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Time for another installment of my "Ten Things" to be thankful for, always varied and know my own personal thoughts on true thankfulness can obviously never be complete within one post. You can always view other posts on the same topic by clicking onto the archives HERE.
Autumn
- 1 - I'm thankful for Autumn upon us and all of the simple pleasures it offers us. Gifts of the season vary from week to week with explosions of color appearing before us, and nature finds ALWAYS being offered on a continual basis, free for the taking. Have you begun a nature corner basket yet in your home?
- 2- I'm thankful for progression within the medical field to offer oxymetry sleep sessions at home rather than have to register in a hospital away from home to separate my hubby and I. Four nights were recently monitored with this compact device, naturally my hubby is anxious to know his results.
- 3 - I'm thankful for the concrete work almost complete in the front of our home. The stone was removed from several wall areas on our home from poor mortar used, the area sealed with stucco after a poly lining and then stone facing replaced with proper mortar. We await the roofers to finalize the warranty work on the roofing gutter systems nearby the stone work.
Last week I about went out of my mind as the stone masons "sanded" the concrete steps surface down, the noise something else within the home. At last the sanding is done and they are almost finished retiling the stair surfaces with new stone to eliminate the distance in step heights for passing our final inspection. Oh, and they found the doorbell wiring in two door areas, also having to drill into the stone and vibrate the house to bits. My ears are still ringing....but I'm thankful. :)
- 4 - I'm thankful for craft supply stashes we can grab in an instant whenever the impulse to "create" bites us. And I'm thankful for our local dollar store's offerings of these acrylic paints = one dollar each! Can't beat that!
- 5 - I'm thankful for rolling back yet again into a fall schooling routine with bookwork, chores and all the panic felt from those little squares on the calendar filling up with regularity to keep this mama on her feet. It's always comforting to find one of the children hanging around enjoying the pleasure of a good read. He's into the out of print books we own by "Sonia Bleeker" on specific native Indian tribes; two down and several more to go.
- 6 - I'm thankful for every little bit of sunshine along my path these days from nature finds, especially those sweet reminders often catching my breath during tough to handle days. Somehow lately I really desire to notice these things more and more as my cup generally seems to runneth over with hard knocks more now as an older woman than in my younger days, still temporary I know, but just there nonetheless to keep me on edge at times.
It's never a warm fuzzy sweetness for a woman to linger within difficult moments offered in life, but forever are the days when a mother's heart will succumb to continual matronly aches, sincere heartfelt worries and tremendous caring to such an intense extent that she must eventually realize how deeply affected she becomes when reflecting and learn to release them over time. Reflect on them - yes.... and then like sacred incense, allow all your cares to be cast heavenward. Dwell in loving places continuing to trust always, and end the day praying for a calm and peace that surpasses all understanding.
- 7 - I'm thankful for remembering how sacred and precious life is when these hand prints suddenly appear right when the suns blazes through my kitchen window over my sink, those hand prints left behind from hanging up the window blinds of days passed.
Knowing it is my least favorite chore to wash the interior windows to rid ourselves of views such as this one, I've had to lurch myself into gear by turning it around, oh yes! So instead of feeling the urge to get rid of these "evidence of life reminders" over my kitchen sink, I will smile when the sun shines to turn their invisibility to light, and offer prayers for the person instead (there are two of them) who left them there until such a time as I can/want to remove them. Besides, I kind of like them there now.....smile.
- 8 - I'm thankful for the imagination of a child who can surround himself with a large array of Lego and be completely content building something to give him complete pleasure. Everyone around here loves Lego. Even I love Lego!
- 9 - I'm thankful for lots and lots of Lego and Duplo, staples in a child's world of play around here. This past week the children have refreshed and organized it all, the entire contents of their lego, duplo, wooden block and playmobil collections. On top of that, the entire room had a remodel job and I can't wait to share the end results with you in another post. Stay tuned.
- 10 - I'm thankful for family; both our immediate one and our extended unit, those who take the time to visit and keep in touch in person. The photo above was a recent gathering some of our older children/grandchildren were able to attend at the home of my husband's sister when relatives passed by from Holland. Not everyone who came to visit and mingle this day was present for the photo, but it's special to note there were four generations present! Super cool! Wish we could have been there everyone. Thinking of you all!
