I apologize for posting late today. I usually do these posts the night before but, for the last two days, I’ve been consumed with a new project. This project focuses on my attempt to show gratitude to someone special in my life. Someone who’s made a difference and something for whom I really really am thankful. It’s a project that requires the efforts of others, too, so I’ve been doing the traffic-duty. The collecting and collating. It’s something that I don’t always love to do but my desire to do this project overpowers all else.
My challenge to you this week is to find ways to show gratitude. Find a way to demonstrate your thanks to someone in your life. It can be someone who’s been around a lot and has had a big impact, like your mom or dad. Or it can be the person at the checkout counter who smiled at you and brightened your day. Maybe you do a big gesture like buy someone a vacation or a small one like leave a little extra tip. Mow someone else’s lawn. Help unload groceries. Walk their dog. There are unlimited ways to show gratitude and make a difference in someone else’s life. The more unsuspecting the person, the better.
You can choose the person and the act, all I ask is that you do one thing to show gratitude. You can do more, of course, but just try to do at least one. It can even be towards yourself.
I bet you could use a nice bubble bath.
The following is cross-posted from the Weekly Gratitude Blog. I will post there every Tuesday and decided to post those posts here, too. For those of you who read both blogs, I apologize in advance. Some weeks the content might be different and other weeks, exactly the same.
As promised, here is one of my layouts for CHA. This uses papers and stamps from the Paper Girl and alphabet stickers from On Holiday.
I love love that stamp.
The journaling Reads:
Since we’ve had the boys, I rarely ever get dressed up. But recently we were invited to a birthday party and I got to wear my pretty but comfy black dress. It was nice to get all dressed up and fit into my pre-kids clothes. We need to do this more often I think.
Today started way too early (before 5am!) and didn’t recover for a long long time. I did finally pull myself together late in the day and got a bunch of stuff done. Stuff I was postponing so that’s good. And now I have like 15more things on my list but that’s good too, I spose. For the kids, today was all about these plastic glasses.
David loves them too. Especially how funny Nathaniel finds them.
Nathaniel loves wearing them, making you wear them, tearing them apart and putting them back together. All of it.
We tried to teach him to share. He gets one, David gets one. But every now and then he’d run away with both. Caught in the act.
He couldn’t exactly put them on but loved it when we did.
This is a blurry shot but I love the expression on his face. As soon as you put it on, he’d break into this wide, happy smile. It warmed your heart each time.
Today was also Nathaniel’s 15month checkup and he’s finally catching up. He’s at a 40% for weight now and 75% for height. Yey! Finally. I am still moody a bit but feeling a lot better knowing my kids are well. And happy to be actively working on some personal projects and reading a good book. What more can I really expect from life. Tomorrow I’ll start sharing some of my CHA layouts.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful that Nathaniel’s growing steadily and well.
2. I am grateful for another new class I am planning for BPS. Another one that makes me happy.
3. I am grateful for the kindness of others today. The way they can inspire me and make me feel good even though they don’t know me. How lucky are we to have that.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. having daddy at home!
2. getting gold stars for reading (we did p, q, r and s today.) he is doing great!
3. daddy.
The plan for today was to take a trip and have fun. Originally, we were going to go to Muir Woods but I really wanted to go to the beach so we decided to go to Ocean Beach instead. It was a cold and gray San Francisco day but I still tried to snap some photos.
David claimed he wasn’t a fan of the beach. He begged not to go.
And then fell in love (as I knew he would) and wanted to run and play and watch the birds.
But it was too cold. So so cold. So we took a quick walk to the water and then got back in the car.
Our plan was to have brunch at Outlands which gets really good ratings. It didn’t open until 10 am so we sat in the car for a bit and waited for it to open.
I was using my 17-40 lens. I hate this lens. It’s a high quality lens but somehow I just can’t seem to figure out how to use it properly.
After brunch, we went back home, all of us rested and then I worked in the garage some more. I opened one of the huge packed boxes of toys so I could donate most of them but I took a few things out and the kids flocked to them like they were brand brand new.
Here, Nathaniel is watching David run around with a dump truck and laughing while sucking his thumb. It always makes me smile when he does that.
All in all, it was a great but tiring day. Now I am sprawled on the couch and too tired to put the kids down. I hope they are as tired as I am and sleep a long long time.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for our trip to the beach. I love love love the peace water brings out in me.
2. I am grateful for cleaning a few more boxes in the garage. I can see light. Sloooowly but surely.
3. I am grateful for a few more days of downtime. Happy that there’s no work tomorrow for me.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. watching the birds on the beach.
2. building cool things with my legos.
3. daddy.
The journaling is about how David never sucked his thumb so watching Nathaniel comfort himself this way is new to me and how tiny his thumb looks in his mouth and how it is helping him and how I am glad he’s found a way to soothe himself.
Nathaniel is still waking up at ungodly hours so this morning I just pretty much lay there while both kids ate breakfast. I started Little Bee last night so I read more and more until I felt more awake. Nathaniel filled my scrappy drawers with his toys.
And then sat to play with his toys while David played with his legos awaiting his Wii start-time.
I love watching him no matter how grouchy or tired I might feel.
I then left for my hair appointment. During the appointment, I just kept reading. I wasn’t sure I liked to book but I definitely couldn’t stop reading it.
When I came home, David was playing and Nathaniel had already woken up from his nap. When I asked David for a photo, this is the best I could get.
And here he is, playing.
Nathaniel thinks he’s playing, too. I love this photo.
Then I finished my book. A little work on the garage, some playing with the kids and here we are. Short, simple day. But feel good. Maybe cause I know I have a lot more days off.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a nice haircut and good dye job. Always feel special after the hair dresser.
2. I am grateful for books. The way they let me completely forget everything around myself.
3. I am grateful for extra days off. Downtime.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. playing wii.
2. watching a little TV this morning.
3. daddy.
It almost seems like forever ago, but I actually did this one only a few weeks ago:
26. Spend a day by myself
After reading Hand Wash Cold, I went to Karen’s webpage and saw that she had a Mother’s Retreat coming up in just a few weeks twenty minutes away from my house. So I thought it was almost crucial that I go.
(Look what it says on her computer screen.)
Unfortunately for me, I was so so very tired on the day I went that I did not pay as much attention as I would have liked. Having said that, it was an amazing day of soul searching. Reading. Sitting in the beautiful gardens of the temple. Walking meditation in a labyrinth. A little yoga. And some wonderful learning.
I had a brief talk with Karen on the walk back from the labyrinth to the room and I was able to tell her how much and how deeply her words have touched me and I was glad for that opportunity.
If you’re considering one of these Mother’s Retreats by Karen Maezen Miller, I would highly highly recommend it.
It was definitely worth my time and as much as I would like to say that I needed the time alone, I really really missed my family even in the eight hours I was gone. I love my family a lot and even if I am not paying full attention to them all times, I love being surrounded by them.
I’m still feeling moody, for reasons I truly cannot explain. Maybe it’s cause I don’t have anything that needs to get done and it’s making me feel aimless. Or maybe I just really need rest. Who knows.
I just tried to work and be with the kids today. Nathaniel loves this truck with the remote. Even though it’s out of battery, he doesn’t seem to want to understand that and keeps waiting for it to work again.
But that face is hard to resist so I just let him play.
I love this boy. He’s growing up so so fast. 15 months old tomorrow.
He loves playing soccer with anything at all. Anything he can kick, he will.
I honestly have no idea what they were looking at there. I was working and David told me to take their photo. I love how his hand is over his brother’s shoulder. Gently and protectively.
We spent a little time in the backyard. Nathaniel is making his peace with the grass I think. Especially since there are balls in the backyard and he loves balls.
Not fully peaceful just yet.
I love watching him suck his thumb. Almost all the way to the palm. I wish I had something that comforts me that much. Something besides chocolate that is.
And of course David played with legos. We spent a bunch of time playing legos together today and I built this and then he embellished it.
I’m excited that we’re both taking a few days off and planning on some work at home, some relaxation, some sightseeing, and some pampering. A few days of rest sounds lovely.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for our upcoming mini-staycation this week.
2. I am grateful for some great time watching tour de france with my hubby. By far, my favorite sports event to watch.
3. I am grateful for some quality time with the kids. They make me so so so happy.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. playing legos with mommy.
2. having juice for lunch (I had some odwalla left and he got to have it for eating his veggies.) .
3. daddy.
Journaling Reads:
Before David was born, I spent a lot of time worrying about happiness. I’ve never been the happiest person and I wanted to make sure this wasn’t going to affect my son. I didn’t want him to think that he has any reason to think he caused it. So I wrote signs in my house, read books, and did everything I could to work on being a happier person.
It turns out I had nothing to worry about.
The moment he was born, literally, there was a shift in me. I became a happier person in my core. Not happier. Happy. He turned me from a sad person to a happy person just by being born, could there be a more magnificent present?
As if that weren’t enough, David happens to be the best kid I could have wished for. He’s kind, loving, generous, self-sufficient, and gentle. He’s funny. He has the best imagination and he kisses his brother multiple times a day. He helps me with everything from cleaning up to changing his brother. I would like to take credit for the amazing person he is, but I know it’s just who he is and I thank my lucky stars every day.
Jake had the day off today so as soon as we woke up (another rough night for me) we went to go get the Cholesterol tests done. Just as part of a regular checkup. This test requires fasting so it’s best to do it early in the day. We came back home and did some cleaning up of the stuff in the garage. The kids went out to the backyard as Jake was breaking down the boxes and started playing ball so I grabbed my camera to snap some photos.
David wasn’t sharing well so Nathaniel was crying on one side and happy on the other. A bit weird to be honest.
But they were both having so much fun.
Then we went inside and I worked a bunch while the kids played. Nathaniel is all about David’s toys (of course.)
But David’s getting better and better about not freaking out. I am trying to work with him.
This is the toy that came with the high chair. I love the way Nathaniel’s feet are in this photo.
And here’s David while watching something on TV.
I spent a few hours at work today and it was nice to see some old friends and such a different environment, of course. It feels odd to me since I’ve been working from home for so long now. But it was great to be there and see so many of the people I work with in person. The rest of the day was a lull. I’ve been really really tired this month and I feel bad about my Happiness project which is languishing. I will write more about that soon. I haven’t bailed 100% but really, it’s not so great.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a delicious lunch with a good friend.
2. I am grateful for a great study session with my boy. he’s getting better and better and i am so proud of him.
3. I am grateful for all the work Jake did today to clean up the garage. One day at a time I remind myself.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. orange juice mommy brought from work.
2. playing with my lego sticker book.
3. daddy.
I’m a big Stephanie Meyer fan. I’ve read all of her books. I don’t care what that makes you think of me. I love her writing. So I picked up The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner the moment it came out and read it in one sitting. It was interesting to read more about this little character and I do wish she would write more. I happen to enjoy her writing quite a bit.
Nathaniel woke up just a little too early today. Or I was in a bad part of my sleep cycle cause I woke up feeling like I was slapped. He did also wake up at 2:30am which wasn’t so much fun. But it didn’t take me that long to recover and by 7am I was happy and less tired. Coffee didn’t hurt. Nathaniel’s discovered David’s toy and he’s loving it. Today it was all about putting the sheets on the floor and stepping on them. I think he loves the texture difference or something but it’s so much fun .
He steps up and down on it and laughs and laughs.
And laughs. It’s so much fun to watch him.
So we decided to shoot some video of it cause we both laughed so much watching him:
Isn’t it so funny? He’s also obsessed with plastic bottles, putting their tops on, taking off the paper, putting his fingers in it.
He’s also still putting his hands behind his back.
We tried to let him eat with a fork today and he was super-excited.
He laughed the whole time and kept putting more and more food in his mouth just to play with the fork.
David spent most of the morning playing his soldier game. (One he made up.)
Lest you think it’s always so quiet here, he was running around, shooting, making crazy amounts of noise.
Later in the day, we watched some Whitney Houston and Billy Joel videos on YouTube and I snapped this while he was watching. He is so beautiful, it breaks my heart.
At some point today he told me that if i am mean to him he’d do something to really upset me “Go live with someone else” he told me and I told him that I never want him to live somewhere else and then he said but that won’t work cause he will grow up and get married. And then he added, “don’t worry, I will come visit you.”
I hope so, my son, I hope so.
Three Things I’m Grateful For:
1. I am grateful for a clean checkup. I had my yearly checkup, the first in a while and all was perfectly normal. At the doctor’s that’s exactly what I want to hear.
2. I am grateful for a really wonderful book. One that’s not only engrossing but where the words and sentences actually touch me and make me smile.
3. I am grateful for inspiration my husband gave me yesterday that made me feel stronger and more energized all day long.
Two Things David’s Grateful For:
1. watching music videos with mommy.
2. playing my soldier game.
3. daddy.
