Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
We were closer to our normal schedule last week even though it was busy and Jake had a quick work trip. It was nice for the most part to be back home again. I was able to get most of the laundry and unpacking completed in time to pack our suitcase for our STEM Robotics Competition trip this past weekend. Thankful for the opportunity to spend time with the family and be able to coordinate my schedule so I can do packing throughout the days or in the evenings once the kids are in bed.
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week. Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday – Thankful for good news from a family member today. I love being able to rejoice and celebrate with those around me! 🙂
Tuesday – Thankful for a dentist who cleans and takes care of my kids teeth. Also, grateful that neither one of the kids have cavities again! YAY!
Wednesday – Thankful to have Jake back home again and to have an opportunity to talk for awhile about our days.
Thursday – Thankful for a thoughtful husband. It was a crazy, rainy morning and everyone was hurrying to get ready to start the day. I was running behind schedule. He made me toast for breakfast that way I would have something to grab and eat before heading out the door to drop the kids off at school and go to my appointment.
Friday – Thankful for an opportunity to go down to Columbia the night before the State STEM competition with the family. We had a chance to hang out together and relax as a family before the busy activities of competition began. Proud of our kids for all their hard work and for their team getting this far in the competition!
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Beautiful Plants & Basket from My Thoughtful Husband
Love it when he surprises me with something special!
My husband brought home these plants as a surprise for me a couple weeks ago. He is sweet and I love it when he does the random thoughtful gifts. My only regret is that it was such a busy weekend I did not take a picture of the beautiful basket with both plants green and blooming.
At this time only one plant is still alive. Yes, I have already killed the miniature rose bush. I love the mini roses, but have a horrible time keeping them alive for very long. You can see pieces of my sorry looking rose plant beside the one that is pretty and still green.
I love plants and flowers, however, I am not the best person to grow them. Usually I either over or under water them. I like the ones that are easy to maintain and can handle wet or dry soil and withstand lots of sun or no sun. In other words a very strong and durable plant that handles extremes well. Grateful for a thoughtful and caring husband. Love my plants and basket!!!
I love the basket the flowers came in and have already used it a couple of times since he gave it to me!
It has been fun using this basket for surprises and goodies! Thankful for my husband and everything he does for me.
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
Last week was super busy, but truly amazing at the same time. The girls and I were able to join Jake at his work conference in Orlando, Florida. While he was in his conference the girls and I bounced around town, explored, swam, went to the Disney Parks, and so much more. We had a blast and met people literally from around the world.
The kids were up at the break of dawn every day and were going strong until about midnight every evening. After Jake’s conference ended we had a couple days together as a family to spend time exploring. Thankful for our time together, the fun, memories, and the opportunity to go on the trip. With the altered schedule and long days I was not as consistent in writing down my blessings, but as I reflect back there are many things for which I am grateful for last week.
I want to be accountable to you so the following are snip-its of some of the things I am thankful for this past week. Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday – Thankful that we woke up on time (3:00 am) and made it safely to Orlando, Florida. Grateful for an opportunity to stretch our legs at Downtown Disney before heading to our hotel to check in and Jake start his first conference meetings.
Tuesday – Thankful that the girls and I were able to spend the entire day at Animal Kingdom. They did fantastic and we had a blast seeing all the animals, going on rides, safaris, watching the shows, and so much more.
Wednesday – Thankful for a chance to play miniature golf with the kids, even though we lost 3 balls and had crazy high scores, we had grand time. Grateful that the resort had several pools so we spent a good part of the day bouncing around from pool to pool, swimming, and splashing around with other kids at the resort.
Thursday – Thankful that I was able to spend the day at Magic Kingdom with the girls. Even more thankful that Jake was able to join us after lunch once his conference ended. It was great spending time together as a family and having fun!
Friday – Thankful for a day with the entire family at Epcot. The girls loved the rides, shows, and learning about the different countries around the world. Thankful for my brother’s family who watched the house and pets while we were awhile on our trip.
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
I have so much to be thankful for in my life. This week as I as counting my blessings I realized that coming up with 10 things to be grateful for each day was relatively easy if I really think about it for a few minutes. I don’t ever want to take these blessings for granted as they are a gift from my heavenly Father who truly cares about me in the good as well as the struggles I face every day.
I want to be accountable to you too so the following are snipits of some of the things I am thankful for this past week. Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday – Thankful for Brina writing me a reminder note to adjust her meal schedule because she liked one of the meals I made her so much! My family knows me well! 🙂
Tuesday – Thankful that Skipper is always jumping up and down excited to see me when I get home! Such a great way to be greeted upon arriving home!
Wednesday – Thankful for the girls curiosity and love of learning – we did a spontaneous celery and food coloring experiment before school.
Thursday – Thankful for a chance to talk with Jake on the phone in the morning as he was getting ready for his busy day in Charleston and even more grateful to have him back home that evening.
Friday – Thankful for a washer and dryer to help get our clothes and laundry cleaned in an efficient manner.
What are you thankful for today? I encourage you to take the time to write down a few blessings that you have in your life today. It will help cheer you up and turn your focus on the amazing blessings you encounter each day!
Counting My Blessings: Week In Review
A few weeks ago I had a little wake up call… In a conversation with someone close to me it was mentioned during our discussion that I wasn’t as “positive” or “cheerful” as I used to be. Unfortunately, I did not react very positively to the comment. The comment hurt. It struck a raw chord, something I already knew in my heart, but didn’t realize how much it was effecting the people around me.
I know the comment wasn’t meant to be mean, but to call out some things that are going on my life that they have noticed recently. I am truly thankful for people in my life who are honest, even if it hurts a little. This was a sincere concern about me and the things I have been struggling with these last few months. When someone feels comfortable enough to speak the truth even if it is difficult to say you know they care deeply about you, your spiritual growth, and the struggles your hanging onto.
My first reaction was that I had a reason to be a little more frustrated recently. It has been a tough few months. I herniated a disc in my neck back in October and I am still in pain from it. It has been a very slow and painful recovery so my first instinct was to excuse my behavior. This person knows how much I have gone through these past few months so it was seen as the excuse that it was. The purpose for the comment was to encourage me to take my focus off all the crazy stuff that has been going on and focus on the good things that God is doing in my life as well as the lives around me.
After a couple weeks of praying, wrestling with it some more, thinking about it, and admitting I have been grumpier lately I decided I needed to do something specific. In addition to prayer, having someone I had to be accountable to, I also needed a daily activity to refresh my memory of the good in my life. I wanted something that would redirect my focus back to the many positive blessings everyday that have been overshadowed by some other more stressful items going on in my life. What I decided to do is to write down at least 10 things I am thankful for each day. I titled my list “Counting My Blessings”. I hope that this activity will encourage and help turn my focus more on the positive things in my life. I want to appreciate and enjoy the amazing blessings I have been given. To be content with the season I am in at the moment.
I want to be accountable to you as well. The following are snipits of some of the things I am thankful for this past week. Counting My Blessings – Week In Review:
Monday – Thankful for the car ride into school where I can chat with the girls about life, their days, and more!
Tuesday – Thankful that Jake reads devotions to the girls and patiently answers their many questions about God, life, the bible, and so much more.
Wednesday – Thankful for a chance to catch up with someone I have known for years, but haven’t seen in awhile. Her twin grandkids are now 3 years old. I remember how excited she was waiting for them to be born. It was great catching up for a few minutes.
Thursday – Thankful for a fresh snow fall so the girls could have a day off school and we could build a snowman, go sledding, hike in the woods, play games, read, play, and have fun together.
Friday – Thankful for additional time with my girls since school started two hours late due to black ice today.
Sometimes I Just Look Up…
Gratitude Turns What We Have…
Sweet & Simple Expressions
Sometimes the sweet, simple, and thoughtful messages mean a lot to your family. This is a message I recently put on the my husband sandwich container. It wasn’t anything fancy, but when he opened his lunch he had a special surprise. I am thankful for a loving husband. Leaving a simple note is just one small way to show him I care and remind him that I am thinking about him throughout the day.
Thankful for Friendships & Beautiful Surprises!
Beautiful bouquet of flowers from a friend!
I am thankful for friendships and for the amazing blessings in my life! A sweet friend dropped this beautiful bouquet of flowers off at my house one evening with a card! Her timing couldn’t have been more perfect….isn’t it awesome how God allows friends to time a surprise so perfectly!!! It was one of those crazy busy days and I was trying to balance all the activities that were going on with our family as well as prepare for some upcoming events. I was in the middle of working with the girls on homework, making dinner, picking up the house, making lunches for the following day, among a handful of other tasks when the doorbell rang. When I heard the doorbell I didn’t think too much of it because I figured it was probably just the neighbor kids wanting to play. Jake was home and on a phone call, but he was the first one to the door. He brought back these beautiful flowers which totally surprised me and made my day!!!!
Love fresh flowers!
Even though it has been over two weeks since these flowers arrived on my doorsteps they are still in the vase on the table! I think God has allowed these flowers to remain beautiful so long to continue to remind me of his goodness and the blessings of friendships. I have only pulled out a couple flowers that were wilting, but several still look amazing! The best part about these beautiful flowers is every time I look at them I am reminded of my sweet and thoughtful friend who delivered them to me.
Friendships are a wonderful blessing in our lives. They take time to cultivate and grow much like flowers. God allows us the opportunity to walk through this journey with special people we call friends. Friendship also means we have the joy of celebrating the good times with our friends as well as spending extra time in prayer as a friend goes through a rough patch. Everyone needs these types of friends to laugh with during the joyous moments and encourage you when it seems like your stuck in a whirlwind.
Every time I see these flowers or smell their refreshing fragrance when I walk into the room I am reminded of my friendship and take a moment to pause and pray specifically for that friend. I pray for her to have the strength, wisdom, and energy she needs to walk through her day. I may not know what challenges she faces each moment or joys she experiences throughout the day, but I can still lift her up in prayer knowing that God knows what she’s facing today and He alone can give her exactly what she needs.
Thanks Dee for the beautiful flowers, your friendship, and for walking this journey of life alongside me! May we always continue to grow ever closer to our Savior. You are a true blessing in my life! Thanks sweet friend for the beautiful surprise!
Hugs Were Invented…
