Gratitude

This morning was hard. Not spectacularly, trip-to-the-ER hard, but the soul-grinding slog of Merry fighting every step of the morning routine, Bella yelling constantly for attention I couldn't give, and Pippin wanting adorably to be his own boss about every. little. thing. I was up before 6 and didn't manage to take my first blessed sip of coffee until after 9, after which things improved considerably.

But rough mornings have a nice chiaroscuro effect on the rest of the day. For one thing, after a start like that, its satisfying to look back and realize that the rest of the day went pretty well. The boys played outside 3 different times, ate healthy meals, and I even managed to give Bella a bit of avocado to experiment with. (At 4 months and as the third baby, giving her table food doesn't happen unless I have a bit of spare sanity, so that's a good sign.)

But more importantly, once the coffee starts to take effect and I finally get a second to breathe, a difficult morning only highlights how good I have it. The most I have to complain about is that my three beautiful, wonderful children drive me crazy in my nice safe house while my husband is at his job? Yeah, perspective and gratitude save the day.