Good Things

The every day things are really what keep life good. Lately, our days have been really full with projects around the house and Adam helping with various activities in the school auditorium. Despite our busy schedules, we fit in fun family activities wherever we can, whether it's taking a walk, cooking together, or playing the Wii.

A couple weeks ago, Autumn and Emily came over to enjoy an evening of playing "Just Dance" with us as Ashton watched from his bouncer. The look on his face tells all...We couldn't stop laughing and I'm still amazed at how well Damon does on the song "Jerk It Out".

Damon's been learning a lot about nutrition at school. For one of his homework assignment we made bread and talked about the importance of eating grain and how it gives your body energy. We had a lot of fun, it was worth the clean-up.

It's a lot of little things throughout the day that make all the hard work worth it. We don't have a lot of big events the happen in our family--no big, glamorous vacations, no pricey nights out--just us spending time together doing things that are not out of the ordinary, but are extraordinary none-the-less.

As Ashton gets bigger, he puts a smile on my face more and more. We've been trying to enjoy the warm weather lately by taking walks almost every day. Damon loves these outings and keeps me reminded that we need to go until we load up and head out. Ashton, of course, isn't so vocal, but he gets a big smile on his face when I strap him into the stroller and spends the whole time sticking his cute little bald head out the side so he can watch the ground go by. I love that something as simple as that can fill his small world with wonder. 

He certainly fills my own days with wonder and quite a few smiles.

Ashton's recently decided he's too big for his bouncer. The other day when I tried to put him in there for just a couple of minutes, he refused by lifting his feet way up in front of his as I lowered him toward the seat. I tried, retried, and re-retried to get him in there properly before I finally just plopped him in the seat bum first and let him play with his feat while I quickly washed and dried my hands. Surprisingly, he thought it was really funny and I got a kick out of watching him entertain himself. It's still bringing a smile to my face as I think about it. 

 

Here are a couple more things that have brought smiles to my face over the last little while. They are only a tiny fraction of the everyday things that make life happy and worth it.

Ashton love the piano, I've resorted to letting him play between my feet as I teach lessons instead of allowing him to sit on my lap. Not only are his hands too busy and quick to deal with while I'm trying to play the piano, they are even worse because loves to try and play too. If I pin his hands down, he'll stretch his little feet as far as they'll go so he can plunk whichever keys his toes can possibly reach. Needless to say, he's super distracting and too cute to get mad at. So, I put him between my legs in order to keep track of him and then he's somewhat satisfied playing with the pedals while I'm plunking away. I just have to remember he's there so I don't smash his fingers between the pedals and floor.

 
On the right is a picture of Ashton in his new shoes. He thought they were pretty cool and spent several minutes checking them out, trying to figure out what they were for.

Deanna stopped by on her way through Beaver. We got pizza and went to the park. The kids enjoyed the swings the most. Here Molly and Ashton got to know each other while they shared a swing. Aren't they cute. I was actually surprised they were okay with the close proximity to one another.

Every day there is something that reminds me to be happy and helps me to see my blessings more clearly. I am definitly blessed, and there are plenty of things in my life to bring joy.