Let me go ahead and spell it out for you. I did not like today. It was hard, tiring, frustrating, and really tested my patience. Makenzie woke up almost two hours early and remained super cranky throughout the entire day. The one day this week I hoped to have time to get things accomplished vanished before my eyes. I was in one of my hormonal induced moods and felt angry and stressed. Good thing Ashley from Nourishing the Soul helped squelch all that. She has started a special Blogger Series called Self Discovery: Word by Word which features a different word and topic each month for anyone around the blogging world to share. Check out the link for details on how to participate!

When Ashley contacted me, asking for my participation, I gladly accepted. I originally intended to do a more thorough discussion of the topic and something more profound. Well, I needed a dose of gratitude and perspective today. I just needed a reminder! I usually do a good job keeping things in check on my own, but I’m only human and some days I need a little help. Today I choose to listen to my gut. Instead of a more analytical and inspiring post, I will simply write what I need to remember – all the things which deserve my gratitude.

Despite her keeping my hands more full than usual today, I still could not imagine my life without her. She never fails to make me laugh. She gives my life purpose. And I am also so thankful that I have the blessing to stay home with her. I know how truly lucky that makes me.

You all know I love fall. Being able to enjoy the outdoors and see scenes like this deserves gratitude. Life is too wonderful to pass it by without taking a second look at our surroundings.

While at the park with friends, which I am also thankful for, I even recognized that I have gratitude for nasty public restrooms. I originally took this picture to gripe about “hover worthy” restrooms at parks. How about I appreciate the fact I have such luxuries as running water, plumbing, electricity, etc? After all, without electricity I would not have been able to easily whip up these….

Pumpkin Nutella Oats. I know my Twitter pals loved the idea of this one. 😉 Now looking at this picture I don’t simply see a delicious bowl of food for breakfast. I also see food. In abundance. I have easy access to food, which is more than many in the world can say. How thankful I should be for that!

I almost didn’t work out this afternoon thanks to stress. Then, I decided I need to show gratitude to my body for all it can do and treat it with respect. I know it longs for activity when I feel this way and I always feel better afterwards. So I did some TurboKick again. Today was no different and I’m so thankful to my body for taking care of me, my baby, and knowing just what to do at all times.

Most importantly, I need to show gratitude to God. Without Him, my life would likely still resemble a shattered mirror broken across the floor and trampled over by my own insecurities and doubts. He saved me and continues to save me. He loves me and gives me peace every time I open my heart to Him in prayer. No matter what inappropriate words may have left my mouth moments before. 😉

Blessing surrounds us and we need to walk into its sweet embrace every day. Some days prove more difficult than others. Believe me, I know. However, if we take a second look at things and pause to breathe, we often find beauty that leaves us with nothing but gratitude. I started my day overwhelmed with annoyance. I will end it overwhelmed with gratitude.

***Ashley’s post on gratitude today really inspired me. She discussed how it creates a new reality and even the smallest things deserve our gratitude. Katie wrote how sharing gratitude helps you feel it more strongly yourself. I highly recommend reading both of these amazing posts from these beautiful women.***

• What are YOU thankful for today? Small or large…it all counts!

I’m crossing my fingers this Monday continues to go better than last Monday. I still have a ton on my plate, per the usual Monday routine, but I think the morning set my day off right. I heard pitter patter pitter patter on the roof. I love rainy mornings!

I especially love rainy mornings that involve a cup of coffee and a cozy breakfast of PB Banana Waffles.

And I really, really love rainy mornings that include special coffee. Pumpkin spiced coffee, to be exact.

I used Mama Pea’s homemade Spiced Pumpkin Latte recipe to create a “best part of waking up” morning. Thank you, Mama Pea!!! 

After such a calm and pleasurable morning, I braced myself to head out for groceries in the rain. But you know what? It stopped! Don’t you just love when things like that happen? So, I headed out to do one of my least favorite errands. Yes, you read right. I do not like grocery shopping. It’s such a hassle to go with Makenzie. I always end up forgetting something and have to go back. I can’t just peruse and buy fun items with our budget. I don’t get to shop at a Trader Joes or Whole Foods or other store that excites me. I do a mix of Walmart shopping and Kroger shopping, depending on the product and prices. Yet another reason why I make a better healthy living as a whole blogger and not a food blogger.

Speaking of food bloggers, have you all been checking out the Project Food Buzz entries? These people inspire me! One of my future goals is to become more creative in the kitchen and try out more new recipes. I say a future goal, because right now it is simply not feasible. My palate right now has trouble deciding what tastes good. I fear trying new recipes and thinking I hate them when in reality its just my pregnant picky taste buds not playing nice. So right now, I will stick to our veggie + pasta/rice bowls, sandwiches, old stand by favorites, and anything else tossed together with little thought. It may put me in a bit of a food rut, but for the time being it suits me.

• How do you like to spend rainy days?
• Do you like grocery shopping? What errand do you hate?
• Do you ever feel like its better to hold off on trying new things like I’m doing with building my recipe repertoire? Or do you tend to just dive in?