Sharing Thanks

Chalk art at Norman J. Levy Preserve Thankful for this beautiful end of summer weather with hints of Fall in the air. It was a top ten day on Long Island so I went for a 2 mile walk at the Norman J. Levy Park & Preserve. It felt great to just get outside. There is something soothing about being in nature. I love bringing my camera along and taking pictures to capture the joy of seeing a moment of beauty. I am listing my thanks today with the pictures I took of these small joys Water Lily Pond at the top of the Preserve I love this part of the park. They have a Monet like bridge overlooking the pond. I was happy to spot a few water lily blooms. After you walk around the pond I came across this incredible view. Great South Bay View from Norman Levy Park and Preserve I love the tranquility of this park. You pass a few kindred souls, walking or running in the park. I saw  someone enjoying the peace and reading a good book. It's lovely to smile and say hi to the few

My new organized empty closet. Sometimes good things happen from things that go bump in the night. On Friday night I was woken up by the sound of huge crash at 2:00 am. I jumped out of bed and turned on the lights to find that my wall closet rods and shelf had collapsed. My clothes laid half on the ground in a heap, and I'm embarassed to say it reminded me of an episode of "Hoarders." Thank goodness my cat was ok, sometimes she sleeps by a cuddly sweater. How could I be thankful about this? Well sometimes it takes a calamity to force you to become more organized. Here is why I am grateful for my collapsed closet. I was thankful to have the opportunity to go through all of my closet belongings. I made my 3 piles, keep, give away to goodwill, and absolute trash. I have lived in our house for over 20 years. Some of my clothes are even older than that. I decided if I had not worn a piece of clothing in the last 10 years it should be thrown out or be given away. I fel

Remember a shot of water can be just as much fun! I love being around people who know how to orchestrate fun! I am a UMASS alumni, and one of our college friends hosts a reunion party every summer. It is so much fun to reconnect with old college friends and more important make some new memories together with all of our growing families. Thanks to our hosts Keith and Dora who hosted the party. It's a pool BBQ, and mostly everyone sleeps over. Guests from as far as Arizona, NY, Washington DC gather in Massachusetts to celebrate. Thanks to Keith and Dora for making a Shotski. Looking for something to do with your old skis? Keith organized pool game Olympics. And the games began with the a ceremonial SHOTSKI. There is something goofy about holding a ski and drinking with your friends. It just made me laugh Thanks to my team mate Annie in the swim relay. She held her own with the recent college grads. It was so much fun to be silly and be in an innertube kicking race. Although

There is nothing better than going to see a summer indy matinee in a cool dark movie theater with my daughter Becky. Did I mention Becky is a recent film studies major? Boyhood is a masterpiece at capturing life's moments. Some scenes trigger memories of conversations I have had with my kids, fighting in the back seat of the car! Moments matter. Boyhood was filmed for 12 years and shows the cast aging and growing right along with the story line. See this amazing movie. Ethan Hawke's performance is Oscar worthy! What was even better was the discussion with Becky that followed the movie. Hearing her insights on the film and being able to discuss the movie and family dynamics. Take someone special and see this beautiful insightful film. This was a moment I will savor. Thanks also to the Cinema Arts Center in Huntington for celebrating independent films year round! \

Fresh herb garden at Barilla's new restaurant in New York City I love cooking with fresh spices. Had a wonderful lunch with my girl friends at Academia Barilla Restaurant on 52nd St and Avenue of the America's. Loved the wonderful aroma of fresh basil, oregano, and rosemary wafting through this affordable restaurant. I have fresh mint and basil in growing outside on my patio. Thankful for making spaghetti with meat sauce with my fresh basil! Love the simplicity and flavors of a home cooked meal. Thankful for fresh mint in my home made ice tea. I love Lipton's cold tea bags so I can make home brewed ice tea. Fresh mint, slices of lemon, and a hint of sugar and voila home made ice tea. The taste of summer. Thankful to have lunch out with the ladies! Love finding affordable, fun places to eat in NYC! Thankful to find this draft blog post I started and being able to finish it. I love writing some gratitude about an experience I had with my girlfriends months ago. Grea

Liz Davidson with 2 of the cast members from STOMP! My daughter Liz is deaf and hears with a cochlear implant. I lot of music sounds like percussion to her. She loves drumming and we got to see STOMP on Sunday. STOMP is a percussion and dance marvel. Seeing this show made me realize the everyday beats that are all around me. Here is what I was thankful for. Thankful to take my daughter into the city and see the heart stopping STOMP! Got some discount tickets from  Theater Mania !  Thankful for the creative set, with built in crazy drum sets! Love all the different objects used during the show. I will never look at kitchen sinks in the same way! This show made me realize all of the rhythums that around me and how to tune in to the energy of a creative beat. Thankful to learn that you can tell a story with just the beat. The performers really interact with the audience. We are all capable of making music just by clapping, slapping, you get the idea! Thanks to the actors who po

On July 20, my daughter Liz and I shared our stories in the powerful No Limits Theater Group production of "Silent-No-More" to a sold out show at the Long Island Children's Museum. My daughter Liz shared her story of what it was like to grow up deaf in a hearing world and about her dreams of becoming a film director. I was asked to provide a parent's perspective. I am so thankful to Michelle Christie the founder of No Limits for asking us to participate in this groundbreaking show. I spoke from the heart about what it was like to be a musician raising a deaf daughter. To learn more about the fabulous No Limits Theater Group visit  www.nolimitsfordeafchildren.org   It's taken a few days for me to gather my thoughts about this amazing evening. If you are looking for a worthy charity to support donate to the No Limits for Deaf Children Organization. In addition to the theater program No Limits runs a speech therapy program that allows low-income children in Los An

The best Tiramisu Milkshake with a dash of color and even a magic wand! It was nice to have a magical Monday! We had a wonderful night out with some good family friends. Here was what I was thankful for yesterday. Thankful to have a great night out with our friends the Gera's! They suggested going to "Diner by the Sea" in Long Beach, NY. We were lucky to get a table as this diner is a popular hang out. I splurged and go this Tiramisu Milkshake that came with sparkling sprinkles and even a magic wand.  You know I just had to get the french fries too. Thankful to have an upside down night. Since we decided to start with dessert first, we walked done to the beautiful Long Beach Boardwalk. I love listening to the pounding surf. Thankful to see my girls enjoy running on the beach, climbing a life guard chair and taking tons of fun pictures together. They also dipped their toes in the ocean. Thankful to hear some great sounds of summer from a live band that was pla

Led by Ariel at the East Meadow Public Library Sometimes the best things in life are free! Take the time to see what your local library has to offer. Connecting with people in your community is in an easy way to enjoy your life. Being part of  a group can add energy to your life. I started my morning today in this amazing Meditation class. Here is what I am thankful for about meditating! I am thankful that Meditation allows me to sit in the quiet moment and focus on my breath! I focus on breathing in energy and breathing out a relaxing AHHHH! of stress. I am thankful that every week Ariel, the man who leads this Meditation class makes it new and interesting. The hour flies by and I applaud his efforts to provide new visualizations and affirmations everyweek.  You can visit Ariel's website at  Energy Shift Yoga . Find out about the free meditation class he offers on Saturday mornings at 9:30 am! I am thankful to have bathed in a rainbow of light during the meditation class

Beautiful blue waters of Bermuda in June It's amazing how rejuvenating a vacation can be. I have taken a virtual vacation for the past few months and it feels great to be writing a blog post for sharing thanks today!  In March my 12 year old computer got a virus! Today I am happy to be blogging from my new Lenovo and am learning Windows 8! Being offline for a few months forced me to venture outside more and I was surprised how much more time I had. I am going to be starting a blogging calendar and try to work more efficiently. Sometimes something good can come out of adversity. Enough of my blogging blues and more about sharing what I am thankful for from my recent Bermuda Breakaway vacation with my friends from college. I am thankful to just look at this picture from my phone and get lost in all the amazing blues of Bermuda waters. Thanks to Liz and Ellen who encourage me to crash the sigma kappa reunion cruise to visit our friend Lynn in Bermuda! I am thankful to be an ho

    I am very thankful for this very special Christmas gift given to me by my daughter Liz. She made me a Sharing Thanks Journal. I love her heart design and the picture of us she printed to adorn the inside of this very special journal. The best gift of all was that we used the journal together to practice gratitude. She wrote the first entry listing four things she was thankful for and passed the journal back to me. We use the journal to share what we are thankful for. It has helped me practice gratitude and has helped me and my daughter connect on a deeper level. It is wonderful to have a dialogue where we share our blessings. I love writing my thanks and sharing what brings me joy. It could be a beautiful sunset, or a kind smile a stranger gave me. I love learning about what my daughter is thankful for. I recommend sharing a journal with someone special to help your gratitude practice. It will allow you to focus on counting your joys and help you connect to someone in a lo

Sharing thanks for this Superbowl Commercial that tells the inspiring story of Derrick Coleman, a hearing impaired football player for the Seattle Seahawks. I love that they used Derrick Coleman's voice in the spot to tell his story. Derrick chose for people to know him as an NFL football player, a goal he worked hard to achieve despite his obstacles. I'll be rooting for Seattle today! I have a soft spot in my heart for this team. My daughter Liz is also deaf and wants to be known as a film director or actress. She knows how Derrick feels about batteries that help her hear with her cochlear implant everyday!

Photo by Ellen Birch. Taken at the Museum of Modern Art Water Lilies room. Art evokes emotions with color and light! To establish a grateful attitude focus on the beauty that is available to you everyday. Notice the light, and color of a moment. Sit and breathe in the beauty of that moment. Carry the picture of the moment in your mind and use it to bring you to a relaxing state of mind. I had many wonderful moments this long weekend.  I was thankful to be able to spend Sunday with my good friends at MOMA! We were energized by art and learning about the artists. One of our favorite places to go is the Water Lilies room at MOMA. The colors are mesmerizing and reflective. We sat in the room and soaked in the beauty and light of Monet's genius. It is one of the most relaxing places in New York City. I was thankful to have a good belly laugh with my friends. We went to a modernist art display and were chuckling over a piece of art work that resembled a stainless steel 

The Emmons Lab from the University of California has done a lot of gratitude research in the last decade and has found that the simple act of saying ThankYou   has many health benefits. Want to keep those New Years Resolutions? Then learn to say thank you! In one study people who kept gratitude lists were more likely to make progress toward achieving important personal goals over a two-month period compared to participants who did not keep gratitude lists. To learn more about this ground breaking gratitude research listen to Robert Emmons himself! I'm devoting the Month of January to help you start a gratitude habit! Each post this month will focus on techniques that will lead you down the road to thankfulness! I invite you to try these exercises! The first exercise is to start your day by waking up to gratitude! When you open your eyes to wake up, continue laying down in bed and take a deep breath. Breath in a "Thank You" Breath out a "Thank You"

Happy 2014! I look forward to sharing the new adventures I will be thankful for in the coming year. Let the good times roll. There is something liberating about putting on silly hats and tumbling into a photo booth! I love this crazy, silly photo of my family. This photo reminds me of many happy moments I was thankful for in 2013. In celebration of the New Year I am going to write some blog posts on how to add a dash of gratitude into your life. Being grateful is a choice and a mindset that can be developed by anyone, with practice. Here are the grateful moments in 2013 that this photo reminds me of. I was thankful to celebrate the wedding of my nephew Nick to the incredible Jess! The wedding in Philadelphia was a joyous event. They had a photo booth at the wedding with some silly accessories that led to many fun family photos. Our family gathered and danced the night away and toasted this beautiful couple. I was thankful my daughter Becky had a wonderful summer learning ex