The Little Things

This first week back to non holiday mode continues to be really busy with lots of lists to work on. After lots of hard work our basement is renovations are pretty much done and now we do the leg work of renting it. I bit the bullet and put advertising up for prenatal and breastfeeding classes and I got four people register in the first day!!! Exciting things are happening, hard work is beginning to pay off.
While these 'big' things are in their final formations I have been noticing how much joy some of the 'little' things bring me. Shai, (can you believe he turns 3 soon!) loves the book Mr. Gumpy's Outing, he requests to read it a few times a day. In the story a list of animals and people all do the things Mr. Gumpy has asked them not to do while they are in the boat and as a result they fall in the water. While we read the long list of animals, Shai has a comment for each of them. The pig is "awww that is a cute pig", after the sheep "bleating, how does that sound mama", the chickens "we have chickens!!!!". He knows of course if I read one of the words out of place; which I like to do sometimes on purpose just to have him correct me!!

Chris and the kids have been enjoying playing blackjack. They get the poker chips out and bet as they play. The faces of excitement when their hand is good, the seriousness with which they take the role of dealer, the contemplation on how much to lose and the thrill and shrills if someone calls "all in" on a bet! Great!

We have been making our way through the storage room as part of the basement renovations. Despite being here only a year, having done a huge purge when we moved, we still have a full storage room. We have been sorting, giving away, selling, sharing lots of things. We have been shifting to other rooms in the house and WOW it feels so great! We believe in our heads and hearts less is more, but with six of us stuff adds up quickly. If we slack at being intentional about what enters the house it can feel like a mountain of stuff just appeared. It's freeing to be on top of it.

Experimenting with salad dressings. The possibilities are endless.
pomegranate
ranch- or with a twist
orange-cumin