Living Lovely With Family

{A day late but I really wanted to participate!}

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Mt. Hope Chronicles

The topic was: "What you do (hope to do in the future, have done in the past, or remember from your childhood) to make daily connections and memories with your family?"

Growing up, we always had dinner together and my mother made wonderful meals, including dessert and fresh ice tea, practically every day until we moved out! She was always home when I got home from school, too, eager to hear my latest news and funny stories. Even in my early college years, she waited excitedly for my return home to hear a good story! We took regular summer vacations together as well, which were always a bonding experience, whether good or bad!

Now I've been married for 6.5 years and have a three-year-old son and have tried to follow my mother's lead in many ways, although our lifestyle dictates that we have to do some things differently. I do take as many opportunities as possible to make memories with "my boys" and especially my son, whether it's just a trip to the zoo, a day at the park or getting a special treat at the store.

One of my new favorite rituals is saying our prayers together at night, especially stating what we're thankful for. I think it's a wonderful way to end the day and it's very interesting to hear what our son is thankful for, from Popcicles to the neighbor's dog to 'Thomas the Tank Engine' to apple juice! I hope to instill in him that "attitude of gratitude" and implant the idea in his mind the God likes to hear that we appreciate the blessings He gave us that day.

The current focus in my on-going pursuit of mindful living (as many of you are doing, undoubtedly), is spending quality time together a a family in the evenings.

When evening arrives and my 8-months pregnant body is exhausted and my husband arrives home from work or church (also exhausted), it's tempting to rush through dinner then park it on the couch for the evening, repeatedly telling our son to, "Go play!"

It feels soooo good to do something as a family instead and when we "force ourselves" to do it, we're always glad we did.

This jaunt to the park with a kite early in the week had us all running and laughing and even afforded us a visit with a favorite neighbor.



I posted more pictures

HERE

Now we've just got to keep this family time a top priority and remind ourselves that even the most mundane activities can be exciting when we do them as a family.