Not gonna lie, there’ve been at least a dozen things I almost blogged about today.  From our 4:30am run in the crazy cool fog with a sliver of a moon to a cozy sweatshirt (pretty sure you’ll hear more about that one in the future) to an unexpected reminder of Dad in a song that made laugh out loud to packing for two trips at once, there’s been so much to be thankful for.  Even after 777 straight days of blogging about what I’m thankful for each day I’m still humbled and amazed at all I’ve been blessed with in my life.

Today we had Marlene Chism (and another of my awesome sisters from another misters – Heather Joyner) in Eau Claire to present on leadership to over 40 of our clients and fellow business leaders.  As I’ve come to expect from Marlene, the presentation was fantastic!

What made the event even more special was that it was one of the first times my mom has been at an Express event.  It was so awesome to see her in a different light.  I’m so used to seeing her as “Mom” that it was pretty cool seeing her as a business professional.  We talk work often on the phone, but it was just wild hearing her share stories side by side with me.  It was AWESOME!!!

I’m also grateful that she had the opportunity to meet my work family in the Menomonie and Eau Claire offices.  It was cool that they were able to quickly see where I get a lot of my personality from.

Over the past couple of months I’ve been noticing more and more how I have the people closest to me put into my paradigms of who they are based on my relationship with them.  While this is how I’m used to seeing them I’m realizing that there is so much more to everyone.  In this case she’s not just “Mom” she’s a business professional.  It feels weird to see her in a different light like that, but it helps me appreciate her even more.  Times like this remind me that I need to keep digging in deeper to really get to know the loved ones in my life better, not just the paradigm of them that I have in my head.

I’m so thankful to have had this extra time with my mom, the opportunity to learn alongside of Darlene the HR professional, and for the chance to get to know her a little better.  It was a pretty sweet nexus of family and work life that I’m grateful to have had.

Thanks!!!

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of preparation for being out on vacation in the not too distant future.  Once I’m back there’s going to be a lot to do in order to get caught back up even though I’m prepping in advance.  Travel is awesome, but the few days beforehand can feel rushed and chaotic.  All of the busy is welcomed and appreciated, and in a weird way feels really excellent!

Today I was able to pause the feeling and enjoy a different sensation…  spending some quiet time working in my workshop.  Becky took the boys to a scouting event so I could get caught up on my insulation project.  Unbeknownst to me the ringer of my phone was off and I never heard any texts or calls.  I had the Packer game blaring on the radio and it was just me working on the workshop.

There were no thoughts of travel, no consideration of anything work related.  I wasn’t mentally prepping for stuff with the boys, or coming up with crazy future plans.  I was present in the moment, working on ceiling and listening to the Packer game.  Nothing else mattered, nothing else existed, just the quiet calm of building something while the sounds of the radio kept my brain at ease.  Pure quiet would’ve led to thinking, talking with others would’ve distracted me.  The environment was perfect to get in the zone and just exist for a while, enjoying every moment, even laughing at myself when I screwed up.  It was quiet, peaceful and calming, just what I needed.

I’m already jumping back into preparation mode, packing for this and that, and getting my thoughts wrapped back around work, but it all feels much better and less stressful after having some quiet time in my personal oasis, my workshop.

Thanks!!!

The past few weekends have been pretty awesome, filled with great times with friends.  Many memories were made and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.  The next several weekends are going to be spent on vacation, and I’m sure they will be pretty awesome.

Today was quite different, I was home with my family.  I got over nine hours of sleep, woke up well rested.  Before a run I was able to get many things packed for our trip and even put up some insulation in the garage.  Becky and I got a run in and it felt awesome!  After the run Dominic and I ran a couple of errands.  I then spent some time alone putting in more insulation.  After a while I had a couple of helpers in my workshop.  A little while later I only had one, and Dominic was a huge help.  He kept me company on our trip to Menards and then helped me put up the last of the insulation in the ceiling.  Dominic and I then made supper for the family and we all chilled for some down time watching a movie (we’re working our way through the Harry Potter series… again).

It was a relaxing day, a productive day, and a great day at home with family.  Nothing exceedingly epic, just an awesome normal day…  and I am very thankful for it!

Thanks!!!

Ahh… how do you close up a crazy busy week?

It started with a round of hot yoga after work, progressed into wings and beer, and wrapped up with a movie while chilling on the couch. Early bed, 9+ hours of sleep, and life will be even better.

Thanks!!!

Sometimes my blog doesn’t need much of an explanation.  Sometimes less is more fitting.  Today is one of those days.

I can’t imagine how much more difficult it would have been to lose Dad without having Nick walking beside me.  Dude, you’ve helped me more than words can ever hope to say.  I’m sincerely thankful to have you as my brother.  This journey is much easier knowing that you’re walking it with me.

Thanks!!!

So much to be thankful for today, which do I go with?  The great night of sleep?  Becky having the flexibility to take Gavin to Urgent Care to take put a hole in the nail of a swollen finger?  The excellent day of planning with my work team?  The chance to reflect on a specific fault that I have to find ways to get batter at it?  The fantastic performance of a teammate presenting?  Seeing a huge red sunset?  A home cooked meal with my family?  A good conversation with my mom or a fun call with my little brother?  Yes, there was much to be thankful for today, and I am very grateful for each of those things.

All of those in my head, I’m blogging about a goofy photo that was from exactly three years ago today that makes me smile…  and, as usual, there’s more to the story…

This photo was taken while riding Expedition Everest in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.  The picture itself cracked me up when I saw it.  We had already been on it several times so I had an idea of where the camera was, but I had no idea that the expressions on the other riders’ faces would’ve been so priceless!  Every time I look at it I can’t help but smile.  There’s so much more to this pic though…

It reminds me of fun vacations with our boys.  This ride was so awesome and we had so many giggles riding it.  The boys were absolutely in love with this ride, they enjoyed the ride, the background story and displays, and the whole Everest and yeti theme.

When looking at it I remember to not take myself so seriously.  Life is short, have fun!  Work hard, bust butt, and make good decisions, but when it’s time to play, enjoy and play hard.  I hope the boys are learning that from watching Becky and I.  It’s how we choose to live our lives – it can be very crazy and busy at times, but it’s well worth it when we find ourselves on vacation or traveling somewhere and making great memories.

This pic also reminds me of the magic we experienced while at Disney, the moments that they created for us as their guests.  The band worn on our wrist that tracked which car we were in so it could take pics at the right time and then send them to us.  The way we would walk past things and they would know our names.  That magic was…  well, it was magical!  When I remember that magic I think of how can I bring that level of magic to what I do.  What can I do to go out of my way to provide a truly magical moment for someone?  When’s the last time I helped to create that magic for someone?

While the day was filled with many things to be grateful for (again, thanks to Becky for taking care of Gavin while I was out of town!), this goofy pic really reminded me of a lot today and gave me much to think about…  and, most importantly, it put a huge goofy smile on my face.

Thanks!!!

Today was a great day with many of my Express cohorts.  We met in Rochester for our annual planning retreat and spent the day sharing ideas, helping each other learn form our past successes and failures, and finding ways to be more successful in 2018.  After the work portion was complete we had a excellent offsite event, playing laser tag and bowling.  It was a wonderful end to day of planning.

To wrap the night up I pulled out my laptop and started typing.  It’s been a week or two since I’d worked on my book, it felt wonderful to write again.  As I write about the experience of losing my dad it brings back some tough memories and emotions, but it always leaves me feeling better.  As the words form on my screen I feel a better understanding of the events, of myself, and life in general.  It hurts at times, but I always feel more joyful after typing.

Reflecting back on the day I can see the connection between the first two paragraphs.  Building our business takes steady progress, progress that often seems slow, but when I pause and look back on what we’ve created it’s pretty awesome!  As I write the book about losing Dad it’s taking longer than I would’ve hoped, but I know that as long as I keep working at it, piece by piece – slow, but steady – it will one day be complete…  and what an awesome feeling that will be!

Thanks!!!

With our 2018 planning in full swing I headed in to the office pretty early this morning.  The cool part was that as I was driving up the Mississippi I was able to see the beginning of the sunrise in my rearview mirror.  Working in my office I didn’t even have to turn on a light, the sun was already brightening up the sky and it felt great!  Sure, I’m not a big fan of it being dark early, but there’s something pretty sweet about having extra sun to get me up and moving earlier in the morning.

Interestingly enough, it was with those extra hours worked that a comment from my mentor, Norm, really hit me between the eyes this morning.  One of the awesome things about having Norm in my life is that he’s not afraid to call me out on things.  The way he started the coaching session this morning was by pointing out that he once in a while needs to be the canary in the coal mine for me and point out when something’s off a little bit.  Boy am I glad he did.

Something that’s been in the back of my mind for a little while was put into the forefront and it’s forced me to confront it.  Nothing crazy, terrible, drastic, or anything like that, but rather something that I’ve struggled with for a while and need to keep working on.  Once in a while it kind of sneaks up on me.  When he brought it up today I had it in the back of my mind in every conversation that I had afterwards and in many thoughts I had in moments of silence.

The sun woke me up and helped me get moving first thing in the morning, and the canary in the mine helped to remind me to slow down a little bit.  I am so thankful to have had both today!

Thanks!!!

When we were in Turks and Caicos for Nick and Jenn’s wedding pretty close to this time eight years ago we closed out our last night of vacation hanging out with the two of them.  It was one of those epic nights that I’ll never forget.  Our last night on that vacation, just hanging out and having a great time in one of the resort bars.  As the night started to wind down I gave in to the urge to sing karaoke (something that I’ve only done a handful of times).  The song, Three Little Birds by Bob Marley.

I had so much fun belting out the song with a couple of our favorite resort staffers (Ricky & Omar).  Everything was totally chill and I was present in that moment.  Nothing mattered in the world, life was pretty awesome.

To this day whenever I hear that song I think back to being in the Caribbean, enjoying the beautiful weather, sitting in the sun, and just relaxing with Becky…  Not worrying about a thing, ’cause every little thing is gonna be alright.  I’ve got a cold drink in my hand and am singin’ don’t worry about a thing, ’cause every little thing gonna be alright…

Thanks!!!

Long story short, I’m having a blast in Madison with my brothers from another mother and sister from another mister!

Thanks for including me in the family!

Thanks!!!