today is the day...I said thank you a bezillion times. (an experience post.)

Tonight I am not feeling like the smartest girl in the world.  I am working on a time consuming project so my sweet, sweet husband offered to do the dishes after dinner.  (Please note that I took a photo to prove that said sweet, sweet husband was doing dishes because I know that some of you who know him think that I am making this part up.  I would not lie about something this important.)  Anyway, we are going to be extremely busy these next couple of days and I have a few things that need to be done…tonight. 

So, Jeff was doing dishes. 

I was standing in the kitchen with him beginning to explain how I didn’t know when I was going to get to be able to do my sincere thank you experience before the close of the week. 

And the reason is because I was working on this important project I mentioned a moment ago.  This is where I start to feel like maybe my brain is clouded and an early bedtime might be a good idea. 

Let me back up slightly. 

It starts with the whole breast cancer double mastectomy thing, but I promise to keep that part short and fairly insignificant for now.  We were smothered (yes, in a positive way) with kindness during my diagnosis and recovery from surgery.  We had friends picking up our kids, doing our landscaping, cooking us meals for seven solid weeks (yes, I said seven…incredible), visiting, cleaning our house…you name it.  It was mind-blowing. 

And when I wasn’t drugged up on heavy narcotics, I had the wherewithal to look each of them in the eyes to say, “I want you to know that I am not going to write thank-yous.  I am letting myself off of the hook, but I need you to know how grateful I am, we are, for your kindness.  We know it takes time, energy, resources and love to do what you have done.  Thank you.”  They each did as you would expect, they said things like “Of course, of course,” “I would be upset with you if you did,” “You know we love you” and other great things like that. 

Fast forward to 3 months later and I just can’t help myself. 

I am not a good gift giver and my love language is not physical touch (although I do like a good hug).  But man, I am a words of affirmation girl.  I tell people how I feel and in return, that’s how I feel someone else’s love.  (If you aren’t familiar with Five Love Languages, I highly recommend you leave my blog right now and Google it.  Changed the way I look at relationships – romantic, professional and personal.  It will change the way you look at them too.) 

Anyway, I’m a words girl, so thank-yous are going to happen.  As a matter of fact, the main reason I didn’t get to my thank you experience today was because I was putting the final touches on the bezillion of thank you notes going out to anyone and everyone who did something special for us during the months consumed with my diagnosis. 

This is where the irony comes in and just in case you, like me, need that earlier bedtime, let me boil it down for you…

I couldn’t get to my thank you experience because I was busy writing

thank-yous.

Hmmm.  And not just preprinted-pat-you-on-the-back thank-yous.  Homemade (oh yeah, if you are on that list, you will laugh when you see how homemade they really are) thank-yous with individual notes about what my family and I appreciated most about that was done during this time. 

Well, at least my today is the day action for the week and my thank-yous notes are both done.  It’s time for bed.  So what if it’s only 8:30?  It’s obvious I could use more sleep.