though i've said it before...

This is day 5 and I feel oh-so-grateful. So, blog-reader beware. I may get mushy gushy...

I am thankful for family. I love Saturdays with my family. Now that soccer is over, Saturdays are wide open.

Today found us on a bike ride to Grandma's. Me and the hubby and our gaggle of girls biking through the trails on this gorgeous, crisp fall afternoon.

We then spent the next part of the day helping Mom clear up her lawn for the upcoming winter. With Dad gone, the lawn maintenance is quite a chore. We have realized all over again what a hard worker he truly was. So we cleared vines off the trellises and chipped up sticks and leaves. Mass amounts of leaves were raked up and Nora jumped into her first leaf pile. Cousins and an uncle joined us. The kids have pretend forts in Grandma's pine trees. They disappear for long periods of time and have a blast.

Then as we are about to leave in different directions, it happens. That sly grin on her face. "Mom, can so-and-so come over...?" (She doesn't actually say so-and-so, but the name is different each time.) The time spent together with cousins is never long enough. One ends up at our house or we swap kids for an afternoon or a sleepover or they head to another house together. But I love it. I love this family and those cousins!

I am so thankful for family. I am thankful God moved us here so that our kids (and me, too) can grow up near their cousins and uncles and grandparents and aunts. It's a blessing I've addressed before, but, like I warned, I'm feeling a little sentimental about it today...

faith CHRISTIAN academy...

On day four, I am thankful for our school.

I am thankful for a church with a heart for Christian education. Through the many lean years, the Lord has blessed our little school. This is the same school my hubby and his brothers went through all those years ago. Now our own children have the blessing of attending a true Christian school. The teachers are all amazing Christian examples to our daughters. I can be confident that the school is an extension of the principles and truths we are teaching at home.

I am thankful for the friends and families we are able to fellowship with through the school.

I am thankful for the quality of education our girls receive each day as I drop them off say, "I love you. Have a good day," and wave as they enter a new school day. I pray for them and their teachers.

I know this blessing is not to be taken lightly. I am grateful for FCA...

that guy...

On day three I am thankful for that guy.

He is quite the catch. He understands my humor and I get his. He is the detail- oriented yin to my whole-picture yang. He is an example of simple Godly consistency. He likes my cooking and my baking even more. God picked him out for me and I am forever grateful...

soccer mom...

On day two I am thankful for healthy, active girls. This marks season 5 of soccer for our family. This year we had to become even more committed to the sport. Practice during the week and two games on Saturdays. Calla is old enough for the travelling teams now. Truck ourselves across the towns to a fairly frigid soccer field to sit and cheer on our favorite goalie or forward. Then quickly pack it all up to grab a bite of something to eat and head out to do it all again for daughter number two.

So I am thankful.

Thankful that my girls are strong and healthy enough to play soccer week in and week out. Thankful that our schedules are flexible enough that Mom and Dad could attend each weekend game - together. Thankful for the opportunity to socialize with our community and allow the girls to form friendships outside of the church. And thankful that we have a break for several months as the snow threatens to fall. My rear end gets quite cold in those camp chairs...

30 days of thankful me...

November 1st is one my favorite days of the year! Halloween is finally over (I'm not a fan...). All the fun costumes and candy are on sale. And I begin to look toward Thanksgiving.

I love Thanksgiving.

So day one of thankfulness goes to a new season. Not the ghoulish Halloween-type fall, but the crisp-leaved, apple harvest sort of fall...

His grace is sufficient...

I have always been one that mixes Scripture with songs when I am seeking comfort. A verse will almost always lead me to a song. One that has brought me comfort in the past. Lately, my song is from the distant past. Psalty the Songbook days. I only had one video, but I loved it! I was so proud of it that I asked my 3rd grade teacher in the public school if we could show it during rest time. She allowed it and I beamed with pride through every scene. Funny, though, no one else seemed to enjoy it. But the song...

I will cast all my cares upon You.

I lay all of my burdens,

Down at your feet.

And any time

I don't know

Just what to do.

I will cast all my cares upon You.

Here, 25 years later, God has reminded me to leave my burdens at His feet. It is so simple and yet it is a lesson that continues to press on my heart. I am re-learning it today and can go to bed with my burdens at His feet...

well, that's true...

As I chatted with the neighbor about a fainting episode he had experienced yesterday, I encouraged him to call me any time if he ever needed me to come over to help him out. I closed the conversation and hopped into the driver's seat. Amelia, in her oh-so-genuine voice calls out from the backseat, "Mom, if Mr. Ron needs someone to be loud and crazy, he can call me any time, too."