For Mary Beth.

October is Pregnancy Loss Awareness Month and in support of a dear dear friend who lost her baby at 36 weeks I am going to participate in this exercise she told me about: 30 Posts in 30 Days to bring focus to Pregnancy Loss Awareness month. I think it's an exercise to manage the grief brought on by a lost pregnancy but I am going to jump in and write along. I am behind but I I'll just start at Day 5. I know this has nothing to do with Theo but it kind of does if you look at the list and I will still post pictures of him for you die hard Theo fans.

Here's the list:

Day 1 - your favorite song
Day 2 - your favorite movie
Day 3 - your favorite television program
Day 4 - your favorite book
Day 5 - your favorite quote
Day 6 - 20 of your favorite things
Day 7 - a photo that makes you happy
Day 8 - a photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 9 - a photo you took
Day 10 - a photo taken over 10 years ago of you
Day 11 - a photo of you recently
Day 12 - something you are OCD about
Day 13 - a fictional book
Day 14 - a non-fictional book
Day 15 - your dream house
Day 16 - a song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)
Day 18 - my wedding/future wedding/past wedding
Day 19 - a talent of yours
Day 20 - a hobby of yours
Day 21 - a recipe
Day 22 - a website
Day 23 - a youtube video
Day 24 - where you live
Day 25 - your day, in great detail
Day 26 - your week, in great detail
Day 27 - your worst habit
Day 28 - what's in your handbag/purse
Day 29 - hopes, dreams, and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 - a dream for the future

My favorite quote . . . that's a tough one to start out with. What constitutes as a quote? Any sentance in the world? Can it be uttered by a friend or by an author or former head of state? Anyway, my favorite quote or saying or utterance these days is "do the best you can." Simple and corny but words that go a long way when times are tough. Words to live by when you're raising a child. I want everything to be perfect: I want Theo to sleep through the night, I want the kitchen floor clean at all times, I want money in the bank, tight abs and ripped arms. When these things don't happen it causes me pain and so I remind myself to just "do the best I can." Let a stray Cheerio hide under the kitchen table, get up with Theo and hold him until he feels safe, accept that I might have to wear Spanx instead of having rock solid abs. I don't have to be perfect because there's honor and dignity in just doing the best I can.