Grace in Small Things

1. An adorable birthday card that Ben made for me at school today.

2. The sweetest cupcake made out of flowers sent by my sister (and Pete).

3. Being able to find amusement in the irrationality of a very tired three year old (Ben: Mommy, (pointing) why is this your forehead? Me: I don't know, that's just what it's called. Ben (whining): But I don't WANT it to be called a forehead.)

4. Lots of happy greetings today from wonderful friends.

5. Coworkers who were kind enough to bring in a (yummy! oreo!) cake for me, and enough leftover to share with the kids after dinner.

You too can find Grace in Small Things.

Grace in Small Things - part 3

1. Receiving beautiful flowers at work from my husband last Friday. It made me feel so special and loved.

2. An unexpected playdate/chat with a neighbor (even in the bitter cold).

3. Kids playing happily together - even when it only lasts 5 minutes before the fighting starts. OK, sometimes ten.

4. Crossing things off of my to-do list.

5. "Mama, can I snuggle with you?"

You too can find Grace in Small Things.

Grace in Small Things

1. Relaxing to watch Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice with a glass of wine.

2. Having a (mostly) clean house.

3. Having reservations at a yummy restaurant for Valentine's Day.

4. Peanut M&Ms.

5. Playful kittens (but not at 5:20 AM).

You too can find Grace in Small Things.

Ten on Tuesday

1. I missed Best Shot Monday - again. That pesky work thing keeps getting in my way. But it has a new home now, so feel free to stop by and say hi to Tracey. The photo above is the one I would have posted.

2. My back hurts. I was doing some rearranging in the basement this afternoon. Perhaps I should have waited until Brian was home, but I wanted to surprise him.

3. On the plus side it looks great, and I think we'll like the new arrangement.

4. The weekend keeps going by too quickly. And yet when it's over, and people ask me what we did, I can't think of much to share.

5. I did do a lot of laundry. That's always fun.

6. Still have two loads to fold. Blah.

7. This morning in the car Ben and Claire were talking about Spiderman. Claire said, "he can do all of the stuff a spider does except eat bugs." Then Ben talked about how he catches bad guys in his web, too which Claire replied, "and sucks their blood." Umm, no. Are they reading vampire stories in preschool now?

8. I really enjoyed the Twilight series, but I think Claire's still too young for that.

9. Ben has his interview tomorrow at Claire's preschool.

10. He asked to be in the green room because green is his favorite color. Also, that class has a pet gecko named Harold. I think it would be a good place for him.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

Grace in Small Things

There is so much in life to be grateful for, and we so rarely say those things out loud. I'm going to take my cue from Susan over at Friday Playdate, and try to make this a regular thing around here.

1. Ben wandering around with a pair of Mr. Potatohead glasses precariously perched on his face. "Mom, I can't see you without my glasses. See? I can't see you!" *whips teeny tiny plastic glasses off of his face*

2. Claire cajoling her brother into giving her some of the artwork he made at school. "Pleeeeeeeeease? I'll invite you to my birthday! Oh thank you! This is so lovely!"

3. Working with a new group of students at school who actually want to work and are doing really well, and being sought out by a student at school who know he needs help so he doesn't fall behind in the second week of the quarter.

4. After Ben bit the head off of a dinosaur shaped chicken nugget he made it walk around his plate saying, "help! I can't see anything. Can you see me? I think I need a new head!"

5. The memories I have of my kids with Papa Jim. We will forever regret not being able to forge new memories, but the ones we already have, and the photos, will always be treasured.


You, too can find Grace in Small Things.