Grateful Day Thirty-One

I'm so grateful to have old photos of my Grandfather reading to me. We spent a fair amount of time in my Great-grandfather's red leather chair reading. I miss my Grandfather and Nana so very much. I wish they both were here to meet the wee baby Campbell when he arrives.

Grateful Day Thirty

Jason and Persephone are the cutest cuddle buddies! Warms my heart! 

Grateful Day Twenty-Nine

I'm grateful for friends who post awesome things they know I will love to my wall. 

Grateful Day Twenty-Eight

I love a good artichoke! If I had to pick one thing I could eat every day, I might just choose an artichoke. 

Grateful Day Twenty-Seven

So very grateful to have the perfect nap buddy. I also love the way Persephone buries her face when she sleeps, it is sooooo cute! Love my little peanut! 

Grateful Day Twenty-Six

Each and every day I am grateful for our dogs! They bring so much joy to our lives. And we can't wait to see how they are with the wee baby Campbell. And now thanks to our awesome photographer, we have some spectacular photographs of our fur babies.

http://joshuaraineyphotography.com/

Grateful Day Twenty-Five

This is the dude who lives in our backyard. He was here when we bought the place. Some people think he's creepy, but we like him. I smile whenever I look out and see his stick figure body. Our backyard definitely has character. 

Grateful Day Twenty-Four

A good quote can make me smile all day long! 

Grateful Day Twenty-Three

I'm grateful we live minutes away from an area where I can see the beautiful Mt. Hood. I left the house just in time to catch the sunrise this morning. I may just have to try again tomorrow. I love the way the sun is starting to illuminate the very top of the mountain. 

Grateful Day Twenty-Two

I love wearing my Grandfather's old flannel shirts! I can't button them up at the moment, but they do a great job of keeping the baby bump nice and cozy. 

Grateful Day Twenty-One

Easy to peel fruit! Oh how I love thee! Sometimes it's the simple things that make my day.

Grateful Day Twenty

I'm grateful for random gems one finds during their day. Saw this great quote at McMenamins. It made me smile immediately! And I am always grateful to anything that can make me smile. 

Grateful Day Nineteen

Jason and I had a lovely little baby shower today. I'm so grateful to all who made it to our little party. McMenamins, The Kennedy School, was the perfect location to celebrate the wee baby L. Campbell. The Library is super cute and the food was spectacular, especially the cupcakes! 

Grateful Day Eighteen

I'm grateful to have such an awesome camera that enables me to capture magnificent photos. Granted neither myself or the camera had anything to do with the absolutely stunning sunrise, but me and the camera were lucky to have been able to snap this spectacular shot this morning.  

Grateful Day Seventeen

I'm so very grateful to have had a wonderful photographer take such great maternity photos! I was hesitant as first to have them done. I was feeling down on myself and how I looked as a pregnant woman. But I couldn't be happier with how our photos turned out. We are both so pleased that we have this time in our lives captured with beautiful photographs.

http://joshuaraineyphotography.com/

Grateful Day Sixteen

Flowers for absolutely no reason are my favorite! My Love is so sweet to me. Each and every day I'm grateful to have him in my life and heart. He is my best friend! 

Grateful Day Fifteen

Not just today, but every day, I am grateful for growth and new life. New sprouts have popped up on our Zamioculcas. I like its common name, "Zanzibar Gem." Jason gave this plant to me four years ago and it's still growing strong. Not that I have a habit of killing inside plants, but I do seem to have better luck with outside plants. I plan on transplanting this gem in to a bigger pot this spring. It needs a little more room to grow. 

Grateful Day Fourteen

I love our backyard! Some days I can't believe how beautiful it is and that I get to enjoy it every day. When our son is old enough to play in the dirt with us, I know I will only love our little piece of heaven even more. We plan to do many things with our lovely lot. I think I am most looking forward to the fruit trees we will be planting this spring. The dogs love it too! Grim has already etched out a path. There are squirrels that jump from tree to tree. And I'm pretty sure they like to mess with Grim and Persephone. Grim will sit and watch the trees and you can here the squirrels conspiring with each other. 

Grateful Day Thirteen

I so very grateful comfy pillows! This last part of my pregnancy has reignited my fatigue. If I don't take a nap at some point during the day, I feel like the shell of myself is walking around. This little guy is taking a lot out of me, but I wouldn't change a thing. He seems very happy in there. And I'm not going to complain about being able to take naps. Naps are a beautiful thing! 

Grateful Day Twelve

Not just on our wedding day, but every single day Jason looks at me like I am the most beautiful woman in the world. And I believe him without hesitation when he tells me I look beautiful and how much he loves me. How did I get so lucky to find and him be part of my life and heart?! I am incredibly lucky and our baby boy couldn't ask for a better man to be his father. 

Photo by: Joshua Rainey Photography
http://joshuaraineyphotography.com/

Grateful Day Eleven

Friends who bring over chocolate cake for no reason whatsoever, that is what I am grateful for today! Our dear friend Sean came into town to watch some football. When he arrived, he had beer for Jason and himself, and a beautiful chocolate cake for me. What a sweetheart! Now, I will not be eating the whole thing by myself, but the gesture was incredibly thoughtful. 

Grateful Day Ten

I have a hard time falling asleep at night and during my pregnancy I wake up a lot throughout the night. I am grateful that I have funny TV shows to help lull me back to dream land. I'm also so very grateful that my Love sleeps so soundly, so my late night TV habits never wake him up. I do wish I could sleep through the night the way he does, but I'm happy I have something to make me laugh during the wee hours of night. 

Grateful Day Nine

I love salads! Crisp, fresh vegetables are one of the best things in the world.

Grateful Day Eight

I grateful to have to know-how to make myself a beanie in one day. I've been teaching myself to crochet and thankfully having a blast along the way. I recently bought some books, so now I am trying out new stitches. I used a total of four different stitches to make this beanie. I love the colorful yarn too! I find crocheting to be very relaxing and productive at the same time. I'm looking forward to expanding my knowledge and creating awesome stuff for family and friends. 

Grateful Day Seven

Oh how we need the rain! So of course today I am so very thankful for the rain. We have two palm trees in our backyard and I love how droplets form on the leaves. Our backyard is full of so many magical gems! 

Grateful Day Six

Look at that face! I love my little diva so very much! For a little dog, Persephone has one big personality. She runs the house. She loves to cuddle. She has an uncanny ability to find the most comfortable spot to curl up and take a nap. 

Grateful Day Five

One of the best things to have on a cold day is a warm stew. My Love helped me prepare this most delicious lamb stew. It's getting harder for me to be on my feet for long periods of time, so I appreciate all the help I can get in the kitchen. I thoroughly enjoy preparing meals with my Love. I believe it makes the final product taste even better. 

Grateful Day Four

I've never been a big fan of chocolate milk. Even when I was a child, I was not one who was disappointed when my mom returned from the store without Nestle Quik in one of the bags. But I have new found love and appreciation for chocolate milk. I was about six months pregnant when a bottle of Cocoa Metro's Belgian Chocolate Milk caught my eye while grocery shopping. I think what sparked my interest in it at first was the tag line that ran along the top, "You can fire your therapist." Now I don't have a therapist, or even feel that I need one, but that was a pretty bold and humorous claim. The next thing that sparked my interest was the ingredient list, there were only six! I decided to try it out. After getting home, I poured myself a small glass and immediately fell in love and I finished the bottle that day. The chocolaty goodness made me smile all over. A few moments later I felt the wee baby Campbell move around, I said to myself, "I think he likes it!" Believing that my baby boy was enjoying this chocolate awesomeness as much as I was made me love it even more. Since that first experience, every time I have a glass my baby boy starts moving around shortly there after. It is primarily for that reason, I am so very grateful for my almost daily glass of Belgian Chocolate Milk. 

Grateful Day Three...Part Two

I'm grateful for the winters days that start with the sun beating through the windows and casting beautiful shadows onto the walls. Even if it's a bit chilly outside, the images that dance on the wall and the sun beams that fill up the house always make for a good start.

Grateful Day Three...Part One

During the winter in Portland, mornings can be a little foggy. One may not see many sunrises, but today is not one of those days. I watched the sun slowly rise from behind the trees in our backyard. I love how the sky fills with the most beautiful colors. I'm so grateful for the days I can watch such a magnificent start to a day.

Grateful Day Two

Today I am grateful for Grim's snout. Grim has such a big personality and his snout has one of its own. While Grim sleeps and his having what we call his "puppy dreams" his upper lip will quiver . His top lip will sometimes get hung up on one of his teeth and if it's possible Grim becomes even more adorable. He inevitably gets something stuck on his wonderful snout, like today, a pine needle found its way onto his lower lip. I love our gentle giant and his most excellent snout. 

Grateful Day One

I'm grateful that my Love takes care of the "land mines" left by Grim and Persephone in our yard. He never asks me to do it. He is such a sweetheart for doing this odious job.