Thankful Thursday

 Thankful Thursday time! It's been months and nothing has really changed; I never imagined any of this (pandemic for a year)  happening. Let me just share some photos of things that we have been up to...

This week I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday Fall Edition

 Hi friends! Wow, so I  was a faithful blogger for about ten years and then took a break while going back to work teaching. Every time I log onto here to update it in some way, the platform/dashboard is so different and I feel myself aging rapidly. I do love having updates here for several reasons:

1. I love seeing what we were doing so it is easier to make our photobooks.

2. If anything ever happened to me, my kids would have a record of sorts. That said, I am really trying to limit personal information about them because, well, the Internet is a wild place and I want their consent on all I post.

Well, it's Thursday so you know what that means: Thankful Thursday. This is what I am thankful for this week:

Thankful Thursday: Pandemic Edition

Hello friends! I wasn't going to post because I feel with social media everyone knows how I'm doing but then I realized, this time is a once in a lifetime and perhaps my kids will want to read back on what life was like. COVID-19 has shut down our schools, non essential businesses and travel and has had us in our homes for nearly two weeks already. Canada has just under 4,000 confirmed cases (with 659 in BC) and we're hoping flatten the curve. We did go to Ucluelet at the start of Spring Break but did not leave the car on the ferry and only visited beaches in Uclulet/Tofino. We have been going for walks as a family each day but definitely adhering to social distancing rules of 2 m between us and others. We have not had anyone in our home in almost 2 weeks. We have yet to visit the grocery store so we're getting to some interesting meals with those cans of artichokes we have.

Alongside the anxiety, fear and sadness have been peace and gratefulness. So many of our loved ones are out there working in healthcare and here we sit at home. Yes, balancing the kids' needs with our own may be hard, but if we just stay home we will be okay!

What am I grateful for in this time?

Thankful Thursday

Hello, friends! Welcome to 2020. I wrote a post about my highlights from the last decade and my hopes for the next (health and financial freedom). I hope your start to the year has gone well. Here in the Lower Mainland we are looking at a forecast full of snow which we have yet to see this winter so it is kind of exciting.

Here are some things I am thankful for over the past week (and going back into the holidays we had). My goal for the winter break was rest. I was quite sick going into it and it took the full two weeks to get my energy back. This week I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

Good morning, friends! Thank you for checking out this space which is not getting the time that it used to. Purposefully. Instagram and Facebook have taken over the role of connecting with others and recording memories for me in a way. Also, going through my priorities (have you read "Essentialism"?), this was one area where I had to let things go when I went back to work. However, I will not let this blog go completely as it is a big part of my life; a journal of sorts of the years and a place to connect, share and grow.

What are some things that I am grateful for today?

Thankful Thursday

Hi friends! It's Thankful Thursday time. I had a rough month with an ulcer and minor concussion (warm-up spiked volleyball to the side of the head unexpectedly...not an exciting story) but I am on the mend. Gary and I had been doing so well running in the morning but when I was sick we got up early and walked and talked–still a great start to the day. We just started running again yesterday.  

Here are some things that I am thankful for today:

Thankful Thursday

Good morning! I love Thursday mornings only because this semester I have the morning off to get all the things done (laundry, cleaning, errands)–so nice to have alone time. I love October and the fall leaves; I wish the beauty of fall remained all through November.

I've been thinking a lot about my lifestyle...I am a very productive, efficient and passionate person and to some it comes across as stressed (as I've been told). I am actually not stressed, I'm just balancing full days with kids and a job and I'm not worried about it. I don't want anyone to think that I'm not enjoying my life, I truly am. Is it busy? Yes. Am I always running here or there? Yes. Do I take time for myself each and every day? Yes (6-7 am). I wonder if we saw a productive, efficient and passionate man if they would be told the same thing? Anyway, on to my thankfulness for the week.

 Here are the things I am grateful for this week:

Thankful Thursday

Oh do I love thanksgiving weekend! It's not necessarily the family gatherings (we're fortunate to get two with both sides of our family around), it's that:

1. It's a long weekend! If you're a teacher and made it to Thanksgiving weekend, you get a breather!

2. The fall leaves are incredibly gorgeous and the crisp air is invigorating.

3. I love gratitude.

Here are some things I am thankful for in the past week:

Thankful Thursday

I probably should make a new Thankful Thursday cover photo.

With the second week of school/work almost under our belts I have to say we are doing okay! The early morning starts (6am) for Gary and I definitely make a world of difference. I mentioned it last week but getting up before the kids to exercise, shower and have coffee makes us much nicer parents and people. Our kids never used to sleep in until 7 am so this is a great new routine. All right, what am I grateful for this week?

I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

Happy first week back to school! I realize this isn't the case for anyone but it definitely is in this family with three kids in three different schools (primary, middle and high) and two teachers. One thing I have been doing each morning is some brief journaling of my stresses and gratitude's (which I'll talk about below) and I'd really encourage you to try it out if you think it would be helpful. It only takes about two minutes/day and I feel it really helps to reset and focus.

Being that it's Thursday it's time to share my thankful list of the week! I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

Hello and thank you for checking this space out once again. I have been here since 2006–13 years, isn't that wild? While I blog only once a week at most now, I do value this space and the community it has allowed me to have. I'm curious how going into another school year teaching will affect Talk Nerdy to Me but I plan to keep updating as I'm able.

All right, after a busy summer, this is what I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

I am feeling a lot of feelings these days.

Who am I kidding, I always am. Along with the relief of summer holidays and being able to sort of sleep in, there are feelings of nervousness regarding our upcoming trip–how do I fully prepare for three weeks in Europe? Will it cost more than predicted? There are also feelings of frustration as I really wish my body was 100% healthy to do all the activities I would like but my foot still needs to be treated with great care and my weight is at a all time high (other than pregnancy). My kids seem to enjoy arguing with each other yet needing to be right next to one another which brings on some "wonderful feelings" Finally, there are ants in our home and a rat in our backyard which is just annoying. So, there's a broad range of feelings, time to focus on what I'm thankful for this week:

Thankful Thursday: I Finished a Year of Teaching Again!

I am proud of myself. 

Thankful Thursday: End of School Edition

Today is the last day of school for my kiddos! We did it. Phew. The main "work" of it all is just the organization–from agendas to field trip forms to birthday parties to band concert information that comes home in that backpack every day, it's a full time management job. Let's take a quick look at the growth (physical and otherwise) this year for each kid. Please note that I'm mostly focusing on the positive. This is not because my kids are perfect but I don't want to embarrass them publicly.

Last day of school!

Thankful Thursday

Good morning! I'd say I've been slacking in the blogging department but when it's a choice of time allotment, it could be said that it's more about managing priorities. I love this space for connecting with others (I've learned so many things!) and for a record of our memories.  So along with this space, here are some other things I am thankful for this week:

Thankful Thursday

Okay, so this past week was a doozy. I don't share extended family stuff here often because this is a public space (as is the Facebook page) but it's been an emotionally exhausting week. It looks like all will be okay in the near future which I realize is so vague. Unfortunately, being that it was so stressful and busy I ended up catching a cold. I know it's not a big deal at all but when trying to parent and teach, I feel so exhausted and just want to lay in bed. Oh well, the weekend is soon and I may be able to rest!

What am I thankful for this week other than the slow return to health for extended family members? I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

My sisters often make fun of me (in a mostly loving way) for being emotional. I actually don't cry a lot but I definitely tear up when someone shares something happy or sad with me. That said, I am feeling a lot of emotions lately with work and our schedules and family etc. and found myself crying today. This is all vague but I guess what I'm getting at is that May can be a tricky month for me to begin with and then throw in the wildest of schedules and uncertainty with what the fall looks like and change and relationships, there's just a lot to juggle. So, here we go taking a deep breath and focusing on what I am grateful for amongst these big feelings...

This week I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

Hello friends! On Tuesday it was the anniversary of my mom passing away. I had written something (a rough draft) but did not publish it. I may re-work it, we'll see. It was about a card I asked my mom to write for Kai's first birthday because she wouldn't be there for it. Spoiler alert: she never wrote in it. Not sure how this is in any way a segue to a Thankful Thursday post but just filling you in on life.



So, although this week is not my favourite, here are some things I am thankful for today.

Thankful Thursday

Hello, friends! I do want to say a big "thank you" for checking out this space. I know it's not all that exciting anymore (yup, really pumping it up!) but it's our life and I'm thankful to have it documented. I have had some insightful pieces over the years and I'm grateful for this space and all those that have been a part of it. So, what am I thankful for today?

This week I am thankful for:

Thankful Thursday

The one thing I really want to write about is my foot. Yes. I will probably do a separate post on it in case someone else suffers from plantar fasciitis, but wow, what a process. I don't do injuries well. Four months ago I started having chronic pain in my foot (I've always struggled with fallen arches) which I later learned was plantar fascisstis. I have tried to be patient and do all I was supposed to in order to heal (massage, icing, cast at night, orthotics, podiatrist, meds etc) and it took soooooooooooooooooooo long. However, I was given the "go ahead" to run this week and run I did. I'm "only" doing 3 km each time but it feels very good to get going again. It is still only at about 85% but I'll take it. Getting older is hard, friends!

So, here we go with my Thankful Thursday. This week I am thankful for: