Gratitude 4,5 and 6

I forgot to post for night four.  I couldn't get onto the blog last night and I am just missing Sunday by one minute.  Here we go!

 I will just make a list tonight because there is so much to feel gratitude toward.

The biggest one is my health and the second is community.  We spent the evening at a fundraiser for a friend and her family.  She was diagnosed with 4th stage lung cancer almost two years ago and the strength I have seen the whole family exhibit makes my heart grow.  And the outpouring of support tonight for this fabulous family makes me feel so good inside.

Although my friend's time here with us will be shorter than most of us thought she is living her life bigger and deeper than most.  Maybe that's cliche but I think it's true.  It probably is more often than we realize.  And who knows how much time we really have?  Does this mean I will be more thoughtful of my own time?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Maybe it's just the extra care for a moment that makes a difference.  

I am grateful for friends.  I am grateful for my body.  

Gratitude 3

I am thankful for my husband.

Gratitude 2

I have a few details from my friend about gratitude365 and it's an Apple app.  I could track it down, but I'm going to continue with my version.

I have gratitude about the fact that there are people who understand the way I think.  And that I have a clothes washing machine.

The sun felt warm on my skin today.  I enjoyed it knowing tomorrow will be cool and windy.

Gratitude 1

Sometimes I find motivation to do a "thing" for a few minutes, a day, a few times a month or even just once.  A Facebook friend just posted that they have 100 things they're grateful for in the past 25 days along with the title "Gratitude365." I don't have details but thought I would give it a go.

No judging.

Tonight I feel gratitude for Carol Burnett and all the laughter she and Tim Conway have brought to me.

If I look back through my day (recognizing gratitude was not on my radar until about 10 minutes ago) I am relishing a nice long cuddle from Miss Indi, making Ella laugh when she really wanted to be ornery, and a couple of earned merit badges.

Recent books I've read

I am behind in recording my readings and pictures. I was returning a couple of books to the library yesterday and realized I need to do a better job of documenting. I started this blog as a way to keep track of what I'm reading. Over the years I had tried to keep track with lists on paper, paper in notebooks, documents on the computer and others that obviously didn't work because I can't remember. I even asked the library if they could keep track in their computer system and was told it's illegal. What? Apparently the government would know too much about us if the library kept track of the books we've read. I sense a conspiracy theory somewhere.

Well, I wrapped up two books the other day and was once again pleasantly surprised by non-fiction. One is called "Mennonite in a Little Black Dress" by Rhoda Janzen. I was laughing out loud at her sense of humor and thoroughly enjoying her perspective on religion.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6365221-mennonite-in-a-little-black-dress


The other book is fiction and I believe translated. It is called "The Keeper of Lost Causes" by Jussi Adler Olsen. It's a thriller and reminded me of the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo series without the sex and violence. Interesting story, crotchety main character you can't help but like. Murder mystery really, without the cheesy one liners like Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie (y or ie here?)I should probably give them both a chance too!

I did read the three Stieg Larsson books a month two ago. The first one was SO hard to get into but I stuck it out and it was good.  Tough to put down. Yes, there is a lot of violence, but not as much as in some. Not for kids, that's for sure. That's enough for now.

Pictures of cute kids coming soon.

Feel free to share any books you're reading and what you think about them.

Toddler as a Teacher

Things I've learned this week from a toddler who is almost 3 years old.

1.  You shouldn't drink water from the bathtub.  That's silly.  Only camels drink water from a bathtub.

2.  Puppies don't wipe their bottom when they go potty because they don't have hands.  Only paws.  And people don't have paws.  (And...puppies go potty outside.)

3.  Chocolate is good.

4.  After singing for an audience you should bow and say "Thank you."

A funny thing said today

Indigo told me today "Hey!  Someone wrote on these pants!" as we were returning home after running some errands.  I asked Indi who wrote on her pants and she replied "Must have been Ella.  No.  It was me!"

 I had to laugh because that someone was her, a few weeks ago. A couple different attempts to remove dry erase marker did not work so I just let it slide.

Funny that it took so long for her to notice the marks.  Silly little girl.