a reason to be thankful

I have at least a thousand reasons to be thankful.

I'll spare you the time reading them all.

Most of them are tucked away in my heart.

But, I want to teach my big girl (and eventually my little girl) that being thankful is an action.

It doesn't just happen.

Life will certainly drag us down if we don't intentionally take time to be grateful.

So, here's our November project....

A "thankful" board with a pocket for each day of the month.

We're taking time each evening to write down a thing or two that we're happy about.

And then slipping them into their assigned dates on the board.

I think I'm going to leave them in there until next year when we do this all over again.

Then we'll be able to see what we were thankful for as we think about new things to rejoice in year after year.

This exercise in thanksgiving is just what I've needed.

Letting thoughts of why my life is soooo good simmer in my brain all day long and then writing them down on paper and sharing them with my family has given me
the fresh perspective that I've needed.

Yes, I am tired...

Yes, I feel overwhelmed balancing two kids, a job, a home...

Yes, there are moments when I could just crack...

But, it is good.

Very good.

And thinking about it,

talking about it,

writing it down....

...has reminded me that this very brief season is more precious than money, more valuable than gold, more lovely than diamonds.

My favorite so far was Peach's line:  "Popsicles and undies make me happy".

And if that is what she's thankful for, then I'm glad that not only does she have it, but that she's learning to be conscious of these things that bless our hearts.

Happy November...

And may we never forget to count our days in praise.

no where i'd rather be

I don't know when it happened.  But I do know that I didn't always love being home.  In fact, I can remember days when I planned my weekends/evenings around NOT being home.  I just liked to be out and about.  But lately, home is where I want to stay.  And when given the opportunity to go somewhere, I often choose to stay put.

Maybe it is the fact that going anywhere these days requires a minimum of thirty minutes to prepare.  Diapers, nursing cover, extra undies...(we haven't needed them for a while, but I always bring them just in case), water bottle, Mister Bear, hats, gloves, coats, cell phone....the list goes on.

Or maybe it is because now that there are four of us living here, being away for any length of time means that the laundry will likely crawl out of the basket and attack me when I return.

Or maybe it is the cooler air whispering that winter is on the way.  I really do love winter for the simple reason that it requires us to all be huddled together under one cozy roof.

Whatever the reason, I've become a home body.  And I'm okay with that.  My girls are little enough to think that home is a pretty sweet place to be as well.  I'm so glad they're still small enough to think that our back yard is the ultimate in entertainment.

Here's the new swing set I found for Tulip at the local thrift store

Peach thinks it belongs to her...she's still getting used to the fact that not everything around this joint is her sole property any more.

I know that they will soon have hobbies and interests that will draw them away from home and that their excitement about our back yard won't last forever.  But I do hope that as they grow and explore the world, they know that home is where their hearts are.  And in spite of where the days lead them, I sincerely desire to make our home the place where they feel most safe...their shelter and refuge from this beautiful, harsh, joyful, difficult world we live in.

Hubby and I are in agreement that we want home to be a place where they want to bring their friends as well.  We realize this could be a bit of an investment.  But, creating a place that they want to be is worth it to us.

If only cheap garage sale/thrift store toys would thrill them forever...we're saving our pennies now for the days when entertaining our kids gets a bit more spendy.

And if home is where they're going to want to be...Hubby's going to have to work at not acting quite so embarrassing....

But they won't always want to be here.  And when they're not, I want them to feel that tug that tells them that this is the place they are most loved....most cherished...most adored....most accepted.  I want the idea that home is a beautiful place to be chiseled on their hearts.  

So, we're working on that...one memory at a time.  With every kiss, every smile, every touch, every opportunity to light up when they walk in the room.  Even when we're tired and cranky.  We're doing our best to make an effort to make this space one of abundant joy.

The physical building that we live in will probably change at some point.  We love our house, but its likely that we won't be here forever.  

Regardless, wherever home is...there's no where I'd rather be.

celebrate good times...with a chair

One of the best gifts I've ever received was given to Hubby and I as a wedding gift.  It was a set of colorful party bowls and fun candles accompanied by a note that said 

"remember to celebrate the little things"

Peach's birthday is less than a month away.

And I've been busy....

In the past, we've always done a small family party and because she's a Thanksgiving baby, it ends up happening either before or after Thanksgiving dinner.

There's nothing wrong with that and because our families don't live super-close, we'll celebrate with them when we see them for Thanksgiving again.

However, this year she's old enough to understand the idea of a party just for her and I don't want it to always be the after-Thanksgiving after thought.  

So, we're doin' up somethin' special just for her this year.

Nothing major.  Just a few little friends at our house.

But, I'm excited to celebrate this most special of days and there will be lots more pictures to share after her little party.

But today she helped me decorate her celebration chair.

I got the idea from a wonderful friend who lives way too far away.  But, we chat when we can and she told me that she made one of these for her kids.

So, I'm following suit.

And while I've kept a lot of her birthday party a secret - magic just for her - I let her in on this part.

Just the two of us down in our laundry room while Tulip napped and Hubby raked in the yard.

The smile on her face told me that she knew this was a big deal.

A few of the letters are crooked, but I'm glad that I let her put her own fingerprints on this project.

I'm afraid I opened up the "birthday party" conversation a bit too soon.  Because she asked me at least 15 times today if her birthday was going to be tonight.  :(  When I told her the party was 17 days away, she scrunched up her face with that sour look that tells me she doesn't know what 17 days is, but she knows that its not what she wants. 

Back to the chair...I considered having it say "Happy Birthday", but then decided to go with "Celebrate" because I'm thinking that we'll use it any time we've got something worth celebrating.

Opening birthday presents, eating birthday cake, special birthday breakfasts, losing that first tooth, learning to tie shoes, first day of school, good news from school, mastering multiplication...just to name a few.

I'm trying to follow that advice I got six years ago at our wedding...to celebrate the little things.

The plan is to look for them and to enjoy them.

Not because anyone else cares, but because we care.

So here is the chair that we'll be celebrating many milestones with.

Can't wait to share them!

happy heart

I walked in on this scene today....

...and my heart just melted.

I stood there in the kitchen for a minute and watched these two, who I lived so long without.  I know I was happy then...before them.  But did I smile nearly as much?  Did I laugh as hard?

I can't remember.  All I know is that watching them together at the kitchen table just enjoying each other's company made my heart happy.

Peach did most of the talking while Hubby did most of the listening.  She jabbered about nothing in particular and he just sat there, coloring and enjoying that moment with her.

I'm sure she has no idea how fortunate she is to have a dad who cherishes her like this...but I do.  And until she's old enough to tell him how much it means to her, I'll remind him how much it means to ME that he takes the time to love her like this.

I'll admit...I got a little teary standing there, listening to them sing and laugh and talk.  It seems silly,  I know.  But I'm grateful that scenes like this are normal around our house.

When I ended my eavesdropping and showed up with my camera, I got the eye roll from Hubby (seriously, more pictures?) and an inviation from Peach to join the fun.

I know that moments like these are just little things.

But they are little things that I want to remember...the little things that make up our family.

The little things that make my heart happy.