Thankful

With Thanksgiving upon us, it is the perfect time to mention just a few of the things I am thankful for againn this year. I reviewed my list from last year and there are striking similarities:

1. My family. I adore them. I would do anything for them. I know that they would do anything for me in return. We have fun together, make time to be together and I appreciate them. I cannot imagine my life without my family. They are a constant presence in my life. This includes my husband, daughter, mom, brother, grandma, cousins, aunts, incles, and inlaws. I am proud to raise my daughter in a family with so much love.

2. My health. After a couple stress fractures earlier this year that kept me couch bound for several weeks and then an injured finger (I am extremely klutzy), I appreciate more than ever the ability I have to exercise. I try to remind myself of this on days I struggle to peel myself out of bed to meet my running partner or come up with a bazillion other excuses not to work out.

3. My friends. I feel blessed to have the lifelong friends I have. After going through a hurtful honesty session (me being told we were never friends to begin with) with people I cared deeply for, I appreciate those friends that were there to pick me up, let me cry, stopped by my house just for a hug, and remind me what I always preach- focus on the good; not the bad because there is a lot more good than bad.

4. My job. I realize how blessed I am to have a job in an economy that is harder than ever to find one. It's a bonus that I like it most days. It provides me with the sense of providing for my family that I so desperately feel is important. And although my job as a Mom doesn't pay much in monetary ways, it is the most challenging and rewarding job I'll ever have. And I am thankful for my role as a Mom too. My little girl continues to amaze me and make my heart swell with love. Nothing prepared me for how much I would love my child. She blesses my life in so many ways. I am thankful she is a happy, healthy and loving child.

5. That my house does not have mice.  Honestly, this time of year was brutal when we lived in the country as we had a mice problem. I had nightmares for months, even after we moved. I love my house because it is comfortable, but I also love that it does not have mice.

6. My daughter. As I mentioned above, she is my world and I am grateful for her being in my life. She came to us at just the right time and was blessing right from the start.

7. My husband. He is truly a good person and sometimes I feel I don't deserve him. He puts up with my crazy ideas and lets me be me. I should have put him higher on the list, but it is in NO particular order. He is the best father I could have chosen and our life together is fun, adventurous and we enjoy being together. I look forward to coming home to him each day.

8. My education. I love to learn and read and grow. I am thankful for my education and after encouraging a young woman not to give up on her goals of a college degree as I believe education is the one thing no one can ever take from you, I appreciate now more than ever my own education. I love to see my little girl learn and grow as well and hope to be a role model for her.

9. I am thankful for each day. Each day is a gift and there have been far too many reminders lately that you never know what each day brings so we must make the most of them. And I do. I know what is important and take time each day to thank God for the blessings He has provided. Even in the darkest of days, I have been able to find something to be thankful for.  My heart aches for those that are so unhappy they are missing out on the daily blessings they have.

~Angela

Homemade Laundry Soap

This is easy and so inexpensive. All of the ingredients cost less than $6 and I have enough to do 200+ loads of laundry. It smells so good too!!

Ingredients can all be found at Walmart or Target. Our local Hardware store even carries all the ingredients:

2 C finely grated Fels Naptha soap
1 C Washing Soda
1 C Borax

Mix well. Use 2 tbsp per full load of laundry.

I store my laundry soap in this trash can, sitting out near my washing machine.

 

 

*I have a High Efficiency Washing Machine and this works great.

~Angela

 

"Things May Not Go As Planned, but Always End Up As They Should"

 

Our wedding anniversary happened to fall on Veteran’s Day which meant I had the day off from work yesterday. I had planned on sleeping in and wrapping Christmas gifts, sending my little girl to school for part of the day,  before picking her up for some Mommy/Daughter adventures. She wasn't feeling well so we laid low at home instead. It worked out that I had the day off. The morning was so stressful I wished I was at work (we were both overtired from being up a lot the night before and she was sick), but I really enjoyed cuddling in the afternoon with my bundle by the Christmas treeJ 

At night, my husband and I attempted to partake in our usual anniversary traditions: I put on my wedding dress to dance to our wedding song, watch our wedding video, and enjoy some quite time at home. As it happens sometimes, life had other plans- in addition to a sick little girl, my husband spent the night trying to fix our dishwasher and hand washing dishes. Then we had a very curious toddler who kept coming out of her bed to see what we were up to (I knew sooner or later she would figure out she could get out of big girl bed on her own!)

 

My little girl, on her multiple trips out of her room :

“Mom, I like your dress. It is very white.” (referring to my wedding dress) 

“What are you doing?”

“I’m just getting socks.”

“I am turning my tree off.”  (referring to the Christmas tree in her room)

“Hi.”

“I think we should wash my blanket.”  (not needed; I just washed it before bed)

“Cover me up.”

“I want to rock a bye.”

“I need my fan on.”

“I love you, Momma.”

“Hi Daddy.”

She cracks me up…and tests my patience, often at the same time! But I love her to pieces, my independent little one. And I love being her mom. And I love my husband for assisting in this dream of being a mom.

The whole day did not go as planned, but it was fun in its own right. J We laughed about it and appreciated the humor of it, and the fact that although things do not always go as planned, that is life and we still appreciate each other, our family and our little girl. Our family and our life is so different than the day we were married, seven years ago, but I would not change a thing.

 

We are truly living our happily ever after...

 

~Angela

Sunset

A favorite time of day for me, second only to the sunrise, (which I am much less likely to see since I am not a morning person), is sunset. I love to soak in the beauty as the day draws to a close, reflect on the day and enjoy the solitude as I watch the sky change colors and fade to black. My husband and daughter have the same appreciation for this time of day and we try to enjoy sunsets when we can.

We spent the weekend along the shore of my favorite lake and took in a breathtaking sunset.

 We stayed beyond the lightness of the day and appreciated the lake at night as well. The peacefulness creeps in as people move towards the indoors and gravitate towards warmer, cozier places.

rock hunting by the light of the moon

~Angela

Tree of Thanks (No sewing required!)

I saw this in the Pottery Barn catalog and although I loved it, I did not love the $69 price. After I found a coupon code and decided to order it, it was out of stock!  So I decided that I could make it myself. I started this project before Thanksgiving last year but it was slow going! It was not finished in time for Thanksgiving last year so this is the first year we will use it (the beginning of a new tradition!!!!)

 

All said and done, the time involved and the money I have into the material, it would have been well worth the money to buy it from Pottery Barn, but I LOVE that it is homemade! And my mom cut out all of the leaves and numbers out for me, which was a huge help! I appreciate her help and I love the fact that this was a joint family project.

 

If you want to make your own, I did not make a tutorial, but it is all made of felt. I printed off shapes for leaves, numbers and letters online for a pattern and drew by hand the tree, then cut everything out (with much help from my dear mom, of course!) and glued it all together with felt glue. There was no sewing involved.  I did have to iron on a firming fabric (that is not the technical term, but the Sales Associate a JoAnn Fabrics, knew what I was talking about) to the back so it would support itself when pinned to the wall in only two spots and no fold over.

I printed off a sheet of paper that says "I am Thankful For:"

and cut them out
 



Then we wrote down what we are thankful for.

 

As you can see, my little girl is thankful for kangaroos.



Here is a close up of the kangaroo

Then tuck the thankful cards into each number that represents the day of the month.

 

Then enjoy looking at this beautiful fall tree, being reminded of all we have to be thankful for:)

~Angela