I didn’t need to try and get myself into a mood of gratitude because it all came naturally as I began the pre-holiday events of the morning yesterday.
*So thankful that I am a stay-at-home mom and get to attend things like the Turkey Trot at my kids’ school. Thankful for the chance to spend one-on-one time with each of my two oldest kids, outside, while exercising!
*So thankful for Blake’s competitive personality and how that made our three times around the school together super fun. Blake: I loved sprinting with you!
*So thankful to see how athletic our son is at eight years old. I couldn’t keep up with Blake in our first two races. Also thankful that he couldn’t keep up with me by the third of fourth. He has the sprinting power, I have the endurance.
*So thankful that both our kids were much more interested in being with me than with their friends.
*So thankful for the hill the school sits on and the views of the surrounding valley, desert, city areas, and rocky buttes, which I got to enjoy on my walk from the car.
*So thankful for time to read The Wheels on the Bus with Aiden, and all of the beautiful art in that favorite book.
*So thankful for baking pies! Thankful for pies.
*So thankful for Israel, who took the kids out to the park after a day of hard work. He has so much responsibility and he shoulders it all.
*So thankful for Trinity’s request to have a “sleepover” in the boys’ room. For those minutes Israel and I spent snuggled up with the kids, all five of us camped out in one little room, laughing and talking. We have the coolest three children; an awesome family.
*So thankful for flexibility and the many chances to design my life to my liking. Thankful for beautiful dishes and gorgeous, festive place settings; that, although I haven’t been able to be the host of a large fancy holiday meal, I can set up our own little formal family gatherings.
Thankful for the inspiration to set the table up for breakfast: nice placemats, special dishes, new cloth napkins with autumn ribbon for the ties, a gorgeous garland wrapped around a giant vase filled with beans and a pumpkin spice candle. Brown, yellow-orange, and green.
*So thankful for colors.
*So thankful for my family. That we get to spend many wonderful evenings laughing and playing games with Israel’s parents, siblings, and grandma’s. That my own siblings will be gathering together for Christmas at my parents house this year. Good times.
