Thankfulness

The last few years, I've done a daily Thankful post on Facebook for the month of November.  I have so much to be thankful for and am truly blessed in my life.  I feel like all too often, we get caught up with life and sometimes what we don't have, and forget to focus on what we do have.  I tried to post something each day (though I missed some because I'm seldom on the computer on a weekend) that I was thankful for, some days I posted two.  Some of those things were serious, some were funny, some were weird.  Here is the list, copied from Facebook:

Today I'm thankful for chocolate.

Today I'm thankful that after almost 15 yrs together, and lots of ups and downs, I still love Andy like crazy.

I'm thankful that not all of my dreams come true--last night's was strange, irritating, and quite frankly, it pissed me off.

I'm thankful that I am the mom to 3 beautiful, intelligent, funny, exasperating, dramatic, loving, crazy girls. I love you bigger than the universe, Alayna, Lilly and Mikayla!

Today I'm thankful for craft fairs and time with friends.

I'm thankful for all 4 of my wonderful, loving Grandparents. 3 of them have gone on to a better place, and one remains here on earth. However, today I'm especially thinking of my Grampa L. It's very fitting that today we celebrate All Saints Sunday on the first birthday we will have without him. Happy Birthday, Grampa!

Today, I'm thankful that I don't forget my contacts in my eyes every night! I totally forgot about them last night and woke up with itchy, red, goopy eyes and had to literally peel them off my eyeballs this morning! Ack!

I'm thankful for music. I love just about every kind, and listen to a wide variety on a regular basis. I've always got something playing or in my head. It plain makes me happy

I'm thankful my dishwasher at least gets the dishes clean, because it sure isn't "QuietGuard" like it says it should be. It's only 3 yrs old and SO loud.

I'm thankful for great friends and lasting friendships.

I'm thankful for my freedom and for those who fight, or have fought, to maintain those freedoms.

I’m thankful for my parents.  Thank you, Mom, for asking me if you could have the kids tonight. They will have a blast, and I REALLY needed a date night to get my mind off of a stressful week.

I'm thankful for fun socks. I can be having a crappy day or wearing the most blah outfit, but having colorful, funky socks just makes it all better.

I'm thankful I'm seldom sick (our whole family, actually). Last night was tough with my body aches and sore throat. :-(

Today, I'm thankful for 9-0!!!

I'm thankful my dishwasher is fixed and QUIET again! Woohoo! Had a local repairman come.

I'm thankful for a sturdy, warm house as we head into the winter months. I realize many are not so lucky.

I'm thankful for great books and movies that I can escape into. Tonight...it shall be Breaking Dawn. :-)

Thankful for naps.

I'm thankful for our local dairy co-op! Just a few miles down the road, I can buy all my milk, cheese and butter, knowing that it comes from local farmers. And the cheese is PHENOMENAL

I'm thankful for our little country church and all who worship there. We truly are like a big family.

I'm thankful for traditions.

I'm thankful for our wonderful pets, who bring us such joy--Sunny and Marley (dogs); Coonie, Sid, Mulan and Sleeping Beauty (aka Squirrel--all outdoor cats); and Belle, Chief, Bingo and Chloe (horses).

I'm thankful for warm, fuzzy jammies...and so are my kids! They had pajama day at school yesterday and thought it was the best thing ever!

I'm thankful for a day to slow down and reflect on all the blessings in our lives. As an aside, I'm also thankful that Urgent Care is open today--Mikayla's been up since 3 with an ear infection. I'm going on 4 hrs awake already at 7am...

I'm thankful for a great day with great friends.

I'm thankful for such a fun, busy, great weekend that I had no time to update my status!

I'm thankful my headache is gone, after about 20 hrs of it's wonderful presence.

I'm thankful for the elderly couple up the road, who every year put out a great lighting display for Christmas. My girls just LOVE going by there several times a week to look at the lights. I just made them a card to thank them for the lights and let them know how much we appreciate it! Now, we're going to drive by the house and get their address so I can send it (and hope the post office will give me their last name, so I can address it properly. We don't know them at all!)

October

 October was one of those months that felt like I went to bed on Monday and woke up on Friday.  We were so busy the entire month that it was hard to keep track of the days.  A lot of things happened, a lot of time passed.  And I was going to try to keep up with the blog better.  Ugh.  Oh well, here is a photo recap of the month.

 Lilly turned 7 on the 7th, which means it was her golden birthday!   She had 7 friends over for a party that included lots of outside play, a horse pinata, supper and cake.  They all had a blast!  (Marley also celebrated a birthday in Oct and it was her golden birthday, too!  3 on the 3rd!)

 

Lilly lost her first tooth on the top--literally lost it!  She doesn't like to pull her own teeth and will get them super loose, then have Dad pull them.  Unfortunately, he tied it with floss and when he made the knot tight to sever the last bit of whatever holding the tooth in, the tooth flew across the room!  Oops!  That was Friday and when we got to church Sunday, her best friend had lost the same tooth the night before!

 

 Alayna got an award through 4H for being the junior beef showmanship champion for the county.  She accepted the award in front of an auditorium of people and also has her name engraved on a plaque that hangs in the county 4H office.

 Alayna also got her braces off!  :-)

They girls didn't have school for a Wed-Fri in October, so we went on a mini-vacation to get some quality family time that had been lacking with all the busy-ness of the last several weeks.  We headed out Thursday morning for drive up to Ashland and around to Superior, where we stayed for the night.  We met up with our friends in Duluth for a visit to Enger Park and dinner.  Friday morning we woke up early to drive to Ely, MN, in the hopes of seeing a moose.  We didn't see one, but we still had a lot of fun driving around, checking out the shops, and playing at the park.  When we got back to Duluth, we did some shopping and then went swimming at the hotel.  Saturday morning my friend met us at the hotel with coffee for a visit, and we headed home late morning.  It was so nice to get some great family time!

The last weekend of October, we finally got our project day in!  We re-shingled our roof, put concrete in the barn, replaced my cracked picture window and cut down a tree in the yard that leaned toward the house.  It was so great to have everyone here, helping out and volunteering their time.  Thank you to everyone!

Of course, we ended the month with Halloween.  I don't know what's up with the picture, but I can't change it now.  Ugh.  Anyway, Mikayla was Belle, Lilly was Jasmine and Alayna was a punk-rocker.  The girls had a lot of fun and got WAY too much candy, but that's okay.  They already have plans for next year.  :-)

Girls Only!

Thanks to all the storms this summer and it being a normal fall, Daddy is now busy every weekend for about 2 months.  He's either shingling houses, doing farm work or putting up grain bins.  *sigh*  The girls and I just keep holding on, trying to find fun things to do and hoping Daddy will be done early on Sundays (which most Sundays he's been home around noon).  A few weeks ago, we decided to head to Duluth for the day.  I'm so glad that we did!

It was such a fun, beautiful day.  Duluth is usually cool, since it sits on the SW corner of Lake Superior, but it was in the 70s that day!  We have a family pass to the Minnesota Zoo, and it gives us reciprocity to the Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth.  We started the day there, looking at all the fun animals and walking around the grounds, which include a great little hiking trail to a river and waterfall!

After the zoo, we ate our picnic lunch in the park next door.  The girls had a good time playing on the playground equipment once done eating, and I was attempting to keep my cool with all the seagulls that were invading my territory, hoping for some leftovers from our lunch.  I don't do well with wild birds that get too close.

When we were done playing, we headed to Enger Park.  Duluth is right on Lake Superior, and part of the city is at lake level while the rest rises above the city on a huge hill.  Enger Park is at the top of the hill and has a tall observation tower that you can climb.  At the top of the hill you can see for miles, but from the top of the tower it seems like you can see for days!  It's always a favorite place to visit in Duluth.  When we were there, there was one wedding party just leaving in limos, another was just arriving, and another party was taking pics overlooking the city.  The girls thought that was pretty cool to see all the brides and bridesmaids in their pretty dresses!

View from atop the tower (zoomed in quite a bit)

 View from the cliffs the tower is on (zoomed in quite a bit)

We were going to go into Canal Park, but I had checked with a friend and there weren't any ships coming into or leaving port for quite awhile.  So we just decided to head home.  We stopped for ice cream on the way home and then sang silly songs the majority of the drive home.  It was a great Girls Only day!

Our Youngest, Biggest Baby!

My youngest, biggest baby turns 3 today!  Marley has been such a wonderful dog.  I had wanted a Great Dane since I was about 10, so when Andy and the girls surprised me with tiny, itty bitty Marley almost 3 years ago, I was over the moon!  I am so in love with this dog.  She is gentle, she's fun, she's well behaved, she loves to play, she is protective of her family, she's smart as a whip, she's pretty...she also leaves piles in the yard the size of my foot, has some separation anxiety from me if I leave her too much (read--chews toilet paper) and drools all over right after she's been eating or drinking.  But we love her and life wouldn't be the same without her!  Happy (golden) Birthday, Marley!!  We love you!

Rain and Bows

Mikayla is still having quite a bit of storm anxiety.  She is especially worried if it gets really windy or rains.  However, I think we've hit a turning point.  All summer since the accident, she's been terrified of storms.  She cries, shakes, goes pale, almost hyper ventilates...it's extremely heart breaking as her parents, for us to not be able to help her and have to see her like that.  We have been teaching her to take deep breaths, snuggle a special blanket or toy (or person), say a prayer asking for help to get through the storm.  It seems to work sometimes, not so much other times.

While camping Labor Day weekend, a quick "storm" blew up on Sunday afternoon.  We were outside and could see the entire cloud, surrounded by sunlight.  It would be here and gone within 10 minutes.  As adults, we knew that.  But we couldn't explain that to Mikayla.  As the first raindrops started to fall, she started crying and ran to the camper.  I was just coming out after preparing dinner and I talked her into sitting under the canopy with everyone else.  She was scared, but she agreed.  We sat there while it rained for about 10 minutes--no wind, no thunder, no lightning.  The whole time, we made a big deal out of how brave she was being and how it was almost over.  Then, the rain stopped and this showed up:

It was perfect!  We could see the entire rainbow, plus the majority of a lighter, double rainbow above it.  Most of us had never seen such a bright rainbow, with colors so vivid we could even make out the purple!  Mikayla was convinced the rainbow was just for her, for being so brave.  We told her that rainbows only come out after the rain, and that there was no other way they could be in the sky.  Only after rain can they shine like that.  It was just what she needed!  Now we hope that the memory remains for the next storm--we haven't had rain in over a week, which for this summer is just a crazy long amount of time.

School's Cool

The girls have started school and for the first time ever, all 3 of my girls are in school on a regular basis.  Alayna and Lilly go every day, obviously, but Mikayla goes on the "days that start with T".  So far, they are all loving their classes and teachers.  Each day, they come home full of stories about things they've learned or friends they've made.  They love showing off their projects, especially Mikayla--everything is so new to her. 

For me, it's an adjustment.  It always seems so quiet and lonely with the girls gone back to school after a summer full of their giggles, stories and attitude.  But I've never been away from Mikayla on a regular basis like this.  I know I'll survive, I did with the older girls, but the fact that she's my baby does weigh a little heavier.  But she is so ready.  She has been wanting to go to school for years.  She knows her letters and her colors and shapes.  She can write her name.  She's ready, so I have to be, too.  (thankfully I have my daycare kiddos to keep me busy during the day!)

 Alayna is in 5th grade, Lilly in 1st and Mikayla in pre-Kindergarten (4K)

Mikayla got a little excited when she saw the bus (she's jumping and screaming) 

Waiting for the bus--it drives by, turns around and comes back so they don't have to cross the road 

Mikayla is on her way to her first ever day of school!

It's September...the start of my favorite time of year!

It's September, which is the start of my favorite time of year:  Fall.  Autumn.  Whatever you call the glorious season between summer and winter.  This is my time.  I love the colors, the smells, the temperatures, the sports, the activities...I love it all.  There is nothing better than jeans, a sweatshirt, shoes or boots and a bonfire or football game or horseback ride through colored trees.  I LOVE this time of year.  Apples, pumpkins, corn, scarecrows, school...

HELLO FALL!!!  I've missed you!

Grampa

I have been very fortunate in my life to have known not only all 4 of my grandparents (all into adulthood, no less) but also my Great-Gramma.  I know several people who have never known a grandparent, or maybe only 1 or 2 for a short time.  My life has been so full of family and love from day one.  Unfortunately, as time goes on, people get older.  My Great-Gramma passed away when I was about 10, dad's mom passed away in fall of 2001 and my mom's dad passed away in early 2005. Now, my dad's dad has also passed away.

Grampa and I have always had a great relationship.  As a child, I remember anxiously waiting for him to get home from work at the saw-mill when Gramma would watch us so he would play with us.  There were always puzzles to work on their huge dinning room table.  Grampa would always have a smile and a playful joke or story to tell us.  When we would go to Great-Gramma's house, Grampa and I would "race" eachother on the sidewalk in front of her house--me about 6-10 yrs old and Grampa in his late 50s.  He was always one of the biggest men I knew, he seemed so tall and commanding.  When I was older, he'd always ask about school, or my horse, or my job.  Once I had the girls, he was quickly one of their favorite people.  They loved seeing Great Grampa, who would always greet them with a big smile, a huge hug and listen intently when they told him all the random things that kids do.  At his 80th birthday party just last year, he was running with the girls in the church basement, as they pretended that the nursery was full of spiders, bats and dinosaurs.  He lived on his own until just a few short weeks ago.  He's always been so strong and healthy and lively.

And now he's gone.  Grampa battled cancer early this year and we all thought he'd beat it, though we were apparently wrong.  The cancer resurfaced in July and he lost his battle yesterday.

Grampa--We love you and will miss you dearly, but we know that you are back with Gramma.  Just like I know Gramma is always with us, I know you will be too.  And when I smell woodsmoke or sawdust, I will forever think of you.  Thank you for all the years, memories and love.

Fore!!

I'm not sure which fore/four/for is used in golf, but we're going to pretend it's FORE because that's what I want to use because we went golfing!

This past week has been a very long one.  Andy worked 10-12 hours each day, not including his 1.5 hr commute each way, and 6 hours on Saturday.  I had extra daycare kids because my very good friend Karla had her baby, so I watched our friend's girls that Karla also watches.  We had late evenings and early mornings with extra kids and no Daddy.  Our family was in some desperate need for family time.

We started the day yesterday with church.  Not only was it great to see our new pastor in action, but the lessons and sermon were all about storms and how God is with us through them and will always be there for us.  Yeah, we needed that.  Mikayla was very talkative during the Children's sermon, relating how we need the rain for plants to grow, not all storms are bad, the lightning makes the grass green and the thunder is God bowling and/or telling us he's there.  Oh yeah, she's been listening to us while we try to calm her and her recent storm anxiety.

After church we came home to nap, clean and hang out to watch the Brewers game.  Then we brought the rest of our calves (8 of them) over to Andy's parent's house so we can make some improvements to the barn and hopefully get it cleaned and dried out (darn rain, again!).  When we got home, we headed in to town for dinner and mini-golfing!

We had a lot of fun.  Mikayla was starting to get the hang of it after the first few holes--it was hard for her to see us stand one way and then have it feel uncomfortable for her to stand the same way.  Andy and I are both right handed and Mikayla is left, but we tried our best to help her and by the end of the evening she was able to hit the ball pretty well.  It wasn't pretty, but it worked.  Alayna and Lilly had a great time golfing and were old pros--Alayna even got a hole in one!  After we were done, we had dinner at Dairy Queen, one of the girls' favorite places on earth!  It was a great, low-key day that we all needed to recharge for this week.

It's another girl!

One of my closest and oldest friends, Karla, recently had her third baby--a little girl they named Lydia.  She is just cute enough to eat and has those adorably smooshy baby cheeks you just want to kiss all day.  When we went to visit in the hospital, we were all shocked to see this baby who in the face looked so much like her older sisters, but had long, jet-black hair!  Both older sisters were almost bald for quite awhile (into the second year for the middle one!) and they have almost white-blond hair!  Lydia looks like such a contrast but I just love it and her.  I am so excited for their family and the new addition!

Congratulations Karla and family!  Lydia is just perfect in every way!