A Year of Gratitude: Day 268

Today I am grateful that we, as a culture, are starting to talk about what post-natal bodies really look like.  (Check here, here, here, and here for further reading.)  I think back to my own experience, going from a glowing, yet very large, lady at 39 weeks ...

... to what, at the time, felt like Jabba the Hut.

I knew my body wouldn't snap back immediately, but I had no idea I would look as I did.  And I felt so bad about it, so uncomfortable.  (Though I imagine at least part of the discomfort was because of the c-section.)  When they told me Baylor weighed 10 lbs. 10 oz., I imagined losing that weight and being close to back to "normal", even though I knew I had gained a total of 64 pounds with him and weighed more than my husband did.  So it was a shock to see my post-baby body and it was awkward seeing others and wondering what they thought, and I hated seeing all those celebrities snap back within weeks, maybe a month, of having a baby, and I wondered what I was doing wrong that I couldn't attain that.  I consider myself to be a relatively smart person, but my whole world had been turned upside down and this was just one more thing that didn't make sense.

That seems like forever ago, these pictures and that feeling of "Jabba-ness", and thankfully all I really remember feeling was this ...

Joy.  So much joy.  In the end, it didn't matter how big I still was, how soft my belly had become.  All that mattered was my little boy and the love that was growing rapidly in our hearts.

(Sadly, postpartum depression set in pretty quickly and wiped away a lot of that joy, but I try to view that time with a grateful heart, so grateful that I have moved past that point onto much happier times.)

So let's get this acceptance going.  Let's let new moms off the hook and allow the love to spread and build like it should.  Forget the judgement and take a pass on the gossip and just ... love.

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 267

Today I am grateful for a big achievement for both kiddos.  We were at Rivertown Mall today and after having the kids' feet measured I asked the kiddos what they wanted to do; Baylor of course said he wanted to ride elevators, and Mollie said she wanted to play in the playplace.  Baylor said her idea was okay if there weren't many kids in the playplace, but when we got there it was teeming with kids of all ages and enthusiasm levels.  Baylor instantly balked, but after more consideration he said he'd go if we could ride an elevator and get pretzel sticks first.  We did, and he kept his word.

And they had a blast!

My favorite part was when they held hands and when they'd run up to me after having been separated asking where the other one was.  I love seeing them play together.

Baylor even had a run in or two with some more aggressive kids, and he handled himself so well!  He's come a long way since he last tried playing here and couldn't even get up the stairs he was so socially anxious.  They played and played, and it was only fatigue and hunger that dragged them away from the fun.  It was noisy and crowded and chaotic, and they handled it beautifully and had loads of fun.  I was insanely proud of both of them.

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 266

Today I am grateful that I happened to go over to my parents' house to pick something up just a little while after my sister had taken some sour cream coffee cake muffins out of the oven.  They were still a little warm and, awesome as they are, Mom and Christine offered me one ... then sent me home with five more to share with Bryson and the kids.  They were absolutely wonderful, and I have no doubt the kids will agree in the morning.

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 265 (a day late)

Today I am grateful to have gotten a really unpleasant task over and done with.  We buy our ground turkey from Costco, and while it is a great price it also comes in inconveniently-sized packages.  So, whenever we buy turkey, one of us has to separate it into half pound and three-quarter pound packs to make it easier for me to make dinner later.  Tonight that task fell to me, and though I was not happy to be doing it and was constantly worried about getting turkey juices on the counter, I am so grateful to have it done.  It's such a satisfying feeling of pure relief not to have it hanging over my head (or staring at me from the refrigerator) anymore.

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 264

Today I am grateful for the knowledge that my son is against burglars and that he'll fight to protect his family.  He wrote this at my parents' house tonight and it is ... well, it's just plain awesome.  

I am also grateful for the humor that comes every now and then as a parent.  Kids can be so hilarious!

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 263

Today I am grateful for the help of my mom and sister.  I had a lot to get done today, and they came over to help with my to do list and to help take care of the kiddos.  I wouldn't have gotten nearly as much done without them, and I am so glad to have gotten done what I did.

Thanks, Mom and Christine!  I so appreciate the help!

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 262

Today I am grateful I was able to get the mountain of paper, by and large, off my desk.  It has been building for quite some time, as evidenced by the April receipts and the March to-do lists, and it was good to finally dig in and disperse the madness.

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 261

Well, it's another marathon dinner at the Jacques household.  The kids are going on an hour-and-a-half, and Mollie has barely touched her food.  It's infuriating really, the way they jabber on and on, seemingly oblivious to the food in front of them.  When this sort of night happens, and it happens quite frequently, I want to pull my hair out, scream, pout, cry, fall asleep, and a whole other litany of other tantrum-like behaviors.  They take so long because they are chatting with each other, laughing and making up stories, and how do you get them to stop that long enough to put food in their mouths?  At this point I'd be cool with talking with their mouths full if they'd just eatforcryingoutloud!

But, as infuriating as it all is, I will say this: I am so very grateful that they are friends and enjoy each other's company so much.  They laugh and make faces at each other and generally have a great time just chatting with each other.  It could be so much worse; they could hate each other and spend the whole meal screaming and yelling at each other, thus causing dinner to take forever for a much worse reason.

So, tonight I'm grateful that my kids are friends.  So very grateful.

Have a wonderful evening!




P.S.  This does not, in any way, mean that my kids never fight with each other.  On the contrary, they get on each other's nerves at least once a day, oftentimes much more.  But they always end up coming back to enjoying each other's company, and that's what I'm so grateful for.

A Year of Gratitude: Day 260

Today I am grateful for an amazing gift our vacation unexpectedly gave me.  When we go on vacation, I try very hard (and am usually very successful) at taking a break from electronics.  I sent one e-mail over the trip because I needed to make sure an appointment was secured and had forgotten to before we left, but otherwise I abstained completely from the internet.  And in that time I received from the absence of electronics, I regained my love of reading.

For as long as I can remember I have had a great love of reading, diving into a good story and not coming up for air for as long as possible.  It's not something I can really do with how-to books and self-help books, which is what I have been, by and large, reading over the last couple years.  (Parenthood will do that to you, though.)  No, a good novel is like dessert for my soul, and I am so glad to have been able to indulge as of late.

Speaking of which, I have a book to enjoy!

Have a wonderful night!

A Year of Gratitude: Day 259 (a day late)

Today I am grateful that the kids and I had such a lovely time at the zoo this morning.  The weather was cool and the sky was overcast, so most of the animals were more active than usual.  We got to see a couple baby animals, always a treat, and the porcupine was actually up and about and came over to look at us.  No meltdowns and no potty accidents and fun ... perfect day.

Have a wonderful night!