11/22/2014

DD

1. That everywhere I look, there are things and acts of grace I can be grateful for
2. My mug has a Lapa on it now
3. Vinegar is so useful for everything from washing veggies, laundry, pickling, etc.
4. People are interested in my cooking
5. Running into Helene and remembering her class

MM

• Hot tub and swimming at the Meadows with hubby
• Dinner at the Lounge
• Kids this morning were jumping all over, so excited, laughing and screaming with delight

LL

• Um, I had something...??

11/21/2014

DD

1. Black Friday purchases early on Amazon. Thanks for the gifts I can give people without feeling cheap.
2. Getting paid from Kindle from book sales
3. I have many avenues of income today, even though not a single one could pay all of my bills.
4. Time to find my center
5. Space heater
6. My black and white laserjet printer -- it's been so awesome. Definitely a good purchase.
7. Ability to count my steps through my iPhone. After all, it's on me all the time
8. Over ninety days of writing a poem each day.
9. Being able to save money to Betterment
10. Aspen
11. My kids
12. My husband, the one who has pinned down all of the enchanting pieces to my castle I call home--but who is really "home" to me.

MM

• Jackie
• Evening backgammon and fun with hubby last night.
• My best friend who helped me forget a lot, is now a stranger. It's a good thing because this best friend was a bottle of wine. I found a better substitute in real friends.
• At a time in my life when I really didn't think I was a part of anything, at the cusp of becoming a teenager as a foreigner still to the US, I deeply wanted to be so much a part of the community that when walking down the street, someone would recognize me, pull up and offer to give me a ride. Especially in the middle of winter and when I had far to go. I've had that offer come three times during the last month alone and until I thought about it, hadn't appreciated it. Now I walk for exercise or sometimes catch a free Aspen bus, have my own car if I chose to drive, and each time declined gratefully because it was my choice to be walking around in the cold. What a beautiful life it has turned out to be.

LL

• Remembering what you once dreamed of that you now have is a nice exercise. But remembering that you have always had it, is not a mere exercise. It is the key to life.

DD, MM, & LL 11/20/2014

Daily Dozen

1. Beautiful rug, couch and king sized bed, our recent acquisitions
2. The heating in the house is pretty good
3. I get to work from home today
4. Opportunities that are always available under my nose
5. My kids are growing bigger, smarter, taller, and keep getting more interesting
6. iPhone is useful in so many ways
7. Arslan just woke up, got up to pee, then crawled into my lap
8. Got some awesome watercolor paint
9. Cold weather - when properly prepared, cold weather is such an important and nice part of the seasonal cycle. The hibernation, the long dark hours, the bracing cold are outward examples of how emotional states and cycles of life are normal and cyclical.
10. Vacuum cleaners
11. Food, glorious food
12. Dietbetter.com has made my weight loss goal a reality. I wasn't going to lose my hard-earned money over my own laziness to do something good for myself. That's just all kinds of wrong! So with money on the line, I've been working out, eating smart, and have lost 18 lbs in the last 3 months. Yay!

Magic Moments

• There are some beautiful rock formations on the drive to Grand Junction and around Western Slope of Colorado. I took some photos.
• When I was tempted to drink beer, my husband drank it. I didn't have to be tempted anymore.
• Walmart gave us refund for the broken plastic boxes we ordered. They arrived broken. This gave me the opportunity to buy some nice gloves and hats. So nice and warm!

Lessons Learned

• It's harder to distract myself when I write down everything I want to do, before I do it. This eliminates an impulse to surf for information I don't need, and forces me to notice my habits.
• Always buy from Dick Blick or a small local art supplier stores, never from Hobby Lobby (75%-125% markup)
• Tying money consequences to my regualr

DD, MM, & LL 11/3/2014

Daily Dozen - Dozen things I'm grateful for

1. My husband - willing to go along with my ideas and plans
2. Arslan, my bright star
3. Tamir, my gentle giant still only 2
4. Vitamins available at my disposal
5. Losing weight even when I'm trying to be extravagant on calories
6. Computer that is lasting (knock on wood)
7. Poems everyday for 73 days in a row
8. Ability to create and celebrate my new habits - which means I can change my destiny
9. Realizations that hit me everyday
10. Hot water and tea bag - those ingredients make my favorite drink these days
11. Gray haired husband on Halloween was a turn on. I think he will age well. ;-)
12. 30/30 app

Magic Moments - So I can capture the best of life

• Putting on name labels on the children's clothes (because their shirts, sweaters, and pants kept disappearing at school) made me realize how easy it was to pick up needle and thread, to sew up some holes they also had. It felt so good to have longstanding rip in Tamir's pants that came from Thailand last winter, that alerted me to its presence when Tamir's thing popped out of it in public -- resulting in fits of laughter from all corners, that stayed in those pants for half a year ... finally got sewn up!
• Found the Spanish Animals book. It was missing for a couple of weeks
• The new couch and rugs look fantastic. I'm still reveling in how awesome our house looks, and all were given to us free. Including our king sized bed that lets me sleep divinely.

Lessons Learned

• If I want my schedule to work, I need to communicate in advance with Gabriel. Whoever speaks up and plans first usually gets to play.
• Gabriel has as much right to his fun, his way of spending time as I do. It's not for me to judge whether my way of spending time is "more productive" or "better" somehow. I'm presumptuous to actually think that.