetence for the day.

I’m thankful for the first signs of spring!

Last week I was on a really early morning run, and all of a sudden a waft of something glorious filled my nose. Because I’m used to the smells of the steel mill and exhaust from the ferries, this took me by surprise. Lo and behold, there were lilac blossoms making their way out of their winter cocoons!

It’s so exciting to see the first buds surfacing for springtime, and coupled with the daylight that has extended both in the morning and at night, I would say we are making our way out of winter folks! Yesterday morning, I was outside at 7 am and I could see everything! It was miraculous!! I think it’s funny how we forget just how light it gets in the summer when we’ve surrendered to the darkness of winter, and vice versa.

Welcome spring, I cordially welcome you to the Pacific Northwest.

I am thankful for homemade trail mix.

You are looking at the snack that I now have nearly every afternoon. Almonds, sunflower seeds, coconut, chocolate chips, cranberries, and raisins. I love trail mix, but I never buy it, and then I discovered this groundbreaking idea of combining ingredients I already have in my cabinet to form my own custom made trail mix! Innovation is the name of my game people.

Well okay, maybe not, but I am psyched to have welcomed this fantastic new snack friend into my culinary repertoire.

Note: I have no repertoire, which is why I find joy in simple, new food discoveries.

 

I am thankful for rest days.

This morning, I made the spur-of-the-moment, matter-of-fact decision that today was going to be a rest day. If you regularly read this blog (thanks for doing so, by the way!), you know that I love doing something active nearly every day, and rest days and I don’t normally get along. They stress me out, and I normally prolong having them as much as I can. (This is a fault, please don’t follow this lead.)

But, this morning I woke up at 5:30 am with the plan of going to spin, and my body simple said, “No.” I was feeling a little sore and achy, my head hurt, and due to the heavy exercise-filled weekend I have ahead, I decide to front load it all with a little R&R. I have 20 miler number two coming up tomorrow and a super fun but super long spin session on Sunday, therefore I felt it was best to sleep in, rest up, and focus on hydration.

Good decisions, Robyn. And although I know by the afternoon I’ll be vying to pound some pavement, I’m glad I made the decision to make today a sweat-free day.

I’m thankful for cute dogs. Particularly, golden doodles.

Of this I am sure: I will own a golden doodle. I am quite frankly obsessed with them, and it’s gotten to a point where I will stop in my tracks if I see one so I can say hi (see photo above). There are the perfect combination of fluffiness, sportiness, and cuddliness (WOW, I am 7 years old), and I’ve never really wanted another dog more than these bundles of love.

For now though, I will enjoy walking up to strangers and asking them to pet their doggies. Or, stealthily photographing people’s dogs while they obliviously buy their coffee in Starbucks. That’s not weird, right? Oh ya, it is.

 

Prepare to hear more about golden doodles. I can’t help it.

 

Lastly, I am thankful for blogging. I am so grateful to have a place to come to where I can write out my thoughts on running and life. I feel like my love for writing has heightened, and I can’t say I’ve learned more about myself as a runner as I have through writing down my progress, regressions, and goals. Thank you for allowing me to share this true love of mine with you. I am thankful for you, dear reader.

 

NOW YOU! What are you thankful for today? What are your favorite things?