small victories ...

So often, life is just monotonous. We do the same thing day in and day out. We get up at the same time. We work the same hours. We eat meals at set intervals. Give it long enough and you'll start to feel like you're getting no where. I know it happens to me every now and then. I find myself stepping back and looking at all the work I have done over a week or a month or a year and think, "Wow, that was quite the effort to keep things exactly how they are, to keep the wheels spinning and the gears moving."

And that realization can be frustrating.

It's in that frustration that I can usually see past the monotony and understand how many small victories I have each day. It's almost as if I have to embrace the sameness of things to really comprehend the progress we've made and how important that progress is.

This morning, I've decided I'm taking a moment to celebrate in our small victories and to bask in all their glory.

• I didn't feel like strangling any of my children this week.
• We cut the girls' hair this week. Since then, they have done their own hair (with a little guidance) everyday. I can see how close I am to freedom in this respect.
• Speaking of hair, mine was amazing yesterday.
• The girls chose and made their breakfast everyday this week. Sure, on occasion, it was just a PowerBar and milk, but at least they are becoming a little less dependent on me.
• I crushed, I mean demolished, my swim on Wednesday.
• I took Doodle back to the children's urologist this week and for the first time in seven months, her initial urine screen came back clear. A huge step forward in our battle with constant UTIs.
• Dilly started spelling the words "spell" and "diva", not overly important in the grand scheme of things, but very useful when she then yells, "I'm waiting, D-I-V-A!"
• I went back to the nutritionist and got the results on my cortisol and DHEA tests. My cortisol levels are out of whack, but (and this is a big but), it's not extremely severe and isn't being caused (although, it is being aggravated) by excessive exercise. The test results showed that I am suffering from hypoglycemia and that the low carb eating style that my last nutritionist put me on has only been worsening the situation. Basically, I've been digging myself into a metabolic hole and now I have to climb out of it. In order to do that, I am changing the proportion of my carbohydrate, protein and fat intake in hopes of fighting off the hypoglycemia. I am taking a Super B Complex to help with my energy levels. And I am drinking coconut water (bleh!) to restore my severely lacking electrolytes. It's going to take time, but I am already starting to feel better. Hopefully, this is the answer I have been looking to find for the last 18 months.

What small victories are you celebrating today?