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201. Tonight was a happy night! The kids were ecstatic beyond belief that tonight was going to be their favorite Fameja Veneta dinner/dance- the annual one down in San Pedro! They love having the view of ships in the main channel adding to the atmosphere of this event. Natalie in particular was very eager to dance. It made my mama heart a bit sad when I realized that Jacob is just on the cusp of entering the stage of thinking he’s a bit too cool or embarrassed by dancing in the middle of the dance floor. Every year up until now he’s run out there, put his arm around Natalie and danced his heart out. Tonight he was hesitant and tried to get out of it as much as he could. Natalie beggggggged him to pleaaaaaase, pretty please, please dance with her. She got two songs worth. She would have hoped for much more than that. I’m afraid sweet Natalie this may have been the last dinner/dance where your brother was willing to get out on the dance floor and wrap his arm around your waist and hold up your other hand and lead you in a  dance. I have one blurry picture- but that’s okay, it’ll help me/us remember tonight forever and ever. 

202. Calamari. I love it. And I love how the kids love it. Natalie even went back for seconds! Although none of us will brave eating the tentacles. Just the round pieces. 🙂

203. I was able to dance with my dad. Just last month he turned 85 and he’s still out on the dance floor. We danced a waltz together. Precious memories of when I was a kid and he used to lead me around the dance floor and I felt so special. It was hilarious though because as we were dancing, Natalie all of a sudden appeared out of nowhere, scrunched up her face…..put one resolute hand on her hip….stretched out the other arm straight with a swinging pointer finger was motioning as if to say “hey hey hey”……couldn’t tell if she too wanted to dance with Dide or if this was just her cute way of saying she thought it was fun watching Mama and Dide dance together. I can’t remember the last time I danced with Dide in the past few  years. It was a special moment. I was very thankful for this moment.

204. Jacob now more fully understands and embraces the idea that he is made up of a rich background of cultural heritage. How awesome that in the past year of learning about his family tree and playing Ticket to Ride Europe, he has really started to deeply understand that his roots come from faraway places. Just this past week while playing this new train game, he was trying to pronounce Venezia, I helped him and then explained to him that these dinner dances are part of “La Famiglia Veneta”. That they are all people gathered together here in Los Angeles who were originally from the Veneto region- around Venezia. His eyes grew bigger and something clicked in astonishment in his mind. It was a beautiful moment. He was so happy to take this picture with Dide tonight.

I can see his pride in his eyes of being the grandson of someone with European history. Both of them in their suit jackets- so handsome together!

205. I love these kiddos!!! I love it that they get so excited about being with each other, taking pictures with each other, getting dressed up and going out to events together, together watching tugboats pull big ships into port……they are best buddies…..and I’m a mama gushing with love for them.

206. Nerina……she’s 92! Still coming to these Italian events. She has a special place in Jacob’s heart because she made one of his favorite blankets. Here she is posing with him in a purple dress she knit together for herself nearly 45 years ago! Love this woman! So smiley, so full of life, still going strong. 

193. You know what amazes me? How so much is going on in this world all at the same time. It’s crazy to think that while I was swimming laps in California……that mushers were being pulled by their sled dogs in Alaska for the ceremonial start of the Iditarod…..all while the 6 astronauts at the International Space Station were in communication with the people in mission control here at SpaceX in Hawthorne, controlling the safe arrival of the Dragon Capsule…..it’s crazy. Crazy to think of all those things happening simultaneously. And that doesn’t include all the Little League opening ceremonies going on…..and the people shopping at grocery stores…..and the children going hungry in different places in the world……people getting ready for weddings……others weeping at funerals or the death of broken relationships…….there is SO much going on in this world at any given moment. I am thankful that God holds it all in His hands. I am thankful that I can place my faith in His omnipotence and omniscience. Thank you Lord for seeing it all, knowing everything and having unlimited power to be in control of it all. There is sooooooooo much. And yet you see it all and you hold it all. That is awesome beyond what I can even comprehend.

194. I am thankful for the ways that Steve is teaching Jacob to take risks. It seriously cracks me up to no end when we play Ticket to Ride and I hear either one of them announce “I’ll take 3 new destination cards.” I always play it safe; I keep the original 3 destination cards I was dealt at the beginning of the game. They, on the other hand, take the risk of adding more destination cards to their hand. Jacob has completely picked up on this strategy from Steve. Without grave concern for the points they may lose in the process, they always assume it will work out best for them. I guess it shows that both of them are much more of the “half glass full” mindset and are comfortable taking risks if it means possible advancement of points and winning. I know this is a reaaaaaaaaaally far stretch- but I’ve thought to myself: this is the kind of risk-taking adventurous spirit that took men West and went looking for gold in California. These are the kind of risk-taking brave men that are willing to weather the odds that come their way, for the greater goal of amazing opportunity. So today as we played this game and Steve, no joke, ended up with 16 destination cards in his hand……I was both in awe of him and laughing my head off. I wasn’t laughing at him; instead, laughing at how incredibly different we are. There I was clinging to my original 3 cards and he had 16. Wow. What a difference. And then to look over at Jacob and watch him confidently pull off 3 new destination cards to add to his already full hand. He looks up to this adventurous, risk-taking Daddy of his; and I am one pleased Mama that he has such a fine Daddy to gaze at and learn from.

195. “Mama, guess what?!?!!” Wow. That is the question of all questions that my sweet Natalie loves to ask over and over again, prefacing all the incredible things she is just bursting to share about! Tonight it was 26 minutes of “guess what!??!?!” as I sat with her in a phone call, hearing her recount the amazingness of her time spent at Omie’s house. Oh what sweetness. She loves to chat. And apparently she has been talking my mom’s ears off. I will say that all of last night and today our house was incredibly still and quiet. It was amazing to us to realize how full our home is with the bubbly personality of our chatty Natalie. And how empty it is without her. I miss her dearly. But I also know that now she has a treasure of sweet one-on-one time with Omie tucked away in her heart forever. Thank you Lord for that gift to her. Thank you for Omie’s heart and willingness and yearning to spend one-on-one time with Natalie. Thank you for that special invitation. Thank you for all that they have done together and all that Natalie will be recounting in super-detail tomorrow. 🙂

196. I am thankful that Steve is enjoying a fun night out at the men’s UCLA basketball game. I am thankful for his good working relationship with Tom. I am thankful that they get this time to just hang out and be friends together.

197. I am thankful for the ways that Steve encourages me and lets me know how much he appreciates the ways I am growing/teaching our children. I am thankful that he is such a supporter and encourager of our homeschooling. He is a fan and that is without doubt. I appreciate the confidence he instills in me to lesson plan and creatively come up with new ways to teach our kiddos.

198. I am thankful for resources that help make homeschooling so rich.

199. I am thankful for the daily miracle of growth. How awesome it is to know that cells are multiplying and the kids’ bodies are growing, nourished by the good food I provide- but most of all, because of the incredible design of God’s creation of these bodies of ours.

200. I am thankful that I have 200 blessings to record and look back upon. I am excited at the prospect of one day having a 1,000. I love the perspective this exercise of praise gives me.

191. I know I’m so weird to be thankful for this…..but I was really excited that this morning when I served Jacob and Natalie some healthier waffles they didn’t even notice a difference! Woohoo!!! They each had two waffles so without even knowing it, they got 8 grams of protein right there at breakfast. Woohoo!! I love it that with the strawberry jam on top, they couldn’t even tell that these were made of whole wheat, oat, barley, brown rice, dark rye, quinoa, amaranth and millet. Sooooo awesome! And I love it that they didn’t make a peep about the organic strawberry jam. I gasped when I found out that the yummy blackberry jam I had been buying at Costco had high fructose corn syrup in it. It has been time for change. Loved it that this morning was all about organic, yummy whole grains. And the kids were smiling and happy as clams about it. 🙂 Thankful for natural foods that are readily available to us.

192. Thankful for Jacob’s humor. I asked him to explain his thinking for 4 math problems he had completed. I was hopeful to hear him verbalize his deductive reasoning while also making use of his vocabulary of three-dimensional geometric shapes. He looked at me incredulously like “mom, do I reeeeeeeally have to explain my thinking???!?! The answers are right there and I got them correct, right?!?!?!?” But I persisted- I wanted him to verbalize his thought process. Well by the time he had explained 3 of the 4 problems, I could tell his interest in this process was waning fast. I said “only one left to go. So how did you figure out this one?” And get this! His response to me was: “Mom, I’m not at liberty to talk about that.” What??!?!?! Were my ears hearing correctly? Did he really just say that? And where in the world did he ever hear someone say that? I was trying hard not to bust out laughing. I asked him if he knew what it meant. He said ‘no’. Well then how did you know to use that line in this moment? “Oh, it just felt like the right moment to use it.” Well, what do you think it means? “I don’t know. Well, yeah, wait…..Statue of Liberty…..freedom. I guess it means I don’t have the freedom to talk about that.” I assured him that he did indeed have the freedom to tell me how he had arrived at his math solution. “Yeah, mom, I just don’t feel like talking about it.” Yes, indeed, that had been pretty obvious. When asked where he heard that line used, he said very matter of fact: “In a Hardy Boys book- it was used twice and once in Calvin & Hobbes”. How in the world does this boy remember things like this?!?! And the exact number of times he’s seen it in text?! He was able to recount the exact comic strip where it had been used. Calvin didn’t feel like talking about something, so he used that line. Well, then I just laughed my head off and tickled him to pieces. We ended up laughing hysterically. He was indeed quite proud of himself for having successfully escaped the clutches of our math discourse. And I was left thankful for his mind and his ability to soak up all sorts of knowledge.

163. I am thankful for the precious time I get to share with my kids, reading to them and exploring books together. We are in the world of me reading chapter books aloud to them. I have been reading to them from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s book “Little House in the Big Woods.” There are no illustrations to soak up as I read, so instead they sit perfectly still, their eyes fixed intently in front of them on the invisible words pouring out of my mouth and floating through the air to their ears. Their faces respond with excitement or nervousness depending how the plot changes. I love it. I just love watching their faces! I loooooove it when Natalie shrugs her shoulders in eager anticipation of what is about to happen as I turn the page and she hears of what the character decides to do next. I love it when Jacob’s serious, pensive face relaxes into a sweet smile when something funny happens in the story. I love imagining their minds weaving together their own imagined illustrations.

164. I am thankful that I can have a gym membership.

165. I am thankful for Teri and the inspiration she is for me to get out of bed at 5 in the morning and attend her weight lifting work out class.

166. I am thankful for this morning’s workout- how the hour just flew by and I smiled and had fun as I pushed myself to new limits.

167. I am thankful that words like “stamina” and “endurance” are words that are just barely becoming a part of my body’s understanding. Ha! It feels good to feel my body reacting and being able to push through. I’m definitely not where I dream of being with this endurance thing yet. Holy smokes! There sure are people who inspire me in this class! But it’s fun to dream of where I may be one day.

168. I am thankful that I was able to be with my father and celebrate his 85th birthday. I can’t believe he’s only 5 years away from being 90. That seems crazy to me. And so I am filled with thankfulness that he is still alive and doing well and has a sane mind so that I can hold conversations with him and the kids get to know him.

169. I am thankful that I was able to be with my father-in-law and celebrate his 65th birthday. Thankful that Steve, Dave and Laura each had such special words to share from their heart to him, about being a great father to them.

170. I am thankful that my father taught me what it looks like to go out of your way for someone. He has always been a generous, kind man, driving miles upon miles to visit with someone or go to the store to buy us a special traditional item.

171. I am thankful that Amy’s Bakery in Montebello has been making the same delicious rum cake for 40 years. What a fun tradition to continue carrying on for our family birthdays!

172. I am thankful for the time I spent with my sister Mitzi this past week. Thankful that we can connect as if no time passed in between her last visit and this one.

173. I am thankful that Natalie and Mitzi connected so beautifully. It’s such a beautiful treasure to behold your daughter looking up to someone- wanting to be with them, chatting with them,  sitting with them, soaking them up and wanting to be like them. And to see the sweet gobs of tears that rolled down Natalie’s cheeks when she missed Tante Mitzi and cried herself to sleep at night. Such a sweet connection the two of them had. I am thankful for that.

174. I am thankful that my mom taught me ‘it never hurts to ask’. Last week when we visited my mom with our relatives from Canada and Mitzi, Jacob gave up his favorite day of elective classes. He knew that hanging out with family was super important, but he was really bummed to miss out on chess class and lego robotics class. And so I did as my mom always taught me- I asked if there was any chance he could attend a make-up class this week on Tuesday, when the classes are also offered. I am thankful that Kelly Ann said “yes! sure!” So Jacob got the best of both worlds- getting to hang out with family AND getting his favorite classes. Yay!

175. I am thankful that it is a dark, cloudy day today.

176. I am thankful that the kids and I were able to explore similes together. “Opening the craft kit for Ruby was like opening an umbrella on a blustery day.” I love the mental imagery that comes with that simile. I love that Google images could show us an umbrella being opened and thrown back on a blustery day. I love it that my kids are beginning to understand how rich writing can be in its descriptiveness.

177. I am thankful for Steve. Thankful for how hard he works. Thankful that he already began to inquire how I would like to spend my 40th birthday this year. Thankful that he went out of his way to cook an amazing dinner from scratch to celebrate me on Valentines. Thankful for that oh-so-yummy veal manicotti with homemade tomato sauce. Yum! Thankful for the card he wrote me. Thankful that instead of letting me read it, he read it aloud to me. Thankful that I could soak up his loving words. Thankful that he was oh-so-forgiving of me that even though I had purchased a Valentine’s card, it sat empty and without words for two days before I gifted it to him. Thankful for his fun idea of trying a new recipe: a chocolate-Nutella souffle baked in coffee mugs in the microwave. Ha! That was fun. Thankful for him and the ways he consciously tries to be an incredible husband.

178. Thankful for the inspiring words of my friend Emily last night. “The point of marriage is to help prepare our spouse to meet his/her Maker one day.”

179. Thankful for the inspiring words of my friend Diana last night. “We should be quick to say we’re sorry and offer forgiveness to our husbands.”

180. Thankful that Steve is such an awesome example of 179 to me! He is sooooo quick to offer forgiveness. It’s such a gift of grace he gives me!

181. Thankful for the encouraging words of my friend Shannon last night. “Spend the time now to think of ways to capture and hold onto these times with your parents, knowing that they won’t always be here.”

182. Thankful for the message in Hosea. Thankful for that prophet’s obedience to God, to do something that must have been REALLY hard and unthinkable to do. Thankful for that example of faithfulness. Thankful that we don’t have to be on the right path for God to meet us; thankful that Gomer shows us that.

183. Thankful for Brandon’s preaching. Thankful the Lord has blessed him in that way.

184. Thankful for sleep.

185. Thankful for friends.

186. Thankful I was able to spend time with my cousin Vivien and her daughters Elyse and Nicole. Thankful that Glen her husband was willing to drive all the way down from Canada to provide their family with a trailer to sleep in. Thankful that for two years in a row they have been able and willing to make the whole drive here to Los Angeles to be with us. Thankful to have our kids together.

187. Thankful for our home.

188. Thankful for love.

189. Thankful for grace.

190. Thankful for this day and all that awaits me.

155. I’m married to T-H-E most amazing man.

156. My husband thinks ahead and isn’t willing to live in denial of the crazy world we live in. As a principal he is on the forefront of coming up with plans of safety for the hundreds of students and teachers in the care of his leadership.

157. Just now listening to other people give him MAJOR compliments and applause at an assembly at his school, made me thankful people communicate their respect for him. I am thankful for their voices of affirmation to the awesome work he is doing.

158. I am thankful God has given him charge of an entire high school. Wow. A cutting edge high school that holds HUGE amounts of respect in the community. This is a school that people of all different lines of work are watching and have been impressed with. Sooooooo thankful that God has blessed Steve to lead and to lead with excellence.

159. I am thankful that Steve is a visionary and a trend-setter. I am thankful for the brilliant tagline he came up with: “We do things differently here.” And his brilliant idea of printing I (heart) DV shirts for students and staff. And his brilliant ideas of ways he encourages his staff.

160. I am thankful that I was able to witness an absolutely amazing Community Dialogue at his school just now. Absolutely A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!!! It was jam-packed with students wall to wall. The chief police who spoke chose not to use the microphone. The students were SO respectful and amazing. They sat there silently, oh-so-respectfully listening to him. You could hear a pin drop. This school’s atmosphere of respect is out of this world. Simply amazing.

161. Thank you Lord for the ways you have blessed Steve- for all of his talents, his intelligence, his heart, his compassion, his out-of-the-box thinking, his people skills, his speaking skills, his vision, and for the way he is respected by SOOOO many- the custodians, the secretaries, the teachers, the students, the parents. It is beautiful to see him wrapped up in a place of such incredible respect and honor for what he does and does so well. Thank you.

162. I am thankful that after the Critical Incident Drill at Da Vinci together with the Hawthorne Police, he was told by one of the police officers: “I have never seen a school move so fast…You are light years ahead of other schools.” So awesome. Very, very, very awesome.

Wow- what a morning. If there is something I can’t stand AT ALL l it is the sound of Jacob and Natalie arguing with one another and not being loving to each other! Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. This mama heart can simply not handle it. It does something to my insides. It is suuuuuuuuch an unsettling feeling and it yanks and tears at every fiber inside of me. My stomach gets into knots. My anxiety rises. It causes my heart to beat faster. Oh how I wish that there would just be love. Love every day. Love in every word. Love in every gesture. That the me-first selfish part of them would die and be buried forever. But then again, I remind myself that they are human, just like I am human. That they too were born with sinful hearts, just like I was born with a sinful heart. So it’s a journey of intentionally refining ourselves to be more like Jesus and asking for a lot of forgiveness along the way. But oh man did they get under my skin this morning! And it was all in the context of having a mutual friend over for a playdate. Having each of them vie for playtime with their friend- yeah, that doesn’t work so well for this mama heart. Not. at. all.

So now that the friend is back at his house and my kids are down for a much-needed afternoon nap, I sit here with the headphones on my head and I’ve escaped into the world of worship music. I’m going to try to continue counting my blessings despite the messiness of unloving feelings this morning between my kiddos. Here it goes. Change my mood, oh Lord, please through this.

124. I am thankful for headphones. For worship music. For the ability to find refuge in God’s embrace during this time of listening to praise music.

125. I am thankful that Jacob has found a best friend in Jack. I am thankful for their sweet way of being together and the innocent joy they find in building train tracks, playing pingo pong, jumping on the trampoline, playing Ticket to Ride together.

126. I am thankful that Natalie has found a best friend in Miriam. I am thankful for the take-me-down hugs of joy they give each other as they say hello. I am thankful for the sweet girlness that Natalie can revel in with her sweet friend.

127. I am thankful for Miriam’s mom who is excited to have Natalie over for homeschool/play time at their house. I am thankful for her creative lesson planning in having the girls follow a “how-to” book on painting princesses. A sweet joy to them, so perfectly girly and totally in line with what the teacher had asked for us to focus on.

128. I am thankful for my friend Sherryl who stepped in to be Young Life committee chair when really all fingers pointed to me to be in that position at the start of the year. Thankful that she took on that calling, so that I could rest at home and focus on the world of our family and homeschooling.

129. I am thankful that God has blessed Sherryl and Kevin with the miracle of life. I am thankful that the God of this universe is carefully knitting together a tiny boy inside of Sherryl at this very moment. While she and I chat about ministry stuff, the amazing Creator is in tune with every detail of this baby’s growth and development. So awesome. Such a miracle.

130. I am thankful that Steve could send me a text saying that the disaster drill at his school today went very well. So thankful. So thankful he can move on past the talk and notion of him being dead in a horrific situation at school.

131. I am thankful that Steve is so loving.

132. I am thankful that Steve’s hard work allows me to stay at home.

133. I am thankful for the money I could spend at Costco to buy groceries this week. Extravagant groceries, in comparison to what others in this world would ever buy or eat.

134. I am thankful that death has lost its sting in the saving life of Jesus Christ.

135. I am thankful that the riches of God’s love is incomparable to anything else. I just hope I have the faith to believe that if/when we ever enter a ‘desert’ of our life. I am thankful that God is growing my faith daily. I am thankful that He has been growing it since I was in 2nd grade. That’s nearly 33 years of bringing people into my life and revealing Himself, His words, His plans and blessing me abundantly. That’s a lot to be thankful for right there. That’s a big thought. A heavy thought. I’ve been in His embrace for 33 years. Wow.

136. I am thankful that I can run to Jesus’ arms on days like today when the life of being a mama frustrates me.

137. I am thankful that Steve and I had a creative date last Friday- by going to the Troubador in West Hollywood. Thankful that it was such a fun, different way of spending a date night. Standing there on a dance floor for a couple of hours, in his embrace, listening to good music. That was wonderful.

138. I am thankful for musicians. And thankful for when I can watch music being played live. I love seeing musicians pour their heart and soul into their instruments. Love that.

139. I am thankful there is power in the name of Jesus.

140. I am thankful for that sweet moment in the car today when the kids were reading the Action Bible together. And as Jack read the Creation account, he stopped and spoke of his awe that God spoke and there was light. Jack stopped and commented how cool that would be. To just speak and have light come out of nowhere. Yes. That is so true. That is huge power. That is cool. Beyond cool. That is AWE-some power. Power that ought to be awe-inspiring. Thankful for Jack’s pause and comment that brought God’s power to light for me today.

141. I am thankful that every chain can be broken in the power of Jesus. No one needs to live bound by anything. There is freedom that comes from faith in that power.

142. I am thankful that I believe. I am thankful that Steve believes. I am thankful that Jacob believes. I am thankful that Natalie believes. I am thankful for each person in our family who believes.

143. I am thankful for pictures.

144. I am thankful for the Adventure Club that we have joined. They call themselves the “Field School” I believe. But it’s fun in our family to call them the “Adventure Club.”

145. I am thankful that my friend Heidi heard you speaking God. Thank you for reaching out to her in 4 very clear ways. Thank you for revealing yourself in 4 different ways in one week. That is cool beyond cool. You are awesome God.

146. I am thankful for finger that can type, for legs that can walk, for a mind that can function, for eyes that can behold, for ears that can hear, for a mouth that can enunciate words clearly, for a tongue that can taste, for organs that work just as they were designed to. Thankful for the miracle of this functioning body.

147. I am thankful that we will get to see Teacher Ute once again today. Thankful that after nearly two months of not having her here for music class, that we will be in her company once again. Thankful oh Lord that you called her mother to you in a way that was a blessing to Ute. Thank you for letting her say goodbye.

148. Thankful that in 54 days we get to travel to New Jersey.

149. Thankful that I met my beautiful niece, Emily, yesterday for the very first time.

150. Thankful for the reminder it is when I hold a young child, how miraculous the growth of the human body is!!!

151. Thankful that I could behold my 5-month old niece Emily and her ever-so-cute sister Izzy. Oh the joy of seeing my best friend’s daughters right there live before my eyes, and not just on FaceTime. To see them in all their cuteness. To watch them move and play. Oh the joy. Thank you.

152. Thankful that after all these years Laura still gives me the biggest rib-crushing bear hug when she sees me and greets me. She welcomes me with such deeply genuine love that it just overwhelms me. Her hugs are amazing. I love her and I love her hugs.

153. Thankful for the sweet, sweet moment on Monday night when Emily, Jorunn, Diana and Shannon sang a worship song together that gave me chills. I felt I was listening to angels sing. Thankful for their hearts and that heart of worship.

154. Thankful that after writing out 30 blessings, my heart feels lighter and I’m ready to wake up the kiddos with a smile on my face and my soul feeling the privilege of being their mama. 🙂 Thank you Lord. Thank you.

Though I haven’t sat down to add to my online gratitude journal, my eyes and heart have continued to take account of the blessings that God is pouring down. Oh, how He loves us so. I think I’m going to need to keep a small journal out in the open to jot down the thoughts and observations I make as the day unfolds. Just letting it sit there, open to the page where I can keep an accounting of how great His affections are for me. Here are some of the snippets of moments I’ve held onto in my memory these past two weeks:

114. Thankful for the hearts of Lupe, Maribel, Jorge and Travis. Thankful for how being present with them in an hour of prayer leaves me transformed. Thankful that God brought them to Young Life with hearts for the mission of reaching people in this city. Thankful that together as we pray our praises and lay before God our requests, that God’s Spirit comes in our midst and makes His presence known. Thankful that we now have a prayer team. So thankful.

115. Thankful for God’s love and how He loves us. Thankful for the hour of encouragement He provided me through the one comment I found online from Joann’s Facebook post. She posted about the “JustONE” online conference for women in leadership. Listened in last night. Good good stuff. Thank you Lord for the analogy of how we often feel like grasshoppers in the land. But that we need to surround ourselves with people like Caleb and Joshua who don’t get overwhelmed by the giants and the feeling of smallness and powerlessness, but instead find strength in the Lord. Thank you Lord for the story of the woman’s encounter with a man named Cricket. A reminder of a time several summers ago when God spoke through me to a young man at YL Santa Cruz camp. That was an extremely powerful moment for me many years ago and last night I was reminded of that moment. It brought tears to my eyes. Yes, God speaks. Yes, God uses us to minister to others at the exact moment when they need to hear His word the most. Thank you Lord for the message of grasshoppers and Cricket.

116. Thankful that Jacob and Natalie quietly engaged in a game of chess a few minutes ago, allowing me this sweet time of thanksgiving. Thankful that they love to play with each other. Thankful that we are at a stage of life that our kiddos are independent and can play without me needing to be there watching for their safety and helping them with every move of their being. Thankful that I can now return to mornings of quiet with you oh Lord.

117. Thankful for Greta, Jennifer, Becky, Alicia, Jana and the other moms of the adventure-nature homeschooling group that we’ve encountered. Thankful for their welcome into their group. Thankful for their connection to you oh Lord. Thankful for their sweet love of their children. Thankful for their heart’s desire to be out in nature each and every week. Thankful for their history of every Tuesday for 4 years- their commitment to letting their children be in your beautiful creation oh Lord.

118. Thankful specifically for Becky’s beautiful help to my nervous and frustrated Jacob. Making new friends is hard. Very very hard. Watching him try to make inroads into friendships that have been bonded deeply over 4 years, I could feel why it’s so overwhelming to Jacob. My heart was filled with relief as I heard Becky helping Jacob feel comfortable with the group. Two weeks ago she helped him immensely by engaging in conversation with him about his love of Nebraska. That was a turning point for him at the Balboa Wetlands; I could visibly see him grow more interested in the group simply because he had felt noticed and felt that he could relate to someone. So thankful for Becky. And then again, she was there again- thank you Lord. Thank you for her empathy and her sincere effort to help Jacob become friends with the boys. Thankful that she was there yesterday offering him encouragement that her son had also felt the exact same way two years ago when they joined. That asking questions like “Have you ever been to Disneyland?” or “Do you like to play with Legos” helped her son connect with the others. So thankful that she sparked Jacob’s love of Legos and connected him with her son in that conversation. So thankful once again for Becky. And my thankfulness for her continued as she offered to have us over to her place for a playdate next week. Oh thank you Lord that this woman has been gifted to put herself in our shoes and has gone out of her way to welcome us. Thank you. Thank you that because of her my sweet Jacob went to bed last night with a peacefulness in his heart and a feeling of hope. As I tucked him into bed, his heart uttered “Mama, I have a feeling that Asher and I are going to be great friends.” And he closed his eyes with a smile on his face. Oh that just melted my heart. Thank you oh Lord for the sweet heart of Becky and for that sweet moment that helped relieve me of the load of that first hour and a half of the hike where Jacob pleaded to go home and shared with me how frustrated he felt.

119. Thankful for Teri and the way she motivates me to get out of bed at 5am on Tuesday mornings. Thankful that I know awaiting me at the gym will be one butt-kicking workout led by her. Thankful for her inspiration. Thankful for her commitment to being an absolutely amazing instructor of Body Pump. Thankful that with her guidance my ability to push through what’s hard is even possible.

120. Thankful that in the frenzy of oversleeping yesterday and running out the door to the gym without a water bottle, that Teri was willing to offer me a water bottle she had with her. Wow. That literally saved me. I could not have done an hour of weightlifting without water. So thankful for Teri’s desire to help me in that moment. Thankful for her heart and her friendship.

121. Thankful that my body can do what’s physically hard. Thankful that I’m being stretched to new limits of endurance. Thankful that on the same morning of increasing my weights in squats, that I could endure through an intense up-hill, switch-back, steep ascent at Hellman Wilderness Park with these newly found homeschooling friends. Not sure if I’ll be able to move today without much pain, but thankful that I could do all of that yesterday.

122. I never ever fathomed I would one day be one exiting the gym at 6am while others were just arriving. Wow- that’s a crazy feeling. Having completed a swim workout and soaked in the jacuzzi and walking out of the gym at 6am- pure craziness. Had to do it because a crazy swim competition class is held from 6am-7am. If I wanted to stretch my muscles this morning, I had to be done by 6am. Thank you Lord for pulling me out of my bed this morning. Thank you that despite needing to push through the obstacle of getting out of my warm bed, putting cold clothes on, walking out into the cold air and getting into a pool to the shock of my still half-asleep body, that I was able to do all that. Thank you for that type of endurance you are building in me.

123. Thankful for the endurance that I saw in Jana, Becky and Greta yesterday. Each of them carried a young child on their back up that crazy steep hike. Wow. I was inspired. These women are tough. These women are in good shape. I was in awe. So great to be inspired by women like that.

106. The sweetness of sitting robed in my pink fuzzy morning softness and my legs tucked in with the warmth of my brown fuzzy blank….headphones on my ears…..sitting here at the computer…..immersed in worship to my Lord……thankful for this new morning.

“In the power of your name, you lift me up. You lift me up…..Your love oh Lord reaches to the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Your love oh Lord reaches to the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.”

“Thank You”

“Thank you for your kindness. Thank you for your mercy. Thank you for the cross. Thank you for the price you paid. Thank you for salvation. Thank you for unending grace. Thank you for your hope. Thank you this life you give. There is no one like you. There is no one like you God. All my hope is in you. Jesus. Jesus. Thank you for your promise. Thank you for your favor. Thank you for your love and everything you’ve done for me. There is no one like you. There is no one like you God. All my hope is in you. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. To your name we give all the glory. To your name we give all the praise. Let your face shine on us. There is no one like you. There is no one like you God. All my hope is in you. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. To your name we give all the glory. To your name we give all the praise. Your life our God everlasting. Let your face shine on us. To your name we give all the glory. To your name we give all the praise. Your alive our God everlasting so let your face shine on us. So let your shine your face shine on us. Let your face shine on us.

107. A new form of worship- this is cool. Sitting here with my eyes closed and typing the words of the praise songs as their beautiful notes fill my ears. The feel of my fingertips typing away on the keyboard as though I was playing piano notes.

108. Homeschool Physical Education- an hour on a sunny California beach, practicing baseball skills (hitting, catching, throwing). That was one sweet hour spent yesterday with my son.

109. My right shoulder aches like crazy! A new muscle pain/ache I’ve never experienced before. I haven’t ever thrown a baseball for a full hour. Wow. It aches. But thankful that it can serve as a reminder of my sweet time with Jacob yesterday. And thankful that Advil exists and I can rest in the relief it will hopefully bring me.

110. Natalie’s fingers curled up in sweet tightness…….her hands joined together in expectant joy under her chin…..her shoulders shrugged up high in eager anticipation…..the bridge of her nose crinkled with delight……her eyes sparkling…..her heart bursting with generous love…..as she waits for Jacob and I to open our tiny presents she has just delivered to us. She had walked into the room with this ever so cute basket. In that basket lay 3 oh-so-cute, tiny, decorated boxes. Each box specially packed for each of us with a gift from her heart. In mine- sparkly geode pieces. In Jacob’s- a gold mesh bag packed full with tiny candy packets. In Steve’s- a piece of blue yarn tied together at its ends in a knot to make a loop-necklace. And a loose tiny bell. Oh how she delights in the receiving and giving of gifts! Her love language is undoubtedly gifts! The sweetness. 🙂

111. Warmth. Thank you.

112. Sweet friendships. Friends that walk with me. Friends that text me sweet messages. Friends that meet with me. Thankful.

113. Didn’t think I’d ever be thankful for blisters on the bottom of my feet. But sure- why not?! They can serve as my reminder all day long of someone who desperately needs to be covered in prayer today. So thankful that her heart could be revealed despite my apparently lame socks that chafed the bottom of my feet as we walked and talked. Blisters are going to need to be prayer points today. Trying to turn all things into good.

91. Sooooooooo thankful for the way Monday morning began. Jacob was snuggled up close to me and said “Mama, I am going to try to save up my money to buy you a gift at the end of second semester. I want to give you a thank you gift for being such a great teacher.” To hear those sweet words of thanksgiving from his mouth at 6am, before our full homeschool day had even begun, was a sweet treasure to my soul. I could tell he was thrilled beyond measure that this second semester was beginning; he was happy to be at home full-time with his mama as his teacher. I had wondered if he’d be sad on the start of this new semester knowing he wouldn’t be returning to DVIA along with other kids from his school. Nope. No remorse from him. A gift to me. He was saying thanks for hearing him; he asked us to please remove him and allow him to be home-schooled full time. What a gift to be thanked for hearing his voice and responding to it. Especially on this morning when I felt exhausted from having gone to bed at 1:30am, planning an exciting new unit on Transportation for him.

92. Soooooooooo thankful for the way Monday evening wrapped up. I was tucking Jacob into bed and he pulled me close into a hug and said “Mama, thank you. Thank you for being my homeschool teacher.” He was so snuggly and in such a cuddle-bug mood. I realized more fully at the end of this day that his heart’s yearning to be home schooled full-time was huger than I had even imagined. He had verbalized his desire. But there must have been something even deeper that he had never been able to put into words. He began this day with thanks and ended this day with thanks. Thank you Lord for today’s final-seal of confirmation that our family made the right decision.

93. Tuesday was a GREAT day from beginning to end. So thankful for a whole, full, great day! With no hiccups of yucky anywhere in between. I want to be super duper thankful for these kinds of days especially!

94. Thankful for the smell of almond extract. Yum.

95. Thankful for kiddos who love to play together……hearing their imaginary play as they join their legos and Geotrax into elaborate stories…..the sounds of their sweet voices carrying down the hallway as I sit here and spend time giving thanks to God.

96. Thankful to Jennifer Naraki who shared with me the treasure of her homeschool mommy group that goes on adventures every Tuesday.

97. Thankful to see the sweetness of children playing together, adventuring together, reveling in nature together, looking at their field guides and identifying particular species of birds, calling many birds by names without even looking at the guides. The beauty of children at play in nature.

98. Thankful that we could spend hours soaking up the beauty of the Bolsa Chica Wetlands. Thankful for sunny spots, shady spots, windy spots…..kids’ shoes on dusty trails…..mommies thrilled to bring their kids into creation to point to their Creator.

99. Thankful for that moment on the bridge when we just stood and gazed at the beauty of the flock of teeny tiny birds that flew sooooooo quickly together, swerving together in the air in the most beautiful rhythmic patterns……the white of their backs gleaming in the sunlight and then suddenly with the turn of every one of them, the silver of hundreds of bellies catching the light. Oh it was just breathtaking. That moment alone I could be thankful for a million times over. That show. That display of God’s beauty for us, right there in that moment.

100. And on the other side of that bridge we all stood there watching and studying one bird all by its lonesome. A solitary bird in the water. And all of us taking notice that its legs were connected to its body all the way at the back where the tail feathers would be. How odd, or perhaps I should say- how different. I’m used to seeing birds with legs that come out the middle section of its body. Not all the way at the back end. And yet perhaps that’s exactly how God designed it- to help it swim, with its feet kicking like little paddles.  And there we all stood watching and studying that single bird with red eyes. What a beautiful moment of attending to the specific details of God’s creation.

101. Thankful that as the kids snoozed in their beds, exhausted from nearly 4 hours of play in nature…..that I too could take a nap.

102. Thankful for the fun feeling of tip-toeing to the kitchen and unrolling Pillsbury crescent rolls and boiling broth to make a fideo soup, for a fun surprise snack for the kids. To imagine their noses waking up to the smell of soup and warm bread. The delight of being that mama giving them that treat; so thankful.

103. Thankful to have the pool all to myself in the evening. Thankful for the sweet serenity of the calmness of all the lanes, just my kicking and moving down the length of the gym’s pool.

104. Thankful what a reminder it always is to me when I swim…..as I look up for just a moment to bring my head up for air….everything along the sidelines is seen as a blur….but then I put my face head-down back in the water and make most of my strides with my eyes focused on the straight line of tiles leading me ahead. It always makes me think about my relationship with God. I should keep my eyes focused on Him. I can’t see all the way down the length of the pool, but I know that by focusing on this straight path I will get where He is taking me. I just need to stay focused on those tiles, on His Word. The rest is a blur. This is what I should concentrate on…..and breathing….and back to this constant, steady, straight line.

105. Thankful for deep sleep after a day of lots of walking exercise, a heart overflowing with joy for having found a super friendly, welcoming group of adventuring moms, having watched my kiddos enjoy throwing rocks from a bridge into water below, bouncing on a fallen tree, and time to exercise in a pool, praying with each lane’s length and ending with a soak in a hot jacuzzi. A blessed day. Thankful.

81. Thankful for whole grain pancake mix.

82. Thankful for whipped cream that helps my kiddos swallow the whole grain goodness of oats, triticale, rye, barley, buckwheat, flaxseeds and millet.

83. Thankful that even though they asked “Maaaaaama, is this a new kind of pancake mix???” and weren’t thrilled about the new texture and taste, they accepted my explanation about it being better for them. All it took was a reminder to one of my homeschool lessons on whole grains and linking it in their mind to being healthy- and they happily ate their breakfast. (But truly thankful for whipped cream that made the idea tolerable) 🙂

84. Thankful that the heater was blasting so much heat into our bedroom this morning that I basically woke up from suffocating heat. Thankful in a weird, warped kind of way that the heat was my motivation to get out of bed and go to the gym for an early morning workout.

85. Thankful for the awesome stretch in my latissimi dorsi muscles in my morning swim. I have no idea why I remember the name of that muscle group- but thankful that those muscles feel so awesomely stretched today.

86. Thankful for the return of electricity. Being without electricity from 8am-8pm made me ever so thankful for the awesomeness of electricity. Today is a laundry kind of day and I don’t need to worry about the food in the fridge and freezer. And I can sit here and type my thankfulness. Good stuff that electricity. 🙂

87. Thankful for a husband who invited his staff to have a “Brutally Honest” conversation about ways the school can grow and become great. The words that keep coming to my mind are: strong, stalwart, robust and confident. He is all of those things and more! What a phenomenal and humble leader he is- to genuinely invite and sit listening to all that his staff had to offer, without a single defensive bone in him. Not a single retort. Just a quiet, humble spirit- taking it all in, recording it all down and now moving into action on all that was said. Wow- I am in awe of this man. And so thankful that God has blessed him as leader of an entire school.

88. Thankful for my time on Tuesday night with Victoria. Thankful that God has blessed her so immensely with a dream-come-true job as an EMT. Thankful for the ways God has continued to passionately pursue her and love on her and hold her secure in the awesome plans He has for her life. Thankful that I get to witness all of that as the years pass. Thankful that I see God alive and working through her.

89. Thankful for my time last night with Jessica. Thankful that we get to embark on this new relationship of mentorship. Thankful that I had Margaret as my guide and model for spiritual mentorship for so many years. Thankful that Margaret has a library of 40+ books awaiting my perusal tomorrow. Thankful that I am in this privileged place of helping guide, shape, steer and pray for a young woman on a regular basis.

90. Thankful for how filling whole grain pancakes are. I love it that I’m fully satisfied and don’t have the munchies.