Shander Shenanigans: A Week in Review October 16 - 22

It's been quite a week. :)

The five things I'm thankful for, in no particular order, are: 

My Critique Partner. She's going through That Summer with a fine tooth comb, and I can't be more excited. She's wickedly awesome, thorough and picks apart scenes letter by letter. I get so excited for her emails & tweets, wondering what she's gong to say next. No matter how tough she is, I know it comes from the heart. She's not doing it to be mean, she's doing it to make my story the best it can be. AND, she's available to edit your novel.

My local library. We're regulars at our local branch. We're there every two weeks at minimum for a program they run - Evil Genius Club. The librarians know my kids (they're usually the only ones at the programs) and they know me. Because of the strong connection I have with one of them, she asked me if I wanted to join their upcoming book club (umm, yeah!). She mentioned it would likely be just her and I, but I may be able to rope in a friend or two. Can't wait to read the book.

For clear skies on Saturday night. For once the skies were forecasted to be clear - which was a total bust last weekend when we went to Jasper for their Dark Skies Festival. We loaded the telescope, blankets, chairs and warm drinks, and headed west to the BlackFoot Staging Area, one of our favourite places to kick back and star gaze. Last night we got to see Pluto, the Dumbbell Nebula, the Ring Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy more. So beautiful, so serene. It was nice to put down the electronic devices and look up. ;)

My job. To say I am blessed with the perfect job, is an understatement. I love my job, I love 99% of the people I work with, I love the children I help encourage to read. My boss(es) are so flexible, and allow me to run out in the middle of a shift to pick up my oldest from his school and bring him back to work with me. On top of it, I get paid to do this. To help kids find something new to read. To encourage kids to try a book they would've never thought they'd like, and to find out they LOVE it. Plus, I'm now in charge of ordering, and this is thrilling. I get to spend a lot of money buying books. Seriously - AWESOME.

Brunch with my parents. Not sure when it started but sometime after I moved out, my parents and I started meeting for either supper or brunch on Sundays. It's still a tradition now, 20+ years after leaving home, and one I look forward to. It's expanded to include my sibling, our spouses and children. If I don't meet them at some point on Sunday, my week feels ... off. Its our chance to get together, unwind, laugh, discuss politics, and most importantly connect.

For all this, I am thankful.
Thank you - dear reader - for continuing to read.