Thankful day 8

This will be short, fall allergies have kicked in, exhausted from adjusting to going back to work full time, juggling kiddos, and waking up to my little man while it's still dark out.  However, despite not feeling great and tired, I am thankful that I have been working in my classroom in getting it set up for the 4th graders that I will be meeting next week, and able to start my "dream" job!!

I am also thankful for God's peace and direction. Last night I thought his pre-school days were probably coming to an end, so after meeting a child care provider this morning so that we could have a back up, I was dreading my conversation with the director at his pre-school.  However, to my surprise which it really shouldn't be because God always provides and takes care of us, but yet I continue to doubt, the director (who by the way is an extremely awesome lady and am so thankful that I met her when Hadley attended school there, she is great) and I had a good talk about our future plans for Landry and that we both agree that we want him to stay at this school and that he's so young and just needs time to adjust.  So after talking through some things to help him with his potty training, she is going to give him until the end of September to see if he adjusts and can go without any accidents!  I am thankful for this, an answered to prayer for now.  Now we work with Landry and if you'd like to add him/us to your prayer list that would be fan-tab-u-lous, in that he will adjust, he will "get" the potty thing, and be able to stay at this awesome pre-school.

No pictures today, I left my house at 8:15 am and got home around 8:40 pm.  Thankful for this day of work and for the group of friends that we study the Bible with every week. God is good!

Day 7...Thankfulness

This will be a short one, been a crazy/stressful night, but still thankful.  Despite my sweet little guy having multiple accidents today, he was saying mini sentences to me tonight. Landry has been in speech therapy for the past year due to all of his ear problems/sickness, he started talking later than normal. So for him to say his mini sentences tonight, was music to my ears. :)  I am also thankful that despite the "unknown" if Landry can stay at his current pre-school since he's having so many accidents, some other options came up tonight, so God is good.  Even though tonight was a bit chaotic, and I had my "moments" of about ready to pull my hair out, I still had this sense of calmness over me and the reassurance that God has this.

Thankful for my kiddos, my hubby, and my nice comfortable bed that I am about to fall asleep in.

Landry and Myrtle running and laughing in the yard tonight

Sweet Hadley before school today

Finding Thankfulness on the Rough Days...Day 6

Days like today are the true test of being grateful and experiencing joy.  Today's been a tough one, but there are still many things that I am thankful for, I just had to look a bit harder.

1.  Hugs from my children - It is pretty neat that both of my children starting when Hadley was close to 2 and then Landry starting this as well, that when they see Josh and I hug they come over, stand between us and hold their arms up for us to pick them up and be apart of our hug as well. It melts my heart every time. Landry did that today when we hugged on the steps.  He gets this big grin across his face and will shake real hard and squeeze our necks tight and often always plants a big kiss on both of our cheeks! Love it!

2.  Coffee shops - I have a favorite coffee shop here in Athens - Donkey Coffee, it had become my second home while working on my Master's the past few years and it's usually where Josh and I end up on our dates.  It has such a comfortable vibe too it one that meets many different needs.  They have couches, comfy chairs, tables, board games, covered porch with tables/chairs, as well as outside seating.  It's a great place to study, hang out, and listen to music on the nights they have it.  I went there today to do some work and sat outside.  It was another beautiful day, nice breeze, not hot, and I loved sipping on my favorite drink - Vanilla Chai.  There is just something about drinking coffee, especially at a coffee shop.

I am bummed I forgot to take pictures today, but the one I posted explains my #1 reason of being thankful today.

Thankful to find joyful things on rough days!

Heres a picture that demonstrates the "hugs" Hadley started when mommy/daddy would hug she is 2 yrs. old  - June 2008

Glorious Day

I wish I could really put into words truly how just seeking joy in the areas that I am thankful for have already impacted me!  Today was an awesome day, friends, no family of ours asked us to venture to The Wild's with them today.  For those of you who are not from Ohio, The Wild's is a beautiful place that Jack Hannah has with animals such as giraffes, rhinos, etc. freely roam hundred's of acres.  You can ride an open air or enclosed bus for 2 1/2 hrs to see all of these animals. It was really incredible, some of the animals came right up to the bus, and the expressions on my children's faces were priceless!

These awesome people who are truly our family, as Landry calls them; Mr. Bill, Miss Ro Ro, and Miss Ra Ra, although now he can plainly say, Miss Cara had taken our kids to The Wild's just shy of a month ago while Josh and I were in Florida.  The neat thing was even though they were just a short time ago, their reactions seemed as it if was the first time seeing these animals!  I took a lot of pictures which you will see at the end.

There are so many things I am thankful for today and even though I'lm writing briefly about them, perhaps the pictures I will attach will be able to convey more of my gratefulness.

1. God's impeccable creation - As soon as you get off the exit to The Wild's, the beauty of rolling green hills and pastures, farm land, and back roads instantaneously appear.  Today happened to be a  gorgeous summer day, low 80's no humidity, bright sun, simply amazing.  As you get closer to the place, you are just surrounded by more hills and astounding views.  As we were on our tour I couldn't help but just think about God constantly.  The creativity He has not only in how green and lush the grass was or how beautiful the blue sky was, but also in how each animal looks different, and how each part of an animal has a purpose.  God didn't just throw together animals just because, He had a purpose.  I could've literally just sat on top of one of the many hills and stared out in the views all day.  I also couldn't help but think of how beautiful this place would be in the different seasons and how different each season would look.   There is just something about being in nature that brings a different closeness to our Creator.

2.  Ending the week spending time with people we love - People outside of your family who become your family is very rare, and thankfully, when our little guy was born, God brought this family into our lives.  I love how they have loved our kids as if they were their own, they make time to spend time with us, and we enjoy being together.  It was a fun day starting off early eating breakfast together, and then cramming all 7 of us into our highlander which says seats 7 but I think the car makers mean 7 children.  It made for some great laughs and real bonding time. :) 

3.  My daughter's sense of humor.  She seriously is a funny girl and she loves to make other's laugh. Sadly, sometimes I am so caught up in the busyness of life that I tend to not pay attention to when she is making me laugh, but today I didnt. I made the conscious effort to not have a schedule and just enjoy being with my kids.  So as you will see in the pictures, there is a picture of her and I in the bathroom and a picture of a toilet.  I was taking her to the bathroom when she said wouldnt it be funny to take a picture of this toilet? Then send it to daddy's phone? Normally I would say, let's go, hurry, that is silly and move on. But today I said that would be funny and I took out my phone, snapped a photo of the toilet and then took a picture of Hadley and I so we can remember this moment. I'll never forget her laugh, her look of I can't believe my mommy actually did this and how funny she thought it was to send this to her daddy's phone.

4.  My sleeping son who NEVER falls asleep in the car or anywhere away from his bed - This kid has been waking up before the sun rise for the past few weeks and not taking naps, so he's been completely worn out.  Today after our adventure, you could tell he wanted to sleep in the car but was just too excited.  So we went into the restaurant and as he was taking bites of his food his eyes would start to close, then ever so gently he laid his head back on his chair, food in hand, and he was out for the next few hours.  He was moved from his chair to cuddle up with his Miss Ro Ro, then carried out to the car, and he didn't even move, pretty stinkin' precious!  And to top it off, when I put him to bed a few hours later, no screaming, crying, he went right to sleep.  Also during the past few weeks if I put him to bed he started this crying, screaming fits for what seemed like hours..so tonight was a success!

So thankful for this day, spending it with people I love, spending it in God's beautiful creation.

Looking at the mommy/baby rhino

Our bathroom pose - you can see the laughter of joy in Hadley's face- love

The famous toilet that brought tons of laughter and probably had the other people think we were crazy!

There are just some moments you wish you could pause

Final Friday...Day 4

Today was my "last" friday before I begin working full time.  I am very excited that it is and that I will be doing what I love to do, which is teaching.
This week has been both exhausting, challenging, yet insightful and enjoyable all at the same time.  Both of my kids have had a  hard time adjusting to getting back into school, and as you read yesterday, Landry's first time ever going to a school.  There have been many, many tears from my children's meltdowns and a few shed from this momma as well.  However, despite all of these challenges, God provided me with so many opportunities to spend some much needed time with my girl friends. The awesome thing was it wasn't just through texting/phone calls but a few of which I was able to hang out in person! Score!!! That doesnt happen often; sadly due to the busyness of life, children, distance, work, etc.  It has been neat to reflect how God has used each friend I talked to this week to help me achieve this thing called JOY...

Thankful today for..

1.  Coffee and chatting with Brittany.  I decided to hit up a few yard sales after dropping Landry off and ended up picking up a few baby things for Brittany which is always so fun and she asked if I'd drop by.  It was a great few hours of just hanging out. One thing that I love about Brit is that when you walk into her house you immediatley feel like your home.  She can go about her things she has to do whether it's cooking, cleaning, laundry, feeding her baby, etc. and we still just talk.  I love that she doesnt feel like she has to make her house look like a magazine cover in order for someone to come over.  It was also so awesome to hold her baby and have her fall asleep on me too. Precious!

2.  Evening walks - My absolute favorite time of the day is around sunset.  There is a slight coolness in the air, the sun is not blazing hot, and everything just seems peaceful.  The whole fam including our puppy Myrtle went for a walk.  The start of our walk was interesting with Landry refusing to walk and crying, but it ended up being a peaceful one.  One of the things I like when we walk are talking with neighbors in our neighborhood that we dont usually see/talk to.  Tonight we talked with a family for awhile and all because we both had dogs and I had this student in the class I interned for last year.  On our walk home my favorite scenery was Hadley riding her scooter and Landry on Josh's shoulders.  So glad I took a picture as you will see below!

3.  Talks with my hubby - Moments alone with my hubby are very rare these days.  I am glad we are back on a routine and the kids are getting to bed earlier so that it is easier to make time.  It seems even after the kids are in bed, the hubs has to go back to work, or I am doing things I didnt get done during the day.  However, tonight we actually got to hang out and just talk.  I am so blessed to have the husband that I have, he is amazing, loving, and so dedicated to our family.  I love how he is so involved in my and the kids lives, as I always say, he's a rock star!

God is good and I am blessed with so many things!

A Glimpse of Relief...Day 3 of Gratefulness

It is amazing how quickly something can squelch joy and thankfulness.  There has been quite a few changes this week with not only Hadley going back to school, but my little one going to pre-school at just 2 1/2 yrs. old.  He has been potty trained since last Spring and as all kids, has accidents here and there.  Hadley attended a wonderful pre-school and we wanted Landry to go there as well which is why we started potty training early.  I start my new teaching job next week (extremely thankful) and all was in place as far as childcare goes, Hadley in school, Landry in pre-school.

So, this is a huge transition for Landry, he's been away from me, but only with another babysitter either at my house or theirs, and with only a few other children.  He has never been exposed to a structured -classroom setting.  So starting this week has left him uneasy not to mention very grumpy in the evenings due to being very tired since he is not sleeping during naptime.  This uneasiness has also led him to regress a bit in his potty training, with having a few accidents everyday so far this week.  The director informed me this morning that I should look into a backup plan incase Landry continues to have accidents.  That was my joy squelcher today, yes, I know it's not a life threatening, major thing, etc.  However, if anyone knows me just the slightest, I am a planner, I like to have things organized and ready to go and when things get out of whack, it steals my joy and stress seeps in.  I left his pre-school nearly in tears wondering what in the world will we do,  why is he having accidents, God can I please catch a break?!  

I immediately came home and started searching for other potential places, I asked some close friends to pray, and yep, I stressed, and fretted about what will happen if he cant go there anymore.  I start my new job next week, he has to have somewhere to go!!!  But....in between the stress, the searching, I was able to pray a continuous conversation with God throughout the day asking Him to help Landry, if this is the place for him let him  have an accident free day, help me figure out what to do.  I knew I needed to find the joy and thankfulness of my day despite this hiccup.  Here are the things I am thankful for today:

1. I was able to still pray throughout my stress/freak out moments. Some of you may be like, um, shouldn't you already be doing that? Well yes, of course, isn't that everyones wishes, isnt that every person who has a relationship with God strive to have a never ending convo with God on a daily basis?  But remember, we are imperfect, I am most certainly not strong in this area, so yes, I am thankful that I was able to talk to God, because I usually just freak out and not pray!

2.  Landry had an ACCIDENT FREE DAY!!! Thank you Jesus!!! I can't tell you the relief I felt when I picked him up today and the teacher said he had NO ACCIDENTS!! I picked him up, hugged him tight and told him how proud I was and told him he would get a treat - he asked for a donut! :) So off to our local drive thru donut place we went - and he ate the whole glazed donut! Way to go buddy!!

3.  Walking in the rain - Today I was blessed to hang out with a sweet friend who watched Landry last year while I was interning and her precious baby.  She lives close enough to uptown Athens so we were able to walk up and enjoy lunch today! On our way back, it was starting to cloud up and get dark and we were pretty close to her house when it started raining.  I cant remember the last time I was out in summer rain, and it felt great!  It was refreshing and calming.  In fact, it was sort of a reminder to slow down and enjoy little moments.  Everyone's reaction is usually to run as fast as you can to get out of the rain, and we sort of did as we got closer only so her little baby wouldnt get wet but we also took time to appreciate it and realize how refreshing it was.  Thankful that God uses things like getting caught in the rain to remind us of the little things to appreciate.

Anyone else jotting down things they are thankful for today? I'd love to hear them!

* Another side note, stealing this from Christen as well, but I hope to take a few pictures of my kiddos daily so I can be reminded of how they grow and how precious they are!

Hadley at her 2nd grade open house!

This was taken this past Tuesday, Landry hiding in our puppies cage - I think he was trying to get away from the puppy! 

2nd day of Giving Thanks

Day 2, it's late, I'm exhausted, kids are tired from being the first week of school.  I'll have to admit, knowing that I have to write this tonight, thinking of things that I am thankful for has been a constant on my mind.  Any time something not so great happened, or I was stressed out with my 2 1/2 yr. old crying and refusing to sleep, I would immediately think, but I am thankful for...

1. That I have children who need and want their mommy! Despite the exhaustion that comes when Landry is attached like velcro or when Hadley needs extra mommy time even though she's whining about it, they just need their mommy, they need me.  I am thankful they see me as a place of rest, a place of comfort.

2. Friendship - I know I said this yesterday, but I was blessed to spend the day yesterday with a dear friend that I've known since Kindergarten, Katie.  Katie is really a gem.  I've always loved that she is her own person, not caring what others may think of her and she just has this awesome confidence about her.  Our day consisted of having lunch, window shoppping, sipping coffee, running errands with my kids, and taking a walk.  We had some really great talks, talks that mostly consisted of what God has been doing in her life and me picking her brain on how He has given her such peace in her life.  So thankful we are still friends and hope we are able to see each other more.  Thankful that no matter the distance or time, we never lose that connection of true friendship.