Count Your Blessings

Halloween wore me out.

This fall has been exhausting.

My blog has been suffering.

But I'm never too tired to be thankful and show it.

So let's do a little catch-up, shall we?

For November, I will join in and post something I'm thankful for each day. Since today is already the 11th (oops), I've got a BIG list to write today...

Day ONE:

I am thankful for a roof over my head. Whether or not I own that roof doesn't matter. Whether or not that roof is my dream roof doesn't matter. As I found out in September, the Lord's plans for us were so much bigger than what I had dreamed up -- silly me, thinking I could control everything. Thank you, Lord, for the roof over our heads that we absolutely love.

Day TWO:

I am thankful for a job. Err, three jobs. Especially in an economy where this is harder and harder to find. With lots of friends (and relatives) on the prowl for employment, I feel very thankful. And this third job, the dream Anthropologie job, where I thought it would be mostly for the discount that I was working? Again, the Lord is good to me. I've not been spending my paychecks after all, and they've in fact helped pay the bills, taking pressure off of my husband and allowing us to save more.

Day THREE:

I am thankful for a financial overhaul over the past year. And saving. And spending less. Which, in case you were wondering, feels very, very freeing. Who needs a houseful of crap anyway? ;)

Day FOUR:

I am thankful for my husband. A support, an encourager, spontaneous, full of fun, hilarious, just the right amount of nerdy (can't compete with my own personal amount of nerdiness), an extremely hands-on dad (er, Papa, that's what we call 'em in our house), a protector, a provider, and best friend. To top it all off, he puts up with me. True love.




Day FIVE:

I am thankful for my pets. They provide unconditional love (well, as long as we feed them, I suppose), and it is the best thing to walk in the door after work and find lots of wagging tails and purring bellies happy to see me. If owning a pet makes a person live longer, well, I'd say my family is set! Six animals to love us every single day.


(Harry, on the right, and Sally, on the left)


(the Italian greyhounds demonstrating a true "dogpile" - Romeo on the bottom, Tex and Minnie Pearl on the top; and sorry for no pic of our fourth dog, Mazi)

Day SIX:

I am thankful for my boy. I could go on and on about how he is the greatest kid I know, and although, yes, I'm his mama and a tad biased, I actually know several people who would back me up on this. He's kind and oh-so-compassionate, well-behaved, grateful, respectful to adults, caring to our pets, and almost always obedient. He's funny, a fantastic healthy eater, he's gorgeous (sorry, but he is, and oh, those dimples), and he loves to hear about Jesus and Bible stories. Throw in just a handful of mischief and naughtiness, and you've got yourself an awesome kid. What more could a mama ask for?


(the little man and I, Halloween 2009)

Day SEVEN:

I am thankful for 2010. This probably sounds like a strange thing to be grateful for, but at the beginning of the year, I was praying that 2010 would be a nice, quiet year -- no big changes, everything just chucking along like clockwork. Boy, was I wrong, and boy, did we ever get the opposite. This has been a crazy year for us, full of lots of surprising changes, lots of attacks on our little family from Satan (sorry, if you think I'm weird for typing it, but I know it's true), and just nothing like we expected it to be. But you know what? These changes have ended up being just what we needed (duh, I know, God always knows better than I), and it's ending up being a great year after all. So, thanks for 2010.

Day EIGHT:

I am thankful for more radio and less TV. Ha! But it's true. I'm down to just a very few select shows I watch, and with the radio on more often, I've been getting more accomplished and just feeling more balanced in general. Don't get me wrong, it's really more me listening to the radio than my guys, but it's been great for me not to feel so zapped from the boob tube. And I'm proud to say that my five-year-old only watches about 30 minutes of TV a few days a week. Yay for less TV! Although this is not to say that I could live WITHOUT the TV quite yet. Nope, not ready for that.

Day NINE:

I am thankful for kindergarten. My boy has a great teacher, a little classroom filled with new friends and diversity (for which I am very thankful), and he has learned so much in just a few short months already. He went from counting to 10 to counting to 100, recognizing and writing every single one of his letters, and starting to spell and read. He loves the cafeteria food and cafeteria ladies, calls the principal "Mrs. President", and eats a good breakfast with his classmates every morning. And thank goodness for "green faces" ("green faces" = good behavior) every day. Er, most every day. So far, so GREAT.


(my guys walking to school the first morning of kindergarten 2010)

Day TEN:

I am thankful for double chocolate chip pumpkin muffins. Oh, heavens. So grateful that I have already made two big batches of them this season (most of which may or may not have gone to my own thighs). And I'm sure I will be making them again before the Christmas season starts, especially since I've already got the ingredients in my pantry for two more batches. I just can't help it.

Day ELEVEN:

I am thankful for veterans. I have a brother-in-law in the Army. My dad was in the Army. And I have several friends that are veterans. It seems so cliche to say I am thankful for them today, but I really am, and I've been thinking about the sacrifices of all of the veterans a lot lately. My boy is currently into all things "Army mans" (and has been for over a year), and if you ask him what he wants to be when he grows up, these days his answer is consistently "an Army man". So I've also been a good mom and watching a some of the military channel on TV with him as well, and it has been a great reminder of what a sacrifice each of these soldiers make for the rest of us. We've taught him to go up to military that we might see in public and say "thank you". And let me tell you -- for a mama that rarely tears up, that's a surefire way to get the teary eyes, to see your little man proudly walk up and tell a serviceman or woman thank you for serving and "keeping us safe"!


(my son's birthday cake from April 2010 -- it was a little "Army mans" party with the family, of course!)

On a lighter note, I am also soooooooooo thankful for not having to go in to work today! I called in and got the green light for a day off. And I vow to make this day a productive one, so with that being said -- see ya' tomorrow...