Living simply and stepping lightly has been put on the back burner it seems. I even missed my post last week, which I am very sorry about by the way. I struggle with it now because of the holidays, because of the baby arriving soon, because of the wonderful birth of my niece on Tuesday, because of 4H, because of cheerleading….things just pile up.
I have had some great reminders in my mailbox that life is more about the things that are going on, but also about taking the time to realize who I share all of these wonderful events with in my life. I have been receiving gifts for Sprout and I from the Dingo Clan. The Dingos are a group of ladies from Mothering.com that are wonderful role models of attached parenting, strong women who battle the daily events with husbands, jobs, babysitters, finding time for themselves, but we all have one thing in common – the love of running. Running waxes and wanes, but our friendship is a bond beyond compare. The amazing thing is – most of us haven’t even met face to face. They even accepted me under their wings before I was pregnant (long before!) Now they are my mentors to this pregnancy, the birth of my babe, and they are going to be my village to help raise her with the principals of attachment.
As if their words of encouragement, their friendship, and their love I can feel all the way from around the world wasn’t enough to simply shower me in this time of waiting for my new bundle of joy. They have been sending me gifts in the mail! Books of all kinds – parenting, board books, story books, oh my! And every package has included a bead. A special unique bead that I will string and wear around my neck during my labor, so their strength, support, and birthing wisdom can be there *right* with me.
These simple gestures that create a friendship that can’t be explained in words… the little things that add up… they make life special. They are the things worthy of slowing down so we have time to *enjoy* rather than to *rush.*
Picture courtesy of ~ http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/ISI/BC012~Best-Friends-Posters.jpg
