At the end of each month, I take stock of the previous month. What went well? What did I learn? What brought me a simple joy? These monthly reports are a way to encourage myself to take delight in the littlest of things. I find that Ten Things I Loved allows me to always see the silver lining, even when there are hard moments in a month. And taking joy in the simple things is paramount to how I want to live, making 10 things an invaluable tool for me. Here’s this month’s simple pleasures.
Things We/I Did
sometimes you just need a rest while you are walking to school…
1. Walking to School. Happy started transitional kindergarten this month and it is about a half mile from our school. While his last preschool was even closer (maybe 3/10 of a mile from us), it had a drive thru system for pick up and drop off and so walking wasn’t really an option. His new school requires parents to walk their kids into their classroom so walking isn’t a problem. And so Happy and I walk to school, and I love it. We count convertibles, city buses, school buses, ant hills, and I answer 1 million questions. We talk to the town barbers who tease him about coming to get his hair cut, the town bookseller who reminds me that I have books on hold, the men who chat outside the coffee shop, return library books, and jump puddles. Good times.
preparing for the teeth throwing
2. Lost Teeth. Happy lost two teeth (with an assist from the dentist because we had a shark tooth situation going on) and then we got to start a new tradition of throwing the lost teeth (in a little tooth pillow so I could recover later) on the roof as they do in Ethiopia.
3. The Lion King! Happy wants to be Simba when he grows up (see the photographic evidence of our lion through the years) so we just had to take him to The Lion King when it came to town. SO fun.
Eagerly awaiting the performance with a dear friend.
4. Jason Samuels Smith A.C.G.I (Anybody Can Get It) Tap Company. I LOVE dance and tapped when I was little and now Happy is taking a dance class so we decided to take advantage of this brilliant tap company’s visit to town by staying up WAY past bedtime and enjoying the show. So fantastic! About two minutes into the first performance, Happy looked at us, wide-eyed, and said, “CAN I TAP ONE DAY?” Make noise while moving your body? So Happy’s thing.
5. Soccer. Happy started his first organized team sport this month and it has been so much fun to go to his games. The spirit of the league is just right– go out there, have fun, learn some things; the other kids are adorable and their parents are great and we can really see the kids growing every week. I am a former high school soccer coach and love the sport but had opted not to coach as I thought Happy could most benefit from having someone else coach him (I still believe this) but I got called in to coach one game when Happy’s coach was sick and it was really fun– especially getting a few of the kids who had crippling stage fright comfortable on the field and actively playing. Good times.
6. Healthy. Happy. Sane Teacher. Tami and I are having a blast helping teachers create a healthier, happier, more sane lifestyle. This is absolutely work we were meant to be doing. And working with her? A blast.
7. A new Circle de Luz class! The Class of 2019 is going through the application process right now and we had so many awesome new women join us as mijas, allowing us to invite seven girls into our program. SQUEAL!
8. Circle de Luz being featured on the Melissa Harris-Perry Show. I love The Melissa Harris-Perry Show (she’s a professor at Tulane and I love the structure of her show as well as her approach) and to have them call us out of the blue and ask to feature us was like the juiciest cherry on top of a wonderful month for the important work done through Circle.
9. Good Food on Montford. I tried this Charlotte restaurant with a friend and it was delicious. Seriously, if you are local, go and get the broccoli with beer battered cheese curd. You are welcome.
10. Lucky Wheel for Friends. One night last month, I said to BF, “my favorite part of the day is the last five minutes of Wheel of Fortune.” As you might imagine, he said, “Really? Your FAVORITE part?” Yes, I was employing some hyperbole but the last five minutes of Wheel of Fortune often come just after I walk out of Happy’s room after our putting him down and it’s my little zone out moment before doing some night time chores. Anyway, while I had never played a game before on my phone, I decided to find a Wheel of Fortune type game and now I am mildly obsessed with Lucky Wheel for Friends. Mindless fun while blow-drying my hair, waiting in grocery store lines (when I get to go by myself), and before bed.
What did you love in September? What games do you play on your phone? What great dish have you enjoyed lately?
In Sept I loved taking pics with the hubby. All too often couples only have engagement pics, wedding pics and then pics with their children–as if life stops for a bit in the interim. In celebration of our third anniversary and as a reminder that we are enjoying our season without kids. I can’t ever seem to commit to a game on my phone for more than a few weeks. I do obsessively check news sites as my entertainment. A dish I’ve loved…..roasted Brussels sprouts an sweet potatoes with pancetta. It is a party in your mouth and a great way to kick off the pending season change.