Have you ever had a dream that felt really, really real? And when you woke up from it, you were still totally immersed in the dream?
Well this morning, right before I woke up, I had a dream that Brian told me he went on a business trip to Chicago and while he was there he cheated on me.
So naturally I have spent all morning filled with rage and sadness and being legitimately upset with him.
Even though he’s never been to Chicago.
And even though it was a dream.
He thinks I’m being insane. I think what he did in Chicago was unforgivable.
Now, in an attempt to get Crazy Dream Cheating Brian out of my head, I will choose to embark on Thankful Things Thursday. I think that’s a good idea.
I’m thankful I went back to bed this morning. I know all you fitness crazies love trying to convince me that “you never regret a workout,” but do you know how I feel about that “motivational” statement? I feel terrible about it. This morning I woke up and I was totally shot. I put on my running clothes anyway, and I got ready, and my stomach was in rough shape. I was unlocking the front door when I thought to myself, “What if I didn’t do this and instead went back to bed for an hour?” So that’s what I did. While you were all out “not regretting your workouts,” I was back in bed, not regretting that extra hour of sleep one bit.
And I’ll run eventually. I’m not worried about it.
I’m thankful for new sheets. Red ones, specifically.

I’m thankful for the Whitney Houston song “One Moment in Time.” I don’t know why I’m currently so obsessed with this song, but I have found myself in the habit of blasting it every morning and singing it in bed every night.




Brian loves these two parts of the day, especially since I most definitely do not know more than 30 percent of the words from the entire song. Last night in bed, I thought I sounded awesome, but Brian assured me that I did not, in fact, sound “just like Whitney.”
I’m thankful Britney Spears not only has her own Twister game, but also that we have the game at work.




Sometimes, I just really really like my job.
I’m thankful that while I was at work yesterday, Brian was home transforming our apartment from “a place we live that is messy” into a real home. He told me he was working from home, but unless he switched industries and is now a builder or a carpenter or an Ikea furniture putter-together, he was not, in fact, “working from home.”




Brian and I went to Ikea right before it closed on Tuesday night to get a kitchen table and benches. It was a very ambitious Tuesday night.




And now, this apartment feels a little more like a home. Too bad that in order to set up the table I now have to actually finish unpacking. Crap. Someone come do it for me. Mom, can you come help? You’re so good at this stuff and you’re also so pretty.
I’m thankful for Tyler. Guess how huge he is now? He is 10 pounds. He has doubled his birth weight. What a little monster.




Ryan says he basically just smiles all the time. Ryan is also convinced that at two months Tyler is ready to start crawling, even though he can’t lift his head yet. Oh parents. You are all nuts.
I’m thankful I went to Pilates yesterday and it temporarily cured my stomach insanity. OK that’s a slight exaggeration. On Tuesday night, after the Journey To Ikea, I ate a broccoli and egg wrap. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but it wrecked me. After I ate it, my stomach ballooned out in the most ridiculous, pregnant-looking way. It hurt and it wouldn’t go down. I drank water, I stretched, I tried to do things in the bathroom (over-share, sorry, but also not, because there’s no such thing as over-sharing here), but nothing helped.
Broccoli may have made its way onto my “Do Not Eat” list, right next to corn.
Then I went to Crazy Pilates. This is the class with the hyper-enthusiastic teacher who begins the class by telling us to think of three affirmations starting with “I am.” I got better at it yesterday. I came up with three really good affirmations:
- I am wet from the rain.
- I am stomach puffed out.
- I am at the gym.
So inspiring, right? Especially the second one, which is so eloquently worded.
The class is a little wacky, and I’d call it more of a light cardio and toning class rather than a Pilates class (um, we use weights and we don’t get to lay down the whole time, WTF is that?), but it works for me. And magically, once I started moving, I forgot about my stomach expansion and 45 minutes later left the gym feeling significantly downsized.
I’m thankful I came home to a super sweet package from the coolest Christie over at Fitness magazine.




The people over there are ridiculously nice. It’s funny that they think I’m worthy of having a presence in their magazine, but I’m not going to complain or try to convince them that I’m actually quite un-awesome.
Do you see something new on my dresser? Not that you have memorized what sits on my dresser, but there’s something new and shiny here:




It’s a trophy! Or a plaque. Or I don’t know, what do you call this?




So thanks, Christie and Crew, for making me feel special last night. You’re the nicest.
I’m thankful Brian knows how to make meatballs and sauce from scratch, and that he thinks doing so is “fun.”




I have never been like “OMG I should cook something that doesn’t come from a box, and it will be a good time.” What a weird concept.
This apartment smelled phenomenal last night. You know what sucks, though? The meatballs and sauce apparently need to cook for six days or something.




OK, they cook for 24 hours. That may as well be six days in “withholding food from Ali” time.




Dinner tonight is going to be good I think.
You know what’s not good? The state of our kitchen.




Whew! Totally not mad at Brian anymore. I feel so much better. He may have dream cheated on me, but he also cooked and built our apartment. I lose this round.
I’m thankful for all of your doctor recommendations yesterday. I really, truly appreciate the help and I’m planning to make many calls today.
I’m thankful I can run. No, I haven’t gone today. Blah blah blah. But it wasn’t long ago that I was sidelined from running, and I hated that time, and I was a mega-bitch during that time (fine, I’m still a mega-bitch much of the time). I’m so happy each time I get to hit the road lately, even if I do have to stop in 42 bathrooms along the way.
YOUR TIME TO GET GRATEFUL: What are you thankful for today? The heat wave in NYC is apparently broken. How do you feel about that? Are you thankful for thunderstorms? Are you thankful for new shoes? Are you thankful for dark chocolate chips?
Share your super-happy thoughts and have a great day!
43 Responses
LOVE the furniture!! Looks so comfy!!
This is a bit delayed but I’m just catching up on all my blog posts now. I definitely have a lot to be thankful for lately: I got into a car accident on Friday & while my car is donezo, I got out virtually unharmed (minus a few scrapes & bruises). Still a little freaked out by it all, but I’m so thankful that no one was hurt!
What a beautiful idea – feeling inspired to be thankful for a lot of things in my life now. (the award is approved 😉 )
I am thankful I found your blog….from Fitness magazine:-)
I am thankful that I found your blog. You are hilarious!
I’m thankful you shared that pictured of yourself belting out Whitney, dancing AND brushing your teeth, you’re hilariously multi-talented. I’ve had a dream that my husband left me and I woke up REALLY upset about it, only to have him give me side eye and fall back asleep.
Hate creepy dreams like that!
I’m thankful that my mom joined CrossFit this week!
your cheating dream reminds me of the bit by my favourite comedian – so true! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6kvcNw10D4
I love the kitchen table + bench set up!
I’ve been having a rough month, but I figured out this morning in the shower that I need to have a Facebook Thankful Month. A thankful status every day for a month. Thanks for the idea!
omg, you live in a real apartment! i ran by Ikea yesterday, but i’m pretty sure that doesn’t count as “redecorating”.
i miss you friend…one month until EPIC brunch!! and i will see you sunday, yes?
haha i’m thankful you had that dream; glad i’m not the only one that happens to!! 🙂
thankful your heat wave has broken, altho there’s virtually no chance of a heat wave by the time i get there IN NOVEMBER AHHHH so i wasn’t feeling too threatened by it anyway 😉
please convince brian to give you the meatball recipe and share it with us! i would love to be all cooky and stuff and those look amazing..
“Oh no, he dream cheated on you!” BAHAHA, best episode of Friends ever!!
I’m thankful that tonight we are meeting up at a local brewery to start planning an annual 5k in our neighborhood. Looking forward to some beer after this day!
I have stomach (gi) issues too, and I can’t eat broccoli or cauliflower unless they’re REALLY well cooked. Or beets in any form. Goodness gracious never beets.
I am so thankful the sun decided to come out and play. I’m also thankful I remembered to pack my gym pants today, because I forgot yesterday. Oops.
I had a dream on Saturday that my husband cheated on me with someone named Miranda. He said he cheated on me because she enjoys eating tortellini and watching movies more than I do. Man, was I pissed at him when I woke up.
I am thankful that, as a teacher, I get summer vacation. It means I can go spend two weeks visiting family and friends and not be stressed out about missing work!
I absolutely hate it when people leave cabinets and drawers open. I close all the open locker doors at the gym. I don’t understand why people leave them open.
Why, Brian? Why do you leave them open?
It’s pretty hilarious that you got mad at real Brian for dream Brian’s indiscretions. It’s probably really all about the open drawers and cabinet doors. 🙂
I am thankful for:
Your blog. Seriously, I am a moody monster today and it made me laugh and cheer up! (Yes, I probably say this every week.)
That nightmares aren’t real. I too had a dream my fiance cheated on my the other night and I swear I spent the morning mad at him. Irrational? Yes.
That I start my half-marathon training tomorrow! I have never run one before and my training officially starts tomorrow and I am oddly excited!
I am thankful for heating pads! When ever my stomach vehemently opposes something I’ve eaten and gets all Crohnsy and bloated, I just stick on a heating pad and sweat it out for awhile. If I could bring it everywhere with me, I would.
Thankful for having a job. It helps me pay for stuff.
I’m not 100% sure Brian should be forgiven so easily. Dream cheating AND not understanding the awesomeness of your singing? Hmmm… Anyway, today I am thankful for being able to run again. A week ago today I was knocked out by intense back spasms and was terrified that I would never be able to run again and that I would never be able to get out of my bath tub and die there alone and nibbled on by my cats. No – I wasn’t overreacting AT ALL. But today I was out for a wonderful 11 miles and FEEL SUPER!
OH, ohhhh I want that table and bench!!! Nice work!
We changed our sheets and duvet last night… I slept like a baby! It was lovely!
I am thankful for this cup of coffee… And the clean sheets mentioned above.
Happy Thursday!
Your flat is so tidy! My house is never tidy!!
I am grateful for your v funny affirmations. I am grateful that (most likely) Bradley Wiggins will win the Tour de France at the weekend, for the first time for the UK!! And I am grateful for friends to drink wine with.
I love that duvet cover! I think that every time I see it!
I am grateful for a kind of intense moment I had in yoga last night where I thought some very authentic and kind things about myself. That’s relatively new. It was relatively amazing.
Have a great Thursday girlie!
I have also had the boyfriend cheating on me dream and also got irrationally got mad at him about it.
I’m thankful it isn’t as humid today in NYC as it was yesterday. I think I stopped at every water fountain on the bridle path. I suppose I am also thankful there are so many water fountains around the park.
Sometimes (sometimes) I think it is better to sleep than to run!
I love when I find out others shop at IKEA. Makes me feel less poor or something. All my stuff is from IKEA… well minus my couch and bed. I felt the need to spend real money on those 2 items, since I spend approx 50% of my time there. 🙂 Today I am thankful that my office is not freezing cold and I can sit at my desk, in my cute new dress, without having to hid under my stupid cardigan. Yay for good temperature regulation.
I love your kitchen table with benches idea! Looks nice 🙂
I feel your pain – Ilove veggies, but broccoli is such a bad idea, ong with too much salad = total sad face.
I am thankful that you posted meatballs, because I am now craving them and just MAY have to make some now!
Haha, I’ve totally had a dream like that about my husband. I was enraged at him for most of the morning. He also thought I was ridiculous. Oh well.
I would love to play the Britney Spears game at work! How fun!
And I can’t get enough of the Tyler pictures. He really is an adorable baby!
I am thankful for this blog! You always make me smile.
Not a creeper, I swear – but I totes have the same dresser…its a good one.
I am thankful that my parents are visiting me in Chicago for the weekend! And I’m thankful I made the executive decision to be Ferris Bueller and go to a Cubs game in the middle of the day instead of working all day.
I am thankful that yesterday marked a big health milestone for me. (I am thankful that I hopefully didn’t just jinx myself!)
I am thankful that I can work from home today since the office AC is still broken. Yesterday we stuck around until noon-ish and I was gross. I thought about how appropriate my “I <3 Sweat" shirt would have been, but then I realized that had I worn it, they probably would have been all "OH, you <3 this? OK, you can stay longer then!"
I am thankful that this post made me smile a whole bunch. 🙂
apartment is looking sexy- love the beach pic over your bed!
ps i think you rock the hat well 🙂
Those I am statements — total perfection!
I’m thankful that my dog woke me up this morning because my phone died along with my alarm. I am also thankful that my boss is out of town all week and the office is super chill.
I am thankful for the broken heat wave and for last night’s thunderstorms that cancelled the meeting I didn’t really want to go to and allowed me to spend the night at home in pj’s. So thankful.
I’m thankful that the thunderstorms come every day at 3 during my reading time and leave by 5 when we are hitting up the trails on our bike. I am also thankful that my sweet 2 year old niece gets to stay with me this week and make me smile.
i would be slamming those doors and drawers constantly to make a point.
I’m thankful that today is my “Friday” at work and that the weather looks it will be cooperating for my century ride this Saturday!
in all fairness, I think Tyler is going to skip crawling and just start walking…..
My old roommate would ALWAYS leave drawers & cabinets open! It drove me crazy!
I’m thankful that it’s storming here right now & that I get to lay in bed during it!!
fro yo and toppings comes to mind for what i’m thankful for. i also love that the thunderstorm broke some of the heat..it was cray cray!