With all of the crazy things happening all around the globe, it’s easy to get downtrodden. It’s easy to feel despair. It’s easy to feel like it all hope is gone. I caught myself feeling a little down, but this last week’s Come Follow Me (which is a spiritual lesson manual for my church) lesson focused a lot about having the strength to keep the faith when faced with adversity. I realized that for me, at least, this meant to search out the little things that give me joy. Take note of the simple things that make me happy. Feel thanks for the wonderful things in my life. I found that the pictures I’ve taken this past week kind of centered around those wonderful things, which is a great visual reminder that I can go back to look at whenever I want. What a blessing!!
Last Sunday was Mother’s Day. I’m so grateful for beautiful flowers (and yummy chocolate)…I’m also grateful for a husband who takes note of the other little things that bring me joy (like earrings and a new phone charger so that I don’t have to go aaaallll the way upstairs to charge my phone) ;). A dear family friend also sent along a fun cookbook that has simple recipes in it that make it possible for me to have the kids in the kitchen with me. I’m looking forward to cracking that sucker open!“My mom is 5 years old. She has brown hair and brown eyes. My mom is funny when she silly face. I love to play hide and seek with my mom. She is really good at making noodles. My mom’s job is to make food. The thing she says a lot is good night (😂). When I am at school, my mom have a great day. I love my mom because she loves me. And I know she loves me because (blank). If I could get her a gift, I would get her a shopping list (🤣). I love you, Mom! Love, Abigail.”“My favorite thing to do with my mom is to joke around with her. My mom is really good at cooking. My mom always tells me that I am smart and kind. My mom makes me bacon spaghetti. I love my mom because she makes us good food and she loves me and my family.”New earrings are a little thing (both literally and figuratively) in my life that make me happy. 🙂So are photo-bombing ten-year-olds. 😉These are two not-so-little things that bring joy to my life. Their relationship is a little thing that makes me immensely happy. I’m so grateful for the love they have for each other.Plants are a little thing in my life that bring me joy. Abigail planted a bean in this cup at school and recently brought it home. It’s been fun watching it grow!Cactus blossoms are another little thing that bring me happiness. They don’t bloom for very long, so it’s a lucky thing to get to spot them.I’m grateful for a body that works! I’ve been trying to be better to my body (choose better food to eat and getting more exercise). It’s hard on hot days (as is evident in this very sweaty selfie), but it’s very worth it!Can you spot the little thing in this photo that brought me joy? It’s not the little face on the left (though she brings me tons of joy)……it’s this tiny grasshopper! He was so itty-bitty that I almost missed seeing him. He was crawling right toward a spiderweb, so I used a stick to shoo him off. He jumped off the pole and onto my glasses! I carefully took my glasses off and put them close to the ground so that he could hop off.Fresh jelly (the recipe calls it jam because it’s made from fruit instead of fruit juice, but the consistency and texture are definitely more jelly-like) and fresh rolls are two more little things that bring me joy.Watching her imagination explode while playing brings me so, so, so much joy. 🙂She made me a “cake”. 🙂She had to put it on a “stand” and add “candles”. One final little thing that makes EVERYBODY happy is homemade cookies in the cookie jar. 😀 This was the cookie jar that was in my house growing up (my mom sent it home with me one year), so that’s a little nostalgic thing that brings me great joy, too.
