Thankful

I've mentioned a time or two on this blog that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I just think it's so great that our entire country takes a day to stop our busy lives, spend time with family and friends, and just be thankful. Really the only downside to Thanksgiving is that someone has to die, the turkey. I digress. For me, Thanksgiving wouldn't be complete without thinking through some of the hundreds of things I have to be especially thankful for this year. Since this is the place where I think out loud, here are some of my thankful thoughts...

My family will hopefully always be at the top of my list.

My Mom and Dad: I'm thankful for their encouragement, their generousity, their wisdom, their love, their friendship, their godly example. I am especially thankful that tomorrow my Dad is going to come over and beat up some wasps for me and maybe change some batteries in my smoke detectors! And, I'm thankful that my Mom is going to go through the trouble of making Stove Top Stuffing for me because she knows that's what I like best.

My brother, Josh: I'm thankful for his sense of humor, his intelligence, and I'm really, really thankful for his family! Kelley has been a wonderful addition to our family, I can't believe they've been married for 5 years already. And, I think my love for Will and Allie is well-documented here. The four of them, they make my life really fun, and I'm thankful for that.

My sister, Ashleigh: I'm thankful for her honesty, her teaching wisdom, her listening ear, and her ability to forgive me when I drive her crazy! :)

My Grandmas: I can't think of two better people to be the foundation of our family. Both of my Grandmas would do absolutely anything for any one of us. They are kind, they are generous, they are constant. They have taught me the value of being thankful. I'm so very thankful to have the influence of two very wise and very loving Grandmas on my life. You guys are the best!!

These are some people that I haven't known that long, but this year, I'm just down-right grateful for them:


Apparently, God likes to use kids to change my life, because last year these four did just that. Two of them were in my class last year and the other two were just a bonus! In a crazy way that I would have never imagined these four kids and their families have become some of my closest friends. I'm thankful for their encouragment, their time, their wisdom, their laughter. I'm just thankful for everything about them. They make my life so much more fun, more exciting, and a lot fuller!

I could probably go on for a long time about everything that I'm thankful for...all my other friends, Diet Coke, Peanut M&Ms, flying insect spray, my house, my car...but I don't want to bore you.

I'll close with the thing that I'm most thankful for this year. I'm thankful for my Savior. I'm thankful that He's a good God who loves me, who cares about me, who has every little detail of my life figured out. I'm thankful that He continually offers grace and mercy to me. It is a grace that is a mystery to me, but beckons me to live, to not take any day or any opportunity for granted.

I have so very much to be thankful for. If I never experience another blessing, I think the overflow of thankfulness my heart is experiencing right now could get me through. I am blessed indeed.