My Personal ABC's of Thankfulness 2009

Everyone is doing one form or another of the ABC's of thankfulness...some are doing a daily status on Facebook, some are doing increments on Live Journal, but I wanted to do them all today and post it here so I will always have it...and all in one place. I LOVE this kind of thing. Soon, I will be assessing my 2009 Fruit of the Spirit, and studying for my 2010 one (which is self-control) and I am really looking forward to it. I always do it in January. For now, I want to relish and hold close to my heart what I am thankful for.

A: Abigail. My only little girl. She is precious to me. When I am in her room, playing barbies or My Little Ponies, or helping her organize, my heart just overflows with thankfulness for her. She is a mini-me and it is so fun to watch our similarities. I love her. The only thing I regret is that she won't have a sister, unless we reverse James vasectomy (which we are thinking about....JUST thinking). Even then, there would be no guarantee.

B: My Bathtub....most people probably don't think about their bathtub much but I love bathtubs and I am thankful for mine every time I use it. When you have to live without one, you become thankful for that among many other things.

C: Children. My life is my children. Yes, I have other hobbies but none are as important to me as my children, being their mother, raising them correctly. My home is my life. Most might find it boring or un-fulfilling but I definitely do not. I love it here. I love teaching them here, love being with them. I would gladly get rid of any of my hobbies rather than going out into the workforce. I also would never be guilty of making my own child be the mom. It is MY job and I love it. Some days are hard, but everyday that I learn more about being a better mom, lessens the days that are bad and increases the days that are good. Mothering takes practice. Patience takes practice and there is nothing more fulfilling than conquering impatience, being a great mom, and running a household with order and ease. Yes, no matter what anyone says, to me, children are a blessing. They are highly prized in my book. Now, I don't necessarily like other people's bad-behaving children but I sure do love mine...even when they have a bad day! :)

D: DOD. The Department of Defense supplies my husband with a job, provides for our home and ultimately provides me with my freedom. I am super thankful that my husband is involved in keeping me, our family and yours, free. This country has an all-volunteer military. Isn't that wonderful? Many, many men find job fulfillment in the military because they are involved in something bigger than themselves. Yes, sometimes what the Commander in Chief decides isn't what our men would decide. Sometimes in the military you have to do things that seem like a waste of time (and I'm sure some of them are), or do things that don't make sense to civilians. But it is all, ultimately, for you all. For your freedoms. And I am thankful for these things. I am thankful that my husband isn't a truck-driver, anymore. I am thankful that I get to be an Army wife. I know his job is hard. I appreciate that he decided to come back into the Army. I understand that he may have done it, mostly for me. I don't know. All I know is that if you think being a military wife is hard...try being a trucker's wife. It stinks with a capitol S.

E: In my home-schooling/preschool revolving brain, all I can think about are Elephants...so I need to come back to this one! :)

Yes, electricity! :) I am so thankful for the little things that I, at times have had to go without. Hot running water, lights, refridgeration, and electric heating. I LOVE a wood stove but only for EXTRA heat! :) Someday when we build or remodel a home there will be a wood stove for extra heating and a real wood cook stove. They are so nice to have when the power goes out. Electricity is a wonderful blessing that we have in this country that other countries don't have and we shouldn't take it for granted.

F: Fine Chocolate. I am not an "any-kind-of-chocolate-will-do"girl. It has to be expensive! :) I don't need to explain why I am thankful for this. I think most women know that sometimes you just need a hunk (doesn't have to be big) of melt in your mouth fine chocolate, to make a stressful day seem better. Now, for some reason a handful of milk chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips will do the trick, as well! :)

G: Grace, from my Lord Jesus. I wouldn't make it through a day of motherhood, marriage, deployment, homeschooling, heartbreak, financial stresses, etc without the grace of God. I would be a complete failure, wandering aimlessly through my life. I thank god for His grace in my life and his mercy, too.

H: Horses. I love horses and even though my life with them is sort of on the back-burner, by my own choice, I will always be thankful that my parent's bought Hope for me. Even though I don't get to ride her very much, my children do get to. They are learning to ride on the same horse that I did. Someday, when we are out of the military, retired and most of my children are gone, I will jump cross-country again, but until then, a ride on Saturdays, in the summer is enough for me! Horses are wonderful. They smell wonderful, too! 8)

I: Internet. It makes Army life easier, definitely! There is no way I could call all of the friends I have left in various places. I need Facebook if i want to keep in touch with anyone. And when my husband is gone, it helps a lot, too.

J: My husband James. You know, there really are jerks out there and he's not one of them. He's not perfect. We clash about a lot of things. Mostly it's because we pretty much had to start our marriage over again, after the three years that we barely saw each other. Both he and I grew in different ways while we were apart, so coming back together has been hard and it has had it's issues. God will be glorified in them, eventually. James is the love of my life. That fact will never change. Even when we were going through hard times (that couples eventually go through), I still loved him. You're naive to think you have a great marriage if you have only been married for 1-3 years, and it's been all smooth sailing. Hard times will come, if they haven't already. But you better LOVE that man, no matter what happens!

K: Kitties. I love my kitty, Katie. She's so sweet to all of us, even the kids. She's a wonderful pet and it will be sad when it's her time to go. She's already seven years old, now. I wish I could have a houseful of cats, but I wouldn't be able to handle the mess. Notice that "D"was NOT for dogs! :) The mess our dog creates is worse than a child, I hate dogs. They are disgusting.

L: Love. I am LOVED by so many people, but especially by my husband. Why, I don't know? Sometimes I say things that I can't take back. He still loves me. It's amazing. I am thankful that the Lord loves me and has great plans for my life. He loves me even when I keep doing the same stupid thing over and over again! My children love me and it seems that they have a better grasp on loving unconditionally than I do. They are so forgiving of me that it amazes me!

M: Meals. Mealtime around my "well-loved" dining room table is my favorite time of the day. I love that table. I will never get rid of it! It's just too precious to us all. Meals shared with our entire family, that I cooked from scratch and labored over when I could have been doing something else, are well worth the effort. Not only do we share a meal, but little tib-bits of news from the day or the latest funny thing, from Sheldon, usually. We share hopes and dreams; we share heartache and hurts. We train our children during meals, in lessons that they probably wouldn't get otherwise. I am thankful that we have three meals a day...and they are well rounded. We are rich in America. There is an abundance of food in this country that some people can only dream of.

N: Natural Medicine. I love natural medicine, especially herbs. God created every herb for our use (in some way). He provided us with hundreds of plants that heal us. I am truly thankful for medical doctors, their wisdom and to the people who discovered antibiotics. I gratefully go to them when I cannot heal myself or my child. They have their place and rightfully, so. But oh, the love I have for the times when I can heal or comfort my child from the plants in God's creation! :)

O: Open pages...whether it is the empty sheet of paper waiting to be touched by the pen in a letter to a penpal, friend or relative, a thank you note or a hodgepodge poem of mine, or the open pages of a book, the soft, crinkly pages of my open Bible or a letter to me, from a friend....I just love them. I love Opening mail! I love it when the envelope spills out little things my penpals send to swap (called FAT mail) such as recipes, bookmarks, tea, friendship books and Slams, stickers or whatever the fad is at the time. Slips of paper with the scribbling of a poem from Bobbi Jo, a magazine article from another, instructions to a craft that looked interesting, pictures, confetti, address labels, or who knows what else. I know....i am very weird, but it's something I love and am thankful for!

P: Piles of Laundry. I never buy clothes (except underwear, socks and shoes) for me or the kids, but somehow we always have plenty and I am thankful for that because clothes are way too expensive...

Q: Quiet. I am so thankful for the quiet after my children have gone to bed. My body refuses to sleep until I have soaked up at least 15 min of it! I relish those times when all is quiet. When I can think, pray and just relax. For a homeschooling mom, the quiet is great! Add a chunk of chocolate and some coffee or tea, a good book or an empty page of paper to fill and a kitty on your lap and that is heaven! :)

R: Rainy Days. Even though I love summer and the warmth it brings, I am thankful for rainy days when I can stay inside and not have to go out much, except for feeding Hope. I like the relaxing sound of rain and the comfort it brings...but most of all, it isn't snow! LOL!


S: Sisters. Sisters are truly a huge gift and I am so thankful for mine! I love it when Sarah calls just to tell the latest funny thing to happen in our family, or at her work. I love it when we call to share recipes. This is called the SRN (Sister's Recipe Network....also stands for Sarah, Rachelle and Naomi). I love getting together with them and laughing. We always laugh and it's usually something that no one else would find funny. Sisters are great!

Sheldon. I have to add him on here! He is extra special to me. If you read his birth story on my blog, you'd know why. Not that he had a miracle birth or some type of amazing story like that but just the fact that God knew I needed him at the time he came, even though it seemed like the worst time! Sheldon is sunlight, a whirlwind and just absolutely, wonderfully, precious! :) Ask Donna Neale. She says he is D-lish! :)

T: Tea. Whether a cup of steaming green tea in the morning or Chai with Organic Sugar and a ton of half and half, it soothes my soul. I never forget my HUGE pink mug with white polka dots when I go to church, or bible study. I love trying new tea. I love coffee, too, but I will usually choose tea over it. Anyway, tea is awesome.

U: The United States. I know I am getting redundant BUT we are blessed beyond belief in this country and I am so thankful that God chose me to live here! :)

V: Victory in Jesus! I am SO thankful that I have victory over my personal sins, habits and tendencies. I am so thankful that it is richly available to us. If we would just take the time to see it, to realize that it is there for our use, and use it. So many times we try to conquer things on our own strength when victory is right at our fingertips. I wish I would remember that more often! I want to live my life for Christ. I know He can give me victory over the things in my life that seem like they will never change. It's right here for me (and you), and I overlook it so often!
W: Well Water. I love the clean, sweet taste of well water! :) I am thankful we have it!

X: UneXpected eXtra money. Usually in the form of a gift, or a new horseshoing client. We are ALWAYS thankful for a little extra!


Y: Yard. Our yard is big and it is a place we have gathered with family and friends to just have fun. We have a trampoline, BBQ, fire-pit, hottub, picnic table and more ideas to come, that make it wonderful for our family! :)

Z: Zane. I am so thankful for this first child of mine! Where Sheldon is a whirlwind of activity, Zane is my calm, steady, kind, obedient child! It's amazing that the two are so different, but that they compliment each other so well. When I was pregnant with Zane, the ladies at my baby shower laid hands on my tummy and prayed for our son. Everything they prayed has come true. They prayed he would be sweet, obedient and that he would come to know the love of Christ in a personal way. They prayed that he would do great things for God, and his father and I are waiting to see what they will be! :) Most of all we are thankful that he KNOWS God, at such an early age. It is apparent everyday that the Holy Spirit dwells in his little heart! What a great place to end! :)

I know there is so much more I could be thankful for, but I will save them for next year! Happy Thanksgiving!