If you haven’t set a YOU day on the calendar lately, delay no further, get it scheduled!  Today was MY day and it was fabulous!  I forget in between all the running around and balancing of life how very important it is to take a break and make a day for yourself.

I try to make the most out of a 3-day weekend.  That extra day is a priceless gift and I am not going to waste it on laundry, driving kids all over town or sleeping late.   Besides, knowing I have that extra day is enough for my brain to go into over drive.  I was all over the house Sunday getting odds and ends completed so that nothing could stand between me and this blessed opportunity.  My alarm went off at 9:15am with the message “no work today”.  That is all the encouragement I needed to jump in the shower and get going out the door with a cup of coffee, a cozy outfit, a pop of color on my lips, then Jackie and I were on our way to pick up my sister in law.

There was a parking spot second in from the front door at Nordstrom – I didn’t even have to race a Mercedes for it, it was just there waiting for me like the angels cleared a path just for us.  As we got out of the car there was a penny head side up – WHAT!?!  That clearly was a sign that this was all meant to be.  Our shopping went perfectly, every size was right without having to run back and forth from the racks while getting shut out of the dressing room in between.   The checkout line was quick, a coupon was in hand and Jackie had some new tops and a jacket in less than 45 minutes.  To be honest, I am not much of a shopper and this was not even my 11^th choice for how to spend the day off.  Sometimes you just go with the majority and hope for a good outcome. Going to the mall takes reinforcements.  Jackie is forever indebted to my niece Chelsea and/or my sister in law Tonia for always making some time to go so that Jackie can live out her teenage years with the same materialistic, fashion focus as most girls her age.  If left to me alone she would rarely see the inside of a mall.  So now you can understand the extra excitement for the parking spot and penny.  It is proof God loves Jackie!

While we were standing in the middle of the mall clogging up the flow of shoppers, trying to decide on our lunch options, I noticed over Tonia’s shoulder a Nestle Toll House Cookie stand!   This was a new attraction that we had never seen there before and yet another sign from the heavens that this day was all about my happiness.   It prompted us to get through the great lunch debate so we could eat and quickly make our way back to the cookie stand!   Every bite of those cookies was delightful.  Crunchy on the edges soft in the middle, oh yes, this was my day.

Our next stop was to get our nails done.  It has been years since I have had a manicure.  Again it all went so well, I was grateful for every single minute and the best little trio of ladies.  As we drove back to Tonia’s we agreed not to wait as long for a day out.  We admired each other’s nails, talked about the texture and taste of the cookies, went over the details of our purchases, and then we saw a rainbow!  Does it get any better than that?!  – I think not!