A Month of Thanks, Day Thirteen

You'll have to excuse what is going to be a short post. I'm just sitting down on my couch for the first time in over 14 hours; work, board meeting, after meeting drink meeting, you know. This is all after a terrible night's sleep thanks to a certain almost two year old. I swear, there's no method to her madness. Monday I put Maddie down in her bed and she slept for 10 hours straight; last night she fought me for an hour and a half before coming into bed with me where she proceeded to do her best break dancer impression and then wake up every couple of hours. Oh parenthood, you're a fickle beast. 

So what am I thankful for today? I'm thankful I'm not alone. I'm thankful for other moms who blog, write books and talk about all the challenges of parenting as much as they talk about the blessings. I'm thankful that I can always learn and listen in my journey to be the best mama I can be. 

I've been reading a lot about gentle parenting and how to discipline in a way that shows respect, compassion and patience. I'm a fairly impatient person and my anxiety disorder makes me quick to jump into the 'fight or flight' mode but I'm determined to work at that and to show Madeleine how to solve problems, communicate and process her feelings so that she can grow up to be as awesome as possible to other people. It's not easy, and some days when you've had no sleep and lots of work and little time to breathe it can be even harder, but I'm thankful for all those parents that came before me and have put their experiences out there for the rest of us to learn from. 

And in somewhat related news, last night we made a hat out of a cabbage leaf and used our magic wand to cast spells on the cat.