It has been a pretty stressful week. Between some looming deadlines to juggling household stuff to mom’s persisting health problems (they finally did a stomach scope and discovered ulcers) to blowing up at H’s teacher to having a meeting with the principal to discuss strategies with an interventionist in math (can you spell r-e-l-i-e-f?) I am so, so, so glad it is Friday.
Why didn’t someone tell me this whole mom/wife/human thing would be so tough sometimes?
But here are four things that make me happy.
1) One of my only solaces about Denver’s lack of snow is I was able to mountain bike Table Mountain today. In January. 
I’d still rather be snowshoeing in winter.
2) A friend posted this picture on Facebook by Anna Beck Designs:
Life is a balance of holding on & letting go.
My friend wrote:
Growing up, I spent many an afternoon in a little municipal swimming pool, surrounded by every other kid in the county. I remember that the best part was finding enough space to just back float. The screeches, squeals and shouts of Marco Polo were muffled and I was weightless, bobbing in an ocean alone. I’d forgotten how very awesome that was until I saw this picture. I need to spend more time back floating.
3) My sister-in-law Tammy brightened my day by sending this hilarious blog post. If you’re not LDS, you won’t get it. But if you are LDS, I guarantee the idiosyncrasies will make you laugh. Out. Loud. And if you’re neither, you’ll think we’re all a bit crazy.
4) It is so nice to see positive stories trending on Yahoo. A Reddit user posted a photo of a poignant message that she found taped to the stall in a women’s restroom at her university. The user, chellylauren, wrote: “In a girls’ bathroom stall at my university, girls have written about some of their most horrifying life experiences. This week, somebody replied.”
The reply, written on notebook paper, is anonymous.
The reply in full:
To the girl who was raped: You are so strong. I cannot fathom the pain you must have gone through. The fact that you have the bravery to write it (even on a bathroom wall) gives me hope.
To the girl with eating disorders: I promise you, although I don’t know you, you are beautiful, you deserve your health. You deserve freedom from that hell.
To the girl with the alcoholic father: I am so sorry for the agony it must cause. Again, such courage is remarkable you must be such a strong person to see such pain.
To the girl whose father died: Missing them never goes away. The ache of their absence never goes away. But the love they had, the memories you share surely must last. I am sure, out of the bottom of my heart, the people who have left you in this world are exceptionally proud of the person you are.
Everytime (sic) I see these walls, these confessions, I feel so blessed to know I have the priviledge (sic) of seeing them. Your moments, these secrets, are all precious even though they are sad. To all of you (including those I did not mention, and those who have not yet written)
-You are worthy.
-You are strong.
-You are brave.
-You are loved.
-Somebody cares.
Written below that, somebody penned a quick response: “To the person who wrote this, thank you.” And I echo that sentiment.
I'm a Canadian-born mom of two, former Denver Post columnist, family travel writer, editor of MileHighMamas.com and 9News contributor. Expert on all things Utah, Denver, family and travel. Lover of laughter and life. Happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin. 