30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 24

Interestingly enough, today's post is about 

G R A T I T U D E

I stewed and stewed over photo ideas for this prompt
and I came up with some really elaborate ideas,
but because I'm also grateful for simplicity,
I opted to cheat and have this be a no photo post ...

Another reason why I thought I could get away
with posting no photos is that this blog is where I share
pretty much all of my photos, so you see them anyway!!

 Anyway ... back to gratitude ...
It's true that my life is not without it's challenges,
but I am truly grateful for all that I have been blessed with!
I have the best husband and Rascal in the world,
I have truly loving and wonderful familes and friends
and all in all, my life is pretty good right now! 
     

A Glimpse Into Our Thanksgiving ... 2012

We attempted our first real Thanksgiving Dinner this year -

the turkey, the taters, the sides ... we did it all ...

and I dare say it was a success!!

 Both Nate & Tom experienced their first pie making this year

and they were delish! Nate made apple pie - homemade crust and everything,

and Tom made a tasty banana cream pie!

We relaxed through the afternoon and then taught Tom our

traditional Thanksgiving game of Hand & Foot!

We also went for a drive down town:

This morning before Nate headed off to work and Tom left to go back home

we went to the 6th Street Coffee and Deli for some yummy breakfast -

We had a wonderful day and we are so glad that Tom could come

down and spend Thanksgiving with us!

We feel so blessed and we have so much to be grateful for!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Days 22 & 23

So today I'm totally basking in my post-Thanksgiving

day of rest! I finally have a substantial amount of time off of work,

we have had our wonderful meal and we had a great time with Tom,

and we got to sleep in this morning (which means Nate is closing tonight).

I'm currently wrapped in a blanket with a chai at arms length,

a Rascal snuggling by my side, and my special FRIENDS Thanksgiving

DVD (thanks DUTSONS) in the Blue Ray Player!

I thought about pulling out the Christmas Decorations,

but I've still got two more days of this weekend to fill, 

so I'm just relaxing, taking care of my achy feet!!

On Nate's next day off, we are getting our Christmas Tree

and watching 'ELF' to kick off the new season!!

(By the way, Grants Pass has some AWESOME Christmas

Decor - I'll post more about that another day!! ;)

Anyway, I'm combining yesterday's and today's prompts because

they kind of go hand and hand ...

Clothing AND Your Closet

In a previous gratitude post, I mentioned that our new place

is much bigger than our old place - and that includes our closet,

which holds all of our clothes,

plus some blankets, plus some journals,

plus some other things ... it's amazing how much room we have in there!

It is getting chilly here, so I have been extremely

grateful for my sweaters, sweatshirts, long sleeve tee's and jackets ...

and I'm definitely grateful for all of the closet space in which to store

these snuggly clothes!!

The Art of Giving Thanks For Ourselves

 

Today is the big day!

It is weird for us to be so far away from the family that

we usually spend Thanksgiving with,

but we still have much to be grateful for!

Through my teenage years, I picked up a habit of collecting

thoughts and quotes and papers that were inspirational -

(although I really think that this habit is genetic - thanks ma!)

I've been cleaning and organizing all of my papers since our move

and earlier this month, I stumbled upon this little thought -

It was a good reminder for me, so I thought I'd share it with you, too!

Enjoy!

'At this Thanksgiving season it would be good for you and me

to sit down in a quite spot and give thanks for our selves.

Our selves are our most precious possessions. Your self is you.

It is the center of your being, your open door to the Infinite.

It is you, made in the image of God.

Through your self you live and move and have your being.

Love begins with your self; to love others you must first love your self.

Be thankful for your capacity to grow and to serve. 

Be thankful for the riches of the spirit that are yours.

Be thankful for eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand.

Be thankful for all the beauty in the world.

Be thankful for personal peace and joy.

Your future depends upon your self,

upon realization of your potential,

upon the development of your skills and talents,

upon your dreams and your attitude toward life.

Stand tall in the glory of your unique selfhood.

Give thanks for all that you are and all that you  may become.'

- Unknown

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 21

... where you sleep ...

Our new place is gigantic compared to our last place,

and we are L U H V I N G it!

One thing, however, that we have yet to do,

is get our bedroom set up and decorated the way we want it!

Someday we'll have money to purchase our dream bed

and to make our bedroom fancy - 

but for now, what you see is what we've got - laundry and all!

I considered changing today's topic, 

but then I realized that even though my bedroom isn't fancy,

it is still a part of my every day life, and really,

as long as I've got Nate and a comfy blanket, 

my bedroom is perfect the way it is

(you know, until we make it Perfect ;)

I am grateful for the happiness and the joy

that is found amidst the un-fancy bedroom

and the daydreaming of the perfect bed!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 20

And today's prompt:

S E A S O N A L!!

Luckily, I grew up with a mother who LOVED

to decorate for every Holiday and season,

and I picked up that habit

(although her decorations put mine to shame ;)

There is something so wonderful about pulling out 

all of my decorations and decorating around the house for a holiday!

I love finding the perfect place for the decorations

and reminiscing about where they have come from!

  

I am so grateful for the seasons and the holidays

that help me remember the things that are important

and for the happiness that they bring

throught the little reminders and decorations

that are about during these times!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 19

You know when you move to a new city

and then you undertake a photo challenge

that requires you to photograph people that

you are are grateful for ...

oh, and then you remember that those people

live far away from you  now!

Today's topic:

b e s t   f r i e n d (s)

(this is a picture from before we moved - call me a cheater, it's okay)

Here's the honest truth:

I miss my girlies!

I don't know how I got so blessed to have two of the best friends

in the history of friendship, but I did,

and I am so grateful for these two amazing girls!

We three have been through so much together,

and I really can't imagine my life without them!

Love you and miss you, girlies!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 18

I'll be honest, it's been a rough day today.

I think I finally had my 'I can't believe how far away I am

from my family and friends' break down today ...

It might be because Thanksgiving is this week

and it's our first Holiday away from our families

and our typical Thanksgiving traditions ...

It might be because Nate is at work for 9 hours today

without time to come home for lunch so I am literally alone all day ...

It might be because I've been trying so hard to stay positive

and enjoy everything about my new life, but today I am tired ...

For whatever reason, after Nate called me on his first break,

something inside me gave in and I had a good cry, but

I think that it was something that has needed to happen since we got here ...

I let it run it's course, and this is where today's prompt comes in:

S O M E T H I N G   N E W 

When I was going to school, Nate talked about taking up painting.

We got him all the supplies, but he only pulled them out once or twice.

When we moved, I considered throwing them out,

but they were hardly used so we brought them along with us.
When I was looking for something to do to cheer me up
I happened upon Nate's paint supplies!

I pulled them out, turned on some quiet piano music,

and let myself go...
 in a new experience of 'painting my emotions'

(I've heard of this technique used with kids, so I thought, 'why not?')

 

I have titled it: 'Falling Blue"

As cheesy as it sounds, 'painting my emotions' totally worked for me!

I stepped out of my head and just started painting -

I had no idea what I was going for, and even though it will

never be worth any money, it is priceless to me!

I am grateful for my 'something new' experience

of using paper, paint and brushes to visualize how I am feeling,

and for helping me to transfer those feelings to paper

when words weren't doing any good!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 17

No picture for today because today's topic

would require for me to post every picture that I've ever taken:

MEMORIES

Especially now that we've moved, my memories are

one of the things that I am most grateful for!

I am a very nostalgic person and my memories are often

triggered by small things -

something someone says, a song, a smell,

a movie, a shirt ...

My memories of the places that I have been

and the people that I have met

and that I love are so precious to me!

I am so grateful for the memories that I have made

and for those who have made those memories special!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 16

a n i m a l s

Seeing as how the only animal I associate with these days is Rascal,
you are lucky enough to get some more photos of her ...

she is sure a funny cat!

I am a definite fan of animals! 

I am pro pets in families because I believe that pets

teach responsibility, compassion and unconditional love -

and they truly are man's best friend!

 I am so grateful for the animals that are in my life

and the smiles they bring to my face!! 

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 15

Today's prompt posed no challenge at all ...

T e c h n o l o g y

These days, technology is my life!

I work from our laptop,

I keep in touch through my phone,

I relax with our TV ...

It's pretty pathetic, but about 70% of my day in front of a screen

(again, I work from home, so don't judge too much)!

I am grateful for technology because it allowed me to make a 

smooth transition when we made our move,

it allows me to keep in touch with my loved ones

via texting, WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and blogging ...

it helps me stay connected with the outside world

and it keeps me entertained and helps me relax!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 14

Today was a great day!

Nate had the day off,

so we vegged,

I worked,

we went for a nice long drive

and found a beautiful orange field

(I'll post more about that later)!

We had wonderful dinner and dessert,

and a nice relaxing evening.

I love days like today.

The challenge prompt for today was:

M O V E M E N T

I admit it ...

my creativity in these photos are lacking BIG TIME,

but I'm still finding my niche here in Grants Pass,

so bear with me!

As mentioned above, we went for a lovely drive today.

Also today, I exercised before I showered.

Last night, when we were cooking dinner, we danced around the kitchen.

When my floor is messy, I vacuum it up.

Long story short, I move!

My body moves,

my car moves,

my life moves -

and for that movement, the ability to change,

and adapt, and to see new things, 

I am so grateful!

I am fortunate and blessed to live the life that I have

and to be able to take advantage of the abilities that I have been given!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 13

 Written Words

I've gotta tell you,

these prompts are starting to work my creativity!

Being grateful for my life and for the things in my life

is something that I feel that I've always been good at,

but this challenge has made me see my life in a new way!

My favorite words in the world come from

Nate, the love of my life!

When we were in High school, we passed notes back and forth

like crazy! When we got married, I put all the notes in a binder

and from time to time, we pull them out and laugh at how cheesy

we were and marvel at how much we were M.F.E.O.

(you know ... made for each other!! ;)

When we started to get serious, our code for 'I Love You' was 'brat.'

We thought we were fooling people when we said goodbye

in front of them and called each other a brat

(but I'm pretty sure we weren't fooling anyone!)

Our notes, however, were full of gushy love and great big

I LOVE YOU's

in CAPS and bolded!

Our notes were honest and open and we were able to write

what we wanted to write without others hearing the message we were trying to convey!

THAT is why I am grateful for written words!

Written, not typed - there is a difference!

Written words are thought out, they cannot be back spaced or deleted,

they are they are heart felt and deliberate!

I have got a binder full of love notes from the love of my life,

I have folders full of letters from my family,

and I even have some letters left over from my high school days

from my best friends - and I am so grateful for them!

I'm grateful for the memories that they bring back to me

and for the messages that are hidden within them!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 12

The prompt for today was

h a n d s

When I think of hands, I think of people,

and when I think of people, I think of little people,

and when I think of little people, I think of little hands!

(I cheated again! I've posted this photo before, but it's

the only place that I have all of their faces together!!)

These little people, these 21 pairs of hands,

make me so, so grateful to be an auntie!!

I love these little hands because they give me hugs,

blow me kisses, send me drawings,

and give me love!

I love these kiddos so darn much

and words cannot express how grateful 

I am to have them in my life!!

30 Days of Gratitude Photo Challenge - Day 11

 Today was a lazy day ... for me ...

Nate worked ALL day,

and I snuggled up on the couch in my sweater

and leggings, with homemade mac n' cheese,

and my Rascal!  I played on the internet,

worked on some Christmas projects,

and vegged my day away! 

 It was lovely!

Today's gratitude/photo prompt is:

Something O L D

I stewed and stewed over what to photograph for my 'something old' prompt.

I considered a REALLY old book that I acquired from the law office,

a REALLY old sweatshirt that belonged to my grandma,

a photo of the scrapbooks that contain REALLY old photos of us ...

All of these things that I considered have two things in common:

1) They all contain wonderful memories

2) I am grateful for all of them

I opted to take this photo:

This is the 2nd 'patchwork' quilt that I made in my life.

The first was a denim quilt that I made for one of my Young Women's projects,

and this blanket I made for Nate as his graduation present!

There is something about old blankets and quilts that I just adore!

I love how the fabric breaks down and becomes soft,

I love that when I pull out a fresh, clean blanket I know exactly

where it came from, who made it, and what the occasion was,

I love that a blanket on the couch means snuggling with my little family,

and I love the days that are spent doing just that!

One of my assignments in my Intro to El Ed Class at USU

was to write a paper about my life experiences and how they 'lead' me

to where I am today - but the trick was that I had to come up with a metahpor.

The metaphor that I ended up using was a quilt,

and I likened all of my experiences to the squares on my quilt!

That paper was a wonderful way for me to look back over my life

and to see how my decisions have made me who I am today!

I am grateful for memories, and experiences, and quilts.