10 Things That Make Me Happy

This list was inspired by Mama Kat's Writing Prompts.

10 Things That Make Me Happy

1. Being a mother (most of the time)
2. Realizing that my best years are ahead of me
3. Being able to accept who I am
4. Discovering that it is never too late
5. Opening my eyes each morning
6. Running 5 miles in less than an hour
7. Glass of shiraz with havarti cheese
8. Reading right before bed
9. Chai tea latte from Cafe Moka
10. Cooking for people I love

Friday's Top 10

Today's writing prompt from Mama Kat:

List 10 Things You Never Knew Until You Were a Mom:

1. How to function on no sleep. Before I had children I slept really well. And whenever I wanted to. When the babies came, I tried to sleep when they slept. Now that they are older, if they're not in the house, I don't sleep. I miss sleep.

2. How to turn hot dogs and macaroni into a meal. I think hot dogs and macaroni are gross but it's a quick, cheap hot meal that my kids used to love.

3. A baby won't die from crying for too long. I was never one of those mothers who had to run to my kid everytime he cried. At least not once the second one came along. And mothers who do ... drive me crazy. If they are dry and full, let 'em cry. It opens up the lungs.





4. Boxes that toys come in are much more fun than the actual toys.

5. How to plunge a toilet. Gross.





6. How painful hearing the words, "I hate you" from a two-year old can be.

7. Just because someone needs a hot meal doesn't mean I have to cook it.

8. The benefits of Benadryl. It ain't just for colds.

9. How awesome a hug can be. I gave birth to two of the best huggers in the world. A day doesn't go by that I don't give or receive a hug.

10. Unconditional love.

Happy Friday and have a great weekend.

I Thought I Could ... Turns Out I Couldn't

I wanted to write something today but had no idea what. So I resorted to Mama Kat’s writing workshop for some help.


"How long until you realized you had no talent or patience for this? Tell the story (true or fiction) of trying to learn a new talent or hobby that you only pursued briefly."


A few years ago, I can’t exactly remember how many, I convinced myself that I could learn to play the piano. My mother plays and for some reason I believed that her talent would magically jump into my fingers.

I was singing in a band at the time and I thought it would be cool to also play keyboards. The guitarist in the band (and my boyfriend at the time) was enthusiastic about the idea and even suggested that I hook up with his mother who is a piano teacher. His enthusiasm also drove him to buy me this:

I was so excited and ready to learn something new. I bought a bunch of "teach yourself how to play" books. It was awesome. The boyfriend taught me different chords and sometimes we’d make stuff up with him on the guitar and me on the keyboard. I loved those moments. I felt creative and alive.

Then the excitement wore off. I realized that I had to actually practice for hours every day if I was ever going to be any good at this. Do you have any idea how boring practicing the scales is? Do you have any idea how difficult it is to memorize finger placement for different chords? Do you have any idea how many different ways one chord can be played? Do you????

My mother began taking lessons when she was five years old and continued for at least 15 years, probably more. I often asked her why she didn’t give any of her children lessons. She said that she was forced to learn and she didn’t want to force us. I really wish she would have. Because at my age, I’m just not disciplined enough to make this happen. I worked at it on and off for maybe a year. Then the keyboard just sat in my bedroom as a reminder of my lack of talent and discipline. Now, my poor keyboard is in the garage gathering dust.

** deep sigh **

At times I think about taking it out and giving it another shot.