Photo of the Day - outside

This picture was taken actually Saturday evening as we were driving to a basketball game. I will admit that the snow can help make beautiful sunsets. The world is so beautiful, God knew what he was doing when He created it all. 

Photo of the Day - on the counter

This was actually yesterday's picture, I fell asleep while the Smart One was working on the wireless. So it is a photo of something I love on my counter. I love plants and I have a Christmas cactus that seems to prefer blooming in January. I prefer it to be that way because then I have beautiful flowers to enjoy when the world is frozen outside.

I will definitely take pictures when it is in full bloom. 

Photo of the Day - Fresh

January means here come the new house projects which obviously needs the fresh ideas. Here is the project in the works:

Obviously it is just in the plan stage, and yes, I draw up on AutoCAD most of the house projects. (I draw picture layout options in AuotCAD) My sister is the one who found the idea and told me about it. Now we can do it together. I also knew my husband would want in on the action and wanted a saw for Christmas so he could help with the project. ;) It is always exciting for me to have a new project especially if I can get my paint brush out for a fresh coat of paint!

Photo of the Day - Organize

A little introduction. I am not a photographer and I am not one that thinks I take fabulous pictures or even tries to take fabulous pictures, I just enjoy taking pictures. With that said, anyone that knows me knows that January is hard for me. It is a let down from the holidays and having lived in Utah my whole life, with the exceptions of two years in Eastern Idaho, January is usually cold and depressing. This is where you can start thinking about the lines from Groundhog Day, "It's going to be cold, it's going to be wet and it is going to last you the rest of your life." Really I feel that way at times.

One of my goals this year is to be more positive but I'll blog about that later. So part of that I am going to try to take a picture each day the month and January and hopefully that will help me not hate the next 30 days. And I am not going to get frustrated or down on myself if I skip a day (ahem, like yesterday, you know, January 1st.) I am using the photo list from the Idea Room. Most days probably won't have this long of an explanation. I guess I just had to write down my reasoning to justify myself?

Today is Organize:

We've been sorting and organizing toys. It helps when you get cute blue bins for Christmas and a great deal on more bins at IKEA!

What do you want for Christmas little boy?

Every time I think of sitting on Santa's lap all I can hear in my head is the scene in "A Christmas Story." Things like, "I like the Wizard of Oz. I like the Tin Man." "Football? What's a football?" On to my story:

We went to a Christmas party with my sister and the big man was there. This is the first year the Silly One has actually wanted to sit on Santa's lap and talk to him. This was a big deal. Sometimes it is hard being a parent and really knowing what your kid wants for Christmas. It is easy when they are little and they are just excited to get a present. Last year the Silly One became obsessed with wanting a Mack truck (from the Cars movies) in early December. I just kept waiting for that to happen this year because whenever I'd ask him he would make some crazy thing up (ie: a huge Santa that would move and talk on its own, seriously sounds creepy to me). I figured this was my chance, he would tell Santa what he wanted and I would finally know. 

He first stood next to Santa and talked to him. We then convinced him to sit on his lap to get a picture with Santa and the Small One. As we walked away, I asked the Silly One what he asked Santa for. He responded, "I told him I wanted a Samurai Castle just like mine for my brother." This is what Santa brought him last year. My heart melted, my sweet boy didn't ask for anything for himself but instead something he likes for his brother. (Now true, he could be thinking that if there were two he wouldn't have to share but I'll stick with the sweet thought.) What a wonderful example to me of the true Christmas spirit, being Christlike to those around us and being truly selfless. 

More than a Holiday

Today I attended Time Out For Women with my Mom and one of my sisters. It was a nice break and there were some wonderful messages. I saw this video and I feel it explains exactly what I was feeling last night and what I have a goal to accomplish. 

"Giving thanks isn't a holiday. It's how people live."

Happy Thanksgiving!

Forced Thankfulness?

I started a blog post about a month ago after the first ER visit with the Small One but didn't like the direction it was going so I never finished it. I haven't even blogged about that kid's birthday on our family blog. It has been a hard month for us, I won't go into all the details. The quick facts: the Small One ended up with a skull fracture, the Silly One got 5 stitches in his chin after crashing on his bike and the Smart One was in the ER earlier this evening and ended up getting a gastroscope. (Hence I referenced the "first" ER visit.) After the first incident I had a huge wake up call as to how precious life really is, things are fine one moment and can be gone the next. Thankfully everyone is fine, even as I write this. The boys are healed and back to their normal (crazy and wild) selves. 

The Smart One is sleeping it off and hopefully will be back to normal tomorrow. I thought about writing a blog post about being thankful for modern medicine and the wonderful things they are able to do and discover in an instant, it is Thanksgiving in a week after all. I thought about writing how thankful I am for my wonderful little family and how each of them mean the world to me. I could go on and on about the thoughts I had about being thankful but as I was thinking I realized it is more than just being thankful. I need to live that gratitude. 

My greatest blessings, as silly as they are!

A few years ago at a large Thanksgiving dinner (my favorite way to have it) there was a particularly poignant thought on the favor that year. I liked it so much it has been stuck to my fridge ever since. It spoke of not just giving thanks but in actually living it. We shouldn't have to be forced into thankfulness as I feel I am at times. And yet here I am overwhelmed by my feelings just for 3 people, not counting the many others who impact my life for good. My goal this Thanksgiving season and moving forward is to not just be grateful and thankful for the bounteous blessings I have been given but to act on that gratitude. To show those people that mean more to me than anything how wonderful I think they are. To strive to share the blessings I have with others around me.

"Gratitude is expressed in prayer and thanksgiving, but more so in living lives of honor and integrity, of kindness and compassion, in awareness of others and their needs, and an honest expression of gratitude for all those who bless and affect our lives for good. Thanksgiving is best expressed in thanks-living -in lives of goodness and obedience and love and service."

- A. Theodore Tuttle