It snowed in my town this morning. It was a beautiful, slightly dangerous, and incredibly inconvenient sort of snow that peaked during the morning commute, but it was gorgeous from the comfort of my warm, cozy living room. Once the morning warmed up a bit (and the heaviest of the snow ceased to fall), the kids and I went out for a snowy romp in our backyard. They were so eager to wear their secondhand snow pants, and break in their brand new boots. Jammy had been asking me all summer long when she was going to get to build a snowman, so we were ready for this weather. In the bustle to get everyone all bundled up to go play in the snow, I forgot to grab their little snow shovel and sled to play with, but they didn't need them. They were too busy making snow angels, tasting the snow, and sliding -sans sled- down the little hill behind our home. Who needs a sled when you have a perfectly good butt? #trailertrashtoboggan
We didn't last long because Ribbers kept taking off his gloves (and subsequently complaining about being cold), but I was able to lure them both inside with some hot chocolate and the promise of dessert before lunch (read: a cookie with the hot chocolate). It was too much for them to resist.
Last month was filled with so many commitments, that I practically forgot to be mindful of these types of experiences. However, I still do have a couple of fun things to share with you for October. On top of that, I already have a list of five things that I have learned or experienced in November, and today is only the ninth day of the month! (November stuff will be published in December, of course.) Here are some of the things I recall from October 2018:
I love Halloween. My kids love Halloween. Habibi is indifferent to it, which is the best one can hope for from him. Because of this, I was easily able to get my family on board for a pumpkin decorating/carving day with our neighbors. It was such fun! Two families that live on our street came over and joined us to carve pumpkins with the kiddos. For some of the littler ones, this was a first-time experience (or at least a first-time experience where they were aware of their surroundings). Once the carving was done, the kids continued to play outside while the adults chatted, prepped dinner, etc. I have said this before and I'll say it again, but I so dearly love having fun, trustworthy, and reliable neighbors...with kids!!! It's so nice to just be able to play with the neighbor kids sometimes, without having to schedule a play date months in advance for someone clear across town! (We also love those dates, but finding a time that works for everyone can be stressful, right?)
Last year, prior to Thanksgiving, I bought a little tree from the dollar section at Target. The tree is made out of some cheap type of wood (like a balsa) and came with little adhesive leaves on which you could write your name and something for which you are thankful. (For instance: "Ummi is thankful for kitties, hot tea, and good books.") This year, I set that up as a decoration (technically on November 1) but, I prepared a similar activity in mindfulness for my family prior to the start of November...so technically, this counts as October still. The idea came from Better Homes and Gardens magazine, so I went to their website and downloaded these little house-shaped tags with different family discussion prompts written on them. There are enough tags for each of November's thirty days, so the activity can continue after Thanksgiving has passed. BH&G made these tags into beautiful looking "houses" to set up on a peg board in a mini "village of gratitude" (or something like that), but I simply have them hung on a piece of twine on the window between my kitchen and dining room. Each day, you pick out a tag and answer questions like "Who made you smile today?" or "Name one thing you love about your home." Basically, it's an exercise in gratitude for the things that make your life special, be they big or small. When I explained these to Jammy, the conversation went a little something like this:
Ummi: The next holiday that we are going to celebrate is Thanksgiving. Do you remember that holiday from last year? When we wrote about the things we were thankful for on those little leaves?
Jammy: Yeah.
Ummi: Well, this year, instead of doing a Thankful Tree, we are doing something called Gratitude Tags. Do you know what the word "gratitude" means?
Jammy: RAT-itude tags?!?!?!
Ummi: (laughing) No no no, gratitude, not RAT-itude. (pause) But I like RAT-itude better. Let's call them "Ratitude Tags".
Of course, I did go on to explain the word gratitude to her, but this is how Ratitude Tags were born.
Finally, what is perhaps the biggest sensation in my household since the angler fish, please welcome the Green Anaconda. Jammy and I were talking about snakes one day, and I was explaining to her that the biggest snake in the world was the anaconda. Naturally she wanted to see pictures, so I looked some up. Among the results of our research was this gem. It has been so well-received in our house that it has replaced Elmo Brushy-Brush for the #1 Top of the Charts Hit during teeth brushing time. Just watch it. It speaks for itself. (Parents, it is 100% child-friendly.)
Doesn't your life feel better now than before you watched that video? If not, I'm not sure we can be friends anymore.
That covers October's experiences! In our next "New in 2018" edition, I will discuss Postpartum Surgery #5, Charles Dickens for pre-schoolers, and my new favorite kitchen item.
We didn't last long because Ribbers kept taking off his gloves (and subsequently complaining about being cold), but I was able to lure them both inside with some hot chocolate and the promise of dessert before lunch (read: a cookie with the hot chocolate). It was too much for them to resist.
Last month was filled with so many commitments, that I practically forgot to be mindful of these types of experiences. However, I still do have a couple of fun things to share with you for October. On top of that, I already have a list of five things that I have learned or experienced in November, and today is only the ninth day of the month! (November stuff will be published in December, of course.) Here are some of the things I recall from October 2018:
I love Halloween. My kids love Halloween. Habibi is indifferent to it, which is the best one can hope for from him. Because of this, I was easily able to get my family on board for a pumpkin decorating/carving day with our neighbors. It was such fun! Two families that live on our street came over and joined us to carve pumpkins with the kiddos. For some of the littler ones, this was a first-time experience (or at least a first-time experience where they were aware of their surroundings). Once the carving was done, the kids continued to play outside while the adults chatted, prepped dinner, etc. I have said this before and I'll say it again, but I so dearly love having fun, trustworthy, and reliable neighbors...with kids!!! It's so nice to just be able to play with the neighbor kids sometimes, without having to schedule a play date months in advance for someone clear across town! (We also love those dates, but finding a time that works for everyone can be stressful, right?)
Last year, prior to Thanksgiving, I bought a little tree from the dollar section at Target. The tree is made out of some cheap type of wood (like a balsa) and came with little adhesive leaves on which you could write your name and something for which you are thankful. (For instance: "Ummi is thankful for kitties, hot tea, and good books.") This year, I set that up as a decoration (technically on November 1) but, I prepared a similar activity in mindfulness for my family prior to the start of November...so technically, this counts as October still. The idea came from Better Homes and Gardens magazine, so I went to their website and downloaded these little house-shaped tags with different family discussion prompts written on them. There are enough tags for each of November's thirty days, so the activity can continue after Thanksgiving has passed. BH&G made these tags into beautiful looking "houses" to set up on a peg board in a mini "village of gratitude" (or something like that), but I simply have them hung on a piece of twine on the window between my kitchen and dining room. Each day, you pick out a tag and answer questions like "Who made you smile today?" or "Name one thing you love about your home." Basically, it's an exercise in gratitude for the things that make your life special, be they big or small. When I explained these to Jammy, the conversation went a little something like this:
Ummi: The next holiday that we are going to celebrate is Thanksgiving. Do you remember that holiday from last year? When we wrote about the things we were thankful for on those little leaves?
Jammy: Yeah.
Ummi: Well, this year, instead of doing a Thankful Tree, we are doing something called Gratitude Tags. Do you know what the word "gratitude" means?
Jammy: RAT-itude tags?!?!?!
Ummi: (laughing) No no no, gratitude, not RAT-itude. (pause) But I like RAT-itude better. Let's call them "Ratitude Tags".
Of course, I did go on to explain the word gratitude to her, but this is how Ratitude Tags were born.
Finally, what is perhaps the biggest sensation in my household since the angler fish, please welcome the Green Anaconda. Jammy and I were talking about snakes one day, and I was explaining to her that the biggest snake in the world was the anaconda. Naturally she wanted to see pictures, so I looked some up. Among the results of our research was this gem. It has been so well-received in our house that it has replaced Elmo Brushy-Brush for the #1 Top of the Charts Hit during teeth brushing time. Just watch it. It speaks for itself. (Parents, it is 100% child-friendly.)
Doesn't your life feel better now than before you watched that video? If not, I'm not sure we can be friends anymore.
That covers October's experiences! In our next "New in 2018" edition, I will discuss Postpartum Surgery #5, Charles Dickens for pre-schoolers, and my new favorite kitchen item.
Comments
Post a Comment
Comment if you wish. Or don't.