WIP (ahem!) Thursday & Grateful

Let’s start off on the high note – today is Simon’s birthday. He won’t thank me if I was to tell you how old he is but he withstood the birthday boy bounce from M! The boys gave him a card and gift before Z & I headed out the door. It’s a Zoku Ice-Cream maker – perfect for the man who has everything. I got it thru one of work’s stores:

http://www.livingandgiving.co.nz/kitchen-and-food/preparation/tools-and-utensils/zoku-ice-cream-maker-purple-5035057

Today my Grateful pic just has to be Simon. Not because it’s his birthday but because he has given me so many things to be grateful for. Three of them also on the bed!

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This could be the “before” pic too – I have brought an old (1920’s) solid timber door that I plan to scuff up and use for the headboard. The room looks bare without a headboard! Plus I’ve selected a few paint pots to try.

Low note. I am not at all happy with the Spirit piece. I don’t know if it’s the colours (the book might be different from the chart pack) but the fan background is purple for me, and mid/pale blue for others in the group. I’m talking Eeyore purple, the same skein that I used last stitching a piece that currently hangs in M’s room. The chart is also harder to read, as it is colour blocks and not symbols. I know why, it’s to help stop copyright thieves, but it means a few hours with a working copy & a marker and right now, I just don’t have that emotional investment in it.  So it went away on Monday & I pulled out Stargazer with the intent to finish her before the end of March.

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Stargazer makes me happy.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday kind of crept up on me. Last year I quietly gave up chocolate and I’m sorry, but that’s not going to happen this year. As Grumpy Cat says…

grumpy cat lent

I made the mistake of asking my FB friends what I should give up (big mistake. One suggested chocolate again, another suggested cross stitch!) and so this year I think I’ll go in an anti-Lent test.

I’m going to give up coffee and tea, and replace these with water.  I’m also going to take a photo every day of something I’m grateful for & give thanks to God for lending me these things.

lent

#truth

 

Today’s is a bit shallow – the desktop iPod dock my boss gave me. I am grateful that I can hear good sounds during the day. And yes, I am hopelessly behind the times – that is one of the original 2005 30GB iPods that were the first to play video. It’s not broke, so I’m not replacing it & the collection on it is eclectic and all me.

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Your regular WIP Wednesday post will come later tonight; I forgot to take a photo. Doh.

 

EDIT 25/2 – I decided to go “all out” and give up caffeine totally. No Coke either! Wah!

You Can Quote Me

Continuing with the One Little Word theme, here’s another thing that helps me hold onto that Serene feeling.

YCQM 4 Feb

So many times I’m guilty of looking over the fence or concentrating on something that is annoying me. I don’t look for the good, yet as soon as I do, the annoying thing slides away into a smaller, manageable portion (yes, even the Screaming SO-Much-Taller-Than-Me-Now Teen). Keeping a gratitude journal helps, so I can totally recommend that to anyone. Look for something that makes you smile – little things like butterflies on flowers, rain for your garden, a pen that is where you left it – these all count. Big  stuff? Of course it counts, but the reason it’s big is because it’s not frequent enough to feed your soul.

Focus on the little stuff. The little good.

BONUS task – we did this for a couple of summers and it spreads the message. I brought a cheap canvas & some Thickers, altho if your penmanship is good use that. I stuck on “Grateful” and “Summer year/year” and EVERYONE who walked through our front door had to write something they were grateful for. Everyone. Kids, adults, couriers, tradesmen. It’s so cool to look back at the things the kids were grateful for (altho I couldn’t agree with some of the music choices!) but everyone got into it. I need to resurrect that. Maybe in my office? Hmmm…