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Friday, November 23, 2012

A Thankful Heart...

*I thought this posted on Thanksgiving Day. However, in my food and family overload I guess I didn't click to post. So, here it is a day late and to be honest I am past exhausted to post about my Black Friday fun! Come back to read that one...


Today is Thanksgiving! As a kid I remember this day was a day for lots of family and also food I didn't really like. Today, there is even more family and now food that I like way too much!

But the day is so much more than that...

Early this morning I had time to really think about what I was thankful for. God has blessed me in so many ways at so many levels and I recognize I am undeserving of it all.

I am thankful to live in a home with heat and air, a nice bed and more clothes than I can fit in to (in true confession I will tell you I do hope to be back into those size 8s just any day). I am thankful for the jobs Brian and I have and the way we are able to provide for our family. I am thankful for our church and the extended family we have there. I am thankful for the ministries we are involved in and the exposure our children have had to God and the way He works.

I am thankful for where I come from...and that's where I am writing from this morning. Dorothy once said, "there's no place like home" and there are many times I wished I could click some ruby red slippers and return home. Unfortunately, it doesn't work out quite that easy.

For me, home is East Texas. Those of you who know me can attest to the fact that I am proud of being a Texan, true down to my big hair and need for lipstick at all times. But, when I see this sign I truly am thankful...


I can't even count how many times I have passed this sign by on our way home, but I can tell you every time I feel a like all is right in the world when I cross that magical state line. This road leads me home, where I know the people and the easy way of life in a small town. I am thankful to have had this background and to come from this place, where neighbors help neighbors and friendships run deep.

I am also thankful for my family and their love and support as Brian and I navigate our way through life. There is nobody else I can spend hours talking to, laughing with and enjoying true Aggie fun like my family!


And can I say I love having the nieces and nephews!! It is kind of what I imagine grandparenting will be like, not that I am looking forward to that by any means. But, it is so fun to love on them and play with them and teach them funny yet inappropriate things (well, that's Brian) and then pass them back to their parents with a smile and no worries! So today I am also thankful that God saw fit to add to our family with all kinds of personalities and people, both big and little, and that I am in the teenage phase of parenting and not potty training!

We grew up in a home full of love for others and the Lord and I can never be thankful enough for that! I am who I am because of my home and it is where a piece of me will always be.

The chore of packing up our family and hitting the road has become less stressful over time. I was noting on our drive home this time that I was thankful for the entertainment opportunities our kids now have as we travel.



Basically, iPhones are much simpler to pack than the days of backpacks full of Star Wars figurines and Power Rangers and books to look at it and baskets of movies. Sleep and a good set of ear plugs are all my kids need to make the trip these days. Well, as long as I have remembered to pack all the chargers and such...

So, today as I wake up in this great country of freedom and opportunity I do have a truly thankful heart. I anticipate what this day means for me, a time to thank God for those who have come before me, for those who have poured their love into me and prayed for me and most of all for a Savior who made a way for me to live one breath at a time. I'm hoping you have a chance to thank Him today for all He has blessed you with- both big and small, ordinary and extraordinary, simple and difficult- and that you have a full and thankful heart.

2 comments:

  1. Had a GREAT time and enjoyed having y'all home so much - yes, we have so much to be thankful for! Safe travels home and Gig'em!!

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  2. it's never long enough! hope to see yall soon!!

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