I Am Thankful For:
Lunch with my husband and daughter
New books
A refreshing breeze
Etsy issue resolved
Weekend plans
Laughter
Cookies
My husband fixed the patio door
Family cook outs
Delicious desserts
My grandsons
Finally falling asleep
Grilled burgers
Birthday celebrations
A healthy meal plan
My son
Fruit
I Am Thankful For:
Kisses
A quiet day
The last piece of cheesecake
A new pillow
Cute little baby shoes
Yearly medical exams are over
My husband home from work trip sooner than expected
Peonies in bloom
Sunday mornings
Making travel plans
New notebooks
Phone calls from my daughter
Periwinkle nail polish
I Am Thankful For:
Sunrise
Streaming TV services
Family
Naps
Rain
Allergy medicine
Watching my husband with our grandsons
Spending time with my daughter
Cheesecake
The gift of books
A relaxing day
A pretty tea set
Big wide doggy smiles
A beautiful morning
Seeing a project come together
My husband coming home early
If you've read my One Word for 2023 post, you know that this year I decided that I will also have a word for each month. (if you haven't read that post yet - go ahead and do it now. I'll be right here when you're done)
My word for May is FOCUS.
You might recall from my May post that I had been feeling a little overwhelmed, scatter-brained, and out of sorts recently. I had a lot of trouble staying on task and accomplishing goals. It has been a real challenge for me.
Which is exactly why FOCUS made so much sense as my next Word of the month!
In April, (and even before that, if I am being honest) I struggled to find my focus. There have been so many different things calling out for my time and attention. As I spent time in the Quiet, I realized that much of the time I should be able to choose what is important to me and where I want to focus my time, attention, and efforts.
I need to narrow things down. I can't truly give my best to anything if my focus is constantly being divided between dozens of activities, projects, or goals. What is most important? Or, at the very least, what is most important at this given moment? Stay focused on that until it is complete, or until it's time has past.
I am choosing to focus on myself and my health - physical, emotional, and spiritual. Focus on my marriage. Focus on my "children" - they may be grown, but that doesn't mean they don't occasionally still need my attention, help, or support. Focus on my grandchildren. Focus on things that bring me joy. Focus on things that get me closer to who, what, and where I want to be.
Focusing on what is most important isn't easy. It's not as if all the shiny things vying for my attention have just disappeared. There will always be distractions. But I am slowly beginning to learn how to focus and tune out some of them.
Where do you focus your time, attention, and effort?
I Am Thankful For:
Baby smiles
When my order arrives sooner than expected
Pretty nail polish
Visiting with my mom
A new sewing cabinet
Texting GIFs with my sister
Changing the subject
Making a day of watching the coronation
Playing a new game with the family
Staying up late
Afternoon snacks
Thunderstorms at sunset
Good test results
A goal completed
Almond butter
Quiet evenings
I Am Thankful For:
Lunch with my daughter's family
Watermelon
Holding my grandson
A good cry
Weekend plans
Taking a day trip with my husband
Learning new things
Walking in nature
Mountain laurel in bloom
An over-the-top dessert
Rainy Sundays
May
Deep breaths
Moments of silence
Cereal
May Day! May Day!
That works both ways for me today.
Obviously, it's the first day of May - aka May Day (or Beltane).
But it is also a distress signal. And since I've been feeling a little overwhelmed, scatter-brained, and out of sorts for the past couple of weeks and didn't get far on most of my April goals I could probably use a little help!
Hopefully May will be a little slower paced and more relaxed than April was. it wasn't necessarily busy in a bad way. There was just a lot going on. And (like I mentioned before), I had a lot of trouble staying on task and accomplishing goals.
So far, it's looking good. There's not a lot on the calendar this month. We'll be celebrating Mother's Day weekend. And our son turns 25 at the end of the month. (25!? How in the world did that happen?)
I'm hoping to get in one or two weekend day trips with the Man of the House. Last weekend we spent Saturday exploring a couple of nearby Revolutionary War battle fields. We learned a few things about local history and got in some fresh air and exercise!
The "cleaning out and reorganizing my home office" saga continues. I'm still making progress. Slow, slow progress. But progress, nonetheless.
The one thing I did manage to rock in April was my reading list. I completed the entire April to list along with a couple of extras. My May reading list is short and sweet: Immortality: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz, How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix, and The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton.
My goals for May are:
