Whistle While Work

Yesterday morning I was sitting a midst the piles of laundry waiting to be folded and I began watching 2 year old Aubrey.  She had taken a clean dish towel from my pile and was "cleaning" the piano.  

The thing that struck me was that she was singing as she was wiping the piano.

I smiled as I thought of how many times I have seen Ellie sing as she was cleaning as well. 

Then I thought, "Do I do that?"  

I honestly don't think I've done that for a really long time!

I use music as a motivator to get my kids to do Saturday morning chores or to push me through a workout.  I use music as a "fun" thing to get the wiggles out at night or to dance to in the car.  I have even tried to use music as a motivator during Ellie's homework time.

But how often do I truly "whistle while I work?"  

Not much, lately, that is for sure!

I remember my Grandpa Cannon would always whistle while he loaded the dishes into the dishwasher.  He usually whistled something like "Washington Post March" by John Phillip Sousa.  

Something upbeat and happy.

What is innately in us that makes makes my girls naturally sing while they work?

I think it is that we feel good when we work, whatever type of work it is.

Work helps us feel accomplished.

Work helps us build confidence.

So why do we learn to hate work?  

Work seems to be the opposite of "fun."  

Which is what most people desire isn't it?

If work is the opposite of fun than work isn't fun.

And how many times have I told my children

work before play?

But I don't think that is necessarily true... it is just our mindset.

I think work can be very enjoyable!

I've had many "fun" times while working hard.  

We have emphasized in our family the last year that 

WE CAN DO HARD THINGS!

But how often do we do hard things begrudgingly...instead of with a song in our hearts?!

I think I need to set a better example of "whistling while I work." 

Maybe then when we tell our dear 3rd grader that homework can be fun she might believe us!

And be a little more willing to complete the things that are hard for her happily!

And maybe if I work with a song in my heart I might enjoy folding my piles of laundry a little more!

    

Pictures are Worth a Thousand Words

My mom and I play a puzzle game online.  She just created a new puzzle from this picture of the 5 oldest grand kids eating ice cream outside an old fashion ice cream shop in Philipsburg, Montana.  We were enjoying some time at a cabin on Georgetown Lake with family last summer.

Looking at this picture I realized that as imperfect as this picture is, this picture will be a family favorite for a long time to come.  

And then it hit me...how many times do we look at a picture years later and realize it is a favorite.  A picture that helps you recall the details of a trip, feelings, love, family.  

And what is amazing is that you never know when or what that picture will be, until later, sometimes quite a while later.

And usually, they are not professional pictures.

They are not edited.

They are are real pictures of real times and real memories.

In this digital world how many photos can we instantly snap with our cell phones?  I know I have hundreds of pictures on my phone and computer.  I know for sure I don't take enough time to find those special and meaningful pictures and DO something with those pictures.  It has made me stop and ponder how my kids will be able to look back at photos of themselves.  How fun is it to look back at our childhood pictures and try to remember or see how even then our personalities showed!  How can I best preserve those memories for my children?

This very imperfect picture recently taken with my cell phone shows all my husband's siblings and spouses. I think this will be a special picture as well...or at least I hope it is.  

Technology today has made it so much easier to use, organize, and share our pictures.  But on the same hand it also makes it so much harder.  So many more photos, so many more options than before...and oh the digital storage!  It is a blessing to be able to store so many photos, but what about actually seeing them?  How many do we print or preserve in a way for our kids to see?

I know I need to be much better about this.  It use to be something I was very good at when I was regularly scrapbooking, but as I have made the transition away from traditional scrapbooking it has become a challenge.

Here is my wake up call!  I am going to get my photos organized and figure out the best way to preserve those memories for my children for years to come!!!