Sunday, December 20, 2009

Our lives are made in these small hours

Hm. It occurred to me that, sometime ago, I promised you a proper Thanksgiving post. Here we are, 5 days from Christmas, and I still haven't delivered the goods. Shame, shame, shame on me. Will you forgive me if I bake you some sugar cookies?

What's that you say? You can't be bought with tasty treats? Yeah, well...try the cookies first. They're pretty darn good, if I do say so myself. Plus? Some of them have M&Ms. Uh-huh! I knew I could buy your love!

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You've surely heard the phrase "don't sweat the small stuff", right? Good advice, wouldn't you agree? It's not healthy to get so worked up over little bits of nonsense.

On the flip side, however, I'm a firm believer in appreciating the small stuff.

It goes without saying that I'm thankful for my husband....my children...my friends and family......the roof over our heads.....the steady paycheck that arrives every Friday...the food on our table. These are the Big Things that our lives revolve around.

I'm referring to the details. The little stuff. The minutiae of life.

I'm thankful for the following:

My new fuzzy bathrobe. It's fuzzy. And warm. And pretty. What could be better than that? Nothing, I tell you! Absolutely nothing.

The 7-11 that's within walking distance from my house. Not in the mood for a Grocery Store Experience? Just run to 7-11 and pick up the milk! Or bread! Or eggs! Or 9 volt battery! Or a Santa hat that's green and has the word "JETS" embroidered on the front!

Milk. Bread. Eggs. Cheese. Apples. At least one meal every day consists of those items. I consider it my mission in life to make sure they leave this house with a tummy full of healthy breakfast food.

Facebook. No, I'm not joking. I resisted the movement for as long as I could. When I finally relented, I discovered this technological gem that has allowed me to be in much closer contact with my family. There are 34 people on my side (siblings, in-laws, nieces, and nephews) and we are scattered from coast to coast. I adore this big group, but it's tough to keep track of everyone's lives. With facebook, I was able to see my niece's baby bump pictures, chat with her about the pregnancy, and see photos of the baby within a few hours of her birth! Amazing.

My new digital camera. Seriously. I'd need to take out a second mortgage to pay for the film and developing if I were still using my old camera.

Bedtime. The key to my sanity is knowing that I can stop being Momma at some point during the day. Rachel is asleep at 6:30. Alexa, by 7:00. Ben, by 7:30. Nicholas is in bed, reading, at 8.

"Criminal Minds". That's the show I'm currently obsessed with. I looooove it. I used to loooooove "CSI" (the Vegas one). I fell OUT of looooove with it when Grissom left.

Howard Stern. He makes me laugh when I desperately need a shot of humor in my days. Being a stay-at-home-mom for nearly 10 years can have it's difficult moments. (Gawd, that's such a huge understatement.) His radio talk-show is just what I need. I don't give a rat's butt that some people find him to be crude, offensive, obnoxious, etc. He. makes. me. laugh. And that's all I honestly care about.

My iPod. And iTunes. This teeny, tiny little thing holds all of those songs? Really? AND I don't have to carry around 29 CD cases in order to listen to my favorite music? AND I don't have to buy an entire CD just to get the ONE song that I like?! AND I don't have to be all annoyed that my favorite song is ruined because the CD got scratched?! Shut UP! That would make this the best invention EVER!

The twinkly, white lights on my Christmas tree. They're just so pretty.

Rob Thomas and Matchbox 20. It's like candy for my ears.

A love of quilting that was passed down to me from my Grandma Johnson.

My birthday. Becoming another year older doesn't bother me. Yet.

My blog. It feels good to wake up my sleepy brain.

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I'm sure I could continue. But you get the idea, right? Remembering to appreciate that the little stuff is just as important as the big stuff.

What kind of "little stuff" are you thankful for?

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Even pre-schoolers can catch the Thankful Bug....Alexa made this Thanksgiving project in school last month.












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2 comments:

  1. I would be broke and fat if I lived in walking distance to a 7-11.

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  2. I'm a little late with the happy birthday wishes, but here they are anyway - happy birthday. I understand the not caring about being a year older. You have a full life. I am feeling more like that now that I am sharing my life with someone. We just need a few more someones in our life (little someones), and then I think I'll be right there with you. There are lots of little things to be thankful for, and too many to name. Mostly, I'm thankful for the decisions and experiences, big and small, that have brought me to where I am right now. Many that I didn't really understand at the time, but I wouldn't be where I am without them.

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