Gratitude

In my old age ;o), one of the most important things that I think I have come to realize is how powerful the words that we speak are (well, that as much as our internal monologue). So much of how we see things in life or how we feel about things is a result of the things that we tell ourselves or a reflection of the words that we speak. I've heard a lot lately about people keeping gratitude journals - in which they write down things that they are grateful for everyday - and the idea is that doing so keeps your spirits high, increases your level of happiness, and some even believe that it will draw more great things your way. Whatever your belief, I think it is just important to focus on the positive and always express the things that you are grateful for in life.

I thought about this in the middle of the night last night (funny enough). Madison is just a sweetheart and is such a good baby. Dylan and I have so much to be thankful for. Because she is so good, and makes everything so easy on us in the evenings during the week (eats dinner with us, plays a little, has a bath and wants to go to bed around 7 p.m. or even before - not to mention that she goes right to sleep without a fuss when you lay her in her crib) we end up feeling like we don't get to spend as much time with her in the evenings as we would like. So, whereas frequent night wakening drains me, I have begun to look forward to the one middle of the night feeding. Last night I didn't even want to put her back in her crib after feeding her. I stood in the middle of her room holding her for quite awhile before deciding I had better get a couple more hours of sleep. So, that's that...I'm so grateful to be Madison's mommy (and Dylan's wife, of course, but most of you have heard all about that already!!).