"Let's Get It on Bars"

I wanted to share this: Luke was very proud of this cake.  He was so proud of it that he came home, took my camera and went back to work to photograph this. With a Luke as a baker you get his talent for baking and pastry AND his sense of humor!!*****


I just loaned out Brene Brown's new book Daring Greatly to a friend.  I am of the belief a book like that should be shared and shared and shared and shared and shared and shared and shared x 10,000. This is BY FAR in my top 5 favorite quotes from the book. It is about parenting, vulnerable leadership, and seeing potential. In this quote Brene pretty much highlights my exact perspective on parenting:

“Raising children who are hopeful and who have the courage to be vulnerable means stepping back and letting them experience disappointment, deal with conflict, learn how to assert themselves, and have the opportunity to fail. If we’re always following our children into the arena, hushing the critics, and assuring their victory, they’ll never learn that they have the ability to dare greatly on their own.”

Here is a photo of Shyla having a moment of disappointment this morning.  I don't even remember what she was upset at me for (clearly it was THAT important).  I was too tired to really deal with it.  Anyway,  she just gave methis look and then turned her back at and buried her head in her blanket and started crying...loud...REAL loud.  I just sat there for 15 minutes while she pulled herself together.  And then she looked at me and goes "Mooo."  So I guess she got over that. *****

Showing up is another gift in my life I have been contemplating.  As things have been challenging at work, a coworker of mine's father recently passed away this week.  While I was not able to go to the funeral, I did go to the after-funeral gathering.  My coworker asked "are you just dropping by or are you staying?", as she opened the door.  "I am staying, " I said.  We looked at some photos of her father and mother and talked about healing after times of loss, the season's of our lives that we go through that are hard, and how we need the little things to get through the crappier deck that life hands us.  If it is lunch at a cafe, a pumpkin latte, a book of quotes you keep in your bag, photo dates and deep talks over coffee with your best friends, the little gifts of joy matter.  I have been known to put Steering Wheel Affirmations on my car when experiencing a rough day in the field.  If you take the time to give your life a little glimpse of light, it makes the healing a bit more bittersweet.   I gave her a hand-made coffee sleeve from Foundation Grounds and told her to take some time for herself before dealing with the matters at work.  It was in this moment that showing up and staying feels so worth it.  Sometimes and most times showing up...and staying is all that matters....and really isn't that what most people want ...just your presence.

Marissa's daughter, Ainslee, was playing in her 3rd soccer game (the first two of course I had to miss) of the season.  After a very, very long week at work watching, a 5th grader's soccer game and celebrating another child's accomplishments felt fantastic.  I remember being in dance recitals as a kid and having my cousin's, sister, aunt, or uncle show up to those and feeling like gold.  Ainslee played so well last night.  You could tell she was proud of herself. and accomplishments. It was fun to sit with my friend and her family, celebrating her daugther, who is notoriously shy, overcome her own fears and anxieties by, making the choice to show up to a soccer field and play with her whole heart.  What if we gave the gift of "showing up" with our whole hearts more often?  Would we be happier people?  What if we made the effort to show up for more of he little things in our friend's lives?  Would our relationships be more meaningful and deep?******

It was such a beautiful day in St. Louis that Shyla and I took a walk down to Foundation Grounds to get our favorite cookie: Vegan Molasses Cookies.  They had ONE of my favorite Kombucha flavors in stock: the lavendar kombucha and of course Shyla's chocolate milk.  Here are some photos from that experience:

And finally, I took my steering wheel affirmation out of my car this week and photographed it.  It seems that most of my steering wheel affirmations have to do with the book or theme of my photos for the week.  This one was mine.

And on the note of daring greatly.  I have been very encouraged to begin looking at ways to step out of my comfort zone and embrace new opportunities this week!  I have been so excited about all the possibilities that exist to make this life full and joyous.