Grains of Gratitude

Is it the end of April already? Wow that went by fast!

I'm grateful for...

1. The beautiful day we had last Sunday - one of those days where there is just the slightest hint of a breeze, warm enough weather, but not too warm, to enjoy the outdoors. Kayla was so excited to play with her sand/water table (minus the water). Now for a confession. We bought this for Kayla's 2nd birthday and the bag of sand to go with it. We used it during her 2nd birthday party (with the instant-snow stuff instead of sand) and she's used it with water. Last Sunday was the first time we put the bag of sand in it...the bag we bought 2 years ago! We just kept forgetting to do it. Terrible parents aren't we?





2. The nice day we had on Wednesday. We joined Jennifer and Katelyn at the library for storytime; afterwards we went to the playground for a little bit of outdoor play - which the girls loved of course! Jennifer then invited us over for lunch, which sounded like a great idea since neither of our husbands were coming home for lunch! We spent a nice afternoon at their house.

3. After the busy day we had on Wednesday I thought Kayla would take a nice, long nap after we left Jennifer's house. We got home at her nap time and she usually has no trouble at all falling asleep. That day she did, and she didn't sleep. At all. Highly unlike Kayla. So I'm grateful that she at least stayed in her bed and had "quiet time." It surprised me that she didn't get out of bed to try and play, instead she laid there trying to fall asleep, or sat there quietly playing with her baby dolls. Even though she didn't nap, I still got my downtime!

4. Joe made breakfast burritos for his squadron on Thursday morning. Of course he set one aside for me and mmmm was it good! I'm grateful there were a few left over so I could have one on Friday morning too!

5. Plan B! and sometimes even Plan C for when the unexpected happens. I've mentioned before about the clubs on base and the various functions we attend. Every month they send out a services calendar for club members with all the activities, dates, and coupons. I always look through it right away to mark down things we might go to. When I received April's calendar I immediately circled Friday, Apr 27 for the Hawaiian Luau at the O'Club...it was only $5 a person so we were going! On Friday we were meeting 2 other families there and when we pulled into the parking lot Joe commented on how few cars there were and asked if I was sure it was that night and at the O'Club. I was sure; I'd been looking forward to it all month! So we go inside only to find out it's been cancelled! We were so bummed!

Plan B! Since we were already planning on going out for dinner I suggested we just head to JR Rockers since it's a family-friendly place and just have dinner there. Jennifer headed back home to pick up her coupons for Rockers and we were going to meet them there. On our way there I realized the coupons I had were for the O'Club and we would need to go home as well. On the way home I had another idea.

Plan C! Why don't we just go to the Community Center? We could grab calzones at Oasis Pizza downstairs and head upstairs to the Kids Zone so the kids could run around and play. Bonus is we have coupons for Oasis too and I grabbed Taboo from the house so the adults could have some fun. I couldn't get a hold of Jennifer or Jim so we met them at Rockers and told them "change of plans!" Called Sue who was on her way and told her to head to the Kids Zone instead. The only thing our husbands could do was shake their heads!

6. So I'm grateful for understanding husbands who put up with last-minute changes and with spouses who are adamant about using coupons! Hey we pay a monthly fee for the club so you bet I'm going to use the coupons I get for that! And they expire at the end of the month and needed to be used anyway. It all worked out though and we had a great time, and so did the kids!

Thanks to Christine for starting the Grains post!