I am grateful for the opportunity to present my work and to critique works in progress as a mentor at the Oak Bay Art Club this afternoon.

I am grateful for a family dinner at our house that Julie prepared this evening, with my parents in attendance.

I am grateful for a date night after that, leaving my parents with the lads. We went stargazing at the UVIc observatory for their weekly Wednesday night open house, then topped it off with warm drinks at Starbucks. We observed Beteljus, the Andromeda galaxy, and another dying star through telescopes tonight, and learned a thing or two about liquid helium, which is even weirder than silly putty.

I am grateful for time in the studio this morning.

I am grateful for time with lads this evening, just running some errands and going to the library.

I am grateful for American Made, which is a movie I took out from said library and watched this evening. It was a crazy story, which a little Googling revealed was somewhat, but not all that true. Regardless, enough of it actually happened, or may have, to make it an even better story.

I am grateful for Julie, who stood up for an important issue she saw in our kid’s education, and handled it skillfully and adeptly in an effort to affect positive change.

I am grateful for the words Farley wrote on the window in dry erase marker:

I kind fo like snow
In other ways I do like snow

Well I do kind fo like snow
Only when I don’t get cold

I am also grateful for the snow-themed Mad Lib Cooper wrote on the window.

I am grateful for our Christmas lights. I took them down today. I can hardly wait for next November, when I’ll put them back up again.

I am grateful for time spent at the studio this afternoon.

I am grateful for a productive morning that was also lazy, all at the same time.

I am grateful for time spent skating with Farley this afternoon.

I am grateful for a pillowfight with both my lads this afternoon.

I am grateful for dinner out with my parents this evening.

I am grateful for a lazy Saturday.

I am grateful for Eggs Benedict I made for my family and parents today.

I am grateful for time spent painting with Coop in the living room this afternoon.

I am grateful for a cool rock Farley found on the beach when he was out with his grandparents. My dad reckons it is fossilized coral, that’s been worn down into a nice smooth pebble, dotted with circles on it’s surface.

I am grateful for leftovers.

I am grateful for time spent in the studio this morning, which I think makes it every day this week. I completed a 24×48″ painting I started not long ago, and I am pleased with how it turned out.

I am grateful for lunch with Julie and my parents, and for Fanny Bay oysters.

I am grateful for a completed web project this afternoon.

I am grateful for family fun night, my pick. We had my folks over for supper, scrubbed up rocks that are now ready for the second phase in the tumbler, and finished off the evening with an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

I am grateful for a full DAY at the studio – 9am-5:15pm, with an hour for lunch. Not sure that’s ever happened.

I am grateful for lunch with Julie.

I am grateful for dinner together tonight, with a buddy of Cooper’s over too.

I am grateful for time spent reading with Farley this evening. I can feel the strength of his will when he’s sounding those words out.

I am grateful for time in the studio this morning.

I am grateful for a third day back at the gym.

I am grateful for dinner with Julie and the boys this evening. Everyone was chatty and in good spirits. If that’s not nice, what is?

I am grateful for date night with Julie. We saw Green Book, and it was good. My parents took the kids to martial arts class,and then home to bed. Grateful for that, too.

I am grateful for a long time spent at the studio today.

I am grateful for time with my family in the school gym at a math activity fair they organized tonight. There were some interesting concepts explained through some clever games there.

I am grateful for old videos of my kids taken several years ago that we stumbled across this morning. Good lordy, they were cute when they were little.

I am grateful for more than 4 hours in the studio this morning. It was glorious. I know I need more of that, and I am trying to engineer a lifestyle to accommodate that need. Almost there!

I am grateful for Coop’s Cub meeting this evening. They can get pretty hectic, but not so much when they are focussed, like they were on sanding and painting their pine car derby cars tonight.