When you've been stuck at home with two sick kids for. . .oh, I don't know . . . 97 hours and 4 minutes, it is possible to lose sight of the good things in life. The mountains of toxic laundry, the sights and sounds of small children experiencing intestinal distress, and the sinking realization that the health department is going to shut the place down (they've already been here to paint the big black "X" over the door)--all of these things could be considered distractions in my usual quest to stop and smell the roses. Today I found a blog that I really love--funny mama with great perspectives and a sarcastic eloquence that I truly appreciate. She has started including a blog post once a week where she lists 10 things she is grateful for. So, I'm swiping her idea right off her blog, except I'm going to start with 5 things. Hey, don't forget about the sick kid distractions, ok? I'll work up to 10 in time.
Here's my first installment of my 'Gratitude Adjustment' (for the record, that's my own catchy title, I didn't steal that!). This week I'm grateful for:
1. Comfy pants. Right now I'm wearing a pair of Sweet Juliet Boutique brand yoga pants which I found at Marshalls for $12.99. They are like a total lower body snuggly hug. I wish I could wear them every day, and there have been weeks when I've come close.
2. My breadmaker. I've been enjoying the delicious smell of a fresh hot loaf of wheat bread with zucchini for the past hour while it has been baking. My whole family goes ga-ga over the bread. We take no prisoners and show no mercy--the 2 pound loaf will be reduced to crumbs by the end of the night.
3. Dave working at home. He is even beginning to pick up on the giant loud sigh I leave just outside of his office door on particularly tough days. It is not always easy to have him so close but yet so far away in his little 'man cave' off of the kitchen, but the pros far outweigh the cons.
4. The library. Books cost a lot of money, and I wouldn't be able to feed my addiction if it weren't for the good old public library. I usually have no less than 4 books on my nightstand, all of which I am reading at the same time. Well, not technically at the exact same time, but you know what I mean. I typically have one fiction, one non-fiction related to China and/or adoption, one quirky book recommended by a friend, and then usually one that I haven't quite fallen in love with but am not ready to pull the trigger on. Right now my stack includes: "Falling Leaves: the memoir of an unwanted Chinese daughter" by Adeline Yen Mah; "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder; "The Tao of Willie Nelson" by Willie Nelson, of course; and "Elvis, Jesus & Coca-Cola" by Kinky Friedman.
5. Express shipping. It was the method by which we received our Letter Seeking Confirmation from China last week, and after signing it and checking the little box that said, "We accept the referral of this child", express shipping is the way it has been sent back to the powers-that-be so that we can go bring our little girl home soon. I can't imagine if we had to wait for our paperwork to go on a slow boat . . .Oh, and express shipping has also saved my backside many times when family members have waited until mid-December to provide wish lists for Christmas. (Hint, hint).
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