GGG – Day 30 – Love

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“Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” ― William Shakespeare

“Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.” – Corinthians 13:13

I think love is what I’m most grateful for as I wrap up this month of gratitude.

All the things I’m thankful for are wrapped in love.

I have a love for life, family, friends, God, daily living, learning, nature, and just being. I’m genuinely curious and want the best for everyone. I am thankful for the love that is shared here, among friends, in my community, and within my family. I want to always be loving and promote healthy, loving, positive connections with everyone. I think the more we love ourselves, the more love we have to give away. And with more love, we should have more peace and joy.

Do you agree?

Thank you for reading and sharing this journey together. You are loved!

29Nov2013

GGG – Day 29 – Joy

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Now that Thanksgiving is over we can move on to the next season and celebrate joy!!

I think joy comes in many forms and that you can celebrate joy even when you’re sad or mad, if you open up your heart to receive it.

Mary and Steve stopped by today and brought pecan pie to share for breakfast. Gotta love the day after Thanksgiving and a loving neighborhood!! This is the first year without Irma and there was a lot of sadness to be felt, while at the same time we laughed and shared stories and pictures and felt joy. Mary Lee stopped
In too and we all sat around the table for a little longer. Joy.

Opa brought joy to the kids by bringing them to the donut shop this morning to pick out their favorites. This is a tradition we’ve shared since I was a kid. Seeing my kids enjoy my dad and chocolate chip donuts and maple bars and cinnamon rolls made me happy.

Shellee came to visit today with her girls and new friend. Hugging her again after 3 years filled my heart, even if it was just for a short visit. We grew up together and are only 3 weeks apart. She was one of my first best friends and I’ve missed her!!

I find joy everywhere…I seek it out, do you? I find joy in little things and big things but mostly through relationships and connections and babies and nature. What fills your heart?

I found joy in leaving Thousand Oaks and admiring the rolling hills and beautiful sunset as we began our journey home.

And I’ll share one more joy before closing out Black Friday. Charlie wanted to stop in San Luis Obispo to go to Powell’s Sweet Shop and Jeff said yes! We decided to spend a couple hours in SLO town and not rush back too quickly. What a fun way to almost end the day.

Kids in a candy store!

Life is sweet and filled will joy.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, found all the sale items you were seeking if you braved the crazy Black Friday shopping hours, and are seeking out joy as we carry on into Christmas and through Hanukkah and into the New Year!

“I don’t think of all the misery, but of the beauty that still remains.” Anne Frank

28Nov2013

GGG – Day 28 – Thanksgiving

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Today is Thanksgiving in America.

Some of us started the day with a hike through beautiful Wildwood and enjoyed time together, exercise before the big dinner, and being out in nature.

Today I am thankful that my parents opened their home up for 30 of us to gather and share a meal together. Thank you for cooking the turkey and cooking so many side dishes! The meal was fabulous and your gracious hospitality was so appreciated.

I am thankful that my daughter shared her creative gifts and made personalized name tags for every guest. I loved seeing everyone’s names and thinking of each person that was gathered at the table.

I am thankful for my cousins and their families that chose to join the festivities and brought appetizers and food to share.

I am thankful that all my siblings were together.

I am thankful for the new friends and old friends that joined together to celebrate today, because that’s what friends do.

I loved watching all the cousins playing together and seeing the guys sharing stories and the women working together and socializing too.

Thank you to Lenny and Zach for playing the guitar for us. Sing alongs are always fun and bring so much energy to a group.

Our celebration brought us all together to share one day and for this, the abundant food and drink, the sweet moments and shared smiles and laughter and bonding, I am thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

27Nov2013

GGG – Day 27 – Anticipation

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Do you think this is true?

“…anticipation of happiness can sometimes be as gratifying as its consummation.” – Gaynor Arnold

I think there is a lot to be said about the process of waiting and anticipating what will come.

I was so excited and anxious about our trip to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. The anticipation of the joy we will experience together is almost just as exciting as the reality of the shared space. Does that ever happen to you?

I have been excited for the journey to Oma’s and Opa’s house all week. I bought snacks and movies for the kids to surprise them during the car ride and brought gifts for everyone.

The car ride down to Thousand Oaks
was pretty enjoyable. Stopping in San Luis Obispo was a highlight and not rushing made life easier. The kids are older now so traveling with them is a bit easier as they can entertain themselves and can mostly control the audio system in the car.

So today I am thankful for the journey of waiting and anticipating what will come. I love this holiday and it’s great to be back in the states, even though I miss my other life!

Namaste and Happy Thanksgiving!

Road trip near Carpenteria.

One of a Thousand Oaks!

Baking pies together.

Making new friends and learning together.

Life is good!

26Nov2013

GGG – Day 26 – California

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I love California.

I didn’t find any great quotes to share tonight about my lovely home state. Many people want to bash it, which I don’t understand because at the same time they find things wrong with it, they still seem to want to visit, come to school, work or live here.

I love the sunlight and the warm weather and the people and the land and the food. I love that we have mountains and lakes and snow and beaches and farmlands. I love how the different cities have their own unique feel and culture. I love the cultural diversity we have, especially in Silicon Valley. I am never bored here.

California, I love you! Thank you for being my home, sweet home.

Here is tonight’s art show.

What is your favorite place? What do you love about your home town?

25Nov2013

GGG – Day 25 – My Husband

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“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.” – Audrey Hepburn

Gratitude Gift Giving – Day 25

Today and everyday I am thankful for my husband. I don’t know why it’s hard for me to write and share this, but I think it’s because I want to protect his privacy.

So without being all mushy and cheesy, I’ll just share that I’m thankful that he loves me and supports me unconditionally. He allows me to be who I am and gives me my independence and freedom to discover who I want to become, even when I’m crazy or come up with crazy ideas. He encourages, appreciates, and provides for me and for this and a 1001 other reasons I am thankful. Thank you for loving me and our kids and sharing this wild ride together. I love you!

24Nov2013

GGG – Day 24 – Family

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“Life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful.” ― Annette Funicello

Gratitude Gift Giving Day 24 – I’m almost done with my daily awareness of what I’m thankful for, not that I’ll ever be done, but I’m looking forward to sharing more stories on daily living besides my gratitude challenge this month.

Today I’m thinking of my crazy family.

My philosophy is to live it up, and love it out. I also believe that we are all perfectly imperfect. It’s ok to make mistakes, especially when we are trying and doing great things, like being kids and parenting.

This was one of the highlights of my simple day. Two of my kids came to join me to sit and chat and share stories while I was working on my Christmas strategy. This was one of the gifts I received from not being busy. I had time to sit and snuggle and I am thankful for that.

I love that the little one sat on the couch with me this morning and we shared a blanket and ottoman and had our legs intertwined, as he finished his book and I read the Sunday paper, while drinking my cup of coffee.

I’m thankful that Jeff makes my coffee every day and that we have time together before things get busy, as they normally do.

I love the little things that my family gives and shares with me, despite all the daily struggles of parenting 3 big kids with big voices and opinions. I choose to share the highlights despite the daily tribulations that we face and learn how to navigate as we go through the journey of living together. No life is perfect. We all have our challenges and I choose not to judge and to do my best, despite the chaos that life presents while we’re living it up and loving it out. And if I fail today, tomorrow is less than 24 hours away to begin again and start fresh.

I am grateful for my wonderful crazy, loving, smart and funny family. Life is good.

What do you love about your family?

23Nov2013

GGG – Day 23 – Children

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“The soul is healed by being with children.” – English Proverb

I love kids. All of them. I’m not even kidding. Children make me truly happy. I love seeing them, watching them play, hearing what they have to say and knowing how they think. I especially love it when they are giggling and laughing. I just love being with them and I think it’s because they are so real and have no filters. They laugh and love unconditionally and play and learn quickly. I want to be just like them when I grow up. The children are my role models.

Today I loved tailgating at Stanford with our friends and watching Juliana and S sharing a moment together before the game.

Another great moment today was when S came to sit next to me and put her head on my shoulder when she was tired. We just sat together for a quiet moment to relax. I loved that.

Today I am thankful for children, especially my own who teach me life’s lessons everyday. I’m still learning! I love you.

23Nov2013

GGG – Day 22 – Waiting

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“Patience, he thought. So much of this was patience – waiting, and thinking and doing things right. So much of all this, so much of all living was patience and thinking.”
― Gary Paulsen, Hatchet

Gratitude Gift Giving Day 22 – Hurry Up and Wait

The less I choose to do the more patient I become. I have more time to wait and open space to fill and I am loving this feeling.

Today I sat on the little red bench in front of my house and just enjoyed sitting there for no real reason. I had laundry to fold and I was waiting for Laurie to arrive, yet I did not want to rush. Charlie was playing with his friends down the street and I enjoyed just sitting there and anticipating when he would return and when Laurie would arrive. Soon the sun started setting and warmed my face as it shone in the area where I was sitting. It felt like a gift that I wasn’t expecting and I soaked in the last few minutes of sunshine for the day before the air began to cool and I went inside. By this time Charlie had already gone inside and wondered why I was sitting there alone.

This felt peaceful to me and made me think about the times we spend waiting and anticipating what is to come next. We spend a long time waiting for this and that and usually we don’t like to wait. But what if we could be more patient? What if we could enjoy the periods of waiting? I wondered what that would feel like and actually enjoyed the wait today. At least for a little while until I got anxious. I tend to get anxious when I’m waiting but I’d like to change that. I’d like to be ok in the periods of transition and anticipation and flow into these moments too. Hmmm… There’s a thought for the day.

How do you feel when you’re waiting? What are you waiting for?

Today I’m thankful for the periods of waiting because they bring a sense of excitement and change.

It’s the 50th anniversary of JFK assassination today.

21Nov2013

GGG – Day 21 – Open Space

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Today I am thankful for gray skies and open spaces.

It’s been raining and the tennis courts are wet and my match today got cancelled. Instead, I went for a hike with Michele and S and A. It was exactly what the doctor ordered!! We hiked for 7 miles and enjoyed the conversation and views and exercise!

Life is good.I love the openness and the wild and coolness in the air.