Run Baby Run - Reframing Thoughts for Happiness

The other day the sun made a brief appearance in our neck of the woods. I scooped up Jack up, laced our shoes, and tossed the soccer ball into the car. Off we went to enjoy possibly one of his most favorite activities in the world, "do sports."

Not long into our 'soccer practice' (his words, not mine ;) - he darted off, daringly close to the rough & tumble high-schoolers the next field over. Thoughts of him being tripped over, bee lining it right down their field, or him being smacked with a corner kick left me in a panic. I called after him and you know what he did? He just kept running.

He's three, he's testing limits. I get it. But this little stunt had 6  month pregnant me chasing after a quick little preschooler.... frustrated & ready to call our soccer outing quits.

{taken last year, another sunny day in February}

And then, it hit me.


He's running.


There was a moment in our life when we worried whether our baby would even be able to walk properly. During my pregnancy we were given a false diagnosis of brain malformation that could affect his gross motor skills, and possibly much more.


So I stopped chasing him (I'm sure everyone was disappointed to see that spectacle end!)


Instead of feeling like, "oh my goodness this is so exhausting and his skinny little behind should be following directions"  I thought to myself "oh my goodness, we're so blessed he's running....and he needs to get his skinny little bum back over here."   It was a little mental shift. Reframed my thoughts....and it completely changed how I felt.


It took a breath (or a few). And he came back. And we played soccer. And he ran & ran.

{I've been trying to apply this same little mental shift to daily activities - washing dishes, answering emails, silly pregnancy exercise videos- and it's made a world of difference in my level of stress & my personal degree of happiness....}