Giving Thanks

I wish I was ambitious enough to make one of these cute banners.  

I have a backlog of posts that I need to catch up on, but my mind is just mush lately.  I can’t seem to make it want to do the task.  There are a few reasons for the lack of enthusiasm that I hope will soon pass, including finishing up a painfully difficult semester, thoughts of all the stuff I need to accomplish over the next few weeks and months, general busy-ness with the husband and two kiddos, general feelings of blah-ness and inability to focus, sheer exhaustion, etc., etc.  I hope that the cheeriness of the upcoming holiday season will snap me out of this blah mood I am stuck in very soon because seriously, this is not like me, and I am not loving it!  I am a “look at the bright side” and “think positive” kind of person!  In an effort to get back to my usual positive thinking self, I thought I would work on my thankful list for this season of Thanksgiving.  I haven’t even joined in the Facebook 30 days of Thanksgiving postings because of my “rotten” mood.  *Sigh*


 1.  I am thankful for my loving Heavenly Father and Savior who suffered and died for me so that I can live this wonderful life and share His love with others.
2.  I am thankful for this blessed life I have been given.  I know we are not guaranteed another day on this earth, and I am thankful for everyday that I am given.
3.  I am thankful for a wonderful and loving husband who is my best friend in the world and truly understands me when others would lock me up in an asylum if they knew all that he does.  Ha!
4.  I am thankful for my firstborn son who is a bright light in this chaotic and dark world with his loving and caring personality and sensitive heart.
5.  I am thankful for my second son, whose beautiful smiles and adorable giggles warm our hearts and fill our home with so much happiness.
6.  I am thankful for my family’s great health when I see so much sickness and pain around me.  I don’t understand why sickness hits some families so hard while others escape these tragedies, but I witness the strength of some of these families daily and can see God’s hand carrying them through it all.  I guess they are lucky in some ways to get to experience God’s miraculous love a little more fully than the rest of us.
7.  I am thankful for a wonderful church where I hear the wonderful messages that bring hope to a lost and dying world.
8.  I am thankful for a church that offers so many opportunities to serve in our community and around the world.
9.  I am thankful for in-laws who we can share a wonderful Thanksgiving meal with every year.
10.  I am thankful to still have my parents to celebrate the holidays with us.
11.  I am thankful that my children have two sets of loving grandparents and some great-grandparents to help make wonderful holiday memories for them.
12.  I am thankful that my children have so many cousins to play with, love, and make memories with.
13.  I am thankful to have taken my children on so many wonderful vacations and trips the last few years.  The memories they have made will last them a lifetime.
14.  I am thankful to live in a country where we are still free to proclaim our faith.
15.  I am thankful for an abundance of sports to keep my boys active and entertained.
16.  I am thankful for caring teachers who give my children a desire to learn.
17.  I am thankful for a comfortable and safe home for my family.
18.  I am thankful for a future of endless possibilities.
19.  I am thankful for friends in the blogging world who offer so much encouragement and uplifting thoughts.
20.  I am thankful for a job where I feel like I can help make a small difference in the lives of people in need.
21.  I am thankful for a short week at work and a long holiday weekend with my family.
22.  I am thankful for another long semester being almost over.
23.  I am thankful for humor.  Sometimes, it is the only thing that gets me through my long days at work and school.
24.  I am thankful for cameras to capture all the memories and magic of the holidays.
25.  I am thankful for technology which makes staying in touch so much easier these days.  Without it, I’d feel like I was living in a box with little time for interaction with friends and family.
26.  I am thankful for restful sleep.  Without it, I know I couldn’t survive all of this other chaos.
27.  I am thankful for little boys who work together to gang up on their daddy.  They are learning teamwork, and their giggles give life to our home.
28.  I am thankful for the year 2012 and all the blessings it has brought us.
29.  I am thankful for all the miracles I have seen in my own life that have allowed me to be where I am today.
30.  I am thankful for the plans God has for me.