How to Tuesday... time well spent.

First, three notes:

1. Buddy teased me this past weekend about not putting his photo on the blog on his birthday, which was a Sunday and I posted a picture of the girls instead.  So not much blog attention to his birthday. I immediately grabbed my camera.  He teased, "No, it's too late now."  I took a few shots anyway.  Here's Buddy looking away, making a face and not letting me take his picture for the blog.  And Buddy, Happy birthday again, a week and a half later. We love you. You're my favorite!  Note to self:  Try to right every wrong.

2. Yesterday,  Denise and I met for 20 minutes to grab a sandwich.  The girl making our pitas didn't add my cheese.  When I asked her to add some, she, literally, slammed my sandwich down and gave me the crustiest glare.  Hey, I didn't leave off the cheese!  Later in the day, a brand new product purchased from Overstock.com. broke. I called to ask about a replacement.  They went out of their way to make sure that I was a 100% satisfied customer.  WOW! I'm ubber impressed!  I'll give them my business again very soon. Note to self: Being nice makes a difference.
   
3. It was ZJ's turn for dental work yesterday.  Two sealants and one filling.  No shot.  Amazing. I love  Brett Skinner, our dentist.  Tomorrow, I am scheduled for a possible root canal and/or a crown.  I get to have happy gas and it will be the best nap I take all year.  Note to self: There's something positive in every "growth experience", as Doug's Aunt Agnes called them.

A few days after I got home from visiting Dad in North Carolina, I had to run some errands.  I was feeling so great about life in general.  I got into my truck and decided that I needed to just express gratitude for as many blessings I could name in the alone time that I had on the road. I turned off my cellphone, got into the drivers seat and began talking out loud in a prayer of gratitude... for everything I could think of.  Literally. 

I started with the obvious big things like family, friends, faith, home, health, for living in this beautiful valley and Doug's patience with me.  By the time I'd driven five miles or so, I was past the normal every day things and really started thinking. I expressed gratitude for things I might have actually taken for granted at times or just come to accept as the norm...the fact that Doug's old van had run on faith and a prayer for so long, for favorite shoes that my extremely flat feet couldn't live without, for things that made the little challenges in my life, such as deteriorating vision, and things that make living with the challenge easier...such as large font options on electronics.  That may sound silly, but trust me, it is a blessing that I appreciate every day.  By the time I'd driven for 30 minutes, I was really focused and expressing deep, deep appreciation for some personal things in my life that really really matter, which I'll not share publicly today.  This exercise was one that can immediately change your outlook on life! It is a great activity that I highly recommend!

That morning, I received a gift by expressing my own gratitude.  It was the best hour I'd spent alone in a very long time. My crazy schedule with a husband, the bigs, the babes, the church, friends and family keeps me running every day.  I can't imagine life without a huge to-do list every day.  But, my busyness involves so much fun!  I thought yesterday about How To Tuesday and decided that I'd share how to have some productive fun in your "spare time".  My first suggestion... make that hour to spend expressing gratitude for everything you can think of.  Take advantage of an hour that you're alone. If you aren't comfortable expressing it in prayer, take the time to write it down, in detail, in a journal.  It's one of the most productive activities I can think of!

After that, here's fifty other random productive things to do in your spare time that you will look back on and consider "time well spent":

1. Make a denim quilt out of your old Levis.
2. Work on a scrapbook.
3. Take a walk.
4. Attend a High School Musical.
5. Decorate some cupcakes.  Share them with someone.
6. Read to children at the Elementary School.
7. Wash your windows. (or just one.)
8. Learn to crochet.
9. Call someone just to say hello and catch up on their life.  Listen.
10. Repot your houseplants.
11. Visit a nursing home. 
12. Inventory your home valuables.
13. Fly a kite with a child.
14. Go to the library.
15. Clean your oven.
16. Practice your handwriting.  Doodle a whole page of quotes.  Frame it!
17. Plant an herb garden.
18. Sketch your next outdoor garden.
19. Wrap any gifts you have purchased in advance now.
20. Practice an old forgotten or rarely used talent or skill.
21. Make homemade ice cream.
22. Get your eyebrows shaped.
23. Visit a museum.
24. Invite a friend over to play a game together for an hour in the morning.  Have treats.
25. Try something new with your curling iron.
26. Organize your ribbons or buttons or earrings or cooking gadgets.
27. Play ball with a child.
28. Dejunk your coupons.
29. Research a famous historical person who's made a difference in the world.
30. Plan a neighborhood get-together.
31. Go for a drive (or walk) all by your lonesome and look for things you've never noticed before.
32. Exercise. Walk.  Swim.  Hike.
33. Visit the taping of a local television show.
34. Clean out your refrigerator.
35. Read a book in the sunshine.
36. Create your own recipe using chocolate or a fruit.
37. Write a will, including your little treasures, who and why you want each individual to have them.  (I promise, you'll feel gratitude for friends and family like you never imagined.)
38. Read and study about a place you'd love to visit in your lifetime.
39. Play jacks with your best friend... yes, on the floor, like when you were a child.
40. Go to a local store and find a random act of kindness to do for five strangers.
41. Cook something you've never tried cooking or eating before.
42. Work on your genealogy and family history.
43. Alphabetize your spices.
44. Write a thank you note.
45. Go to a local bookstore, choose a topic and look through all of the books in that area.
46. Go mini-golfing.
47. Hose down the outside of your entire home.
48. Clean and organize your purse.
49. Plan a dinner party.  Make favors for it.
50. Make a lovely dinner for your family for no occasion at all.

Enjoy!

Count the minutes by sensation, and not by calendars,
and each moment is a day. 

Comments

[Nicole]

Love your list Sophia and thank you for reminding us to take the time to be grateful.

[stevie]

I'm grateful that I can post to your blog again! I have a laptop now and I can even listen to music LOL. Really though I love those alone moments where you can just step back and appreciate your life and those who have guided you through your way.

[Cindy Thomas]

Sophia, love the idea of taking time to be grateful...I do this when I am driving the 2 hours to my Mom's house but I also steal a few minutes when I am in the shower or waiting for the dryer to stop to try and really concentrate on my blessings. We have an empty nest now and I have more me time but I still use those little times to be grateful. Have a wonderful week!!

Cindy