Thankfulness!

Well, Thanksgiving is here and it would be terribly un-American of me to not post something about being thankful. But it strikes me that as a larger group we are really an ungrateful bunch. We are rarely satisfied with what we have and are always wanting bigger or better. And we want it now. I am no better than anyone else and I would venture to say that I am not as good at thankfulness as many people I know. But in this week where we celebrate Thanksgiving, I can be thankful with the best of 'em.

So what am I thankful for...well, this month someone on facebook challenged people to do 30 days thanksgiving and to put as your status something you are thankful for every day. And I took up the challenge. It was surprising to me that early in the morning, I often couldn't think of anything to be thankful for....seriously, nothing. Before I had time to get the day going, my mind was blank...here sitting in my warm home, with my 3 healthy children playing around me, with breakfast baking or already filling my belly, and my husband safe at a job that provides well for my family, I was drawing blanks. It is ridiculous. Of course, as the fog of early morning cleared from my brain, these things became more evident and I always had something to put as my status.

But thankfulness isn't a mood...it shouldn't be effected by time of day, amount of sleep, or other mundane petty things. Thankfulness is knowing that God has provided all that you NEED (even if not all that you want) and will continue to do so for as long as you live. It is being thankful that although sometimes things aren't exactly as you wish them to be, that you are never alone.

So what AM I thankful for...

1. my God, my Savior who loves me no matter what...loves me better than anyone else ever could
2. my husband - although neither of us are perfect, we are perfect for each other and make a good "team"
3. my children - even on days when I think I would sell them to the circus (or pay the circus to take them), I am thankful for the laughs they provide and the lessons they teach. I am thankful that *I* get to raise them
4. freedom to raise our family as we see fit - Not everyone has the freedom to worship as they choose, to stay home and not send the kids to daycare, home school or many of the other choices we take for granted.
5. I am thankful to live where I live - although there were times in my life that living in this little town was enough to make me want to run for cover, and there are times now that everyone is just a little to "close", I love knowing that my kids are safe from many influences of the "big city." It makes me feel safe.


And there are so many other things to be thankful for...but those are a few that come to mind this morning.

Oh, and I am thankful for coffee...that clears the haze of morning that makes me wonder what to be thankful for!! :)