Experiment :)

Today I am grateful that my thrown together recipe was a success. Dinner was full of hiccups and at one point I even wanted to just give up and make macaroni or ramen. I am glad that I did not as all of my kids ate dinner pretty good today. No complaining and not much left over. Dinners usually don't go quite that easy if it is not something the kids normally eat. I am grateful for that tiny little blessing tonight to not have to hear complaining while they ate dinner. Plus it was healthy and yummy...you really can't complain ;)

bitterSWEET!!

I am not sure if I have already been grateful for this, but I don't honestly think you can ever be to grateful for the many things in your life.

I am grateful for my sister. It may have taken us 24 years to get along, but I am grateful that we are friends now. I always wanted to be friends with my sister and was very sad that it never really happened. At one point I thought that it may never happen. Her moving to Kentucky was such a great choice for her. She is so much happier now then she has ever been before. It makes me so happy to know that her life is working out for her. She is with someone who makes her happy and treats her and Garrett so good. I could not ask more for my sister. I like Aric just because of who my sister is now that she is with him. I am grateful to him for being such a positive influence in her life. He brings the best out in her like any good relationship should be. I wish them all the luck in their lives together.
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Since she has moved out to Kentucky though our relationship has improved so much as well. I am somewhat saddened that she is so far away now because our relationship is finally where I wanted it to be and now I cannot go over and see her. I wish selfishly that she lived closer so I could visit her. I want to share those happy life changing moments with her and I get to sort of but it just isn't quite the same. I am sad that my kids do not get to really know and play with Garrett. We have been the ones who always lived farther away from family so even earlier in their lives they did not get to play together as much. Now I just feel like they might not ever really get to play together again. I am grateful for the times that I have shared with my sweet nephew and the moments that my boys have spent with their cousin.

I have to say I am excited for the new little bundle of joy they will have joining their family before long. It will be such a fun time for the three of them. I know they will all love that baby so much. That though even makes me sad. I will not get to see my new little niece or nephew for probably a long time. Kentucky is far away and it is a spendy trip, but I do really hope that we can all make it out there for a visit sometime soon after the baby is born. Until I can actually visit them or they visit here I will be grateful for all the long phone calls we share. I love my sister and am glad that we have gotten to a point where we can talk on the phone for an hour or more and talk about anything. It is so nice to share our lives with each other even though we are far away and to have the ability to better our relationship. I honestly am so grateful to Aric for being so wonderful to two of the people who are so important to me.  Love ya sis :)

and go...

Feeling kind of like life is a whirlwind. I am so glad that the weekend is here. I really do feel like my whole family needs some down time before life picks back up and gets crazy again. So I guess that leads nicely into what I am grateful for. I am grateful for the lazy weekends we get to spend together as a family. It is so nice to have that time together especially since our kids are growing up and eventually they may not want to spend so much time with mom and dad. I hope that they are always close to us and that our family bond is a special one, but I can't count on that. What I can count on though is the time I can give to my wonderful babies right now. :)

everyday things

I am grateful for the fridge in my kitchen that works and keeps my food from going rotten. I am glad we have healthy food to eat and that we do not have to throw out the left overs that we have after meals. I hate to waste food so it really is a blessing to have a fridge. I also am grateful for my stove which allows me to cook the food that we do have. I love home cooked meals. That is not to say I am always happy about or in the mood to cook but I do like home cooked meals. I am so grateful to have these appliances in my home. They make our lives a lot simplier that is for sure. :)

Yay!!!

Okay so as I stated way earlier in this challenge that I was thankful for my car that was and is so true. I am grateful that our Durango continued to work for us while we had it. There were some hiccups along the way with that vehicle and it was definately going downhill, but I am very glad we did have a vehicle to get around to where we needed to.

I am also grateful for the many people who helped us get where we needed to during those times when our Durango was being a little ticky. Well today is the day where we say goodbye to that lovely dark blue durango that was struggling. I am glad that we no longer have to stress about what is going to break next or when the durango is going to break down in such a bad way that we would be in big trouble. That lovely durango is fixable and I am sure it will turn out to be a good car for somebody who is smarter then I am with cars. I guess if they fix it up all nice and sell it then they won't have to worry about it but either way that is not my stress anymore...

Now I get to stress about paying off a used vehicle. We are thrilled to have gotten a good vehicle from a great dealership. They worked so hard to get us into a good vehicle for our family. There were a few people who really put in a lot of effort for us and even put in a good word for us. I am so grateful for those people. I am glad that we have a vehicle that fits us all so nicely and that I feel like is safe for my family. Thanks to all you wonderful people who worked a small miracle for us!

little blessings...

So today was my sweet baby girl's check-up after her hospital stay. Happy today that she is doing great and they are happy with where she is at. We still have the option of getting her suctioned if need be, but we are all hoping that we don't need to. It is funny to me that the two doctors who have really dealt with our kids can tell when they are sick because they behave so differently. I have loud children full of so much personality that when they are not openly showing it we all know something is wrong. :) I am so glad that my kids are so sweet and have their own personalities. I am also so grateful that people see my children as well behaved. I work hard to have them behave and though they don't always behave at home (and somedays I feel absolutely crazy) they always behave well when we are out somewhere. I know that my children are growing into great young men and a great little girl.

On to what I was originally going to be thankful for today. I am thankful to Dr. Newman who took the time to look at Aiden today even though it was Dessa's appointment. I love the small town family doctors for that reason. They really do care about how you and your whole family are doing. I don't go in there everytime asking for him to look at someone else though we usually discuss a multitude of health concerns while there I do not usually have him check out someone else in the family. I am glad he was so willing to today though because my Mr. Aiden has an ear infection. He woke up in the middle of the night crying that his ear hurt and he couldn't go back to bed. I feel so bad that he is hurting so bad, but I am glad that we have the meds to get him on the mend as well as the essential oils to help him heal faster. We are so blessed in our lives by all the many kind people we know. I couldn't be happier! :)

liFE HAPpens

Okay so I missed a few days but life happens and I would way rather have been where I was worrying about what I was then stressing about my blog and challenge :)

March 2- I am so grateful for hospitals and the ability they have to treat little children with RSV so well. Was it fun to see Dessa get her nose suctioned no, but I am glad they did it and got all of that mucus out of her so she could heal. She is a completely different baby from Friday night. I am so thankful for Kenny (the respiratory therapist) and how good he is at his job. He in my opinion is a huge part of her fast recovery.

March 3- I am grateful to have such amazing people in our lives who cared to reach out and check on us. It is so amazing to be surround my such kind and caring people. I really appreciate each one of them who reached out to check on not just Dessa but for everyone in our family. I am also so grateful for all the offers to help us out as we were balancing the family from two different places. Makes me really grateful for my cell phone that allowed us to say good night to the boys and to be able to be involved in bed time prayer.

March 4- I am grateful to the many people with so much knowledge of cars and for the friends who willing at the drop of a hat came and saved me and my sweet son from our overly tired unworking vehicle :) Got to love those days right.

More then anything I love the life I have and the people I share it with. I am so grateful for the health of my sweet babies and my spouse. Our lives are full of so many blessings and miracles we just have to stop so we can see them when they take place!