Blessings

Being a mother of 5 kids is great.  Most days it is very difficult- I will not lie.  But it is still great.  I love my children, they are a tremendous blessing to me.  Being a wife is also great.  Josh and I don't always agree on everything, and life isn't always peachy- but even when it's not- it's still great.  He is and always will be my best friend. 

I'm feeling thankful today.  I don't know why today is special.  I should count my blessings and rejoice in them every day.  But some days I can't/won't/refuse to do that.  Some days I sulk, complain, speak bitterly to people.  Maybe I'm feeling this way because Christian and I just completed a 100 piece puzzle and ALL OF THE PIECES WERE THERE! Now that is something to be thankful for in this house.  We have a puzzle bandit, and his name is Jeremiah.  He likes to dump the puzzle boxes, and attempt to put them together.  Usually he manages to get a few pieces together, then runs off with some pieces in his hand, and forgets about his project- pieces strewn around the floor.  

I am thankful that Christian is sitting next to me coloring a dinosaur picture.  He is safe, he is enjoying himself, and he just asked me if we can swim to Florida.  After giving it a moment of thought though, he just told me "never mind, there might be a giant squid, and I don't like giant squids so we better not try."  4 year olds are great. 

I am thankful that my husband is a man of his word, he is diligent, intelligent, and completes the things he sets out to do.  He is considering starting his own business.  Though risky (and scary for me...I like things to be 'just so'  Steady job, steady work schedule, steady benefits...you know.  But I know he will not jump into anything until he weighs all of the risks.  He treats me well, he loves me, and I am thankful for that.

I am thankful for Elijah.  He isn't afraid to show me he loves me, even though he is going to be 13 in 4 months.  I don't embarrass him (too much)  When I show up at school, he doesn't try to hide from me, or treat me disrespectfully to show off.  He is a good kid. 

I am thankful for Abigail.  She is so helpful with Jeremiah.  She gives him baths, she reads him stories, feeds him when he can't do it himself.   She keeps him away from the stove when I am cooking.  He likes to grab things that he shouldn't grab- so I need her help a lot. 

I am thankful for Isaac.  He is at a wild age- 6 year olds have a lot of energy!  He is a sweetheart, and enjoys learning.  He helped me weed the strawberries the other day, just because he wanted to.  He likes gardening, so I can't wait until we can plant some things together.

I am thankful for Jeremiah.  In the sweetest voice he says "I love you mommy"  It melts my heart.  His favorite book is I am Bunny.  He calls it "Bunny Nicholas"  He loves to read it, and would have me read it 20 times in a row- I think the most I've done is 5 or 6

I am thankful for my mom.  It has been a big time learning experience to have her living with us.  I have learned a lot of lessons.

I am thankful for many things.  My list could go on and this post could get very lengthy, so I'll stop with the people who live in this house.  The Lord has given me so many blessings, too many to count even if I tried.  I am working on remembering to count my blessings more often and not focus on the negative things, because that is life draining.