Thankful...

Blogging is, to me, a risky business. Anytime you put words down for others to read, you run the risk of having someone misinterpret your feelings or emotions. When spilling my guts out here, I don't ever want to sound like I am whining or ungrateful. I hope that whoever reads this will give me the grace to vent, misspell, goof on my punctuation and just be me. While these past 6 months have been amazingly trying, I know that I have so much for which to be thankful. I think it's a very good thing to remind myself of what I have - especially in the midst of hard times. As someone once said, "You don't become discontent until you start focusing on what you don't have."

I love the story of the elderly couple who was interviewed on a morning talk show for their 75 years of marriage. The host asked the gentleman, "What do you attribute to your having stayed together for so long?" The gentleman didn't hesitate. He squeezed his wife's shoulder, oh so gently, and tenderly replied, "If the grass ever looked greener on the other side, I just watered mine more."

'Nuf said. Here's a short list of things I have to be thankful for...

1 - My Abba Father. My only hope. My strength.

2 - Michael. My soul mate, my inspiration, my life coach :), the one who reminds me to give myself and others grace, the one who reminds me to laugh, the other side of me.

3 - Thomas, Lacy and Isaac. My ministry. When they are at eachother's throats, they force me on my face in prayer. When they play happily together, they make me laugh. When they are away from me, it scares me. When they are sick, I lose sleep. When they are hurt, I hurt. When they disobey, they break my heart. When they are sleeping - peacefully... beautifully - they make me pray that I will enjoy every second I have with them.

4 - My family. My best girl-friend, my sis, Emily. Oh the stories we could tell. My generous parents who taught me to love God and depend on Him for everything. My kid siblings Lauren, my workout buddy, and Jacob, my only brother; they are so great with my children. My awesome grandparents who have been there for everything in my life. Michael's family who love me as one of their own.

5 - All of my sweet friends. Their prayers, encouragement, laughter, girl's nights out, late night talks, game nights, shared meals, shared coffee, phone calls, e-mails and just being there have been such a blessing to me. My cup runs over with their love.

6 - Living in America. Need I say more? I'm just so thankful for our freedoms and pray that my children will be able to enjoy them, too.

7 - Music... My favorite past time. Emotions, passion, praise, prayer, memories and dreams. All this and more expressed through melodies, harmonies, rhythms and dynamics.

8 - Health. Wow... my stretch marks, pale skin, and occasional acne outbreaks are so insignificant when I hear about what others are living with.

9 - Exercise. One of the top 2 stress relievers. We'll leave the other one left unsaid ;)

10 - Rain. I love a rainy day. Everything gets washed and refreshed and cleaned. I love to go to sleep while it's storming - no better sound of nature than that of heavy rain falling on a roof.

11 - Date night. Dressing up, going out and falling in love over and over and over.

12 - Christmas. Lights, decorations, Christmas music, nostalgia, movies (Home Alone, White Christmas...) hot cider, parties, presents, family and friends... and most importantly, Jesus' Birthday.

13 - The future. With all the Lord has brought us through - especially this year - He has shown Himself faithful and full of grace every second of every day. To live really is a big adventure...

Elsie is a boy...

Before I forget, hehe, my sister's kitten is not a female :) Elsie is now officially Elliot the cat. Though I am not much of an animal person, he is a darn pretty cat.