Thankful Thursday

I am trying something new this week. In my recent blog surfing I have come across a bunch of wonderful blogs. One of them hosts a weekly meme called Thankful Thursday. I know I don't tell God often enough just how grateful I am for all of His blessings, so I am going to try to participate weekly in this meme.

Today I would just like to say how thankful I am for:

• My children's health. So often I hear about some child that is afflicted with some horrible disease, and is suffering because of it. I don't know if I could bear seeing one of my children suffer.
• The opportunity God gives me to start each day fresh with Him. To know that God wipes the slate clean each time I confess my sin to Him is something to truly be grateful for.
• My prayer warrior friends. I have been blessed with several close friends that really know how to pray without ceasing. I know that all I have to do is ask and they will immediately go to God in prayer about any situation in my life. To know that they are praying for me even when I don't ask is an even greater blessing.
• A family that's not afraid to say "I love you." Each time one of my kids voluntarily tells me that they love me, my heart swells (even when they are doing it to get out of trouble). I still love to hear Brian tell me that he loves me. It is a blessing to know you are loved. I know I need to work harder about telling my parents, sister, and in-laws that I love them. I know they know that I love them, but just as hearing those words blesses me, I imagine it would be a blessing for them to hear it from me.

OK - that wasn't so hard.

Gone Fishing

My parents took all the grand kids fishing yesterday. Reading my mom's blog about the adventure really took me back to my childhood. Most of our fishing trips, camping trips, and other adventures turned out much like this. I remember going camping exactly twice as a child. One time my grandma and aunt took all of us grand kids to the lake. The only thing I remember about the trip was that it rained. The other time my parents took my sister and me out in the national forest. It was roughing it style. I remember not liking going to do my business in the woods. And chiggers. If you have never had the pleasure of getting into a "mess of chiggers" as they are called around here, trust me, you don't want to. There is nothing quite like the itch of a few dozen chigger bites, to make you want to scratch your skin off.

I also remember many fishing trips to my grandparents ponds. I was always afraid of snakes and bugs, and I did not want to touch the worms or even the fish I caught for that matter. Honestly I haven't got much better about this. We lived in a house with a pond for a while and did a lot of fishing then, but even as an adult I am constantly watching around my feet for critters and hearing things in the bushes. Even though I am not much of an outdoorsy person, I want my kids to have the experience of camping in a tent, and catching a real whopper. I may try to talk Brian into an overnight camping trip to the lake this fall once the weather starts to cool off. I know the kids would love it, and the fresh air would do us all good.

Staying the Same

Well my first official week of maintenance went pretty well. I was actually a little surprised that I didn't gain. I pretty much spent Saturday and Sunday eating whatever I wanted. We had Chinese Saturday, and then Sunday was potluck at church. Even though I took some healthier choices, it is hard to pass by some of my favorites without getting a little taste.

I also have to praise God for an answered prayer. First let me say that we have been blessed that both of our children have never had to stay with anyone other than family while we work. My mom has provided a loving place for them to stay ever since Stephen was born. Then after Skylar was born, and Brian's mom retired they have had the opportunity to spend a day or two a week with her. Well now that Brian's dad is sick, we have been praying for someone trustworthy to watch then a couple of days a week. My mom is just not able to keep up with them and my 4 year old nephew five days a week. Last night we got the answer to our prayer. Our next door neighbor, and long time friend said she would be happy to keep them. She and her husband are like family. In fact the kids even call them aunt and uncle. The kids will love spending the extra time with them, and I won't have to worry that they are being cared for in a loving yet disciplined manner.

Happy Camper

Last week Stephen spent 3 days and nights at church camp. I was really afraid when he left that he would get homesick and want to come home early. Boy was I wrong. We went to camp Friday night to attend church with him, only to find that he not only didn't want to come home early, he was having such a good time that he wasn't ready for it to be over on Saturday. I am so glad that he enjoyed himself. His counselors said he was well behaved and other than falling of the top bunk the first 2 nights he had no problems at all. In fact he was nominated by his cabin for Honor Camper, and though he didn't win overall Honor Camper, we were very proud of him. He is already looking forward to going back next year.

Skylar really missed her brother while he was gone. She kept asking if this was the day he was coming home. It was really odd for him not to be there to tuck in each night. And Skylar had no on to argue with (other than me and her daddy).

Thank You

So I was checking out the hits on my blog today and couldn't figure out why there were so many - the only day I have more than one or two is Tuesday when I post on the challenge at Tales from the Scales. Well I got to looking and the links were coming from there so I checked it out and imagine my surprise when I found they were writing about me. Thank you so much for all of your support and I pray that each of you comes to a point where you are happy with where you are.