- blowing raspberries on bellies followed by big belly laughs
- my first child losing his first tooth
- it's warmer today than yesterday
- actually playing with my children with nothing more than a row of kitchen chairs, 2 balls, and a 2 duplo boxes
- having leftovers on hand for an easy lunch
- my children sleeping better at night
- my son's lice (yes, it happened here!) is under control and no one else seems to have them
And while I'm thinking about things to be happy about, there are two businesses that come to mind right now. One is EasyEco Baby, which is providing Winnipeg with the first environmentally-friendly disposable diapers available online, as well as other wonderful products. The second is Enamoured Heart, personalized bracelets for Mom & Baby, in addition to many other fine jewellery items. Both are owned and operated by Winnipeg moms, and both graciously donated prizes for our birthday bash two weeks ago. Thanks again. Your generosity makes me smile!
I had wanted to include some fun photos with my "Things to be Happy About", but I just haven't used my camera in a while, so please bear with me as I try to improve this blog. Hope the rest of your week is filled with small happinesses as you love on your little ones!
Wednesday
Ta Da Lists
(No, that is not a typo). We're all familiar with To Do Lists. They're the things we make when we want to get a lot done and we don't want to forget anything. But how many of us take the time to make a Ta Da List? They're a list of the things we've accomplished (whether in a day, a week, or a year). If we take just a few minutes, we can show ourselves that, yes, we are doing things that are important and valuable. Sometimes those things otherwise go unnoticed, often because we do them almost every day (like making meals). Sometimes, we lose track of some of things we've given our time to because they're spaced so far apart (like planning a birthday party).
My Ta Da List for Today
- got up with my two-year-old at 6:00 a.m.
- had a shower and blow dried my hair
- got dressed and enjoyed how I looked
- made smoothies for everyone at breakfast
- sorted out some of the laundry that was getting wrinkly...folded some of it
- started two more loads
- played piano and sang worship songs
- read to my kids twice (mostly, I admit to try to get them to stop being in my hair, but thoroughly enjoyed it both times)
- made a healthy lunch that I haven't made forever (black beans & rice a la Cuba/Brazil)
- had a good phone conversation with another woman
- followed up my press releases from yesterday with three emails and got a response
- wrote out a computer "to-do list"
- cleared the table completely after lunch (this is quite an accomplishment for me)
- corrected my four-year-old with a decent amount of graciousness and understanding
- laughed out loud
- started this post
So, can see, that quite an ordinary morning can seem almost extraordinary when you stop to realize all you've done. Please note that there are some things I left out of the list like: having a mini panic attack and starting to take it out on the kids when I wasn't getting any business stuff done, dealing with screaming and fighting children and juice messes, and feeling a bit of guilt at not getting my son down for a nap when he probably really needed one.
I encourage you to try it now. Whatever you're in the midst of, just sit down with a piece of paper and a pen and do it (or type it in Word). I'd love to hear it! We all need to celebrate the little things more.
My Ta Da List for Today
- got up with my two-year-old at 6:00 a.m.
- had a shower and blow dried my hair
- got dressed and enjoyed how I looked
- made smoothies for everyone at breakfast
- sorted out some of the laundry that was getting wrinkly...folded some of it
- started two more loads
- played piano and sang worship songs
- read to my kids twice (mostly, I admit to try to get them to stop being in my hair, but thoroughly enjoyed it both times)
- made a healthy lunch that I haven't made forever (black beans & rice a la Cuba/Brazil)
- had a good phone conversation with another woman
- followed up my press releases from yesterday with three emails and got a response
- wrote out a computer "to-do list"
- cleared the table completely after lunch (this is quite an accomplishment for me)
- corrected my four-year-old with a decent amount of graciousness and understanding
- laughed out loud
- started this post
So, can see, that quite an ordinary morning can seem almost extraordinary when you stop to realize all you've done. Please note that there are some things I left out of the list like: having a mini panic attack and starting to take it out on the kids when I wasn't getting any business stuff done, dealing with screaming and fighting children and juice messes, and feeling a bit of guilt at not getting my son down for a nap when he probably really needed one.
I encourage you to try it now. Whatever you're in the midst of, just sit down with a piece of paper and a pen and do it (or type it in Word). I'd love to hear it! We all need to celebrate the little things more.
What a Great Night!
I just want to say how much I enjoyed talking to people last night. Thank you to all the Moms for your helpful feedback. It was neat to connect with you and figure out how we might be able to make this blog community work.
Trina, if you're reading this, you won the gift bag from Tiber River (here's there blog). Why don't you come out to the studio sometime soon, see your beautiful photos and pick up your prize?!
It was surprising to me to hear that I could be thought of as "amazing" for doing all that I do and writing here. We often focus on what we're struggling with as moms juggling so many things, that we forget what we are accomplishing and that we can only expect so much of ourselves, and to just accept where we're at.
That first year of baby's life is so all-consuming, I think we forget the magnitude of what it takes to mother a newborn: the sleep loss, the endless giving of ourselves, the incredible chaos of adhering to someone else's "schedule" on a continual basis, the lack of self-care and personal time and even just the ability to be alone with your thoughts that are apt to occur, the hormones and post-partum depression that are often not even taken into consideration when we're passing judgment on ourselves, the isolation that can happen...it all takes its toll on a woman. We've got to recognize this and be gracious to ourselves. And it's not only the first year. I've heard women say it took three years to really come back to themselves...and when you continue the cycle by having your next child before that, it can be six or more years before that "normalcy" returns. In the meantime, it's important to accept the "new normal" and work within our limitations.
I look forward to your feedback on how to make this a place of support, community, and inspiration. Please feel free to comment. If you don't blog yourself or have a gmail account, just click on "Name/URL" and type your name in the box (don't worry about the optional one). Write your comment and hit "Publish your comment". (You may be asked to type in something you see in a box just to verify you're a real person and not a computer program). Hope this helps.
Looking forward to hearing from you and making this a place you want to come to. Thanks again for coming. It was wonderful.
Trina, if you're reading this, you won the gift bag from Tiber River (here's there blog). Why don't you come out to the studio sometime soon, see your beautiful photos and pick up your prize?!
It was surprising to me to hear that I could be thought of as "amazing" for doing all that I do and writing here. We often focus on what we're struggling with as moms juggling so many things, that we forget what we are accomplishing and that we can only expect so much of ourselves, and to just accept where we're at.
That first year of baby's life is so all-consuming, I think we forget the magnitude of what it takes to mother a newborn: the sleep loss, the endless giving of ourselves, the incredible chaos of adhering to someone else's "schedule" on a continual basis, the lack of self-care and personal time and even just the ability to be alone with your thoughts that are apt to occur, the hormones and post-partum depression that are often not even taken into consideration when we're passing judgment on ourselves, the isolation that can happen...it all takes its toll on a woman. We've got to recognize this and be gracious to ourselves. And it's not only the first year. I've heard women say it took three years to really come back to themselves...and when you continue the cycle by having your next child before that, it can be six or more years before that "normalcy" returns. In the meantime, it's important to accept the "new normal" and work within our limitations.
I look forward to your feedback on how to make this a place of support, community, and inspiration. Please feel free to comment. If you don't blog yourself or have a gmail account, just click on "Name/URL" and type your name in the box (don't worry about the optional one). Write your comment and hit "Publish your comment". (You may be asked to type in something you see in a box just to verify you're a real person and not a computer program). Hope this helps.
Looking forward to hearing from you and making this a place you want to come to. Thanks again for coming. It was wonderful.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)