Guest Blogger: Dani Johnston

My guest blogger today holds a special place in my heart... there are some people that you meet and get to know online that become your true friends, even though you've never met in person.  Dani is that friend to me.  We're soul sisters. Celebrating our triumphs and tragedies together, inspiring and pushing each other, and just reaching out with a little note to say we're thinking of the other person.  I am so glad to be able to share a little bit of my dear friend with you today.  She took an evening for herself to write about taking an evening for yourself...pretty perfect really.  I think you'll love and appreciate her thoughts on Celebrating the Everyday.  Thank you Dani!  

So this evening, I’m sitting here at my desk, trying to think about how I celebrate the everyday. 

I can hear my daughter fussing in the living room.

She’s been fighting off a cold the past few days, and I think it might be getting the best of her tonight.

I keep trying to bring my focus back.

How do I celebrate the everyday?

But I still hear her.

My husband is fine. He is capable. He is happy to take over bedtime tonight. (In other words, he is awesome!)

But I can still hear her.

So I think about how all day I’ve been waiting for these few hours to myself. And now, I can’t stop thinking about my daughter. Maybe I should go in there? Maybe she just wants me tonight?

But wait.

How do I celebrate the everyday?

By accepting and loving this life. 

By loving my daughter like crazy of course.

But by also trusting that she is in complete and capable hands with my husband tonight. 

By dedicating some time to myself each week. 

For whatever.

For scrapbooking or art journaling.

For editing and organizing the latest giant batch of photos I’ve recently taken.

For blogging or blog reading.

For a hot bath and good magazine.

For, again, whatever.

There are so many things my daughter and I do together to celebrate the everyday. For example, we have recently built and are tending to a garden. Something my daughter loves to participate in. She plays in the dirt with her watering can. She stacks up the pots. She tries to chase the ducks around the yard. And I try to make sure that every moment with her is present and aware. I’m not perfect in this...who is? But I try.

But there need to be moments now that I have to myself. Because raising a human being is no small task. I am not just taking care of my baby. I am raising a person. This small one will soon grow and become an adult. She will soon step out into the world and make it better or worse. This is no little thing that I have taken on.

And so, in order to be present, and in order to fully and completely celebrate our everyday, I need to also tend to myself.

I’ll be honest. I’m really writing all this as a personal reminder. I have struggled with this lately, a lot. I truly let the mommy guilt slip in most of the time. I let the wife guilt slip in too. I am a pro at putting myself aside when it comes to personal time. I’ve never really been an out and about kind of girl. I’m not much for lights and noise and tons of people. But I do love a hot bath and a good book. I really love fresh paper, pens and paint. I adore my time spent reflecting and blogging. 

And so, just as I need to nurture my relationship with my little girl and my husband, I need to nurture my relationship with myself. How good can I be to them, when I ‘m not good to myself? And I know, that this is advice many of us hear all the time. Mommas and daddies or not. But how many of us really take that advice? I’m telling you again, I’m telling myself again, take it. 

It felt good to write this.

And as I’m finishing it up, I notice my daughter is no longer fussing.  My husband has settled down in his chair, with her in his arms. She is sleeping and he is happy to cuddle with his girl.

And I will go to bed myself, in a little while. Feeling refreshed and recharged. My creative spirit more fulfilled and the momma in me excited for what tomorrow will bring. Celebrating my everyday, because the everyday is right now, and it’s going by way too fast not to enjoy it.

So please, enjoy it!

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