Ten Things of Thankful: Week 26

Intro? Ha! Ain’t nobody got time for that…so here’s my list, frankly because I have shopping to do and cards to finish. It’s December 1, for crying out loud, people! I am seriously beginning to panic (ok, not really but sometimes I get caught up in the emotions of others…don’t judge.)

So, in an effort to be more concise, here is my list...which is slightly longer than "ten" but I felt compelled to include them all.

1. We enjoyed the first fire of the season in our fireplace. The PBA and I did not get to go and help cut firewood as we did last year, unfortunately…the schedule just didn’t work out. But we are thankful nonetheless for the free (and delicious-smelling) firewood we get from our dear friends.

2. And we’re thankful for those friends too…especially considering we almost lost one of them this past year. God is good to allow her to survive the crash and to make small steps toward recovery.

3. We are thankful for the PBA’s involvement with Christian Youth Theater (from here referred to as CYT)…they are both getting the chance to work backstage in a musical production of “Narnia” (I still cannot fathom what that looks like…I have read the books and seen the movies and I do not understand how it could be a musical. But CYT is a reputable organization and I know it wouldn’t be cheesy or hokey, so I’ll have to wait until I see the show to make my assessment.

4. The PBA are also taking a new class through CYT during this winter session (because frankly, we found that we had one night each week in which we were being forced to interact with one another and we took the necessary steps to rectify that…). So anyway, the class that are taking is “Stunts and Combat”. I would like to take this class (which might be awkward and embarassing, since it is for children...but I am the size of a large child...would that count?), but for boys especially (the PBA specifically), how fantastic could this be?

5. They have been showing off what they’ve already learned, and reenacted, with full-narration, their beginning attempts at sword fighting. Awesome.

6. AND…the instructor of the class I have known forever and ever. I nannied for his 3 boys during a couple summers when I was in high school; it was at that point I knew I would not have boys and I would not give them names beginning with the same first letter (you don’t know this b/c I don’t include their names in here, but I have done just that). The only difference is that I knew I would most certainly not get a girl on a third attempt so we stopped at the two. All this to say, I am thankful to reconnect with him and his lovely family after …a-hem…a “few” years.

7. I am thankful for the opportunity to serve at church with my husband and the PBA. The PBA have been around little kids (preschoolers) but not like they have recently. We volunteer every other month in the Sunday morning preschool and it has been a blessing to all of us to spend that time together, serving God as a family.

8. And the 10yo has recently been volunteering to read the Bible Story each time. I love watching him read the story and then show the pictures to the kiddos. You don’t realize what a skill that is, until you watch someone try it who has never done it. 

9. Switching gears completely: That my 12yo is content to spend time shooting arrows at a rotting pumpkin. In our backyard. In the freezing cold. And by himself. That's really all I have to say about that...seems pretty self-explanatory, doesn't it?

10. Also regarding the rotting pumpkin: that the dog didn't vomit all over the house (or at all, actually) after he got ahold of that pumpkin and ate a decent amount before we could pull him away.

11. In my attempts at Christmas decorating each year, I put all our live plants in my bedroom. I don't know why, but I always do. Anyway, in my haste, I put a plant on an antique school desk. And what do we know about antique school desks (no worries if you don't know...I'm about to tell you)? The desks are slanted for easy use. And as an aside, if no one is sitting at said desk to hold things in place, they slide off. Such was the case (as I'm sure you guessed) with my plant. "So, why were you thankful?", you might be asking...well, because the plant was highly dried out. So much so that there was no moisture at all and clean-up was quite simple. With a vacuum.

OK, here's where the list gets abbreviated b/c the dog is begging to go to a walk (ok, maybe because I accidently mentioned it in front of him and now he's impatient) and I have a new book to read (thanks for the recommendation, Mom...I'm hoping to start "The Book Thief" this afternoon...following the walk).

So...the new book is #12 on my list.

13. A walk outside in 50 degree and sunny weather on December 1...that doesn't happen much in Indiana!

14. Time yesterday to go shopping with my mom!

15. A lovely Thanksgiving dinner and leftovers too!

16. And I didn't have to clean my house for company on Thanksgiving...because I had no company (we went to someone else's house). And my house got cleaned anyway...but NOT for company (there is a difference in thoroughness of cleaning: company vs. no company have different standards)

17. A dog which tolerates being dressed up. What else can I say (you might need to follow Indy on Facebook to see those pictures...)

18. A lovely chat, dessert and shopping at Goodwill with “In the Coop” for her birthday…with one of my birthday freebies at Smokey Bones. She'd never been to Smoke Bones and seemed pleasantly surprised. 

And my last few have to do with our orthodontist appointment from this week; if you missed the recap, you can take a look here. And these are my praises (so far) from it:

19. That we began treatment on him 3 years ago; had we just now brought him in, who knows how bad things would be.

20. That we live in a country where it can be fixed.

21. That we live in a time period when it can be fixed and there is ample anesthesia (I am certain he will be thinking about this when he gets ready to be put under…and no worries; I WILL have the camera ready to record!)

22. That only one of my boys has to have this done…it could very well have been both, you know, with genetics being what they are.

23. That this will make a great story for him (and us) to tell when he’s older…and through it. I'm always looking for good fodder for the blog!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a fabulous week!

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