Grateful, Grateful, duly Grateful

In youth group this week we had a worship service. It is always interesting to see how youth worship with no other adults around. :) As part of the service, our fearless leader read a book as part of her sermon titled Grateful, a Song of Giving Thanks by John Bucchino. I had never heard of the book, but was instantly in love when she finished reading. I think this is a book that everyone should own and read to their children. It is a book of thanks and faith, with beautiful illustrations.

There was one page of the book that struck me more than any other page. It read:

"In a world that can bring pain,

I will still take each chance-

For I believe that whatever the terrain

Our feet can learn to dance."

Tomorrow it will have been 1 year since our first miscarriage. Everyone told me that if I made it through the due date, that I would be okay. I think they were wrong. In the weeks leading up to tomorrow, I have been a mess. I'm not sure why this date seems to be harder for me, but it has. Maybe it's the time of year, or the fact that I have several people in my life pregnant now, some of whom are due the time I would be due if we hadn't lost a second baby. Maybe it's a day that I have to get through once, and then things will be easier.

I know that the service was supossed to be for the youth, but I believe that God was talking to me during the service when Nancy read that book. I think it was something that I needed to hear, something that I had been waiting to hear.

Of course, the main idea of the sermon was not for me, or what I needed to hear, but about how we don't thank God enough for what we have. We say "thank you" to people all of the time, but when was the last time we counted our gifts from God? If we woke up tomorrow with only the things that we had thanked God for today, would we have anything?

She asked us to do an acitivity where we wrote down 5 things that we were thankful for.  It took me a while to think of things, not individual people, I was thankful for, but by the time she said done, I had my list. She asked us to keep the list somewhere where we could see it and help to remind us to say thank you for those things everyday. Here is my list:

Five Things I am Thankful For

1. Faith in God

2. Unconditional Love of Family

3. Fellowship with Friends

4. Support of Church Family

5. Hope for a better tomorrow

These are the five things that I will be thanking God for every night. I will count my blessings instead of sheep.  I will learn to dance, no matter what the terrian.

Thanksgiving Thanks, Things

I am thankful for many things:

My iPod. I love it. It plays music when I need it, keeps tracks of appointments, and holds movies to occupy David when I need to go to the grocery store. It's an amazing little device that, even though I could live without, makes some things so much easier. I am now also in love with my iPhone!

Thomas the Tank Engine. If you have a boy, you know how cool Thomas is. He lets me get cleaning done, laundry started, and dinner finished. He does not cause confusion and delay in our house, and we are never cross when he is on.

My washer and dryer. They make things easier and are very effective in what they do. The same can be said for my dishwasher. Modern conveniences that I have come to love and adore.

My car. It was the first major purchase I made after I got my first job post grad school. It's cute and reliable. Plus, I have a great dad who helps do all of the routine maintence on it.

My microwave. Some nights we wouldn't have dinner without it. That is horrible to say, since there is nothing keeping me from cooking, but we all have nights that Bagle Bites just sound good.

Modern medicine. Sometimes I take for granted that, expensive as it may be, I have access to great health care.

I'm thankful for technology. Sometimes I think it's a curse, but other times I don't know what I would do without it. Just making a phone call, or sending a text, Skyping, a quick email.

Thankgiving Thanks, People and Places

I am thankful for my friends. Most of my friends have been around for years. They saw me through the awkward middle school years, high school, college...I'm going on decades with some of these wonderful people. We may not talk all of the time, but we always pick up right where we left off.

I am also so thankful for my "internet" friends, as Nate calls them. I'm in a group with 11 other May '09 mommies and even though we have never met in real life, I know that they are amazing women. We chat daily about any and everything. I love my May mommies!

I am thankful for my co-workers. I love my job. I am so lucky and blessed to have gotten into such a wonderful building (thanks Mr. Beresford!). There is not a day that goes by that I don't remember how lucky I am to be here at the river. I love this place!

My house. I love my house. It's small, but perfect. It provides us with what we need and has so many wonderful memories attached to it. I bought it as a single woman. Nate told me he loved me for the first time there. I came home to it after my honeymoon with my husband. We found out we were pregnant there and brought home our baby boy there. We watched him sit, crawl, and walk in that house. Even though I know that we won't always be there, I will always love our first house.

Starbucks, any location. I am a $4 a cup kind of gal every week. I have my favorites  - Iced Chai, Hot Chai, Passion Tea Lemonade, Pumpkin Spice, Salted Caramel Mocha...all depends on my mood. And don't get me started on the Cranberry-Orange Scones...

Thanksgiving Thanks, Faith and Family

Many people are posting what they are thankful for each day on Facebook. I'm horrible at updating my status daily, so I thought I would share things I am thankful for here. I have so many things to be thankful for. My life is full of blessings!

I am thankful for my faith. Without it, I don't know how I would get through the day. My faith has grown and changed a lot over the years. Through the change, my love for God has not wavered. There were days that I might not have liked him, but my love remained. As I grow older, I know that it will continue to grow and change, but the constant of love for God will always be there.

I am thankful for my parents. I have parents who have always supported me, no matter what. Dad always made special pancakes for big occasions, and even let me have ice cream for breakfast the first day of my senior year. Mom has always done everything she could to make sure we had what we needed, and most of the time, what we wanted. Raising 3 girls can't be easy, but they did it, and I think they did a pretty good job.

I have an amazing husband - I mean amazing. He is my best friend and stands by my side. We may not have been married as long as some of my friends, but we've been through our share of heartache. We have grown closer and become a stronger couple with what we have been through, and we will continue to do so.

My sisters drive me crazy. We hardly ever agree on anything, and trying to make a decision on what to do or how to do something becomes a huge ordeal. We didn't get along, at all, living under one roof, but now that we all have our own lives, we get along better. Still, we drive each other nuts. I wouldn't have it any other way. Despite how crazy they can make me, I love them both and am thankful that we are as close as we are.

David. Does he even need more explanation? He is truly a miracle and gift from God. I am thankful for him, every dirty, smelly, sticky little boy inch of him. Even on the days that he is driving me nuts, I have to stop and thank God that I have a little boy to drive me nuts.

My church. I have been going to the same church for (20) years. Some of the same people I grew up with are still there. These people watched me grow up and have supported me in my faith for so long - Dave Courtright, Angie Weiser, Helen and Rob, Kevin and Carol. Robin Wildman...I could go on. We've also met so many new people who support Nate and I in our role as parents, and who allow us to work with the youth group. It may not be the biggest church, or the most contemporary, but it's comfortable and some place that I want to bring David up in.

This ends the first installment of thanks.