Words From A Grateful Heart

But coffee first!

I tend to sit on a lot of ideas.  I have been super busy lately doing some really fun posts about decorating and such, but then I get hit with a profound thought or moment,  and I am compelled to share.  I am especially driven when that thought keeps coming back over and over again. I say to myself, OK, OK, I hear you, I’m on it. During Thanksgiving week, and then again this weekend I was able to spend time with dear friends.  In our busy lives we tend to forget to take time to be with those that are most important to us.  I also got to enjoy family time, which is always so special, but for this moment, I am grateful for the friendships that I have both new and old. 

Being in charge of “all the things” can get us very weary.  We work, cook, clean, do the laundry, run kids, change diapers, mend bumps and bruises, manage the schedule that goes a million different directions, mend broken hearts, help heal our “sickies,” pick up the spirits of everyone around us, and the list goes on.  We do all of these things to a fault.  When we are the keeper of all things for everyone, and when we do all of these things, sometimes we forget to fill our tanks, and obviously I’m not talking about gas.  We put ourselves last, all…the…time!  When we do this our tanks get emptier and emptier, and all of the sudden our world  comes to a screeching halt.  Both our mind and body give up.  I cannot tell you how many times in the last few weeks I’ve seen friends post on social media or mention how they are running on empty.  The holiday season tends to do this to us mamas.  I joked to my husband all the time when our kids were little,  “Yay Christmas is here, the most miserable time of the year!”  Now I didn’t really mean that, I promise! Christmas was magical and beautiful for us then, and it still is. But what I meant was that it was a time when everyone was exhausted.  If you have little ones, you tend to run from place to place and from celebration to celebration.  The naps are bypassed, the bedtimes are late and everyone is SOOOO crabby, parents included.  As they get older, there are concerts to attend and sports seasons to complete and once again everyone is dragging through the days!

We forget to stop and take time to do things for ourselves.  We forget that it is OK to schedule a “play date” for us!  So in these past few weeks I did just that.  I needed good people around me.  I needed to fill my tank. So I spent time having dinner with our dear friends over the holidays, enjoying a fire pit with great friends, and I got a bunch of my “girls” together to have brunch and cocktails, and just sit and laugh together.  We don’t get together nearly enough, and for that I’m sad, but forcing ourselves to take time is worth it.  I’m not kidding!  I sat there, in this little crowded booth, listening to friends laugh and talk, and I was overwhelmed.  I was filled with so much gratitude.  I was reminded that life is far too short.  We MUST stop, even in all the madness, and force ourselves to do something that fills our tank. We must nurture the friendships that we have and not let them fade.  I admit that I am not always on top of this, but I continue to try all of the time and strive to be better. 

So, I am here to say that I am grateful for you.  I am so glad that you are in my life.  I’m overwhelmed at how you fill up my heart and my tank so that I can manage these crazy holiday weeks in my music classes.   I’m so fortunate that I can share my life with you in a host of different ways, writing and blogging really are what I love the most.   I’m eternally grateful that even though my mom is gone, her friends continue to read my blogs and comment on my creative endeavors. I’m so blessed that I have met so many new friends when I took a leap of faith and began sharing my food and decorating in a public forum.  Your support and encouragement is truly overwhelming to me. Thanks for not giving up on me.   My tank, as I sit here today, is full. 

I took this one morning when I was missing my mom. I’m pretty sure she sent me the light. Grateful!

The moral of this story is… no day is promised.  We do not know what tomorrow brings.  Make today the day that you stop and schedule time to do what you love.  Meet that friend you haven’t seen.  Sit for a moment and let the laundry wait. Drink an extra cup of coffee under that blanket.  See the people that you love the most. The only way that we can truly care for others is to care for ourselves. Chaos breeds more chaos.  Take time to get it under control. There are a million things to be done, there are presents to buy, and family gatherings to prepare for, but I promise you, it will get done.  You’ll be so much more appreciative of it all, and better equipped to handle the stress, if you’ve stopped to sit with the gals drinking a few mimosas, catching up on all the happenings in your lives, and you return to your “job” with a big, beautiful, tank filled all the way to the top. 

I wish you so much love and joy as Christmas approaches.  I hope that you take time for you, and your tank is full.  Remember that you are important and are the keeper of all things , and all will shine brightly when you make yourself a priority. 

May all your days be merry and bright!  That’s today’s dish!

Deb