Another Year of Gratitude

It is Thanksgiving Day. The day we collectively pause and look at everything we have to be grateful for. The day we try to put aside or petty complaints and count our blessings. The day we observe our bounty and simply say, "Thank you!"

My list is long again this year. Many of the same things are on my list every year. That is one of the things I'm most thankful for. I still have all of the people I hold dear in my life.

God.
Always at the top of the list. He is good. He has blessed us again this year. He has brought both great and difficult things and He has walked each step with us.

Family.
My husband, my children, the very core of everything I am thankful for. I feel they deserve to be mentioned individually.
Keith- I never want to have to live without you.
Douglas- Thank you for being my responsible eldest. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration.
Freeland- Thank you for your gentle side that you show to me and to other humans and animals who need to be shown gentleness.
Casper- Thank you for your willingness to learn and explore new ideas, and thank you for talking to me about your many ideas and imaginations.
Annika- Thank you for your independent little spirit. Thank you for loving "girl days" and "pretty things". Thank you for being the daughter  I dreamed of having.
Eliana- Thank you for your sweetness. Thank you for the hundreds of cards floating all over the house covered in "I love Mommy", for the snuggle times and the constant reminders of the fact that you trust me with your sweet little heart.

My grandparents, my parents, my siblings, my siblings-in-law, my nieces and nephews, you know who you are and you know how you bless me. I'm thankful for each and every one of you.

Friends.
I'm a quiet, introverted person. I have a few friends whom I love dearly. And I think it makes me even more thankful for each of you.

Opportunities.
I have again been blessed with opportunities this year. Opportunities to do many things I love to do. I went to China twice. I took thousands of pictures of children. I watched many of my China babies matched with and come home to their families.

I started my photography business and have taken pictures of many sweet families. I love doing this and am grateful to be able to.

I am still homeschooling my children. I love being able to do this. It is a bit of a stretch for me to continue because of my health issues, but we are homeschooling and everyone is doing well.

Material Blessings.
The house we live in, the clothes we wear, the food we have in abundance, and the list could go on and on and on, for the ways we are blessed with material things.

Thank you, God, for each of these blessings and the many I have failed to mention!

No comments

I love hearing from friends ~ new and old!