A Post on Gratitude

Source: Posters-for-Good.Tumblr.com

We've had quite a week here at Casa McMillen. Poor Sammy boy came down with RSV. Luckily, he is on the mend, but we've been through sleepless nights and a 4-hour trip to the Children's Hospital ER. We thought he had pneumonia, given his shortness of breath and high - and when I say high, I mean HIGH (read: 103.7, 104.1, and 106) temperatures - but luckily, it was "just" RSV.

This whole episode reminded me of a quote/saying that I saw once on a t-shirt - "Too Blessed to be Stressed". I think it's actually the title of a song, perhaps? Anyway, it's a little cheesy, but I like the overall sentiment.

It's been a tough week, but we are still so grateful for many things. Our child was sick, and we were able to put him in our nice car and drive him to a relatively nearby hospital, where he was treated by trained, professional staff. We were able to pick up his prescription for $10 at a pharmacy that's exactly 3 minutes from our house, by car, and were able to treat him and help him feel better, all in the comfort of our nice house. We have so much to be thankful for when you think about it. The resources that we have available to us are astounding when you think about how most of the world operates.

With that, I say "happy Monday"!

Lynne

Oink! Oink!

Well, I don't know if I should admit this, but I had to pull out the "show me how the piggies eat" trick at the dinner table the other night. With Sam, of course. He would not go near his broccoli and we wanted for him to at least take a few bites before finishing dinnertime. We tried pretending that we were giants eating trees - nothing. We tried bribing him with the promise of extra play time with train set - didn't buy it. So....I pulled out the piggie card. And guess what? That boy ate all of the broccoli on his plate, and some off of mine. Score! My proudest parenting moment? Maybe not, but hey, it worked.

How do you get your kids to eat their veggies?! I'm all ears...

~Lynne

P.S. - Here's the scene from "A Christmas Story" that set the standard..

Happy 2012!

I hope your holidays were great. I had several vacation days left going into December, so I gladly used that time to stay home and bake holiday treats for neighbors/friends, organize the ol' casa, and spend some QT with the Mr. and Sam. The simple life.

Speaking of simple, I came across this picture on, where else ?, Pinterest and it stopped me in my tracks.

http://wenvrsleep.tumblr.com/page/4

How hysterical is this image? I love that she's toting around these adorable babes in hamper-like baskets. She looks so happy and worry-free. I feel like images of today's moms (especially moms of multiples) portray frenzied, stressed-out moms attached to every known tech device out there. It's a sign of the times for sure, but I have to wonder if moms of yore had the same worries/stresses that we do. Or did they just roll with the punches and enjoy life for what it was? Or am I reading too much into this one image? Probably. :)

Regardless, this, coupled with the recent downtime/family time, makes me want to set a resolution for 2012. Drumroll....seek out the simple. Make a concerted effort to enjoy my family on my days off, without the many distractions available to us. Don't get me wrong, we're not living in a cave here, but it's amazing what putting away the computer and the phone will do. Here's to fewer distractions and more living in 2012!

Cheers,
Lynne


P.S. - Re: the pic - I am honestly not sure who this woman is/was and who took the picture so apologies for no artist/subject credits!