Tag: gratitude

Happy Sunday

julieannetaylor

The house is quiet – except for my parents stirring in the basement as they get ready for church. The sunlight is streaming through the front window almost hiding the chill in the morning air. My coffee sits close by in my favorite mug, and Malone is curled up near me on the rug.

I am making a list for my day while a Hallmark Christmas movie plays in the background. I don’t plan on leaving the house for anything today. It will just be Malone and me home together all day…and I’m planning on getting a lot of things crossed off my list. The first thing on the list is to carry up all the Christmas boxes and begin to transform the house for the most wonderful time of the year. I normally hold out until after Thanksgiving, but the season is shorter this year, and we have lots of gatherings on the calendar, so today is the day! I am excited about having the whole house to myself to take my time and decorate while a marathon of cheesy Christmas movies play (with a brief intermission to watch the Bengals game – unless it becomes too painful to watch – and then it’s back to Hallmark).

The other big item on my list is a labor of love! Caroline and I will be prepping a whole bunch of freezer meals for Zach and Katie! We want to make life easier for them as they adjust from being a family of three to a family of four! We should have a new baby in the family this week and we want Campbell’s parents to be able to rest and focus all of their attention on her and big brother. So we will be trying to make their lives a little easier by stocking their freezer full of meals! The bonus is that I get to spend the afternoon with my mini-me best friend!

As I type, I realize there is nothing really earth shattering about this post, or even my day…but maybe there is a little more than just a to do list. I don’t feel like my day is filled with tasks that I have to do, but rather things that I get to do- and that is a blessing to be sure. I am blessed to have a home to decorate for my family to enjoy. I am blessed that my home is the place where my entire family will gather for Thanksgiving and Christmas (and all the other gatherings throughout the year). I am excited to add my thrifting treasures to my Christmas collection this year, as each one conjures memories of the fun days spent with Katie and Carty searching for well loved treasures. I am beyond blessed to be able to prepare meals for my son and daughter in law as they bring my first granddaughter into the world! I am so excited for Parker to be a big brother and for Zach and Katie to complete their perfect little family! The mess and the meal making will be well worth the knowledge that we are taking one small thing off of their plates while they adjust to having a newborn along side a very active three year old.

So I guess that this post is about more than an update on my Sunday to do list. It’s more about perspective. I could look at my list and feel dread about the seventy eleven trips I will make up and down the stairs lugging boxes. Or be overwhelmed at the thought of hours of cooking and loads of dishes. But that’s not how I’m feeling this morning. I am filled with joy and gratitude that I get to spend the entire day at home, in my slippers doing things that will be a blessing to others…and to me. I am thankful for all of the items on my list and will find joy in each minute of the day!

Life Lately

julieannetaylor

I am home sick from work today. I HATE missing work, but I just finally had to admit that I needed to be home in bed so that my body could finally fight off this “ick” I’ve been dealing with for over a week. Besides getting the rest I need, the other positive is that I have time to sit and reflect on the past few months…and write! This year has been so full of so many milestones and memories. I am so overwhelmed with gratitude as I sit and think about all that has happened in the past few months.

Our family has created big memories, and little ones that are just as meaningful over the last several months. The biggest of these was Caroline and Zach’s wedding in August. The days of summer were filled with checklists, planning dates and maybe a few mini breakdowns. Caroline (Carty) and I spent so many hours talking about every little detail. I loved those moments – even when we thought there was no way we would get it all accomplished. Saturday, August 9th was the day! The skies were blue, the sun was hot, and all of our plans came together just as we had prepared for. I did my very best to “be present” in each moment and not get caught up in all the busyness. I am proud to say that I really feel like I was able to soak in all of the joy that came with watching my baby girl walk down the aisle. Our family all gathered and celebrated the bride and groom with so many smiles and LOTS of dancing. It was truly the most fun reception ever!

My baby girl was radiant, the whole venue with filled with so much love, and the memories of that special day will live with me forever.

In October, we celebrated again – but this time it was Halloween – with Parker. I’ve never been a huge fan of Halloween or Trick -or- Treating, but watching my grandson Parker excited beyond words for the evening really did change my perspective! Parker has been on a Spiderman kick for several months, so it was a foregone conclusion that he would be rocking the red costume and mask for the big night. I made a big pot of chili (the weather was perfect for the time of year – a little chill and clear skies) and the kids brought little man to our neighborhood to collect all the candy! Parker was so excited to be all dressed up as his favorite super hero and ran from house to house. After he couldn’t go any longer, we gathered at the table and shared a meal together. It was one of those nights that I had always imagined we would have once my kids were grown and grandbabies came along – except the reality was even better than I knew to dream.

So many other big and small moments fill my heart with thankfulness…my niece Courtney got married in a beautiful ceremony, Zach and I celebrated our birthdays in our annual Bengals game day, Chris and I spent an amazing weekend in OTR for my birthday, and we showered Katie and Zach in anticipation of baby girl who will be here very soon! Not to mention simple family dinners, thrifting trips, and family movies.

I honestly could go on and on about all of the amazing moments in life lately. I feel so thankful for this beautiful chaos that is my world. And while no life is ever perfect – and yes, this is just a highlight reel – these little (and big) moments are what I choose to focus on. Life is hard, and gets to be so overwhelming at times. Worry and anxiety often plague me and I tend to focus on all of the scary things…but here’s the thing…there is ALWAYS something to be thankful for…so for now, I will focus on those things and cherish every moment – big or small.

It’s the every day things

julieannetaylor

Today I spent some time with my grown children. It was not a special occasion. Not a family dinner. Just a normal, summer day that turned into time together. My son, Zach has lived in Columbus for the last eight years – so we have not spent a lot of time together. Recently he and his wife and my grandson moved to the area! This move has been something I have been praying for – a lot. When they first arrived we had family dinners and lots of family celebrations (graduation, birthdays, showers) spent together. I love all of that time. But today was different. I had spent the morning in my daughter’s future classroom helping her set up for her first year of teaching. We have spent a lot of hours in her Kindergarten room together. My son called and said he and Parker (my grandson) were out and about running errands. The four of us made plans to meet for lunch. While sitting in Chipotle, it just hit me. THESE are the moments that I truly cherish. Sharing a meal and talking with my grown children is the absolute best. We then headed to Costco just to pick up a few groceries…again, nothing earth-shattering. Just a normal day doing normal things together. It may sound peculiar that this run-of-the-mill day brought me so much joy, but I got home feeling so content and happy. I love sharing these moments with my grown children. Watching them live their amazing lives fills me with so much pride. I’m so grateful to be called momma by them! I’m so grateful to have played a part in their world – and so grateful that I am still such a big part of their world! Happiness and contentment does not have to be found in the “big” momentous moments…happiness can be found in the every day things!

Here’s my “it’s been a long time since I blogged” disclaimer. Yes – it’s been too long – and I have SO much to share! Stick around for the updates – good, bad, and ugly! Thanks for reading!

See ya, love ya, Bye

julieannetaylor

At the end of the day today I sat in my quiet classroom, thinking about my ever-growing list of things to do. The list was so overwhelming that rather than trying to accomplish at least one or two things before I went home, I just sat there. Exhausted from the day’s events. But today’s tired was a good tired. And today, rather than letting the stress and anxiety of this job get to me, I focused on how grateful I am for the way I get to spend my days. I absolutely love making connections with my students. Every year I tell people that I get to make 50 new best friends. They make me smile with their stories. They slay me with their silliness. At times they make me want to pull my hair from its roots – but even in those moments, I love them.

As I looked at the large calendar next to my desk and added that task to my “Wednesday – am to do list” I felt sadness creeping in. It’s already March. I only have three more months with these kids, and I am not ready to let them go. We have built such a great community this year in room 214. This group of kids is just a “nice” group. They help each other out. They are constantly asking me for jobs around the room to help me out. I’m not ready for this year to be over with these amazing kids.

Each day at dismissal as my students leave the room I tell them “See ya, love ya, bye!” Every day. Every student. I started that on the very first day of school. It didn’t take long for them to pick up on it and now they say it right back to me. It just makes my heart so happy! And the further we get into the school year, they truly understand that those aren’t just words from Mrs. Taylor. They know that when I say “love ya” that I mean it! I am honored and blessed that I get to spend my days pouring into the lives of these ten year olds. I want them to know that no matter what kind of day we had, no matter what mistakes they made, no matter how frustrated I may have gotten with them during the school day that I love them. It’s the last thing they hear from me before they head home.

I didn’t end up crossing anything off of my lengthy to-do list today. When I walked turned off the lights and shut the door of my classroom today, my list was still full – but so was my heart.