Thanksgiving

Today I went outside with Sam and Anika and moved a shrub from one spot to another. Sam sure was cranky! Was not happy with anything we were doing even though he ordinarily loves gardening. Being the cracker jack mom I am, I realized he was tired. Off to the swing we went to swing to sleep. He knew he was tired and asked for the "squeaky" swing since that is actually the one he can fall asleep in. The other one he would fall off of. Anyway, I popped him on and started swinging him. Took a while for me to find a good spot to stand as Anika was in the carrier on my back and I wanted her out of the sun but I needed to be able to push the swing. Finally, I find a good spot and get settled.

After a few minutes, I notice that Anika is quite still. I pull out my cell phone and use the black screen as a mirror to check on her. She's fast asleep. One down, one to go.



I started to notice Sam's head getting just a little bit floppy. A quick peak under his hat revealed those big brown eyes still open but very sleepy. A few minutes later, he is out....



As the swing starts to slowly cease its movement now that I no longer have to push, I notice the other sounds in my yard. The most noticeable sounds are all the birds. I love to hear them sing! I have a feeding station set up with a few feeders and they seem to like it.



As I stood there with my sleeping children, listening to the birds, I realized how thankful I was to be there, in that moment. I am so thankful to live in a place where the loudest sound is birds! I am so thankful that I am in tune enough with my children to know when and how to get them sleeping when needed. I am so thankful that my commute to work simply involves carrying a sleeping child to his bed and then moving to the kitchen island to stand while Anika continues to nap.

Life has been very hectic lately and I always feel very far behind in all that I need to do. It is days like today that help me to realize that I am actually doing quite a bit raising my kids to love nature and to hopefully set an example to become good parents themselves. So, most of all, I am thankful when I realize that I can give myself a break and a pat on the back!