A week of Thanksgiving! Day 2

There is much to be thankful for today. And I'm going to focus on those things. And not the things that are attempting to make me insane.

Wheee!

I am thankful:

• That this time tomorrow I will be in the middle of 50 minutes of facial, after I'm done with 50 minutes of a massage (courtesy of a gift card from last Christmas).
• For mild temps even as we approach the end of November.
• That I won a Zhu Zhu pet set on a blog a while ago, so we're covered for Christmas (although if you know my children, you know that I need to find one more Zhu Zhu pet. Have you seen the hysteria over the Zhu Zhu pets? If I put this set on ebay, I could make enough to fund our entire Christmas).
• That I ended up getting to sit on the couch with Natalie for over an hour last night reading books (She's a big fan of the Llama Llama books right now).
• For the chance to help some college kids out with some green bean casserole today.
• That God has always provided, and He will continue to do so, out of His infinite wisdom. And that His plan is always better and more complete than mine.

I must remember this strategy for the next time life is creeping up on me. Making a thankful list does wonders for ye olde attitude.

A week of Thanksgiving! Day 1

And by using that title, I nearly ensure I will not remember or sit down to post every day for a week.

So here are my "thankful fors" for today (in no particular order):

• Healthy family
• A warm place to live, complete with maintenance people (ahhh, renting...)
  
• A Starbucks on my way from school to the grocery store, by way of Target.
• Diet Ginger Ale (delightful)
• A new cookbook
• Good friends
• Music
  

This week I'm also thinking a lot about the people who are going to have a tough Thanksgiving. Maybe they won't have much to eat or feel that there isn't much to be thankful for this year. Maybe they've lost someone special this year and nothing will feel right. Some will be very lonely, whether or not they are surrounded by people. I pray everyone will know how deeply God cares for them, even if it doesn't seem like it.

Here are the lyrics to a song by Chris Tomlin that I've been listening to a lot this week:

Come Home Running

Oh heart of mine, why must you stray?
From one so fair you run away
And one more time you have to pay
The heaviness of needless shame

Oh heart of mine, come back home
You've been too long out on your own
And He's been there all along
Watching for you down the road

So come home running
His arms are open wide
His name is Jesus
He understands
He is the answer
You are looking for
So come home running
Just as you are

Oh child of God so dearly loved
And ransomed by the Savior's blood
And called by name, Daughter and Son
Wrapped in the robe of righteousness

Reclaim Thanksgiving!

I love me some Christmas, and some Christmas music, but it's always so sad how Thanksgiving gets overlooked.

Wanna Reclaim Thanksgiving with me? Here are a few ways I'm doing that - let me know if you have more:

1. Blog about what you're thankful for
2. Rework every Facebook status into something you're thankful for
3. Follow me on Twitter! I'm tweeting what I'm thankful for using #reclaimthanksgiving
4. Start a thankful list - you might be surprised how quickly it will grow
5. Let people know - if you're very thankful for something someone did for you, thankful for their friendship, or just thankful they're in your life - tell them

If you try it just until Thanksgiving Day, I can't even tell you how it will impact your perspective. I've found I'm thinking of all the little things I'm grateful for, and less about things that aren't going well. I'm able to focus on all the blessings in my life, instead of the junk. It's less about me. And I like it.

I'd love to hear some things you're thankful for, too!

ThanksLiving

Yesterday (November 14 if you're wondering), I took the girls to the mall to look for a couple of things. When we walked in through Barnes and Noble, there was Christmas music playing. When we got inside the mall, we saw Santa has already taken residency.

Love Christmas. Feel bad for Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving. I love the idea of focusing on all the good things in our lives, and giving thanks to the One who provided it all.

One of my favorite Thanksgiving things is at our church back home. It's got a fancy name like the "Harvest Festival of Praise." I still call it the Thanksgiving Eve service. We've actually been going since before we had moved there, and it's always been one of our favorite things. It's a service with mostly music. Some kids, some families, some hymns. The saw*. Lots of pie afterward. What I love about it is that it helps me to slow down and refocus. Instead of thinking of all the things I have to do, I'm reminded why we're doing it.

I'm excited that we're able to go again this year even though we've moved. I feel incredibly blessed and thankful this year. And I think it's time to reclaim Thanksgiving. It's time to focus on what we've been given, and not take any of it for granted. I'm going to keep a list for myself and keep adding to it. Well beyond Thanksgiving.

Our pastor this morning talked about living with an attitude of gratitude. ThanksLiving. I love that idea. And I know when I am able to focus on all the things I'm thankful for, everything looks better. His scripture was in Luke 17, when Jesus healed the ten lepers, and only one came back to thank Him. I pray that I would not be so full of myself, that I would run off without a second thought. I pray that I would be thankful in everything, so that the only thing I could think of would be going back to the One who has blessed me. To shout His praise the whole way there. To fall at His feet. I pray that my faith will make me well.


*Edited to add: Burt actually plays a hymn of some sort on the saw every year (no Saw movies). It's quite impressive - and a favorite of a lot of the kids (and me). It's not Thanksgiving for me until Burt plays the saw.

In which I quote Friends yet again

So a couple of weeks ago we had a game night with our small group. Only a few of us could make it, and Captain America stayed home with a cougher so I could go be among the grownups. We played the game Loaded Questions. One of the questions was something about "what kind of pattern is never appropriate on bedsheets?" or something. I tried to think. Puppies? Perfectly good on kid sheets. Sports teams? Again with the kid sheets. Huh. Seems there's something that's going to always work. What's a symbol that wouldn't work? Peace signs? That'd be kind of a tween sheet set. Swastikas. I mean really, never a good idea. And how weird would that be on sheets?

This past week we did a make up game night, since so many people missed the previous week. We started talking about the sheet question from last week, and before my answer is mentioned Captain America pipes up with something about Nazi Germany.

See?? He's my lobster! (I don't know if you've seen that episode of Friends. I try not to think about how often I still bring back a quote or an episode thought from a show that's been off the air forever. If you need a refresher (if you care), click here. I'll wait.)

I laughed so hard I had tears. Honestly, what are the chances he'd think of the same thing? Clearly, we are perfect for each other, what with our mutual disdain for swastika covered bedding.

They get it from me, I guess

When I get a cold, there's a good chance I'm going to have a serious coughing fit. A couple of times. I remember several times in school, I'd cough so hard that I'd have to just leave the room because I couldn't stop long enough to ask the teacher to go to the nurse's office. I'd cough like crazy. Til my eyes watered. Til I nearly gagged. No amount of water or cough drops could make it pass. I just had to cough it out. I still get those sometimes (often with horrible timing - like during church). I have even coughed so hard that I seemed to sprain my tongue.

And guess what? My girls are coughers. When they get a cold, they cough. Not the smoker's hack. Not the baby seal. Just as if they've swallowed water the wrong way. They'll cough all day. No fevers. Nothing else. A little sniffle means a lot of coughing. Natalie stayed home Wednesday, and Ella's coughing day is today. They'll do it 3 or 4 times in a school year. They'll cough a bit, and then one day they'll just cough non-stop. Usually when it's at the tail-end. So the terrible coughing day is when they're actually getting better.

But since it's just a cough, and they don't feel particularly sick otherwise, they're kind of high maintenance sickies. Not interested in laying on the couch all day. ENTERTAIN ME. Natalie's a little easier than Ella, because she's willing to watch more movies & relax. Ella's gonna last through almost one movie. And then she'll feel done with being sick. It's hard keeping them home from school, when they don't feel terrible or have fevers. But I do it more because it's such a distraction. And I suppose they're coughing out a bunch of cold germs.

So today I won't really get anything done. And I'll think a lot about that gingerbread latte I was going to try after dropping Ella off. Or the walk I was going to take since it's already 50 & sunny. I will miss my few hours of peace. But I still feel grateful. Grateful I work from home, so it doesn't throw my day off that much. Grateful it is just a cold. Grateful I'm familiar with their colds now, and I know what to expect. And so very grateful just to have them for another day. Our friend Patty just lost her 4 month old grandson in his sleep. This life does not make promises or guarantees. So today I will be thankful to listen to the coughing.

My brilliant costume plan

This year I decided we would not buy Halloween costumes. We have a huge Rubbermaid tote of dress up clothes. It would be so fun for the girls to pick something out, and to have choices available for the different Halloween festivities. Sunday we went Trick or Treating at the mall. This week they have Halloween parties at school. And then of course, Halloween. Won't that be fun?

Am I new? Hi, my name is Sarah, and I have apparently not met my own children. Also, I like to reinvent the wheel. With a less effective wheel.

The girls were fine with the whole thing. Yes! We love these costumes! You're the best mom ever! (I maybe just heard that last one in my head)

Sunday they did Trick or Treating at the mall. Ella went as a pirate (a costume I purchased for around 75¢ at the Target 90% off clearance last year). Natalie was Batgirl (Ella's costume from last year). Great. Fun.

Today is Natalie's school party. She gave me strict instructions that she was not to wear anything too scary or have any weapons. She told me that. "No weapons." I think all of our costume options fit in the safe category. So last week she said she would be Batgirl. Last night she said no, she did NOT want to be Batgirl. She wants to wear her monkey costume (you know - the one that was slightly too small last year, now way too small - the one I gave to her cousin without telling her?). Sorry. It was too small and now it's gone. Tears. Wailing. I start looking at the clock to see if I still have time to run to Target with her for a new costume. Because shopping cures all.

Fine. She will be a pirate. She tried on the whole costume. She felt good about it right down to her eye patch. We laid it all out for morning.

Then she woke up this morning. Yay! Today's party day! Won't it be fun for you to wake up and get dressed for your party! As a pirate! No. No it won't. She looked at me like I was stupid. She wants the monkey costume. It's still too small (at least 2 sizes). And gone.

7:05 a.m. Natalie wants to be a monkey.
7:08 a.m. Natalie wants to be a dancer with a tutu (but she will NOT wear leggings!)
7:12 a.m. Natalie wants to be a dancer with jazz pants
7:14 a.m. Natalie tells me Ben is going to wear his pjs.
7:17 a.m. Natalie wants to be Batgirl (you know, the ORIGINAL CHOICE FROM LAST WEEK).
7:20 a.m. Natalie refuses black leggings under the costume, insisting that shorts will be fine. Even though it is 30 degrees out right now. "I like to be cold!"
7:25 a.m. Natalie finally agrees to wear jeans under the Batgirl costume. But she wants light jeans. Not dark jeans. Not those. Those. And she would like socks that go over her ankles. Not plain white. No characters.

And that, my friends, is why you get a new costume every year. Because then it's just what you are. Because you are excited for your New Costume.

I have a very, VERY long 14 years ahead of me.

Ella blogs #1

Yesterday I had Ella write a story for some homework, and I thought perhaps she could use ye olde blog to share it. The only rule was I wouldn't tell her how to spell anything. Which nearly killed her with her spelling compulsiveness. She chose to write about cats. She has even provided an illustration. Enjoy.


Cats, are the thing I no and thay ned woder and food and ned thaer har brusht. and nap. and play. Greta is are cat and we love, her and she is nise to. and I like to play with her to.

Their other lives

Last night we had parent/teacher conferences. It's a fascinating thing to me, because it reminds me that my children have their own little lives going on that I don't know a whole lot about.

First we went to Natalie's room, where she got to show Ella all of the pets. Natalie's room is a bit of a menagerie. There are two fish tanks. One for grown up fish and one for babies. There's a frog named Charlotte in a tank. And there's a giant cage with three degus named Benny, Tico and Diego. I'll wait here while you click here to find out what on earth a degu is.

Natalie's teacher told us she is shy. But not so shy that she won't participate. She just doesn't often initiate play. And lately she has started talking more. None of that was very surprising. I guess they're working on Natalie standing up for herself. Which seems strange, given her actions around home. But when she's at school, if someone else wants to play with something she just gives it to them. If someone hurts her feelings she leaves and hides out in a corner so no one can see her upset. So her teacher said she's working on that with her. That it's ok to take your own turn. And that it's ok to tell someone you didn't like what they said or did.

Ella was kind of a different kid in her conference. While she's usually pretty boisterous, she was very quiet. She's a good reader. She likes to do her math independently. She's chatty (what??), but she's able to focus when she's supposed to focus. She is apparently VERY hung up on spelling. They've started working on hearing the sounds in words, and they are only expected to write the sounds. Ella's teacher said after they do those exercises, Ella will ask if she got all the spellings right. And she will tell her, "You got all the sounds, great job." And Ella will say, "But did I get the spellings right?" Perhaps we should start grooming her for spelling bees.

It was fun after the conference, to read Ella's homework book with her. After hearing her teacher talk about her reading, Ella tried harder than usual to sound words out. And she did a great job.

So it was a fascinating glimpse into the lives they're leading away from home. Captain America and I feel like they have the right teachers for them, which is a relief after moving to a place where we didn't know the teachers or the school.

Thank you for praying for our friend, Tony. He is cancer-free. His lungs are healing. He is home.

There went October.

Next week is the end of October. How, exactly, did that come about?

To celebrate, or to mourn, here is another miscellaneous collection of thoughts.

I spent last weekend at Women of Faith having Sister Retreat. I think I've been to 4 or 5 and this was the best one. We had a good time, and have made Grand Plans for the next one we attend.

A couple nights ago Natalie told me if I helped her clean their room the next day, she'd give me one of her pennies. I didn't fall for it.

Ella has added a crew to her busy recess schedule. She is now on a spy crew, and a vampire crew. I am choosing to believe it's more about Halloween than Twilight. I asked her what vampires do. "I don't know." Ok then.

I got my hair cut. I'm sure it will take some time for the relationship to develop, but I enjoyed her. I still miss Jen, but I don't think I'll shop around. New Hair Person seems like a keeper.

What I enjoyed most about the Winnie the Pooh series is the capitalization. I like to capitalize Important Things in the style of A.A. Milne whenever possible.

It's Halloween next week. I'm not sure what we'll have here. They've been digging through the dress up box changing their minds as they go.

I finished Donald Miller's new book, A Million Miles. I really enjoyed it and I recommend it. It's basically thinking of your life as more of a story.

To get in the mood for Halloween, I've been enjoying Beck's Halloween stories over at Frog and Toad. Start here. It's a delightfully creepy twist on children's stories. I'm totally buying the Max & Ruby one as truth.