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Archive for the ‘Gratituesday’ Category

Gratituesday: Unplugging

Posted in Gratituesday on April 26, 2011| 3 Comments »

Between my laptop and my iPhone, I spend WAY too much time online and chatting it up, so I unplugged for the weekend. With very few exceptions, I didn’t call or email anyone, engage in online reading or blogging, play Words with Friends, listen to my iTunes, text, or tweet. I even managed to stay away from Facebook. It wasn’t a conscious decision, but the longer I went without engaging in those activities, the more relaxed I was. I didn’t realize how badly I needed a break!

So what did I do all weekend? I slept in, devoured a great book, planned out our summer, watched Dr. Who with my family, went thrift store shopping, enjoyed lunch with my best friend, visited the library, cuddled with my kids and hubby, and witnessed 5 baptisms at our church. The weekend was not only 90% internet and cellular free (I do run a ministry), it was fun. Now I’m all rested up and ready to face the week ahead of me. šŸ™‚

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

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Gratituesday: My Household Servants

Posted in Gratituesday on April 19, 2011| 3 Comments »

I had extra kids here for supper tonight, so I pulled out 2 electric skillets and made enough pancakes and sausage to feed a gaggle of 7-11 year olds. When we finished supper, my kiddos cleared the table and put all the sticky plates and silverware in the dishwasher. Loading or switching out the laundry is the first and last thing I do almost every day. We have a great little Keurig coffee machine that makes just one cup for the only adult in the house that drinks that stuffā€¦Benny. Iā€™m an ā€œeggs and toast for breakfastā€ kind of gal.

Washer. Dryer. Dishwasher. Coffee Machine. Toaster. Electric Skillets. These are luxuries, not necessities, but theyā€™re all servants (that do most of the work for me) that I am SO grateful to own. I have lived without every single one of these conveniences before, which reinforces the knowledge of just how spoiled I am. With the press of a button, most of these handy gadgets run themselves, leaving me time to spend with my precious family, enjoy my hobbies, or tackle the DIY jobs like scrubbing toilets. Iā€™m hoping some mom somewhere invents a machine to do that one for me too.

Being an ā€œindoorsyā€ girl, I am also appreciative of the great jobs my refrigerator and freezer do preserving our food, and the stove/oven that make it easier for me to cook. Ā I love our furnace which allows me to heat or cool our house to our desired temperature (64-68 degrees), and a shower head that I donā€™t have to hold to clean myself, but can if I want to. Then thereā€™s the large TV that entertains us for almost free, and the DVD player that is a library movieā€™s best friend. Weā€™ve come to the end, and Iā€™ve saved the hardest working servant for last, my computer that syncs with my phone. It holds my notes, pictures, and the book Iā€™m working on. It makes it possible for me to email and chat with friends that live all over the world. It holds our family calendar. It helped us design our website, and itā€™s providing a way to share these Gratituesday posts with all of you fine people. I could go on and on, but Iā€™ll leave the rest up to your imagination.

Yes, today Iā€™m thankful for my household servants and all of the modern technology that blesses my life!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

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Gratituesday: The Denver Public Library

Posted in Gratituesday, Parenting on April 12, 2011| 8 Comments »

Today Iā€™m blogging about my love for the Denver Public Library. It. Is. Awesome.

The central library is a 540,000 square foot monstrosity of ā€œpublic happiness.ā€ Designed by world-renowned architect Michael Graves, the library opened its doors in 1995. The building is a work of art, but nothing compared to the beauty it houses. Just for fun, here’s the Lego version, which we’ve seen in person. Click on the picture to visit the page where the creator posted detailed pictures:

My children and I love spending lazy afternoons perusing the shelves for our next treasured book, and reading in the pavilion. Even though the childrenā€™s wing is on the first floor, we always visit the upper floors so they can ride on the escalators. Visiting the library has been a regular occurrence since they were born, but as they grow into independent readers, our library trips have taken on a whole new dimension of fun. They love having their own library cards and checking out their own books. What do I love?

  • They have almost everything I want to read, and if they donā€™t, they will order it from another library for me.
  • The staff is always friendly and helpful.
  • Their online catalog system makes it easy to put items on hold and pick up at my convenience.
  • They email me a few days before my books are due back so I can avoid overdue fines, and they have a grace period of about a week before assessing fines, which I would never need. Ahem. šŸ˜‰
  • They have a huge selection of audio and e-books.
  • They have a great summer reading program for my kids. Last summer over 31,000 Denver area children and teens participated in the summer reading program. That doesnā€™t include the other library districts in the metro area.
  • Their kidā€™s site offers everything from homework help to book reviews on the latest new titles.

And so much moreā€¦

My library card is the key to a vault of treasure, my passport to free adventures, and one of many tools Iā€™m using to shape the young minds in my care. The Denver Public Library partners with me to pull it off, and for that I am so grateful!

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

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