Thankful, Day 11

Today I'm thankful for the beauty that is in the world, and our talents that help us CREATE that beauty.  Yes, there are wonders in nature, but the REAL wonder is in US.  It IS us.  God has given us each so many gifts to share with the world, no matter who we are or what we think of ourselves, and the more we use them, the closer to heaven we feel.  Happiness and closeness to God and gratitude are all SO interconnected it's hard to pull them apart.  Especially when we use those gifts of ours for creation, we are more powerful than we know! 

When we had our family photos taken yesterday downtown, we stumbled uponTHIS in an alley:

This is what I'm talkin' about!  How fun is this?  How unexpected?  How beautiful (especially perhaps *because* of its unexpectedness)?

Tip of the day: Use your talents to create something beautiful—a song, a poem, a craft, a photograph, a meal, a work of art.  Creation brings with it a little peace and confidence, not to mention helps you appreciate your own talents more.

Thankful, Day 10

I'm thankful for the clothing on my back...and for GoodWill, that has supplied so much of my wardrobe on the cheap. :) I rarely have wardrobe crises...but for family pics take #657513926 this morning, I have NO IDEA what to wear! Yet looking through all of these clothes, or trying to fold the mounds of laundry, I feel pretty spoiled. Some people in this world have no shoes, wear the same tattered clothes day in and day out, and could never dream of a world where the biggest "crisis" of the day included having too many clothes and the money and time to reschedule family pictures over and over again. I am blessed. I hope I can give back a little of all that has been given to me!

 

This is the laundry I have to fold today.  :/

Tip of the day: Help someone less fortunate than you, in big and organized or small and spontaneous ways.  Service is a GREAT way to put things into perspective and to feel like we're taking action.  Remember the line in the hymn, "I will divide my gifts from Thee with ev'ry brother that I see who has the need of help from me."  :)  An important part of being truly grateful is sharing our gifts with others.

Thankful, Day 9

Today I am grateful for awesome quotes that inspire me.  Sometimes it's the little things that remind me to appreciate the little things.  :)  Like this awesome one (from Pinterest) from Zooey Deschanel:

 

Tip of the day: delve in scriptures and quotes that buoy you up, whether they are about gratitude or not.  Happy thoughts lead to more happy thoughts.

Thankful, Day 8

Today I'm thankful for puppies! It made me laugh yesterday, in the middle of a barrage of negative comments regarding the election (from both sides), my friend Amy put up pics of her black lab and it just made me smile and be able to breathe again as I scrolled through the hateful comments. My puppies are in a bit of a rotten streak lately but I love 'em to pieces and I sure am grateful for the snuggles, unconditional love, occasional obedience :), and stories they bring into our family! Puppies are the best!

 

Tip of the day: Give a gratitude gift--for the mailman, coworker, spouse/roommate, etc.  It doesn't have to be anything big, but just an expression of appreciation.  :) Anonymous is even better.

Thankful, Day 7

Today, I'm thankful for my country--the opportunity I have to participate in and shape it, and the people that protect it.  Patriotism is basically the thought of the day, in other words. 

Yesterday we as a country got to vote for President, and regardless of whether or not your favorite candidate won, we got to have a say in what happened.  That's actually really huge.  I tried really hard this year to *care* about *all* parts of the election, down to local representatives, and become more educated about the issues and where I stand on them.  While I won't go into details about my world view, I'm really grateful that I get to have a say in what happens, and even if it doesn't turn out exactly as I want it (many of my favorites did NOT get picked this time around), I can pray for our leaders and support them through my active involvement as we all try to make our country better.  Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the red tape, and discouraged by the "politics" of politics, but I'd take it over a government run by force or fear any day of the week. 

We also have SO MUCH, even the poorest in our country have lots to celebrate compared with much of the rest of the world. 

And regardless of what you think about American military involvement in various parts of the rest of the world's affairs, you can't deny that the soldiers themselves and their families are brave and selfless.  I sure do appreciate their efforts, their sacrifices, their willingness to give all in the service of God and country. 

I love America.  I don't think Americans are any better than any other people, of course, but I do appreciate the way our government is set up at its foundation and the many miracles that happen in my own small life every day because of it.  :)

TIP OF THE DAY: Start sharing something you are grateful for in your families (or, if you live alone, in your journal or even social media) before dinner, scripture study, or bedtime.  Start and/or end the day on a high by noticing and expressing thanks for the big and small things in your life EVERY DAY.  :)

Thankful, Day 6

Today, I'm super thankful my apartment has a fireplace.  We used it for the first time last night, which was actually quite appropriate considering this crazy cold front, we had one of our sisters over, it was Guy Fawkes Day, AND it was the one-year anniversary of when we moved into this apartment.  I've always been a bit of a pyro anyway, but fireplaces are extra fun.  FIRE INDOORS!  WOOHOO!  :)  For "FHE" we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, made wishes and burned them, learned about Guy Fawkes a little more before we burned little effigies of him, and reminisced about our youth by teaching Paul a few girls' camp songs.  I also bought a fireplace popcorn popper, but we didn't end up using it because between brownies, hot dogs, and s'mores, no one was very hungry.  :) Then I fell asleep by the fire for about an hour while Paul was out before waking myself up and going to bed...

I LOVE FIREPLACES!  It is so cozy to have one and I can't wait to use it once our Christmas decor is up in a month or so...it'll be like the cover of a holiday card, BUT IN MY LIVING ROOM!  :)

Tip of the day: To increase the gratitude in your life today, look for what is right about a situation instead of what is wrong.  (This goes for PEOPLE, too--focus not only on the positive, but even on how the negative things could BECOME positives.)  There's a really great poem out there (somewhere) about this...instead of complaining about the mess your children leave, thank God you have a home and have children, something like that...  THIS LINK isn't the poem that I love to remember, but I can't find the original and this has the same concept so I'll post it anyway.  If anyone knows the actual poem I'm thinking about, please give me a link or email me a copy! 

Thankful, Days 3-5

Hahaha, I guess weekends are difficult for me.  At least this weekend was.  But that's okay.  You'll just get to be with me as I play catch-up.  Or be my friend on Facebook--I post daily there.  It's easier since I don't add photos or tips or explanations at all.  :)  But since this is more of a journal, I feel I need to add...more.  :)

Day 3: Today, I'm grateful for family--the family I came from, the family I married into, the little family Paul and I are together, and our someday-family yet to be. Who else but family would love you so completely, drive you so nuts, and still want to claim you at the end of every day? :)

This came about because of a few thoughts.  The hurricane that semi-displaced my sister-in-law for a while, the health issues of close family members, the continued struggles with infertility...but really, everyone loves family, even the ones that are crazy.  And mine's just wonderful, really.  I love my in-laws as much as my own family and that's such a blessing!

Tip of the day: Write a letter of gratitude to a friend or family member.  :)

***

Day 4: Day 4: Today, I'm grateful for beginnings. And the sweetness and excitement and even naïveté that accompanies it. Baptism, marriage, new jobs, trials, they all teach you something and bring you new friends and I love the adventure that starting something is!

We got to go to a baptism, which sort of solidified a lot of feelings I've had lately about beginnings and the excitement of the unknown.  (Yes, it's awful and horrifying not knowing things, but it's also pretty fun, especially in hindsight.  I get excited about it.)  I especially love it in a spiritual sense because in the beginning things are so simple and new and the "firsts" of the gospel, just like the firsts in a relationship, are such special memories you'll carry with you always.  I love baptisms and hearing new converts' stories because it solidifies my own faith in a special way.

I wish I had a pic of my baptism day!!!  Pretend I do, and it's inserted right here.  :)

Tip of the day: Pray a whole prayer of thanks...and make it long.

***

Day 5: Day 5: I'm SO thankful for my job. Working one-on-one with children with special needs has been inspiring, difficult, funny, exhausting, sweet, intimidating, empowering, and all around wonderful.  It is not what I pictured myself doing at this time of my life, and some days I focus too much on where I would "rather" be...but it is definitely where I'm meant to be right now--I've had that witness more than once and I'm humbled by the privilege it is to serve these children every day knowing that for some reason they need me and, more likely, I need them.

Really, if you have ever met any of the children I work with, but particularly my morning girl, you would know what I mean.  I LOVE MY JOB! 

Tip of the day: Start a personal or family "gratitude list" and display it in a fun, creative way--like leaves on a tree, a giant poster to write on, a dry erase board you can easily change out, or anything else that strikes your fancy.  Just make it visible and interactive--include your guests in on the sweet action, too!

Thankful, Day 2

Today I am especially grateful for THAT MOMENT when things work out even when you didn't believe there was any way on earth they possibly could.  You know those moments, I'm sure--the times when you breathe a heavy sigh of relief that your worrying or other bad feelings were for naught, that worst-case scenarios aren't always happening, and you just realize that maybe it's a good thing you're NOT in control of the universe because you're not quite ready for it just yet.  ;)  I had a few moments like that today, personally and professionally, and even though it's humbling to be a worrywart (and good to be a planner), I'm grateful that sometimes things turn out remarkably and surprisingly well in spite of me.  :)  I'm grateful that I'm not in charge of the universe, 'cause I would majorly screw it up. :) But I've got a Heavenly Father and a Savior that make things work out even when I mess things up, or even if I'm a worrywart and can only imagine worst-case scenarios and have no idea HOW things could work out. He makes it all work and He makes it all worth it! I love those moments when I realize this and can breathe a sigh of relief that someone loves me enough to balance the universe, generally in my favor. :)

Tip of the day: Start a gratitude journal!  It may seem hokey, but it really does make a BIG DIFFERENCE in mood.  And not just in the moment.  Studies have shown that people report less stress, greater perspective, and higher quality of life, after writing just FIVE things down every week that they are grateful for over a ten-week period!  Science not convincing enough?  Here's what a modern-day prophet had to say about how recording gratitude builds testimony.  :)

Thankful, Day 1

I have had a bad case of the grumpies for some time now.  Things are getting better, partly because of the passage of time and mostly because I am CHOOSING HAPPINESS.  It's not easy, especially when times are tough, but it's doable.  And a big part of that always, but especially in this season, is gratitude.  So I'd like to post each day until Thanksgiving and share things I'm grateful for, and other ways I'm trying to develop an attitude of gratitude.

Today I am grateful for clouds.  That's right, clouds.  Seems a strange thing to start off the month being grateful for, but this morning on my oh-so-short drive into work I was noticing the pinkish hue of the clouds in the sunrise and I was just overwhelmed by the simple beauties that are all around us that I rarely stop and take time to notice.  I'm grateful for the clouds that reflect rainbows of colors in the sunrise and sunset.  I'm grateful for the clouds that bring rain to a thirsty world, and the ones that are dark and stormy with lightning and thunder.  And the puffy white clouds that take the shapes of our imaginations.  I'm grateful for the beauty of the way clouds play with light, almost like a living painting.  I love flying through clouds and watching them dance on the wings, or sprawl out below me like a luxurious bubble bath.  Clouds are GREAT, and I for one am grateful for them.

Tip of the day: I busted out my clicker today for the first time in too long.  It's pink and awesome and it forces me to take just a few minutes at the start, middle, and end of my day to breathe deeply and ponder the good in my life.  TRY IT!

Happy Halloween!

Here are some of my Halloween projects and pictures this year.  :)  Better late than never, right?  :)

Voodoo wanted to tell you all to enjoy the holidays.  Next year I have decided we are sewing our puppies' costumes if we still don't have a baby and we are going to take THEM trick-or-treating...and then eat all the candy.  :)

This was actually SUPER FUN and SUPER EASY--a skeleton wreath!  I went to Walmart the day after Halloween and they had a 12-piece foam-like bone set for $5.  Some hot glue did the trick!  I think I want to find either a crow or a bottle of "poison" to add a little something more to it...and maybe a mini chalkboard "Enter if you dare" sign...but I can't wait to put it on the door next year!  Spooky, isn't it?  :)

For "dress like a hero day" at school (which also happened to be our Halloween party), I borrowed Paul's Air Force shirt.  I tried to fit into his old pants, but...no.  Hahaha.  :)

Speaking of our Halloween party, this is "Super K...to the rescue!"  It is when she really just started talking again, and she was adorable all day long.  I also thought this little kid-friendly craft they did was worth sharing!  It's just a ping pong ball, an orange battery-operated tea light, and a sharpie.  You can decorate the ping pong ball any way you want (she drew a jack-o-lantern/skull face), then use an exacto knife (parents' job, obvi) to cut a little "x" at the bottom.  It slides right over the tea light and looks awesome all lit up--especially with lights off!  How cute is that?  The kids LOVED it, and I bet since you sorta have to buy that stuff in bulk anyway they would be really cute lined up on a dresser or mantle or as a centerpiece.  :)

I also briefly dressed like a witch.  'Cause I could.  We didn't actually go to a party or hand out candy or ANYTHING, but this witch hat and wig were calling my name and I felt like I'd be deprived if I didn't dress up at ALL, so I wore them as I did my daily errands one afternoon.  :)

One reason this post is actually much later than the publish date would suggest: I had to wait until I "finished" (or at least finished ENOUGH) my 4-sided/4-season stackables!

I still have to add some vinyl.  But I like the look of it just the same, stacked on top of each other OR side-by-side.