Blessings abound

Here are some of the many blessings I have made note of in my gratitude journal lately. A gratitude journal is something that I had heard of for years and years, but finally started doing after reading Ann Voskamp's powerful, amazing book One Thousand Gifts. If you haven't read it, you should! And also, she has a new book out called The Broken Way. I have a copy of it on my nightstand, but life has been crazy and I haven't had a chance to read it yet. I am looking forward to it though, and know it will be wonderful. So, here go a few of my recent blessings (complete with photographic evidence of some of them). Enjoy!

5912. baby snuggles with Clay
5915. our pediatrician -- I love her!
5918. family trip to the apple orchard
5920. a complete God thing. an answer to a prayer we hadn't even thought to pray :: a tutor for one of our kids who is struggling in school
5922. glorious weather
5925. clothes on the line
5933. volunteering at school
5937. bonfire and dessert with friends
5944. friends who are like family
5950. a supportive, encouraging husband
5951. a girls weekend
5955. sunrise over the lake
5956. loon calls on the lake in the morning
5959. singing words of truth ::

Your love never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on me.
On and on and on and on it goes
It overwhelms and satisfies my soul
I never ever have to be afraid
This one thing remains!

5960. deep, hard laughter with friends (I nearly needed my inhaler!)
5961. yard work done and ready for winter
5963. knowing friends are praying for me
5964. a bright moon in a dark sky
5965. family walk to the park in the dark -- looking at the moon and the stars and swinging and playing catch and climbing and enjoying time together
5972. walking the kids to school each morning
5975. an eagle overhead -- the majesty!

amazing for a November in MN

walking to school with these 3 is my favorite

sunrises are my favorite

amazing friends on an amazing fall day

two whole decades

2 decades. 20 years. 7,305 days. 175,320 hours. 6 kids. 2 addresses. 8 or 9 vehicles . . . 10 even, maybe. I've lost count. A lot of life has happened since the day we got married. It hasn't all been fun or easy or something we would have chosen, but it has all worked together to bring us to where we are today! Life is hard. Marriage is hard. Parenting is hard. But I don't think it's supposed to be easy! Good, but not easy! To celebrate our 20 years of marriage, we returned to Cape Cod, where we spent our honeymoon 20 years ago, when we were just "kids".

I still do 1996-2016

I'm not a big fan of travel, so it took me a few days to really feel settled and enjoy myself being away from home (and by then it was nearly time to head back), but we did have a wonderful trip and enjoyed our unhurried, calm, quiet time together. I have tagged along for a day or two of a work trip that Kirby was on, and we have "house-swapped" with my parents to celebrate an anniversary or gone away to a nearby town for one night, but this was our first real TRIP together (out of state, kid-free, no work commitments at all) since our honeymoon. It was just what we needed.

Our plane landed in Hartford (after an early-morning red-eye flight and a layover) in the early afternoon. We picked up our rental car and grabbed some lunch. Then we headed to the cemetery where my grandparents headstone is located. It was a beautiful day and I LOVE cemeteries and I hadn't seen the marker for my grandparents since it had been placed in the ground, so that was a great way to start our trip. Then we drove to Boston and walked around downtown for a few hours. We went in the Boston public library, walked through the public gardens, went by Cheers and saw the Boston Marathon finish line. After our quick self-guided tour, we hopped back in our car and headed to the hotel we were staying at that evening. Travel had worn us out, so we had pizza delivered to our room and turned in early.

State Veterans Cemetery, Middletown, Connecticut

Boston Marathon Finish Line

Super cool book art at the Boston Public Library

cool church window in Boston

 The next morning we got up, checked out of our hotel and went to church. We had hunted on the internet for a church in the area that we could go to that morning and ended up at one whose service started about 20 minutes after the scheduled time (the first service ran long -- they had a guest speaker . . . this maybe should have been a clue for us!). We finally headed in to the sanctuary and the service got started. It was significantly more charismatic than we are used to, and it made for an interesting morning. We snuck out a bit before the service was done, since we'd already been there nearly two hours, we were hungry and we wanted to get to the ocean! Driving to Cape Cod on a Sunday afternoon is much like driving north in Minnesota on a Sunday afternoon in the summer! You quickly realize that you are going the opposite direction of EVERYONE ELSE and for that you are so very grateful! We had lunch at a hole in the wall local place and then headed to the place we would call home for the next couple days. Ships Knees Inn. My dad's sister and her husband own and run the Inn, so we got a little family time in, too, visiting with them while we were away. We were go grateful for their hospitality and loved seeing how fabulous they are at their jobs! Best innkeepers ever!

Ships Knees Inn (we highly recommend you visit!)

Our shadows on the morning of our 20th anniversary

We took long, slow walks on the beach (it's hard to walk through beach sand any way other than slow!) and around town. We went to a movie (it was a rainy day!). We ate. We walked on the beach some more. We ate some more. We browsed in a quaint little shops. We toured an amazingly beautiful church with stunning architectural detail (again with the rain!). We want to another cemetery. We found a labyrinth a walked through that. (I LOVE labyrinths. Kirby didn't quite see why I love them so much). We saw seals (hundreds of them!). We listened to waves. We ran away laughing as waves crashed against our legs. We watched sunsets and sunrises. We enjoyed our time together and rested and relaxed and then were ready to head back to our state. Our house. Our kiddos.

A pair of seals in the water (hundreds more on a sandbar in the distance)

glorious sunset on Skaket Beach 9.20.16

my love

It was a great trip and one we hope to repeat again. Maybe we won't wait 20 more years next time! I am so thankful for twenty years of faithful, supportive love and encouragement mixed with lots of fun, laughter and heartache. Neither of us are perfect, but we are a pretty darn good pair!

amazing sunrise on our final morning

the "old" married couple who need major work on their selfie skills!

Blessings

I have made a practice, for years, of keeping a list of blessings in my life (gratitude journal). It really helps me to keep things in perspective and also to be on the lookout for the gifts in my life, both big and small. Here is some of my recent blessings.

5313. a beautiful sunrise
5317. Anna spending the weekend with GG (those two just LOVE being together)
5322. reading books to Sara
5365. a thumbs-up from our 93-year-old neighbor as he drove past me as I walked
5359. clean sheets on all the beds
5372. clothes on the clothesline
5402. crafting
5410. glorious spring weather
5423. friends who know you well
5450. hearing an owl hooting in the woods
5462. the quiet of morning
5485. the girls hanging out in the yard in their hammocks
5504. beautiful sunset
5505. our "village" and how we take care of each other
5532. staff appreciation breakfast at school -- always a highlight of the year
5540. that my kids get to really know my grandma. And the love her so much!
5542. texts from friends
5548. our spiffed up patio space
5554. lots of yard work done
5556. the smell of lilacs in the air

Be on the lookout for blessings in your life. You will love it once you start!

Natural Beauty

I've said it before, and I'll say it again :: I love where we live! This morning as I was walking with the kids to school, we saw the most awe-inspiring site. About 10 feet ahead of us and on the opposite side of the street, I sensed something. As I looked up, I saw a eagle take off from the tree, probably less than 20 feet off the ground. I have never been that close to an eagle in the wild. I've been to my share of raptor shows and seen a few injured eagles in captivity, but never imaged I would be that close to the majesty of an eagle outside. Less than a mile from my house. On a city street. I'd never seen an eagle in a tree that low to the ground. It was amazing! And SO big! The kids, young as they are, even sensed they had witnessed something special. We just stood still on the sidewalk watching him (or her) soar above the houses. The eagle remained surprisingly low in the sky and we had a fabulous view. I hope to never forget the sight of those white tail feathers taking off so close to me. You could tangibly feel the presence of that majestic animal. It was breathtaking!

I couldn't help but be reminded of one of my very favorite hymns ::

Oh Lord my God
When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder
Thy power throughout the universe displayed

Then sings my soul
My Saviour, God, to Thee
How great Thou art, how great Thou art
Then sings my soul
My Saviour, God, to Thee
How great Thou art
How great Thou art

How great Thou art, indeed. I am grateful for the chance to have been able to bear witness to creation in this way this morning! What a fabulous way to start the day!

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started years ago on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer and an inspiration (not to mention a mother of 6)!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

2685. 2 years of life for Sara
2686. a good nights sleep for all 6 kiddos
2687. easier nights for Rebekah
2688. the amazing blue of the late-afternoon sky
2689. good swim practice for Joe
2690. pink cups at Dunn Bros.
2691. football players in pink socks ::

2692. double coupon day at the gas station :: $6.25 saved
2693. Joe's new glasses ::

2694. clean laundry
2695. the library
2696. Sara's mispronunciations that I love
2697. a little bit of rain for the thirsty ground
2698. protection on the football field
2699. looking forward to some company from out of town
2700. a new baby born to a friend on 10.11.12 :: how fun is that?
2701. lots and lots of creating
2702. a good end to Jacob's 8th grade football season ::

2703. an attentive sister and divine protection for Sara when she choked on a pistachio shell while we were in the van :: thank you, God, that Rebekah noticed her choking and for Kirb's lightning quick response and throat sweep that took care of what could have been a completely different situation with a terrible, terrible outcome. Praise God! We are so very thankful!
2704. some much-needed rain
2705. the sound of rain on the roof :: it had been so long, I'd nearly forgotten
2706. enjoying a good movie with my love after the kids were in bed
2707. Jacob's fabulous football coach :: encouraging, positive and kind. Jacob loved him!


Alrighty, that's it's for this week. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

mutltitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer and an inspiration!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

2580. fresh sheets dried on the line
2581. a glorious late-summer day
2582. running with Joe
2583. safety when I got rear-ended {I was pretty shaken up, but neither me nor the vehicle were injured -- although I can't say as much for the car the guy who hit me was driving}
2584. the Sunday morning bird choir
2585. now these 3 remain :: faith, hope and love. but the greatest of these is love.
2586. hope!
2587. prayer
2588. climbing into bed at the end of the day
2589. shared tears
2590. successful transition to a big girl bed for Sara :: I'm AMAZED at how smoothly it went!
2591. re-arranging, cleaning and de-cluttering the girls' room
2592. a good sale on toilet paper right when I needed it!
2593. finished projects :: after months and months of having an idea in your head, it's nice to see it come to fruition
2594. my really, really, really hard-working husband
2595. perfect weather
2596. friends
2597. the fact that my husband loves me -- a fact I am especially thankful for during the times when I'm not very loveable {which, believe it or not, is quite often!}
2598. old pictures

Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post, which all started a while back, right here on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer and an inspiration!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

2522. family camp HERE WE COME!

 2523. arriving at our favorite place on earth for our very favorite week of the year

2524. the sound of the rain
2525. our kids walking across camp together
2526. unexpectedly bumping {almost literally} into an old friend that I haven't seen in years :: 1 minute earlier or later and we would have missed a fun little reunion
2527. a loon call breaking through the early morning quiet
2528. chipmunks on the path
2529. live praise music coming out of the chapel at various hours of the day :: brushing my teeth one morning to "Jesus, awesome in power forever, awesome and great is your name. You overcame!"
2530. my selfless, sacrificially giving parents
2531. delicious kettle corn, still warm from being popped over the open fire
2532. family chapel
2533. Joe's smile
2534. sun glistening off the water
2535. seeing to the bottom of the lake :: crystal clear water

2536. canoeing Hidden River with Kirb :: so much natural beauty
2537. sunrise over the water
2538. eagles flying overhead :: 3 of them at once! so majestic.
2539. spotting 4 deers {uncomfortable close and not a bit intimidated by me, I might add} on my morning run
2540. men taking off their hats to read the Word and pray
2541. progressive snack date night with Kirb & my parents
2542. being brave ::

 2543. our family camp babysitters :: Marie & Shannah

2544. a exceptionally peaceful drive and being home again
2545. meet the teacher :: Knutson for Joe, Hausman for Lydia and Simonson for Bekah. All teachers we've had before and really, truly love!
2546. the annual back to school parade :: so fun!

 2547. the state fair {we love it SO!} ::

watching the mini donuts fry

2548. a family walk
2549. donuts with Joe at the park
2550. how Sara announces "My lucky poopy!" when she needs a new diaper {she can't say "yucky", so it comes out "lucky"} :: we just LOVE it . . . and it makes changing her kinda fun!
2551. morning runs with the older kiddos
2552. fresh school supplies ready for a new year
2553. hanging shelves and pictures up in the basement :: I just keep loving our new space more and more
2554. enjoying the last day of "summer"


Alrighty, that's it's for now. Tune in next Monday for the next installment.