Grateful for the little slices of life that make up every day

A new chapter is about to start in our lives, with a huge move from New Zealand to Santa Barbara, California within the next couple of months. Time will be filled with all the logistics of moving and keeping our three children (and ourselves) as emotionally stable as possible. In the meantime, it is simpler to focus on the little slices of daily life that make us grateful.

Such as the love on a Friday of my children, no matter that my eldest was home for the week feeling below par. They all came together, over the rough and smooth, to reach the end of the week with happy hearts.

Time to take, on my own, a moment from all that is going on around. To plug in my headphones, listen to some new sounds (thanks to Shaun C Bryant) and enjoy the beauty that is on my doorstep right now. Grateful to my husband for taking care of the children, happy in the knowledge he was getting a game of football in later that day.

A Sunday morning, dark and rainy, that could easily have been spent in our own little worlds – but we came together, as a family, shut down the screens and headed out for a swim.

In the afternoon, on the tenth anniversary of our first daughter’s ‘due date’ (she ended up arriving twelve days late!), her Daddy took her to see ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, along with a good friend. They had an amazing time and she has been reading the programme from cover to cover and singing the songs with a rich-heart. Absolutely wonderful.

Monday was dark and rainy, hard to find my stride, but a Skype call home with my lovely folks, and a home made, coffee, with freshly ground beans, soon had me feeling grateful and centered.

It’s going to be a crazy time ahead, but the pieces of the jigsaw are (touch wood) fitting together with ease thus far. It’s going to be so hard to say farewell to Wellington and New Zealand. It’s been our home for over fifteen years. Thankfully, we have good friends renting our home whilst we start our new adventure and the ease of keeping in touch makes everything a little easier.

Having this blog to look back on, which I started ten years ago – on the birth of my first daughter, is a huge treasure to be grateful for. I’ve sat up late so many nights, typing down the memories, storing the photographs, savouring the highs and reflecting on the lows. Those hours have kept me sane, connected me to wonderful, inspiring, creative and uplifting people, have given my children so much pleasure to look back on and helped my husband and I remember (especially when our minds have felt the effect of sleep deprivation!).

This post I’m linking up with Simone – of ‘Greatfun4kids’ – who has started a new linky, called ‘The Grateful Project’. Please pop over and take a look. Joining in has definitely helped life me out of the doldrums on a wet, wintery day! xx