Gratitude for the Everyday

Being that I am not a huge fan of Mondays, unless they happen to be a holiday, I have decided to start keeping a gratitude post each week so as to ward off any “cases of the Mondays”(thank you “Office Space”).   I am also a firm believer in showing appreciation for what you are given whether it be large or small.  And I hope that A.J. and I are teaching our children to be thankful little beings because our life is good and we do have so much to be thankful for.

Our morning started out much the way they always do, rushing to get the kids ready and out the door.  Luckily there is a brief period of time between when Josie and A.J. leave the house and when I need to drag the youngest two boys along to drop Jimmy at preschool.  Today the sun was shining and one of my favorite things about our “cozy” little house is that our living room has huge windows in it along one wall and the sun pours in during the first part of the day.  Alright, starting off our day on a positive note- this along with my huge mug of coffee equals perfection(albeit brief perfection). Sawyer and Jimmy are fired up today, they bound to the basement to play for a bit which gives me the chance to share a few glorious minutes in peace just chilling out holding Baby Bart, hugging my little man to me.  Never mind that during that exact five minutes of bonding with the baby, Jimmy and Sawyer were hurling the set of wooden blocks all over the basement- no screaming means no injuries. 

The rest of our day was pretty much the same- just a regular Monday interspersed with all the little glimpses of happiness which I am so grateful for.  Sawyer is our little “beefcake”, all pudgy and still a bit clumsy on his legs(picture a baby Tommy Boy).  He will taunt you with a smile as he performs even the most evil of deeds.  As I tried to get a quick shower in, Sawyer poked his little arms into the stream of water and then proceeded to take his wet hands and “wash” the baby’s feet as Bart sat in his bouncy seat.  Not a big deal except that the baby had footy pjs on.  However, this did keep him occupied while I showered so it was well worth having to change the baby to dry clothes afterwards.

I had about twenty different conversations with my mom and sisters because inevitably there are interruptions and because they are the people I go to when I read bizarre stories on msnbc.com and absolutely have to share them with someone.  A.J. would tell you that we call each other just to let the others know we are still breathing.  I know that deep down he gets it, that these are the ones who keep his wife sane because they get me and the chaos that is my life.

 There is Jimmy’s quirky sense of humor.  He kept playing a video over and over again which he and his cousins had made last week on one of the kids’ iPods.  The video is only about 15 or 20 seconds long of Jimmy shaking his butt to the camera, clad in nothing but his superhero boxer briefs.  Yes, I do realize this is the second time I have talked about “butt videos” on my blog…But my kids remind me that it is the simple things in life that matter and that it feels good to sit back and stop for a moment and laugh at a stupid butt video.  Later in the afternoon while Sawyer was taking his nap, Jimmy laid down next to the baby who was on his play mat on our living room floor.  Poor Baby Bart was greased up with Aquafor all over his chubby little cheeks and head.  I watched from the kitchen as Jimmy styled Bart’s hair in an Alfalfa do.  Jimmy beamed his silly little grin when he was done so proud of his work.

Josie even graced me with the pleasure of conversation about her school day after we picked her up- you know, actual details instead of “I can’t remember”s or “I forget”s.  The ride home included our usual sing along to one of her teeny bopper CDs.  I know that on some level they may be too old for her, but on another level, I am thankful for this cheesy common ground that I have with my daughter who is never so happy as when she is singing along to these songs. And seriously these are tween Disney and Nick soundtracks. 

The witching hours(5-7PM) were very trying today, but I am lucky to have a husband who reads what kind of day it has been on my face and goes into class clown mode to lighten me up.  This evening’s routine included playing some Will Ferrell you tube videos and telling Jimmy that I was never coming back when I took a breather to walk outside to get the mail.  I came back in and Jimmy was very concerned about “where” I was going. 

As the evening wound down, I even got in a quick phone call with my brother Joe about some architecture questions I had in reference to our “someday” addition.  He surprised me with a simple answer to something that had been stumping me…even if he did slip into his professor mode while explaining it.  Joe- you know I love you and am excited that you are going to help us design this addition.  Now to win the lottery or sell one of the children to finance it!

Now I am sitting here on the couch typing away with a sleeping baby on a boppy pillow on my lap and a gassy dog lying next to me- it doesn’t get much better than this!