07/11/201607/11/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.321 – 4.325

321

Blooming Black-eyed Susans.

Fun errands with Katie including silly, friendly clerks, rainbows, and chance meeting with JimmyD and his kids.

Luna’s spectacular display of her flower-dumping skills. Never do things half-way… 😛

322
Visit with my folks before they head up north. I’ll miss seeing everyone at the cabin this year. Glad I got a chance to visit with Debb a few weeks ago and see my folks today.

Wonderful, encouraging and supportive meeting with friends who want to talk about what’s been going on in the news, process it, find ways to connect, create community, and effect change.

Sweet nighttime walk with the kids.

323
Bacon.

Sunglasses.

The fun community created by Pokemon Go. I talked to many more folks today than I might have otherwise. Plus, it’s fun to have a Pokestop at the end of the block! 😀

324
farmers market veggies Morning thunderstorm. What a wonderful way to greet the day.

Fabulous farmer’s market trek with Sarah and Ida. Midsummer is the BEST time for farmer’s marketing!

Wonderful dinner and visit with David. We always find so much to talk about and laugh about. 😀

325
Looking forward to a fun and productive work & visit session with Ellis and Ruby!

Fresh vegetables.

Coloring.

07/06/201607/06/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.320

Yesterday’s wonderful work date with Ellis. Fun and productive! 😀

Sitting in the living room watching and listening to the storm with Mckenzie and Cina last night. What wild wind!

Delightful walk and lunch with Laura today. Delicious food from Patisserie 46 and excellent company. Fun!

nail polish rainbow

My own little rainbow nail polish army. 😉

07/05/201607/05/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.314 – 4.319

Enough energy to get my appreciations posted. Hooray! Still taking things one day at a time, but definitely improved from a few weeks ago. The act of jotting down my appreciations (even if I don’t post them) and getting in 10,000 steps each day has helped me feel at least a little stable during this strange time. I appreciate the geek in me who likes to measure and record things. 😀

Here are my appreciations for the past week or so.

4.314
Good Earth tea. Getting my June newsletter done while it’s still technically June. 😉 A nice walk in the neighborhood with Katie.

4.315
Audio books narrated by Jonathan Cecil. His character voices are so effective, I often forget I’m listening to just one reader! Neighborhood walk with Cina. Wonderful visit with Terri.

4.316
A good night’s sleep. Coffee. Tackle hugs and playing with Ruby.

4.317
Star Trek. Comfy pillows. Sunshine.

4.318
The absurdity of cleaning out a closet at 4 am. So strange to still be wide awake at that time…but very satisfying to wake up after a few hours of sleep and look at my newly organized closet — and see that I’d already logged over 2,000 steps for the day. Hahaha!

Delicious dinner with the Delaneys.

Sidewalk chalk.

4.319
Waking up at 6 am (when the power went out) instead of going to sleep at 6 am! 😉

I finally decided to get out of bed to report the outage just before 7… and about 10 seconds after I reported it, the power came back on. Magic!

Electricity. Oh, yes. I appreciate power for my computer and phone, stove and refrigerator, lights, fans, washing machine… so many things that make life so much easier and more comfortable!

06/29/201606/29/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.313

Entertaining lunchtime conversation with Cina. I learned that EMT training is like a Pokemon evolving. When she finishes this class, she’ll be a Charmander. If she gets her EMT-Intermediate training, she’ll be a Charmeleon. Apparently, paramedics are the same as Charizards… in that they can fly and breathe fire, I guess. 😀

Fun walk with Jeff & Laura…although it was much hotter than I’d expected. Got my 10,000+ steps in for the day, at least!

Amy Poehler. I’m listening to her book, Yes, Please, right now. Super fun!

06/28/201606/28/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.312

lilies 2016 Lilies. Beautiful!

The perfect weather & temperature for a walk today. Sweet.

Still finding glitter on my face and clothes from Pride. Hahaha. The glitter that never ends. 😉

06/27/201606/27/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.311 – BBB

Beautiful, beautiful weather.

Backyard play time with Ruby and Ellis today. Hooray!!

Bumper crop of blackberries. Picked my first berries of the year today and got about 3 cups in the few minutes I was out there. I have barely scratched the surface of what’s already ripe. 😀

06/26/201606/26/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.309-4.310

309. Finally getting ALL the laundry done. 😉 Fabulous day with Katie and Cina first going to see Finding Dory and later playing with rainbows and sparkles for Pride. Feeling a little more like myself today!

310. Watching the parade with Sarah & Ida & Katie & Cina. Fun!! Free pedicab ride to the park after the parade…. kind of like being in our own (super windy) parade. Wheeee! 😀 Rainbow sparkle toes, and rainbow earrings and beads and glasses, oh my.

06/24/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.306-4.308

306. Hawkins Automotive. They always do such a great job and are friendly and fast, too! Fun and productive meeting with Sara. Playing Bananagrams with the kids during the thunderstorm. Minneapolis skyline at night. Theo Wirth Pkwy.

307. Trees with faces. Perfect weather for a walk. Summer purples and yellows and whites, oh my.

308. Being the Minneapolis hub for Katie and Cina! I love the lunchtime visits with Cina and the before- or after-meeting/rehearsal visits with Katie. So sweet to see my girls so often! 😀 # happymama

Starting to see some relief from the depression. How fortunate I am to have a solid support network of awesome friends and family — and meds to help when the non-pharmaceutical methods aren’t quite enough. #onedayatatime

The promise of thunderstorms. I love stormy weather!

06/21/201606/21/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.297-4.305

The past few weeks have been a bit of a challenge for me. Anxiety and depression (both very common after a vfib / ICD shock experience like I had in March) have made it difficult to function. I am incredibly grateful to the understanding people in my life, beautiful friends, excellent therapist and docs, and the other lovely folks I encounter when I get out of the house. 🙂

After yesterday’s visit with the advanced heart failure specialist, I am feeling a bit more hopeful, a bit less anxious, and hope to return to my optimistic, appreciative, joyful self soon. For now, one day at a time. Today is a better day — so I can finally post the appreciations I’ve at least managed to jot down during the past week or so. 😀

toby helping with tools 4.297. Toby’s help with our tool sorting project. Getting all the lumber on site for the step replacement project. Dishwasher, washing machine, and dryer!

4.298. Rain. Thunder. My wonderful and trusted therapist, Lynn.

4.299. Mini visit with Katie. Our fun cat water fountain. Ricola cough drops.

4.300. Coffee with Katie – and the straw wrapper heart she made for me. Sunshine. Cina telling me I’m rad and MVP. Time with Terri, Ellis, and Ruby. Ruby’s drawings and the flower she gave me (which is, apparently, edible and “tastes like salad!”).

4.301. Time with the kids. Painting side door. Yummy coffee.

4.302. Fun BLT father’s day party at Jeff & Laura’s. The sweet smell of sycamore trees. Puppy cuddles.

4.303. Weird Toby lounging on the chair. Visit with Duncan girls, my folks, and with Jeff & Laura all in one day. Bedtime rain.

4.304. Chicago mug. Time with Katie and Mckenzie. Encouraging doctor appointment (and Katie’s company during it!). Driving on the freeways again. Sweet texts from the awesome kids in my life. Strawberry moon on solstice.

4.305. Hope. Sunshine. Laughter.

06/12/201606/12/2016 DianaK

Appreciations 4.296

Awesome morning with Sarah and Ida, picking out paint samples, making plans, giggling, and having fun. 😀

Lovely cooler weather and nice breeze made for a really comfortable walk — and comfortable yard work. Look ma, no sweat! 😉

The wonderful people in my life, offering so much support, love, and comfort as I traverse this new PTSD/depression terrain (or as Katie calls it, my mental illness sampler platter…) I am incredibly fortunate to have these amazing people in my life.