just another day of Catholic pondering by Sarah Reinhard
1. I marked them read. All of them. Even though I reallyreally wanted to read them. And you know what? Google Reader didn’t explode!
2. I put that book I was draggggggggggggging through down. It didn’t hurt after all. Turns out I won’t finish it anytime soon, though I’ve finished a book since putting it down.
3. I shared the Thin Mints with the kids. And yesterday, I didn’t eat any of them. (Not true of today, not true.)
Go over to Faith & Family Live for more Small Successes.
1. A few weeks ago, inspired by an innocent question, I started keeping a log of my time. From the time I wake until we eat dinner, I jot down what I do all day. And wow! I’m amazed at how that one small act–jotting down the time and what I’m doing–has helped me to stay on track through the day. This week, I’ve kept it up each day.
2. Though I’ve had some interrupted nights and my morning prayer time has had to be modified because of sleeping in that had to result, I’ve still managed a rosary. Every day. (And I think if I hadn’t, that one child who has been particularly whiny and challenging might not have made it through the week.)
3. The girls wanted to play in the muddy mess known as the outdoors. And I said yes. More than once. Yeah, I know. I’m da bomb. 
Be sure to cheer your Small Successes along with the other folks at Faith & Family Live.
You’ll forgive me, won’t you, for trumpeting a little…I know it’s a small success sort of day, but the only thing on my mind, aside from the fact that I have a big list of things-not-done and things-yet-to-do, is that last night, I compiled my manuscript for my upcoming book into one file. Which means…
MY FIRST DRAFT IS DONE!*
I’m calling that ALL THREE of my small successes for the week. Especially considering that I have a visit to the vet, I have been in two different medical facilities, and contending with two puppies and a two-year-old who are reminding me constantly that I cannot bend at the waist right now.
I’m feeling a little bit like opening a bottle of wine, even if I can only drink one glass, even if I just take a bit long sniff of it, even if I don’t currently even have a bottle in the house.
And, with that, I suggest you toast with me and head on over to Faith & Family Live for this week’s round-up of small successes.
*Here’s the caveat, for those of you who care. My first draft is Ugly, with a capital U and probably some fun adjectives that aren’t family friendly. It needs Major Revising. And it will get it, but for now, let’s celebrate the birth, shall we? Tomorrow’s the day for all the reality checks and buckling down that await.
1. On the school front: no tears. For any of us. We’re settling into a routine, the kindergartner is coming home daily with stories of exciting adventures, and I’m feeling peace about the whole deal.
2. On the home front: I’m getting the dishes done. I’m (mostly) on top of the laundry. We won’t talk about toilets or tubs or floors or, well, anything else.
3. On the book front: chapter 9 of my book is done! (Well, it’s a roughROUGH first draft, but that’s the first step.) That leaves one more chapter and an introduction before I start my revising. This has been one big small steps writing project, let me tell you, and I’m glad to be nearing the end of the first phase.
We have Faith & Family Live (and specifically the lovely Danielle Bean) to thank for this weekly exercise. Go on over today and cheer for everyone else’s small successes.
It’s been a while since I’ve done a Small Successes post, though not for lack of thinking of those moments in my life when I have a tiny triumph. Over the last two weeks, though, almost everything has been small (or huge). Sometimes a little does of Small Successes makes it all come into focus…
1. No washer. Since the middle of last week. And look…not only am I still alive, but the back-up plan has been working just fine. (I also have not been mentioning it or complaining. Because…the decision process may take a bit longer. And I will live.)
2. I asked for feedback on a huge project this week. Not only will it help me make my project waaaay better than it was to begin with, I swallowed that nugget of pride that made me hesitate. And you know what? The feedback was oh-so charitable and oh-so insightful. I’m better for it.
3. We’ve had non-takeout dinner every night this week so far. (Granted, I didn’t have to cook one of those nights, because of the way the laundry worked out, but still. I claim this as a success.)
Don’t forget to check out the Small Successes post over at Faith & Family Live today.
There’s a reason I’ve been silent about my small successes in the last few weeks…they’ve been so small as to be invisible.
But today, rather than post a book review (which I almost did), I thought I would dredge the mediocrity of my life and find three small things to celebrate.
1. On today’s to-do list: making a writing plan for the summer. Yes, that’s right. I have an ambitious summer project and today I will be planning it. (So that’s a success, right? Right? RIGHT?) (Well, we’re pretending it is.)
2. When asked what I do (by my new OB, by the guy who sold us our van, by a babysitter), I have been saying (with faked confidence), that I’m a writer. (It almost hurt to type that.)
3. Last night, I made my husband’s favorite dinner. It was easy and just required some planning. Given my recent track record of frozen pizzas, snack plates, and PB&J, this is a success!
The home of Small Successes (and all kinds of support) is Faith & Family Live.
1. I have been sleeping in in the mornings. Instead of pushing myself to get up an hour or two before the kids, I’m letting myself have those hours of sleep.
2. Yesterday, I stopped everything and just took a nap. It was grand. (When I woke up, I saw my fairy mother-in-law had shown up.)
3. Today, though we might end up leaving the house to run an errand that may prove critical, we are staying home. And I might just do some waaaay overdue cleaning. (So where’s the success in that? I dunno. But I’m counting it anyway.)
Celebrate your small successes — and those of others — over at Faith & Family Live today!
Here at Snoring Scholar, you'll find marriage and motherhood, book talk and rambling remarks, observations and distractions, in the midst of life in rural Ohio on a farm, with kids, critters, and Catholic flair.
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