August 27, 2011

Like and Learning to Love...

Lately I have found myself wanting to "like" it all. Photos of family vacations, first days of school, babies reaching milestones, retirements, marathons, recitals, new puppies, kitties, fresh veggies from the garden and all the other beautiful things that make up life, I like it.

Facebook has forever changed the way we view this little word - Like. Every now and then a little surge of the Facebook population starts to clamor for a "dislike" button, but it hasn't happened yet. Why do you think that is? I "like" to think that if someone experiences something that deserves a "dislike" your only option is to make the more personal "comment." A "comment" a little more time consuming and it takes a pause, so when someone needs you most, they can read your words of encouragement, empathy, hopefulness or concern.

Some may argue that using the internet for this type of communication isn't very personal or private. However, coming from someone who isn't down the street from my family, it sure beats the absence of sharing those little wonderful bits and pieces of life with others.  Whether those bits and pieces are beautiful or something more difficult, both can remind us of how precious simple things can be.

Some simple things from the past two weeks, that I like and some things that I am learning to love...

Family movie night, with a table of goodies laid out by my children, who were almost as into the movie, as laying out the snack table. I suppose too much Food Network is to blame for this attention to detail.

























Recycling our broken crayons.




























































































































Camping trips to the beach.



































































































































Sleepy Bear, somehow he managed to stay awake for late night crabbing on the beach.




















































Although we previously planned on establishing a bed time routine the week of the beach trip, how do you go to bed early and miss this full moon over the ocean?

























Isn't this guy a cutie? Look at those eyes. The discarded shell on the left is what they come out of the water hunting for. There were hundreds of them running on the beach and they would freeze when you put the flashlight on them. The kids had a blast, they were shrieking, laughing and running up and down the beach.


Long exposure of the moon, Drew ran through the frame, you can see his shadow on the left.

























Sunrise.


















































Behind the sand dunes.

























Just waking up.



























First catch of the day, tiny little fish in Bear's net.

























Jelly fish that brushed up against Ava.












































































Cute boys.


























We came back to town just in time for meet the teacher at the kid's school. I like it, the kids love the decor and it has a huge science lab that Drew was fascinated by. This is Drew's hallway.

























The library.






















































I like when Bear thinks that Drew is super cool. Bear was giving high fives for every cannonball as Drew exited the pool.



























I like this sweet girl who made Ava feel right at home, the week we moved in.

























On week two she presented the heart necklace that is two pieces that make a whole. And Drewsky dude, I like you buddy and your patience with your sister and her endless stream of BFF's. You turn is coming baby.



























First day of school. I like this photo, the one before the posed one. Where Bear works himself up to saying good bye to his BFF.





















































I like the walk to school. See Dad, trees!! It's safe to visit :)



























I like that he isn't embarrassed to hug his sister yet and I like that the school called an hour after I got home to double check that Ava knew she was supposed to ride the bus. Drew was worried she didn't know what to do after school and told his teacher when they were reviewing bus procedures.



























Ok, this is the hard part, where it shifts from like to learning to love. A new stage for our family, not bad just different. I am learning to love that I had only one hand to hold on the way out of school. We grieved over donuts and chocolate milk. Because it's not appropriate to drink at 8:30 in the morning with a three year old. Bear needed a donut as much as I did, asking about 30 minutes into our adventure if their school work was finished yet.



























Learning to love the ritual of the bus stop, letting go of the control of driving them myself and letting them enjoy the ride.






















































Learning to love the early morning routine again, Bear is without a shirt because he pretty much refuses to miss the bus no matter what he is wearing.

























And finally learning to love myself, just as I am. So when my daughter turns the table and asks to take a photo of me, there is no hesitation. No, I don't look good, I don't have lipstick on, my hair is a mess, we have been camping on the beach for two days.... Because let's face it, this is her moment to capture and all that stuff on the outside doesn't really matter to her and it shouldn't matter to me.
























There are a lot of outside physical things that I can pick on about myself that I don't like. We all do that, to ourselves. My dad always said to cultivate the person of the heart. That's where my focus should be, less on the physical and more on what qualities about myself that I can control. It struck me a week ago when Ava was worrying about her hair, I know that worry came from my example. I am learning to pick less on myself for my children, building up qualities that will not fade with time, for my daughter, because I think she is amazing, just the way she is. She is full of whimsy, play, dance, love and adventure and none of those qualities have to do with physical appearance.




























Like as much as you can this weekend and learn to love the rest :)
Peace out and have a great weekend, as Drew's awesome 3rd Grade Teacher says!




2 comments:

  1. So beautiful, you and the post. I love how we seem to share so many things, despite the miles. Thanks for the heartfelt thoughts! <3

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  2. Right back at you... <3 We do share so much, miss you bunches!

    ReplyDelete