november is for gratitude: nov 18-21

i am so so thankful for:

-a wonderful birthday filled with very sweet things: hugs from LM in the early morning before we dropped her off at the farm, goodie bag from birdie with homemade banana muffins, bojangle's, road trip with ckb, precious little growing baby, new shane&shane music, ikea, outlet shopping, hobby lobby, red robin, late-night trip to cheesecake factory for a birthday treat after the concert, and comfy hotel bed. :)

-a really really awesome concert. we had an early access pass which just meant we got to get in there a few minutes than others, and when they let us in, we were the very first 2 people. we sat right in the front and had a little date before other people started rushing in. :) we were in the front for half of the concert and then moved to the balcony for the second half - i was being shoved backward by a ton of teenagers who packed in the front. i was nervous for the baby bump! and it was far less distracting to worship in the back. dcb never disappoints - they were really amazing.

-a daddy who arrived safely home from london last night.

-a mini birthday party tonight with my sweet family (minus maisy who is coming home in just 3 days!)

november is for gratitude: nov 16-17

today i'm feeling thankful for:

-25 years of life!

-a midweek trip to charlotte so i can spend some sweet time with my husband and the soybean. LM will have so so much fun reuniting with birdie, and we'll keep ourselves busy with ikea, outlets, food, and DAVID CROWDER. yippee. plus hotel stays are so so fun and special.

-LM's extra bit of cuddliness today. she is letting us cuddle with her a lot more lately, and i love it. she is usually so busy and squirmy, so it's been so nice for her to be content to sit still and snuggle.

-lily-biscuit's growing vocabulary. she is such a chatterbox, and her little brain is growing smarter by the second. the child development student in me just loves imagining all those synapses being picked up by her dendrites. :) anyway, here is a list of all her new words, and i know i'm forgetting lots!

pumpkin "puckin"

please "pee"...sometimes "peese"

thank you "deent doo"

sock this morning she kept saying "socky shoes" ("socks and shoes")

funny a brand-new one - so so so adorable!

juice

nana (banana)

apple

home

church "chuch"

blanket "binket"

food

tickle

cheese

one, two, nine her version of counting

moo when asked what a cow says

cow

birthday also a brand-new one tonight!

bow

head

hat

pretty "pitty"

cute "cuuuute!"

diaper "diapee"

uh-oh

sticker

puppy

sissy her new name as of next summer!

fish "feesh"

cookie

chick

duck

Little Bill "el bell"

book

bucket

monkey

drum "dum"

Let's go

boppy

keys

off

-now i'm off to bed...watching SYTYCD, embroidering some dishtowels, and bringing ice cream with me. :)

november is for gratitude: nov 13-15

today i am so grateful for:

-a really sweet weekend spent with piper and pop-pop. she fixed us comfort food and they told us hilarious stories from their childhoods. LM fell in love with their fish, we slept so great in their comfy guest bed, and we got to see my birthday buddy marko and maisy. piper and pop-pop are my 2 heros, and i love them so so much.

-a clean house.

-pretty weather after several days of cruddy.

-an almost-20-month old who is giving spontaneous leg hugs lately.

-generous friends who bring over adorable, barely-used playroom storage.

-a safe trip back to this continent for birdie.

-a daddy who texts back and forth so we can feel connected until he comes back later this week.

-a husband who patiently paints the playroom THREE times until we finally get the right color. (yes, i'm ashamed of this)

-a 2-day work week ahead...and thanksgiving week right after it. :)

november is for gratitude: nov 12

today i am thanking God for:

-some much needed down time with just giggy and me (well i guess baby b#2 was part of it as well!). we took the yucky day off because i'm still feeling so sick. but we enjoyed some extra cuddle time and stayed in our pj's all day. it was wonderful, and i'm reminded more and more that these LM-and-mama times alone are dwindling.

-too many reminders to count this week of how blessed i am to minister to really precious, Godly families. i've asked God for some encouragement during a trying and TIRING season, and He has delivered way beyond what was requested. why should i be surprised? He has brought right to me so many sweet words of encouragement, so many reminders that He is richly blessing me. my heart overflows at the thought that i know i will recognize these eternal friends in heaven. and the thought that God wants to tenderly take care of my heart? that just blows me away.

-the world's most loving grandparents who we get to go spend time with this weekend.

november is for gratitude: nov 11

today i am feeling thankful for:

-veterans and their families who risk their lives and sacrifice so selflessly to assure that we can enjoy freedom and safety.

-my precious uncle rick who celebrates his birthday today.

-my husband's sweet letters of encouragement and sweetness.

november is for gratitude: nov 10

today i'm thankful for:

-papa john's 10 minutes away when i cannot get myself off the couch to cook supper.

-texts from maisy.

-hearing that more happy babies are on their way into friends' lives. :)

-emails from birdie all the way from england.

november is for gratitude: nov 9

-today i am thankful for a church mama friend who chats with me on facebook late at night because she knows i'll be so excited when she tells me her sweet son asked Jesus to be in charge of his life forever! made my heart so happy to imagine the party in heaven that was going on as we drifted to sleep. :)