Paying attention- in Relationships

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One of those 'off' days. A day you wish would just end so you could start over again tomorrow..

That's how it felt. I was reading an article yesterday called The shape of days. It discussed how we can graph the way our days turn out. Some days we can start on a high, or wake up on the wrong side of the bed, and it goes on from there.

Yesterday I started off by managing my social media, along with reading articles, and blogging. It was a pretty good start to a relaxing day with a nice cup of java in hand. I also had coconut yogurt, local raspberries and hemp hearts for breakfast. I could say I was having an awesome day- starting on a high. Then, one event tumbled into the next where things just weren't going my way at all. Appointments had to be cancelled, dates rescheduled. My relaxation quickly turned into stress (or the low end of the graph as discussed from The shape of days) before noon even hit.

Thank god for an awesome relationship! I was supposed to go to Whitecliff park (see photos in this post where I talk about the Sunset at Whitecliff Park) with my fiance when he arrived home from work, but to top off my already crappy day he had a work event he needed to attend. 

I felt like the wave/ shape of my day just hit its lowest at that moment. It was at what I called the trough of my day, and I made it known. But something so wonderful happened. 

He listened

I forgot before that moment came just how powerful being heard is. In that moment I was able to pour my heart out, get rid of every little nuance of my day, and the most fascinating thing happened right after that 

I took a deep breath.. and everything was OK

He asked me if I wanted him to come home, or if I wanted to join him. I said 'no'. 

He said "have a glass of wine", and I did. 

It was beautiful! How my day had shifted back into peacefulness after just being heard. Thankfully I had already begun making my favourite comfort food :) Gluten/ egg/ tomato/ dairy/ gmo free pizza with spinach and mushrooms, and a glass of chilled white wine.

I'll post my recipe at the end of the week if your looking for a quick, healthy pizza idea. My son loves it- as do I (it can always be used with wheat/ dairy/ tomato if your not on a restricted diet like I am).

When your having a crappy day, what do you do? 

In this article One of those days I talk more about different ways to get through a crappy day if your looking for more ideas!

Sunset at Whitecliff Park

Last night we decided to take my fiance's dad to watch the sunset. It's a very rare occasion when his father is home, and not working. I decided I wanted to share one of my family moments, as these moments are what is closest to my heart. 

This is Toli with his grandfather 'Gido' (arabic for grandpa).

We will be moving a touch farther away from 'Gido' (only a few blocks hopefully, but it'll still be a change), and as the month passes I feel like it's time to really get together and spend time with one another. I have to say that Toli is probably one of the luckiest kids around- he has loving parents, a mass amount of grandparents and great grandparents who all love him so dearly, along with my closest who refers herself as 'Aunty Mum'.

Family life is probably one of the most important aspects for a healthy life in my opinion, because when life at home is not in good shape, then other areas in our life won't look so good either. 

In this article "4 easier ways to be a happier mom" Leah Rocketto talks to the ever so awesome happiness guru Gretchen Rubin who wrote "The Happiness Project" (a book I'm reading currently). I personally loved this article, and I try to incorporate what I can out of the steps already. Dada doesn't leave for work until we've all had our hugs and kisses, and my son and I have a 'Monday Toli Day' -which I will share with you in the near future- where we focus on him for the day which is full of adventure. Please have a look at Leah Rocketto's article! I think if we all incorporated just a few of these steps into our days we could simply live a happier life.

Hope your enjoying the spring weather! Toli and I will be going for a nice walk in the sunshine with one of his favorite Aunty's in the world this afternoon.

3 reasons why you should "just do it"

Ever hesitate?... I do. Like when my honey comes home from a long day of work, and all I want to do is grab him and hold him but I feel like I can't. But guess what happens when I do nothing? Usually bickering happens. Someone forgot to put their dirty socks in the laundry basket, or the garbage wasn't taken out. When we hold back from important aspects for our relationship (like giving our honey and hug or a kiss when we get home from work), we miss out on some pretty amazing things.

1. Kiss your honey. Yes, you probably do it all the time, but do it again! Not only does it release happy hormones for the both of you, but it can also boost your self- esteem!
   

This image is courtesy of tiverylucky/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

     

        2.  Hug it out. Did you know that hugging strengthens your immune system? 

        3.  Jump in and do something new that you've been wanting to do with your partner. If you've been together for a few years, sometimes its great to liven things up a bit. Like your "dating" for the first time again. 

This image is courtesy of Savit Keawtavee/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

With a toddler roaming around the house its hard to remember to do these things sometimes and get lost in "Mommy land" of things I needed to do I started to remember how much fun my relationship with my honey was in the beginning, and have been reading up on some blogs on how I could reignite that spark again. So I've started a "Date night ideas" list in my phone that I  will begin to execute and blog about in the near future. 

If your like me and sometimes forget the value behind the parents who work so hard to raise a child and forget to foster their relationship sometimes. Try these three things out, and I'll keep you posted on future endevours I've already found in Vancouver to do for dates- fun stuff, romantic stuff. Stick around to see how those ideas come to fruition.