I'm thankful for...

...all of it.

I'm thankful to God, and I pray each night with my children about how much He loves us, and how much He wants us to share His love with the whole world. It may be a simple children's song, but Jesus loves you! He does!

I'm thankful for family and friends, thankful for all the fun things we do together. I'm thankful for traditions as well as new experiences, for our health and our home. I'm grateful that when I turn on the faucet, I get hot water with ease, I have a reliable van to get us where we need to go. All of it.

I know life can be painful, and trials can be so, so difficult, but I am exceedingly thankful that I am never alone. No matter the circumstances, I can trust God with every single detail of my life.

I'm thankful for the people in my life who help me to live it well.

Now, on a lighter note... we got our first snow of the year today, so much that the boys are outside right now shoveling and snow-blowing. The girls are inside, nice and warm, and I've got a Pumpkin Pecan Pie in the oven. Confession time: I was pretty prideful of my nice crust, which for me, is still such a huge deal! Well, you know what they say about pride. 

Or in this case, pride cometh before the pie crust fall. 

It caved in, collapsed. As in, swallowed up by the pie contents. How in the world?!? 

And then, wouldn't you know it, the power blinked out for several minutes. Normally I wouldn't exactly be thankful for such a thing on a dark, cold night, BUT it does make for a lovely excuse reason as to the fateful pie crust collapse.

In everything, give thanks.  ;)

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, however you are celebrating!

A Look Back at Fall 2014

I never remember how much I rely on this blog to capture memories and our everyday life until I start reading through some of the older posts and find things that I'd otherwise have forgotten about. Or things that just make me smile. I'm so thankful to have those special snippets of our lives recorded! I haven't blogged lately because I'm dealing with something really painful, and it felt so phony to be writing happy little family posts while grieving; but then again, isn't that how life goes? Forward? No matter what? This isn't the time to share that, so I'm going to try to capture some of our special moments this fall.

 Nothing says fall more than hot apple cider donuts at one of our favorite orchards

 Nothing says I'm old quite like this guy driving me around. Sigh.

 Soccer!

 More soccer!!

 And MORE soccer!!! This was an away game and the trip out there was so, so pretty! On the way home the kids watched a movie and laughed and laughed- such a great night!

 Of course, fall in New England isn't complete without a mid-season temperature hike, so...we hit the beach!

 A sticky hot Saturday morning soccer game, but this one didn't mind.  =)

 An educational meeting. At McDonald's. ha ha

 Exploring on a beautiful fall afternoon.

 Apple picking selfie with my gorgeous blue-eyed boy!

 Enjoying our favorite trails near home...

 ...sometimes with these fellas...

 ...and other times with these two

 Or just one  ;)

 These kitties crack me up so much!

I think I'm going to have to print and frame this one- I just love it! We met friends at the apple orchard and had such a fun morning.

 At my best friend's Harvest Fest - my Mom wanted a picture of them in the carriage sooooo much! Well, Isabelle was off running around with all the little girls, and Caleb couldn't be coaxed away from the football games out back, ha! We got half the crew...

 Meeting Elsa at a gymnastics event was a BIG DEAL

 A fun trail hike with my Jonah

 I got lost en route to a field trip. When I found this place by mistake, I wasn't annoyed about it anymore.

 Breathtaking!

 My favorite #33 in action

 I was happy about my new haircut, even though it was raining (which kills my hair)

 Looking out for raptors and birds of prey on the tower

 More apple picking!

 What's a girl got to do to get her Dad to look up for a picture, ha ha

 Ethan's one request for getting his braces removed: a huge caramel apple!

It was awesome. And it cost nearly as much as the braces. Yikes! (Obviously not, but...whoa!)

I made that! All by myself! For real! It wasn't love at first sight, but it didn't hate me like usual, so...I consider it a success!

Here's to a great Tuesday!

Hello! And Some Thoughts...

So it's early in the morning, but not the it's-so-early-I-have-loads-of-time kind. More the, I've got five minutes, maybe, before they come searching for me the morning routine starts. At least the oatmeal has a good head start today. Maybe that will buy me another minute or two, ha!

I don't think I have ever had a two-month hiatus from blog writing/posting before. It wasn't really because I had nothing to say (anyone who knows me, even a little bit, is laughing at that thought right now), but more because there were too many things going on. Plus soccer. Always soccer.  =)

I suppose one of the biggest bits of news has been our upcoming move to North Carolina. Or shall I say, had been. Long story, but in the end, we realized we no longer felt called to go. Or called to go there. That part is so hard, the trying to discern God's will for your life, for your family, and thinking you're heading in the right direction until...the roadblocks come. I have a love-hate relationship with roadblocks. On the one hand, are they there to propel you forward and to strengthen your trust because of your fears of the unknown; or are they really there to physically STOP you from going that way, like an act of protection.

Well, I don't know. I wish I did. Like I said, in the end, we didn't move, which has felt like somewhat of a disappointment, but we're trying to make the most of things. Which are fine, they are! However...my mind (and heart) feel, well, stuck. It's hard to move forward in a good way when you're feeling stuck. I don't mean to complain about anything, it's just that I don't want to live my life merely existing, which is what happens when you feel stuck. I want to be fully alive, and present in the moment, to not be afraid to hang onto dreams, and to map out new ones.

I want to have a spirit of thankfulness, of uninhibited gratitude for the blessings I've been given, which I know are far too many to ever count. When my focus rests on thankfulness, everything else falls into place just as it should. Anyone else feeling stuck lately?

Okay, my time is up! I will say a quick prayer for us all Moms in the trenches.  ;)