Giving Thanks Challenge 2024

In November I participate in a Giving Thanks Challenge where I post one thing I’m thankful for each day. I like to read over these from year to year and also enjoy reading what others post. Join me! Being thankful is important for every day not just on Thanksgiving.

Day 1: I’m thankful today for good salad bar and laughter (because of a cricket 🦗).

Day 2: I’m thankful today for time at the deer lease 🦌 and the memories for these brothers.

Day 3: I’m thankful for the beautiful rainbow we saw.

Day 4: I’m thankful to hear the sound of the rain falling.

Day 5: I’m thankful to be able to go vote on a beautiful fall morning in small town Texas and hear the chimes at the Methodist church downtown playing “I Love To Tell The Story.”

Day 6: I’m thankful I found the misplaced checks that I was depositing from a PTO fundraiser and that the fundraiser was a success! 💰

Day 7: I’m thankful for quilting time on Thursday mornings. I love this hobby and my teacher!

Day 8: I’m thankful for our school and staff. It’s great to witness the care they have for the students and how they all work together to teach the students and also celebrate them.

Day 9: I’m thankful for Saturdays without plans.

Day 10: I’m thankful for our church family and the new people I’ve met so far that are joining us. Special day at our church!

Day 11: I’m thankful for a pretty afternoon walk at the park.

Day 12: I’m thankful for our ladies Bible class and what those ladies mean to me.

Day 13: I’m thankful I could help at the book fair at school this morning!

Day 14: I’m thankful we could go to a fun event at the school together… walking at the track followed by supper provided by the bank, then looking at book fair and seeing the students’ projects on a book they had read.

Day 15: I’m thankful for Caleb. I’m blessed to have him for my son for so many reasons. I’m also thankful that I got to have lunch with him today.

Day 16: I’m thankful for meeting for lunch with family including cousins, uncle and aunts. It was nice to see everyone I haven’t seen in a while.

Day 17: I’m thankful for food to eat, clothes to wear, and our vehicles.

Day 18: I’m thankful I could hear the presentation by the B... family with TxDOT at the school sharing their daughter’s story.

Day 19: I’m thankful for my husband and his love, support, and friendship. Also for our tradition of Tuesday lunch dates.

Day 20: I’m thankful to have Sydney for my “daughter in love.” She is a blessing to our family. I’m thankful Caleb chose her as his wife and for her love and support of him. Also she’s a sweet big sis to Titus.

Day 21: I’m thankful that Titus is my son. He has such a sweet,caring heart. He always knows when I need a smile or hug and I love that about him. I’m thankful we could have lunch at the Thanksgiving feast at school too with him.

Day 22: I’m thankful for friends that keep in touch.

Day 23: I’m thankful for our traditional P.... family Thanksgiving get together. And our cousin picture!

Day 24: I’m thankful for pretty weather and my favorite tea at HTeaO.

Day 25: I’m thankful for a nice day at home with Titus for chores.

Day 26: I’m thankful to have Titus along with me for my errands and for calls from Caleb.

Day 27: I’m thankful for family, good food, and being together.

Day 28: I read this quote this morning and have pondered it today. My heart is full of gratitude for our family and the joy it brings to have our old traditions and to be making new ones. Happy Thanksgiving!

Day 29: I’m thankful for the beauty of nature…animals, stars, fall leaves.

Day 30: I’m thankful for the hope I have because if Jesus.

Have a day of blessings! 

 Bethany

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving!  We have so many blessings for which to give thanks.  

~ my husband’s support and love and how his words encourage me. 

~ my oldest calling me to ask some insurance questions.

~ my DIL stopping by to pick up leftovers I had for her.

~ my boy being out of school this week.  We had a pajama day on Monday and it was great!  I stayed in my robe all day.  

~ seeing family and the pretty weather we had to be outside for our family Thanksgiving.

~ my niece sending me her Christmas wish list!

~ traditions new and old for Thanksgiving. 

Have a day of blessings! 

 Bethany

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving.  We enjoyed the day with family.

Today I am thankful for...

~ my husband got the results from his removed mole that it was benign.

~ that my big boy came to Thanksgiving with us this year with both sides of the family. 

~ my little guy going to do my Tuesday errands in town this week with me and on Monday having a pajama day at home together.  Both were wonderful!

~ safe travel and to see my husband's side of the family last Sunday.

~ buying homemade treats from friends.  We didn't really "need" the extras this week with the pies my Mom made but they were fun to have other things too!

~ finding discounts and sales this week.  

Have a day of blessings! 

 Bethany

Thankful Saturday #2?!

Well, once again it is Saturday and I realized I did not do my Thankful Thursday post!  Thursday was a nice Thanksgiving Day spent with family.

This week I have been thankful for...
~ my husband and I having a date night Wednesday evening.  Our time together was wonderful!

~ my boy being out of school since Tuesday at 1.  He worked on his chicken coop on Tuesday afternoon.  He's getting chickens next week to show for FFA.  A new adventure!

~ my little guy's lip being okay.  He was singing and dancing in the living room one evening this week and fell, bumping his lip and chin on the foot rest of the couch.  It bled quite a bit, and he has a scrape on his little chin.  His lip is still sore when he is eating some foods but it is healing up.

~ participating in the "Giving Thanks Challenge" this month on Facebook.  Usually I post a list of those in one post here but I haven't been copying them  this year (and had a copy last year and think it got deleted).  I enjoy thinking of one specific thing from my day that I am thankful for and also reading the ones shared by others who are participating.

~ fun doing online shopping.  I could NOT get Kohls to work for several days.  Then I tried one more time to "clear the cookies" and it worked.  I always like to shop this week there and get the "Kohls cash" to use for other gifts.  I was so glad it finally worked.  I did an order at Walmart too. 

~  a nice Thanksgiving with family. 

Have a day of blessings! 

 Bethany

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

I hope you had  a nice Thanksgiving holiday.  We have enjoyed ours and the time off from school.  The boys enjoyed being at my Mom's on Wednesday, and I did some errands. 

This week I am thankful for...
~ date night with my husband.  It was very much needed time together, and we both enjoyed it.

~ going to my big boy's first basketball game. His team won 15-13 so that was exciting.  They play on Mondays.

~ my little guy being okay to spend the night with Gramma.  He's been extra attached lately so I wasn't sure if he'd be okay all night or not!!

~ relaxing and catching up on some things.

~ participating in the Giving Thanks Challenge on Facebook.  I usually copy my list and post it here too at the end of the month to save it. I love reading what others post and thinking of what I am going to post every day.

~ good food to eat and enjoy. We all have our favorites that we look forward to eating for Thanksgiving and I'm thankful for my Mom making them.

~ our home, clothes, and vehicles.  We have so many blessings.

Have a day of blessings!

   Bethany

Happy Thanksgiving! Thankful Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving! We have so many blessings!

This week on Thanksgiving I am thankful for...

~ the friendship and love I share with my husband. He blesses me daily and I am thankful for how well he knows me.

~ my big boy who is becoming a young man. He brightens my days with his conversations as he shares his thoughts and opinions. He has many talents and interests and I am enjoying seeing him discover and develop those.

~ my little boy who brings joy to my heart with his laughter and funny things he does.  He is very persistant and curious.

~ our home...our safe place and place filled with memories and togetherness.

~ conveniences of our life....water, electricity, washer/dryer, cars.

~ family and friends.

Have a day of blessings!
   Bethany

2015 Giving Thanks Challenge

30 days of thankfulness:
Day 1-- Today I'm thankful for smiles and laughs from my boys to start my day.
Day 2-- Today I'm thankful for Titus laughing so hard at his big brother.
Day 3-- today I'm thankful for Caleb telling me he'd take over fixing supper so I could rest.
Day 4-- Today I'm thankful for getting a nap while Titus napped.
Day 5-- Today I'm thankful for Thursday snack days after pep rally.
Day 6-- Today I'm thankful for visits with my sweet neighbor and friend.
Day 7--Today I'm thankful for cell phones and text messages to keep in touch through the day.
Day 8--Today I'm thankful for goulash that Mom made me and that I'm home with my boys.
Day 9--today I'm thankful for being able to be a stay at home wife and Mom.
Day 10-- Today I'm thankful for lunch dates with my husband. It's a sweet tradition we have, and we both look forward to it each week.
Day 11-- Today I'm thankful for the ways my husband is so helpful every day, like today at the grocery store on his day off.
Day 12-- Today I'm thankful for our 7 month old baby boy. He is such a sweet blessing, and we are having so much fun watching him grow and learn new things every day.
Day 13-- Today I'm thankful for a fun night at the drive-in movies with my boys.
Day 14--Today I'm thankful for all the things we have to keep us warm on chilly days...my favorite blanket, fuzzy socks, pajamas, etc.
Day 15-- Today I'm thankful for encouragement from reading this verse on my calendar.
Day 16-- Today I'm thankful for the new pillow my Mom made me. ❤ for many years I have used a leg pillow when I sleep I showed her recently how my old one was falling part with stuffing coming out. We can't remember how old it is! She made a new one for me.
Day 17--Today I'm thankful for Mrs. Nona. She was such a beautiful Christian example. She was Caleb's teacher for VBS and Bible class when he was little. He loved her and she loved him. She touched so many lives and will be missed.
Day 18--Today I'm thankful for days at home.
Day 19-- Today I'm thankful for our new Texas canvas arriving in the mail. I love how it turned out and was so excited to see the finished product when it came today. I'm making a new wall of various pictures of our family, and this is going on that wall.
Day 20--Today I'm thankful for a good appointment at the eye doctor.
Day 21--Today I'm thankful for our visit with our P. family and safe travel.
Day 22-- Today I'm thankful for attending a community Thanksgiving service.
Day 23-- Today I'm thankful for time to read with Caleb before he went to bed. We are reading Where The Red Fern Grows. I love that he has always loved books and little brother seems to love them too.
Day 24--Today I'm thankful for Mexican food.
Day 25-- Today I'm thankful for my doctor and my husband driving me to appointments.Day 26- Today I'm thankful for family, delicious food, laughter, memories, and our boys.
Day 27-- Today I'm thankful for the sound of our baby boy sleeping peacefully.

Day 28-- Today I am thankful for relaxing days
Day 29--Today I'm thankful for visiting with my Dad.
Day 30--Today I'm thankful for our first Christmas card in the mail and getting started on addressing ours.  And BOGO meat with room for it in the freezer! 

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving!  I love this time of year and the traditions and time with family. We have so many blessings every day for which to give thanks.  Have a thankful heart and see what a difference it makes in your life.

Today I am thankful for...

~ my husband taking care of me. I'm often reminded of his love by the little things he does for me daily ....for example, stopping at the store on the way home to get water so I don't have to lift it and covering me with a blanket when I'm cold.

~ my boy having a few days out of school. It was nice to turn off my school alarm!

~  the blessing of having this baby growing inside of me and thinking about what we will be doing with him or her this time next year.

~ the nice time we had last weekend with my husband's side of the family. I had fun making placemats with my nieces and seeing everyone.

~ doing some Christmas shopping online. I feel like I've made progress on my gift list. I still need to figure out what to give my husband.

~ the laughter and fun of remembering memories of the past and previous Thanksgivings.

Have a day of blessings!

A Thanksgiving week challenge

I had a special opportunity helping at the school last week. The principal had the idea for each child to write two thank you notes. We went to the classrooms, surprising the teachers, asking them to leave and go enjoy a snack in the teachers’ lounge. After they left we told the plan to the students and let them get to work on the notes. They wrote one note to one of their grade level teachers. The other was for someone else who works at the school like the music teacher, instructional aides, nurse, custodians, or cafeteria workers.

Continue reading "A Thanksgiving week challenge" today over at Laced With Grace. 

Have a day of blessings!

Giving Thanks 2013

30 days of thankfulness 

November 2013

 

11-1: thankful for the love of both of my boys as I woke up this morning, so encouraged by them both all day.

11-2: thankful for being married for 12 years 5 months today to my husband. Marriage is a blessing!

11-3: thankful for the reminder I was made by God and He has a purpose for my life.

11-4: thankful for hearing my boy singing "The Lord Liveth" as he got ready for school this morning.



11-5: thankful for lunch dates with my cute husband. (and I had a coupon so it was cheap haha!!)
11-6:  thankful for books...having the ability to read and sharing a love of reading with my husband and son.
11-7: thankful for after school snack day with my boy. We do this once a week and go to the library and get a snack he chooses. I look forward to it every week!
11-8: thankful for Friday night football with my boys.
11-9: thankful for fun day doing some Christmas shopping
11-10: thankful for fun surprises like the one today from my Secret Sister (these packages of Whoppers were on our car this morning) and yesterday one in the mail from the leader of an online discussion group I'm in.
11-11: thankful for the reminder of how many true heroes live around us and have served our country through the years. The entire school here gathered together to honor our community's veterans in a very nice program. I thought it was a wonderful tribute with student speakers, the school band, and lovely singing of patriotic pieces by the choir (which made me miss singing with my high school choir and director). Thank you to all who served and are serving. I know there are many of you in my friends list as well as several family members.
11-12-13: thankful for the many ways I can stay warm on a day like today and remember that so many do not enjoy these comforts....warm clothes and coats, an abundance of blankets, my favorite robe, taking hot baths with heated water from our hot water heater, turning on the heater as needed.
11-13: thankful for the beauty of fall. I noticed the pretty colors of the leaves this cold morning.
11-14: thankful for crayons. I've always loved coloring and haven't in a long time. I had a little picture I needed to color tonight and was reminded I should color more often!
11-15: thankful for my wonderful boy who received the citizenship award for his class for this six weeks and the kind words one of his teachers shared with me today.
11-16: thankful for the moon and seeing it tonight. It is so pretty.
11-17: thankful for a beautiful weather weekend filled with fun for us all, Caleb having a great time hunting and the stories he's told from that, and having our family pictures made today.
11-18:  thankful for my wonderful husband who works so hard to provide for our family. For example today he was at work early at 6:45, worked all day, and then went to work their booth at the resource fair. He works hard every day with little thanks or appreciation. And he always, always makes time for us which I value so very much.
11-19: thankful for how our bodies heal. I burned my pointer finger on the oven a couple weeks ago. Since it is right on top of my finger, I notice it every day and have watched it heal a little more each day.
11-20: thankful for my cozy bed.
11-21: thankful for time together making our thankful pictures. My Mom had me do this every year, and I've continued the tradition with Caleb. I need to put them all in a book so I could compare them from year to year.
11-22: thankful for my two sweet nieces and the blessing they both are to me.
11-23: thankful for time with our P family and safe trip home tonight.
11-24: thankful for laughing at various times today with my boys. Laughter is good!
11-25: thankful for a day to get caught up on some household chores.
11-26: thankful for my favorite supper made by my Momma.
11-27: thankful for seeing my cousin today. I'm thankful for all my cousins and the fun memories I have of our years growing up together. I like keeping in touch and seeing their kids on FB.
11-28:  for memories of past Thanksgivings and new memories today.
11-29: thankful for being warmed by a campfire.
11-30: thankful for the peace of God that has been with me all month long, fun memories this weekend at the deer lease, and supper plus leftovers from my Mom on our way home.

Have a day of blessings!

2012 Giving Thanks Challenge

Here is my list for the entire month of November.
2012 Giving Thanks Challenge

1. a new month and reading through the lists from past years.
2. electricity, water, and food to eat....something many people are without.
3. the relaxing, quiet calm of being away from the city, looking up to see the stars, hearing the night time noises of insects.
4. our home and the memories we've made here together.
5. washer & dryer as well as my clothesline to use on beautiful days like today
6. lunch dates with my husband.
7. my cousins.
8. my wonderful husband. He's my best friend, takes such good care of us, makes me smile, works hard every day, is a great Dad...I could go on and on. :)
9. my Caleb. I feel so blessed to be his Mom. I have learned so much from him; I am thankful for his sensitive heart, that he is healthy ,and the sound of his laughter.
10. a found DVD.
11. my boy leading two songs tonight. Also for my "Secret Sister" and her encouragement, prayers, and fun surprises.
12. finding my clean, folded clothes to put away when I got home tonight. Made me smile! My husband is wonderful!
13. coats, heaters in house and car, hot baths, and fuzzy socks.
14. to fill shoeboxes as a family for Operation Christmas Child.
15. for going to the Thanksgiving lunch at school with my boy.
16. a beautiful fall afternoon to play tag and take a walk with my boy after school.
17. electricity.
18. attending a community Thanksgiving service.
19. a nice evening outside playing ball (in the dark) with my boys.
20. God's neverending love and forgiveness.
21. safe travel.
22. special Thanksgiving memories.
23. pecans in my freezer.
24. grandparents...both mine and Caleb's.
25. God's Word and being able to read it.
26. time with my boy after school as he was doing his homework and then reading to me. (Most days he wants to read to himself.)
27. my parents and the love they've always given me through the years.
28. Christmas cards in the mail.
29. our vehicles.
30. being a stay at home Mom and able to volunteer at my boy's school.

Have a day of blessings!

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name!  I Chronicles 29:13, NLT

Happy Thanksgiving!  I wish you all a beautiful day with those you love. 

This week I am thankful for...
~ my amazing husband and the way he is an example to me of being more like Jesus. 

~ my boy who loves reading.  As we were packing for our travel, he and I both have a bag of books to read on the way. 

~ the beautiful fall weather.  I love seeing the colorful leaves we have had lately.  Now they are starting to fall.  The temperature has been so nice too.

~ finding some good deals online.  I don't shop online too often, but I had a coupon and the prices were good on something I was wanting to get for my husband. 

~ all the many blessings of the past year.  And I am thankful for the memories I have of past Thanksgiving gatherings.....special times. 

Have a day of blessings!

Happy Thanksgiving from Laced with Grace!

Please visit over at Laced With Grace today for a special Thanksgiving message from the Laced with Grace team! 

Have a day of blessings!

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

As another Thanksgiving comes, there is so much in my life for which I give thanks.  Looking back over the past year, I realize that this time last year we didn't even have a home.  All our belongings were sitting in front of my Mom's house in a moving truck which we moved into a rental on Friday.  So this year I feel especially blessed with what has happened in the past year and how God's plan and timing has been perfect through it all.  We could not figure out or have known how things would end up, and now looking back I am thankful over and over again for all the details that HE figured out for us....getting the wonderful house we have now, our son's teacher last year when we moved as well as this year's teacher, new friendships that we've made, our new church family and the ways we have been able to serve with this new church, my husband's job and the people he is influencing. 

Today I am thankful for...
~ having a wonderful day with my husband on Wednesday, just the two of us.  We had breakfast at Cracker Barrel and then went to see the movie "Courageous."  That is a wonderful movie and I highly recommend it!

~ my son and all the ways he makes me laugh and smile every day.  He is so much fun.  Also, he had a little injury Sunday.  Part of his face was was scratched and bruised.  I'm thankful it was not worse.

~ having Thanksgiving with my husband's side of the family.  We got to go on Sunday, and I was thankful how it worked out for us to get together with his parents, brothers and family. 

~ the miracle we got to witness last weekend.  You can read about it in my previous post!  God is amazing!

~ getting to enjoy days off with my boys!  I'm glad for changes in our routine!
Have a day of blessings!

Flashback Friday: Thanksgiving

This week our Flashback Friday is about Thanksgiving.

My Flashback:

I've always enjoyed Thanksgiving. As a child I remember many times that the TV would be on for the Macy's parade. Many years we went to my aunt/uncle's house for Thanksgiving. Sometimes we would go to Peepaw's house. He always wanted oyster dressing so there was always a separate little pan for his own dressing. I don't remember football being that important; I remember playing with my cousins and of course lots of eating and then eating some more! We had a tradition for a long time that my cousin would always come home with us after our Thanksgiving meal to spend the night at our house.

One tradition that I had was to make a thankful picture. I think I did this every year. Now I continue this tradition and make a thankful picture with Caleb. When he was little I would cut pictures out of magazines of things he liked and help him glue them on. Now he can write the words and draw the pictures himself. I continue to make one of my own too.

I've always loved the variety of foods served at Thanksgiving. One thing I like to make is broccoli salad. I made this the first time as part of a 4-H Food Show and then continued to make it for years at Thanksgiving. I don't make it every year now but still enjoy making it (besides it feeling like it takes so long to cut all the broccoli!). Pecan pie is a must for Thanksgiving with lots of cool whip! I also like to have pistachio pudding. Only a couple years ago I tried sweet potatoes for the first time. I always thought I wouldn't like them I guess, but I really do enjoy them and look forward to having them at Thanksgiving. Or maybe it's the yummy marshmallows on top I really love so much. When we have leftovers, Mom will put them in a pan and add new marshmallows to the top. I've also recently started liking cranberry sauce....this is something else I never really tried, but now I love it. I'm going to try a recipe this year I saw in Taste of Home for cranberry-apple chutney. I hope it turns out as yummy as it looks in the picture!

Now we go to my Mom's house for Thanksgiving. We normally go on Tuesday evening. She cooks a ton of food, I always tease her it's enough for the whole town to show up. Usually various family members show up at some point through the day. I always make a point to take a family picture on Thanksgiving as well. Usually in the early evening my husband leaves to go to the deer lease for the weekend with his Dad and brothers.

This year is going to be a very different Thanksgiving. We are P O S S I B L Y moving. We'll know for sure soon!

Have a day of blessings!

Giving Thanks Challenge 2009

I am thankful for...
beautiful fall days,
my husband,
colors of fall,
being able to volunteer,
living in the USA,
being together on Friday nights,
a special day with my boy,
the beautiful voice of my boy singing beside me in church,
being a stay at home Mom,
doctors,
fun family projects for school,
receiving "good mail,"
having fun finding things to pack a shoe box,
food to eat,
singing,
being published in a magazine,
sleep,
Caleb's Thanksgiving program,
joy in my heart,
getting to go to a Casting Crowns concert,
having our family picture made,
small group at church,
lunch with a sweet friend,
traditions,
safe travel,
time with my husband,
seeing my cousins,
yummy leftovers,
Caleb feeling so much better,
upcoming Christmas season,
warm home.

Have a day of blessings!

Thankful Thursday:

"Thanksgiving is good, but thanksliving is better." Matthew Henry

Welcome to Thankful Thursday Thanksgiving edition! We are over at Grace Alone again today. I read the above quote in one of my little devotional books this past week and I thought how true that is. I love that we have a day set aside to give thanks. It really is better though to have a life of thankfulness. That's why I'm so thankful for Iris having this meme. Since I've been participating, it has really helped me look for things I'm thankful for in my daily life and to notice all my many blessings.

Today I'm thankful for...

~ my husband's constant love and support. He is so sweet and I love that he makes me laugh. I saw a flair button on Facebook last week that said something along the lines of "You make me laugh when I don't even want to smile." This made me think of my husband. I'm so thankful for him!

~ my sweet son and his creative imagination. I enjoy seeing the new things he comes up with and listening to him play.

~ going to a Casting Crowns concert with my hubby. We really enjoyed them and Matt Redman. I'll be sharing some of their songs in the future.

~ being a stay-at-home Mom. I am reminded over and over reasons I'm thankful and feel so blessed to be able to stay home now even though Caleb is at school.

~ answers to prayer.

I wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a day of blessings!

As long as it is called Today: Christian home keepers (November)

Welcome to "As long as it is called Today" as we encourage one another. I hope you will join me each week on Tuesdays as we encourage each other in our daily lives as Christians, spouses, parents, and home keepers.

This is the link to last week's question.

Today's question: Thanksgiving is this Thursday. Share your plans. Do you prepare the meal? Do you have a traditional meal? What is your "must have" dish? Is there a special dish you prepare that everyone requests?

My answer: We go to my Mom's house and she does the cooking. She asks us for our requests. I wanted sweet potatoes with marshmallows (this is something I've just started liking), my husband asked for mashed potatoes and pecan pie, and Caleb asked for veggies and "pie" (pie is really fudge, he called it pie when he was little so we still call it that). One thing I often make at Thanksgiving is broccoli salad. I haven't gotten the ingredients, so I don't guess I'll make it this year! I really like the flavor though.

Thank you for coming by and answering the question today. Remember to say a prayer for Rachel and Cade (see Proverbs & Prayers post for other information). They are both having surgery today.

Have a day of blessings!

Thanksgiving 2008

I have enjoyed coming home and catching up with my bloggy friends, reading about their Thanksgiving's. Now I'll share mine.

We went to my Mom's house Tuesday evening. Caleb got a new camo robe from Gramma. At home he always takes mine or my purple blanket and at her house he wears Gramma's; now he has his own! He helped her fix notes and candy to put in the mail boxes of the teachers at her school. Wednesday my husband and I did some Christmas shopping. I saw two guys from high school at Walmart and then saw another dear friend I grew up with at church when we went to eat lunch. Thursday we had a delicious Thanksgiving lunch. As my cousin said later my Mom made enough to feed a small country. Later in the day my aunt and cousin came over. Who knew how fun a game of "Hungry Hungry Hippos" could be or how it would make a boy laugh!!! Caleb has been saying he wanted this game since Daddy told him he had it as a boy. It was a nice surprise that they got him this game without even knowing he wanted it! They gave him "Twister" (also known as "Twist" by Caleb) too. He likes falling over and making everyone else fall over with him! My husband met his Dad and brothers at the deer lease Thursday evening. Friday morning we did some shopping. We didn't go out early but found some good deals. I got a Bluetooth for my husband. He'd specifically asked for this when he saw it in the sale ad so I went ahead and gave it to him. I found a couple more things for Caleb too and got those wrapped in the afternoon. Friday night my husband surprised me by coming back from the lease. I thought he was staying till Saturday morning. Nice surprise! Saturday morning we went to watch the NCAA quarter-final game (hope that is the correct terminology for the game!) between Abilene Christian and Northwest Missouri State. ACU lost :( We had a great time at the game though and on the trip. We of course went to "our spot" at ACU at Chapel on the Hill where my husband proposed December 2, 2000. I was thinking on Friday how next week will be our 7 1/2 year anniversary and how it will be the anniversary of the date he proposed this week. Sunday we went to church, loaded up, and came home.

I'm looking forward to Christmas! We have some events planned for the month like the annual Christmas parade. My husband pulled boxes down from the attic tonight. Caleb was ready to hang the lights, but that will be done another night. I needed to see what forgotten items I had boxed up last year. I squealed with delight as I opened two boxes....one with Christmas shirts and another with Christmas cards and the paper for our annual Christmas letter.

I love this time of year! Happy December to you!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23, 24

Thankful Thursday (Thanksgiving Edition)

At a time when the nation and world are struggling with sever economic hardships, it is with a thankful heart I pause to celebrate my blessings.

I have the grace of my Savior and rest in the hope I have in Him.
I have the friendship, love, and companionship of my amazing husband.
I have an amazing little boy who calls me Mommy.
I have a family that cares for me.
I have real life and Internet friends who share my "raindrop & rainbow" days.
I have food to prepare and eat.
I have air to breathe.
I have a car to travel from place to place.
I have the privilege of being a stay-at-home Mom.
I have the ability to share God's love with others through volunteering.
I have five senses to use to enjoy the world around me.
I have good health.
I have cherished memories of loved ones I miss this Thanksgiving.
I have radio and CD's to listen to music that encourages my soul.
I have book shelves full of books and a library card to borrow more.
I have clean water to drink.
I have air conditioning in the summer and a heater for the winter.
I have a home where I am safe.
I have a friendly church family.
I have the freedom to worship God.
I have clothes to wear and shoes for my feet.
I have technology I enjoy, like the cell phone, Internet, and digital camera.
I have the beauty of God's creation all around me wherever I go.
I have "extra pleasures," like hot fudge sundaes, Chick-fil-a, and raspberry lemonade.
I have modern conveniences like indoor plumbing and electricity.
For these things and many more, I give thanks.

If you'd like to participate in Thankful Thursday on this wonderful Thanksgiving day, join us at Iris' place, Grace Alone.
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"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 136:1 (Read all of this beautiful Psalm here.)