Gratitude. So often I forget how abundant I am. After the birth of my son in September I took a good look at my life and realized that lately I had been focusing on what I didn’t have and what I wanted instead of all the incredible things I do have. Maybe it was all that focus on finally getting through to the actual delivery that got my mind so "out there" in front of myself!

So I have been reminding myself a lot in these past couple of weeks to be grateful every day. Every moment when I start to feel exhausted or frustrated I remember all of my abundance – that I have my family and my friends; that I am able to make a living doing what I love. And then hey, what new mom could ask for anything more than a beautiful healthy baby who sleeps for three hours at a time!!!

I’m sure there will always be "things" that I want. I still haven’t gotten over my shoe fetish, and a recent trip to the mall with my three-year-old daughter made me realize I have successfully passed that particular obsession on to her. And I still haven’t gotten over the habit of taking on a thousand projects at once. As a result I usually have a lot chaos all around me. But that’s just one more great practice arena for staying focused and present – and appreciative. If only I could remember to do it all the time!

Part of the recent excitement was caused by the fact that, not only was I having a baby, I was also working with Fred Alan Wolf to create our first book installment of Dr. Quantum. I love the character of Dr. Quantum, and the new characters we’ve added for the books are a lot of fun - intelligent, real and fantastical all at once. My desire was to create a book which would inspire kids about science and all the potentials science reveals to us, and that was fun and exciting as well. Fred jumped right in and, as his whole life is about making science fun and understandable, he was absolutely up to the task.

It was an honor to work with Fred. He truly is a whimsical genius. He reminded me with every page that "real" science is fun, and that when you’re willing to go "down the rabbit hole" you can create adventure wherever you want. I’m so excited to offer a book for kids that’s based in fantasy and reality all at once. Children don’t really see the difference unless we remind them.

I am always amazed with the truths they come up with while supposedly exploring in fantasyland. After that particularly trying afternoon of shopping with Ella, I asked her to make a picture of what she was grateful for. I assumed she would create something filled with material things (a reflection of where my head had been obviously!). To my surprise she came up with images of family, home, friends and her cuddly blanket. Of course these are the real things to be grateful for.

So now you know how I came around to writing about gratitude this month. Thanks Ella for reminding me.

Betsy