Little Things: February Float

 

Sitting in my living room with the windows wide open this February First I decided that a Root Beer Float would make a mighty fine treat.  Did I wait for the kids to wake up from their naps?

No.

Did I selfishly indulge all by myself?

Yes.

Sometimes a little thing like an afternoon treat, enjoyed in silence, can change the tone of the rest of your day.

 

It appears that the idea of posting little things I have accomplished each day has turned into more of a gratitude journal….I think I’m okay with that.  Taking the time to capture the moment in a photo…and then share it…makes its impact on my day more significant.  Besides, taking a picture of a root beer float is much more interesting than the 5 loads of laundry I did….. and if I waited to take a picture of ALL five loads…they probably wouldn’t all get put away, anyway…

Little Things: Paid In Full

 

The second of our three vehicles is now paid in full….and ahead of schedule!  We now have our Honda Odyssey and our Toyota Tacoma paid in full.  We have had the van for 2 ½ years (we paid cash) and the truck for almost 2 years.  The only thing left is the motorcycle…which we’ve owned longer than any of them.  Guess what?  I’m paying that one off THIS WEEK!

Okay…this isn’t really a LITTLE thing…it is a HUGE accomplishment….but it was the little things that got us here: buying used cars, following a budget, skipping a lot of “extras” and committing to the goal of not having debt.

My husband, in particular, often struggles with “the big picture”:  “How do I work so hard and I can’t have X”   This escapes my realm of reality.  I think we are doing FANTASTIC!  Our home and student loans are our only debt.

The little things can literally add up faster than you think.  One penny at a time.

 

Little Things: Smile

 

A smile is not always a little thing;  sometimes its the hardest thing to conjure….but it is always the easiest thing to give away.

When I drop my son off at Kindergarten each morning, I park in the parking lot and walk him across the drive.  I could wait in line and throw him let him jump from the car as I glide past the entryway….but this little bit of extra effort makes him happy.  It is less stressful to him (and, frankly, to me) to hold his hand and walk up to the classroom door where I can hug him goodbye and plant one large, embarrassing Mom Kiss on his face as I send him off into the world.

This morning when I was returning to my car, one of the women who very faithfully directs traffic and monitors the parental drop off craziness each and every morning said to me:  “I just love seeing you every morning, you always wear such a great smile”.

Happiness.

Despite my harried mornings, despite my often dragging spirit and the bags under my eyes… I’ve been smiling…and apparently it makes someone else’s day.  THAT is something to smile about.

It’s the little things in life that make the difference….and not always just to ourselves.

 

This photo was taken by my friend Kristen from Dine and Dish during a photo shoot that my other fabulous friend Sandra from Sandra Hale Photography was doing during our (not so) recent get away in November.

Little Things: Planning

 

A little thing like making a list can make a huge difference.  Just breaking it down and facing what most needs to be done, a place to ground yourself and refer to when life starts to spin out of control.

I fell under the bus last week.  Well, really at the end of the week.  Making cookies for SuperBoy’s birthday treats at school….then putting his party together on Saturday….

I’m back on track for this week. The next two weeks are relatively event free so I want to make the most of them to get caught up around the house and with my work…really get back on track from the holidays…FINALLY.

I started with this list…not for the day, but for the week.  Tomorrow I might try to break it down into a daily thing but today is already rolling.

The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From the Tree

This is the story of the four minutes I spent in the Apple Store in Leawood, Kansas on Wednesday:

 

 

I wanted to make a quick run by the Apple Store in Leawood today because, well, we were in Kansas City and I really wanted to get the camera connection kit for iPad to use during my photographic outing tomorrow.

All three kids (ages 2, 4 and 6) in tow… I steeled myself and we headed into the store.

The kids were immediately wide eyed and in a manic trance when they spotted row after row of sleek iPads and MacBooks.  Having been pre- threatened warned advised to keep all hands and feet to themselves, they ran frantically forward yelling “Mommy!  Look at THIS one!!” and before I could look they were on to the next shiny object.  At one point SuperGirl exclaimed, “This store makes THE BEST THINGS!” 

Why yes, yes it does my brilliant child.

I quickly filled my Apple employee in on what I needed and told him to “run like the wind” as it would be less painful for all of us.

He did.

Poor thing looked shell shocked.

He was all of 24.

Maybe.

He was friendly; while checking us out he said to SuperBoy, “Maybe if you’re really good YOU will get one of these one day!”

SuperBoy looked at him with what I thought was a look reserved solely for me when I require something obscene from him like “Change your underwear”.

“We already have our own iPods. Mommy and Daddy have iPhones.  Mommy just got one of those iPads and her computer has that Apple on it, too…I just don’t know what its called.”

Like, DUH.

SuperGirl, who was whirling by, stopped for just a moment and chirped:

“Don’t forget the Apple TV!”

 

 

Little Things: Empty Suitcase

 

I have a baaad habit of dumping my suitcase on the floor when I arrive home after a trip.  I’m always exhausted and I just don’t want to deal with it.  Inevitably I live out of the suitcase, as least in part, for days on end.

I’m trying to change some of these bad habits.

Last night SuperBaby and I returned home from our whirlwind trip to Nebraska at 11:15pm.  I managed to unload everything from the car…and I put it all away…including emptying the suitcase and sticking it back in its storage space.

Ridiculous, I know.  But it’s the little things that add up, right?

Shine Your Sink! It’s a Little Thing…

 

A shiny sink….go FlyLady!

When I first got pregnant with SuperBoy six and a half years ago I became infatuated with FlyLady.  A small group of women who I met on BabyCenter and I put on our purple wings together and started down the rabbit hole that is, the FlyLady.  We took pictures of our projects; before and after and shared them with each other.  We would post out our “To Do” lists every morning and check back in at the end of the day.

Ahhhh, life before kids.  So much follow through.  So many accomplishments.

One thing I’ve held on to is that when I am drowning….. I need to have a shiny sink.  The very first step according to FlyLady is to shine your sink.  She’s right.  It is FANTASTIC to wake up to a clean, shiny sink.

Today was one of those days…. three kids to appointments in Kansas City, home late…dishes from last night never quite got finished…..BAH.

I’m back on track for tomorrow!

A Little Recycling

 

I got the recycling out today!

Back in November, PayPal put a fancy little freeze on my account for “security reasons”.  All I had to do to get it unlocked was follow a series of very simple steps that never worked or allowed me access.  I fought with this until finally getting it unlocked at the end of December.  The only bill I have that pays out of PayPal is to our recycling company; in the process of this simple PayPal snafu… our recycling service was cancelled because the payment couldn’t be withdrawn from PayPal.

I kept thinking I’d deal with it later.

But I didn’t.

Then Christmas hit and brought with it eight million cardboard boxes and six tons o wrapping paper.  All recycling.

I got the service reestablished the same week his truck broke down.

Last week I filled the van and hauled off a big portion of the recycling to WalMart.

Today I sorted through the PILES of recycling in our garage and got the majority of it out to the curb…and it was carted away.

I’m a little disappointed; this picture does not do justice to the 45 minutes I spent on this project….but very thrilled that I can now make my way through the garage again.

At least the part that used to contain the recycling. (#MoreforAnotherDay)

 

A New Year Filled with Little Things

I’ve watched everyone announce their New Year’s goals or resolutions.  Such enthusiasm to start fresh, to have a new focus.  My friend Kristen picks a word for each year and tries to make that her focus, an action to incorporate into her daily life.  I love this idea…I watched her do it last year with her Happiness Project and was both happy and impressed.

Other friends are laying out business plans, publishing books, losing weight….the adventures go on and on.  I’m feeling lucky to climb out of bed these days.

I’ve got a lot on my mind, a relatively heavy heart.  This year will bring many challenges for me as an individual, as a mom, as a wife.  I’m not feeling terribly prepared.

I AM feeling sorry for myself.

Time to pick myself up and carry on.

 

 

Yesterday I finally felt like getting my act together.  After weeks of illness and feeling like crud…I could see a little light at the end of the tunnel.  I chose to do ONE thing:  I cleaned the living room floor.

That sounds so silly; but ever since Christmas our living room has been transformed into the toy room: Legos everywhere, half colored pictures, colored pencils, whoopee cushions (thank you Uncle Matt),  puzzle pieces, crayons….the list goes on.  When I got the flu I set up their craft table in the middle of the living room so I could just lay on the couch as much as possible and still keep them alive be able to claim “supervision and enrichment”.

So yesterday I cleaned it all up and vacuumed.  The overwhelming sense of relief and gratitude made a world of difference on this “poor me” attitude I’ve been sporting.  Then it occurred to me:  it really IS the little things that add up and make a difference.   I need to recognize them and give myself a break.

So here it is, my project for the new year:

I’m going to attempt to catch a picture each day of something I’m proud of accomplishing.  Just one thing to remind myself that I DID get something done.  It doesn’t have to be huge but I’m hoping this transforms into me getting the things done that I’ve been putting off….the proverbial “to do list”.  Some positive attention on accomplishments should work to turn my negativity around a little bit, and it might snowball and become encouraging, too!  It doesn’t have to be a fancy-schmancy picture…it might just be Instagram (which is pretty cool, too)…. or just my little ol’ iPhone.

So here it is:  I’m pretty darn happy that I can see across my living room floor…..I’ve wanted this done for DAYS and DAYS…and now it is.

 

 

I got something done today; it’s the little things that make a difference.

 

Trying Out My New Nikon Lens … and Some Editing Coolness

 

This is a picture I took of our dog, Maggie, using my new 24-70mm f/2.8 Nikon lens.  I’m just getting used to the lens; it takes some beautiful pictures, but it is so heavy that I’m having a difficult time getting a good focus.  I’m going to have to implore use of my Manfrotto Monopod, no matter how silly I feel using it if I ever want to get a nice clear shot!

Of course, I edited this photo a little bit.  I lightened it using a new technique that is a “healthier” way to lighten your photos according to Amanda at Everyday Elements.  (Go read this tutorial to find out how…its so simple!)  I did a little bit of spot healing to remove the super gross chunks of doggie eye goober from her eyes (ruined the entire photo….really), cropped it and then I applied Amanda’s new “White Sands” Action that she is giving away for free until January 4th.   It is a really pretty action that just adds a little bit of haze…or glow to your pictures.  What I really love about this action is that I don’t generally like “artsy” actions.  I really want my photos to look like what I see.  This seems to simply enhance the photo to make it more beautiful!

Here is my “Before and After” of this picture….Maggie’s photo straight out of the camera, and her beautified photo:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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