Tag Archives: repatriation

Getting Things Done

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Do you ever feel like you don’t get anything done? Today I got a lot done, except the number one thing that was on my list.

I call that procrastination. If I really wanted to do the most important task I set out to do, I would have done it first. But because I knew I didn’t really have to have it done today, I filled my day with several other important things and just told myself I didn’t have time. I think I chose to not make the time. So I’ll try again tomorrow and Wednesday. After yoga. And laundry. And….

Do you do that too? I tend to procrastinate until I feel pressure, and then I cram it all in at the last minute. I antagonize myself thinking about what I should do, and then I don’t do what I should but I do everything else instead and make myself crazy thinking about it. But my house gets really clean!! The act of doing feels like it is so much greater than dreaming and pretending sometimes, and when I actually get around to doing, I always wonder why I do that to myself. Silly.

Of all the things that did get done today, I’m most proud of the family dinner I prepared and served in our new collection of Polish pottery dishes, and cleaned up afterwards too. I love cooking and having a shared family dinner. This morning, Christian came up with a menu for the week that had me try something new. He wanted me to make mango chutney to go with roasted chicken and roasted Brussels sprouts and bread. What a gourmet eater! He first got the idea for mango chutney with roasted chicken from Gail, in the Netherlands. Thank you Gail for inspiring us tonight. We miss you! He would have liked to help prepare the dinner, but he had too much homework to do after his sport practice. Everyone loved it. Life is good!

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Beautiful San Francisco

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20130929-221244.jpgCrissy Field and the Golden Gate

Do you have a favorite place or two?

One of mine is San Francisco.

20130929-221345.jpgView of Alcatraz, above Crissy Field

I’m always in awe of its majesty and love the vibe and feel of just being there.

20130929-221724.jpgAbove Ocean Beach

Today we met up with Apryl and her kids for a quick visit before they had to return to L.A.

It doesn’t really matter what we do when we’re together. We just enjoy hanging out and seeing our kids together too. Do you have a friend like that?

20130929-221857.jpgConcert in GG park

20130929-222014.jpgCarousel building in the park

Life is good, living it up in beautiful San Francisco.

20130929-222113.jpgBeautiful simplicity

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Thanks for the visit, my friend!

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Being Silly

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Target had the best wigs for Halloween! Juliana and I had so much fun laughing at ourselves and being silly.

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No makeup, and just being crazy!

Jeff and I also had fun at Russ’ 50th birthday party tonight with friends from our neighborhood, enjoying drinks and appetizers and singing karaoke, while also watching the Stanford football game on TV. How’s that for multitasking?

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Life is good! Hope you are enjoying your end of the week.

Top Five of the Day

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How was your day honey?

My day was full and wonderful, thank you for asking!

What were the top five things you experienced today that made you smile?

Mine all have to do with girlfriends, exercise, family and being outside.

1. Hiking at Rancho today with Michele and Susanne. I love this 7 mile loop we do, in the sunshine for 90 minutes. The time goes by so quickly when you’re chatting and moving.
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2. Surprising Sydney with McDonald’s and sharing one of my favorite memories from childhood with her. Whenever I was sick from school which was hardly ever, my mom would bring me McDonald’s. it always made me feel better. Loved hanging out with her mom too! I love spontaneity.

3. Spending one on one time with each of my kids today. It’s amazing how much they share and open up, especially when we are in the car ad we’re alone together. They are the best kids with all their quirks and all. I love how each of their personalities and opinions are forming. They all make me laugh in their own ways and teach me so much.

4. Catching up with Stacey for a half hour over the phone while she was watching hockey practice in Texas and I was sitting in the car at soccer practice in California. Still connected after all these years.

5. Organizing dates for the boys and the girls on a school night. I love shaking things up every now and then. The boys watched football and ate pizza with Steve and friends, and Juliana and I strolled around Santana Row and had Pinkberry yogurt together outside under an oak tree that kept dropping acorns and making us laugh!

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Life is good. Where did you see beauty or find joy?

Pushing the Limits

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I think we pushed Charlie’s limits today and hopefully he’ll still want to ride with me again tomorrow but we’ll see! We may have crossed the not-cool line.
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Jeff wanted to go to the school drop off with us this morning, but Charlie and I had planned to take the bakfiets, or the basket bike. We decided to test the limits of the bike. I jumped in the basket with Charlie and his backpack and Jeff drove the Tuk-Tuk with passengers to school! Poor Charlie!! I don’t think I’ll do that to him again…but we did have a good laugh.

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You’re a good sport, Charlie!! Thanks for the laugh today. xo

Enjoying the Moment

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When we moved back, we decided that on Sundays we wouldn’t make any plans and that we would use this day to rest and to be together and present and to just enjoy whatever came our way.

Of course, things don’t go as planned and I’m ok with that. It’s great to have a plan and then expect it to change. I’d still like to keep this as our plan, but I’m ok when things come up and we decide as a family to go with the flow. Like today.

Jeff had a social work function come up that brought families together and we decided to attend, as a family. Best decision of the day. CJ had to stay back as he’s still recovering from his mouth surgery. But the rest of us went together and had the best time. Thank you to Bonnie for planning, and inviting all of us to your house and giving us the opportunity to enjoy each others’ company. I loved watching the kids play while the adults socialized and enjoyed delicious food and conversation. The highlight of the day was listening to Hyle’s children play the guitar and sing. They were so good!! I love hearing people play the guitar. It’s my favorite instrument. I loved watching and listening to two young teenagers playing together without fear and with confidence and passion. I was so inspired and thankful that they chose to share their talents with us.

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They were awesome and I loved hearing their story.

I also loved being near the water and seeing a swan, bringing back good memories from Holland.

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How did you spend your Sunday? I hope you took time to relax and refuel and to enjoy those you love.  Have a good week, my friends!

Rainy Day

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CJ had his wisdom teeth out yesterday so today was a day to rest and just hang out. He loved having ice cream for breakfast and every meal in between, watching movies and hanging out on the couch. I think he could get used to this habit!! He has swollen cheeks but otherwise felt pretty good. I made him warm chicken noodle soup with the noodles cut into tiny pieces and made sure he took his antibiotics throughout the day. I actually enjoyed staying home in my pajamas and having a quiet rainy day. It actually was pouring rain today, welcoming fall with a down pour.

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Jeff took Charlie to his soggy soccer game, and went to the second half of the Stanford football game with Juliana once the sun came out again. I worked on organizing my photos from last year and looking out for my patient.

I enjoyed the slow pace, at least for a day! How was your day?

20130921-223852.jpgBeautiful skies after the rain.

So What?

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This is another one of my mantras. You might not like it. But if you think about it for a minute, it might make sense.

Life happens. It just keeps coming. Lots of times we react to It, whatever It may be.

Sometimes drama pops up and we are filled with emotions trying to make sense of life event A or life event B. Can you tell I’ve been helping with math homework?

Sometimes we are angry or sad or crazy because of something that happened to us, or our kids, or our well being is just shaken. Sometimes it’s something serious, really serious, and sometimes it just feels serious. And we react. And sometimes keep reacting in a negative way.

My response is… yep, you guessed it…. So what?

So what, really? Really, does it make a difference how you feel? The event just happened. Usually you can’t change it. Sometimes you can and then it makes sense to think of what you can do differently. But most times you just have to say “So what?” Deal with it. Cope with it. Make amends and accept what is as fast as you can so you can go on living and accepting and enjoying the present moment whatever that may be. Accept your new normal and adapt. The longer we feed the drama, the less time we have for joy in the present we might experience.

When Charlie almost died, I had to say so what. What could I do? There wasn’t much I could do to help him and it was out of my control. I had to let go, and let the doctors work their magic and pray to God that His Will would be done. Don’t get me wrong… I tried my best and worked so hard and was at the hospital day and night, and did everything possible to care for him and my family as we went through our personal hell. But when I let go, and stopped trying to find the answers and surrendered to the process and the journey, I found peace. I found grace. I found joy despite the fear and sadness and worry.

And I’ve never wanted to let go of this feeling. I’ve used this strength to help guide me through life and not to react as strongly as I normally would and I’ve practiced saying so what when things didn’t go as planned. And geez, things usually don’t go as planned, do they? So what. I’m going to live the best life possible and so are you. Right?

Really, I think it works for just about any situation. My dad always says, “In 5 years, are you going to remember this moment.” Or, “In 10 years, will it really matter that event A happened?” This is just another way of saying “So what?” Really. Just acknowledge and accept what comes your way and adapt and change and move on. Keep moving forward and finding your happy place. Sometimes it takes a bit longer, of course, but we need to find peace in life. And I think peace comes more quickly when we let go of trying to control what we’ve been handed and just say “So what” or whatever other expression helps you to let go and move on. And please, don’t think for one minute I’m saying that whatever has happened to you isn’t tragic, or scary or sad or miserable or painful or any other negative feeling that you’re experiencing. That is real. It’s just our reaction to the pain is what we can control.

I wish you peace and grace and love. So what?

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Let there be light… It’s a full moon tonight.