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The mentality of humans amazes me. We rush thru life to get “fast food,” “fast passes,” and “flash drives.” We buy computers that run faster than previous models, phones that connect to everything faster than before, etc. And in that rush to get everywhere and everything faster, not only do we miss the small things, we find ourselves standing in longer lines, waiting longer, and complaining more. Not sure how to solve this problem, but I must say I’m anxious to hurry up (ha!!!) and get to my tropical island destination and let life slow down for a while. Apparently the throng of people who stood at my gate and waited 20 minutes for boarding the plane instead of sitting in a seat and relaxing til their group number was called were anxious too. Me? I sat back and enjoyed my tall skinny carmel macchiato and fat free blueberry muffin. (Fat free and skinny to make up for all the fat I’m about to consume this trip! Ha!!)
Getting ready to board. Still sittin in my seat.

Crickets sing.
Birds chirp.
Airplanes fly.
Bats slumber.
Coyote howls fade.
Spiders weave.
Roadrunners drink.
Cat collar jingles.
Ants crawl.
Armadillos root.
Wasps buzz.
Cars hum.
Cows chew.
Dogs bark.
Clouds move.
Air is still.
Sun rises.
Shadows lengthen.
Day begins.
My morning.

Well, I guess you could say I’m finicky.  Or maybe, more like I just haven’t been satisfied with the overall look of my blog… like ever.  Sigh.  Perhaps I need to invest in the ability to customize every single detail.  Or maybe, just maybe, this new look will satisfy me for a while.  We’ll see.  Hmmm anyone want to place bets on how long it’ll stay before I switch to something else?  ha! 🙂

Yesterday was an interesting day.  FULL of heart-stoppers.  Seriously, ya’ll – it’s a wonder I lived through them all.  As if Becca actually calling me “mommy” for the first time the night before wasn’t enough (she normally says “mama”), she woke up 45 minutes late all snuggly and sweet and just laid her head on my shoulder for the longest time.  Be still my heart.

Then, we get to take Cody to lunch, and she decides to snuggle with Cody while in the line at KFC.  I mean, serious snuggles.  Again, my heart stops.  Nothing gets me like seeing my two loves together.  Snuggling.  (come on, let’s all do a collective “AWWWW”)

After her nap, though, came the REAL heart-stopper.  She’s getting good at going up AND down the stairs.  Which was our summer project after she accidentally ended up halfway up the stairs a few weeks ago after sneaking UNDER the gate … and realized she had no clue how to get down.  She was petrified.  So, she’s been doing good on stairs with lots of practice.  She even did the stairs at a friend’s house this weekend.  Except when Miss Independent takes over and she decides to do it her way.  I was sitting at the bottom of the stairs, and she was at the top.  Thankfully, we have a short set of four stairs and a landing, then a turn and the long set of stairs.  Because she decided to stand up, holding on to the railing, and then try to walk down the stairs!  The girl who has taken at most four steps alone. And before I could do or say anything, she was on the landing.  This is why we are still in practice mode and mommy always sits on the stairs when she’s on them.  The tears that ensued took about 20 agonizing seconds to hit, and I still wonder if she didn’t briefly get the wind knocked out of her.  I ran up the stairs so fast that I’m not even sure if my feet touched all the steps.  I was in a hurry.  I picked her up and did a quick check – everything LOOKED fine.  Except for the bright red face that had crocodile tears pouring down it and of course, my ears, that were temporarily deafened by the screaming that was going on.  Poor thing.  She was a mess.  But I immediately realized that I had to make her go down the rest of the stairs.  Otherwise, she might forever be petrified of them!  I had to make her get back on “the horse and ride.”  So, despite her protests, I sat her down on the landing, and slid her bottom down every single step.  She finally calmed down and did the last two on her own, until she was sitting on the wood floor.  Thankfully, George was within sight inside her room, and she immediately took off for him.

Because of the stress of the situation, all she wanted to do for the hour and a half til her daddy got home was sit in my lap (with George), play on my phone, and listen to me read EVERY SINGLE BOOK SHE OWNS.  I happily obliged.  This girl doesn’t sit still in my lap that long – ever – in the history of her life!  I’ll take all the snuggles I can get!  Be still my heart.  Snuggles!!  Twice in one day!

Then somehow when it was time for bed, we just couldn’t get the normal rhythm.  I’m not sure what was wrong, but apparently EVERYTHING was.  Tears.  And tears.  And tears.  Finally, I went to check on her again and thought maybe she needed to potty.  So, I sat her on her potty and waited.  And waited.  And waited.  While she looked through all of her magazines – TWICE.  I asked if she was all done, and she didn’t say anything, but leaned forward, like she does when she is done… So I grabbed her hands to help stand her up… and… TEARS.  Heart stops again.  Warm shower on my leg.  Sigh.  Noone told me potty training would be THIS much fun.  In the dim lighting I was unable to see the fact that she was mid-stream.  My leg, her legs, the chair, the floor, her nightgown, and the pull-up do NOT thank me for failing to turn on the light.  Bless her heart, she was petrified.  Little Miss  Neat-and-Clean-Big-Girl-Who-Potties-On-the-Potty?  Yeah, notsomuch.  Sigh.  Thankfully after that trauma, she went to sleep fairly quickly.  I guess the stress just finally wore her out!

It’s a wonder my heart made it through the day yesterday.  What a roller coaster! But, I wouldn’t change ANY of them for ANYTHING in the world.

Here’s my sweet snuggle-bug yesterday morning sporting her new-to-her Elmo p-jammers and waiting on breakfast.  I just love this girl so much it’s crazy!

I used to be one of those gaggy, hop out of bed, sing-songy type of morning people.  At some point during early 2008 between teaching, working on my Master’s degree, and planning a wedding, I think something changed.  But if it wasn’t then, it certainly has after having a baby.  I still enjoy the mornings, but it takes a little more for me to roll my lazy butt out of the bed.

Fourteen weeks ago, I took a challenge from my best friend and started an accountability group called “Hello Mornings.”  It’s all about getting up and starting your day off the right way, and before the kids.  It’s about setting goals of all types – physical, spiritual, and activity goals – sharing them with friends, and then sharing the excitement when they are met, and yet not hearing any judgement if it just doesn’t get done – because that’s what life is all about.

Not only did that challenge help me build some friendships, bring me closer to God, and help me to be far more organized in my day, it has shown me some awesome things about our home and this fabulous hill we live on.  I love watching the sun stretch out over the valley.  I love listening to the symphony of birds greeting the day, and the occasional woodpecker already hard at work.  I love hearing the yips of young coyotes as they protest bedtime.  Cows moo in the distance, and rabbits hop timidly across the lawn, in hopes that Daisy isn’t outside to chase them away.  Toodles purrs and calls out to me as she tries to figure out how to get up to the deck from the back porch, and this morning I’ve been entertained by a road runner who appears to have beaten his mate in running out of the nest – in hopes that the “early bird” truly will get the worm.  (Normally we have a pair that roam our yard – this morning he’s just a single – oh wait!  Here comes his mate!  Someday I’ll bring my camera up here and get some photos of them to share – I haven’t seen them up this early before!)

When life is stressful, when it’s hard to get out of bed, I know what waits for me up here on this deck.  And it’s just magical enough that most mornings I don’t even need a cup of coffee.  This morning?  Well, it’s Monday.  And Starbucks Breakfast Blend with some International Delights Cinnabon creamer was calling my name.  Just enough to take the edge off of a headache I harbored all night that woke me up and stole a couple hours of my sleep from me.

So when it’s hard to roll out of bed, look for the inspiration around you.  Find what things YOU have to be thankful for.  Take joy in the small things.  Whether it’s a pretty little lamp on your bedside table that makes you smile, the pleasure of a hot shower, or the smell of your favorite candle or coffee brewing.  Remember in all things to be thankful for what you have been given.  Even on Monday morning when it’s hard.  Really hard.  Play Pollyana for just a few minutes and think of all the things you have to be glad about.  It will help you start your day in a positive light, and will impact your mood and the way you interact with people throughout your day.

So GoodMorning, and Have a WONDERFUL Monday!