As I sat and tried to come up with some sort of interesting and compelling introduction to this week’s Cultivating Gratitude and Sharing Love post, I found myself staring at a blank screen for a while. It hasn’t been a bad week; it’s just been a week when I feel like I didn’t learn any major life lessons or do anything remarkable or feel anything life changing.

That’s okay. Some weeks are just normal, and I like it that way.

So instead of my trying to create force something profound, let’s go straight to gratitude.

Cultivating Gratitude

Spontaneous dates. I like for dates to be planned, but then I tend to put too much pressure on them to be special. I’m learning to love the spontaneous dates, when Dan suggests something random, and instead of giving a reason why it’s not the right idea for tonight, I just say yes and enjoy. Last Friday, we indulged at a new pizza place, which is basically the Chipotle of wood-fired pizzerias. Yes, please.

Time to read. I’ve been skipping my normal nighttime blogging tasks in favor of reading for twenty minutes or so before bed, and it’s working wonders to help me sleep better and feel more relaxed overall. (I’m currently reading Primates of Park Avenue. It’s as hilarious as you’d expect, while also being surprisingly clever, kind, and insightful.)

Courageous people. To be honest, I’ve seen marriage take a beating in so many of my friends’ lives lately, and it’s breaking my heart. I’m so thankful for courageous people who stand up for their marriages, build up their spouses, and work hard to protect and preserve their families.

Natural peanut butter. I don’t like crunchy peanut butter, but I do love the grittiness of natural peanut butter. One of my favorite treats is to pour a bunch of dark chocolate chips into the jar and dig in with a spoon. (I think it’s important to note that I don’t share this jar with anyone else.)

Stretchy maternity dresses and leggings. Hello, fall uniform.

Sharing Love

It’s so hard to stay connected to our relationships when life gets busy. Here are 6 things to try that you may not have thought of before.

Does your blog have these 11 essentials?

Inspiration isn’t something to be stumbled on, but something to cultivate. I love these fresh ideas for staying inspired as a blogger (or as a writer in general).

Growing deep friendships in the busyness of adulthood is not easy. These suggestions are so practical and easy to incorporate into your everyday life.