Thankful List ~ December 2013

December 2013 Thankful List

* God has given me so much joy in watching my children learn and grow this month. I feel like I have been able to just spend time and enjoy them recently and I am so thankful for that. Many of the other things I am thankful for this month have to do with our two little blessings, Addilyn and Josiah.
* When we were decorating the Christmas tree I was trying to take pictures of our fun. Josiah was so excited he kept running in front of the camera and saying "CHEESE." I now have a dozen or so pictures of my little ham. I'm thankful for his fun (sometimes extremely silly) personality.
*Josiah has also started talking and singing so much more. He is one of those rare kids who talk back to the television show when they ask a question. For example, when he is watching Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood and Daniel Tiger asks, "Would you like to help me today?" Josiah get so excited and yells, "Yeah!" When they ask a question about where something is he will not only yell the answer aloud out but he'll get off the couch and run to the T.V. to point to the correct thing. Because he is finally starting to communicate better with his words, this is so rewarding to me (even if it means I have lots of little finger prints and hand prints to wipe off the television screen).
* I'm thankful for our wonderful neighborhood. We have sweet neighbors who I've loved getting to know better over the past 2 1/2 years. They are such a blessing and encouragement to us. This month our neighborhood was lit up with beautiful displays of lights and Christmas trees in windows. Friends brought us cookies and cards and it reminded me how thankful I am for our sweet neighbors.
* I'm thankful for our preschool cohort and the privilege to teach the children stories from the bible. This month, in addition to the typical advent study and story of Jesus' birth, we were learning about Moses. We did some really fun activities and crafts as well as put on a play (which I video taped and made into a movie trailer)!
*I love watching Josh play with the kids. He often spends time wrestling with them on the floor or playing hide and seek and it melts my heart to see how much of an active daddy he is (even during seasons when his is working 100+ hours in a 9 day stretch without a day off). What's really amazing to me is that he is not afraid to be sensitive and loving towards his kids despite the cultural trends of absent or uninvolved fathers. I'm convinced my husband is the best father on the planet!
*I'm thankful that we got to take Addilyn to get her very first haircut. She was nervous and excited. We did not get much taken off but it was still a sweet moment for this momma's heart.
* I am thankful for a friend who is a notary and is willing to come over and show us where to sign all the important documents as we are moving forward with the adoption.  My husband really enjoys spending time with him and this makes for another great excuse to hang out.
*I'm thankful we can laugh at our kids when they are acting their age and not deliberately being disobedient. For example, one evening this month we had a friend come over who had never been to our house before. We were eating dinner and trying to have good conversation. Then, all of a sudden, Addi reaches over, picks up an entire handful of food and throws it directly in Josh's face.  He was completely flabbergasted not to mention covered in tortilla, shredded lettuce, and cheese. I could not control my self, I burst into fits of giggles. I typically can control my laughter and instruct the kids concerning appropriate behavior, but for some reason (maybe because we had company) I could not pull myself together. What in the world made her think that was a good idea? I have no clue. We've never had to even approach the issue of throwing food. It's never come up. It's never been a problem. Josh did a great job informing our little 3 year old that throwing food is rude behavior and that we never throw food, especially at other people.
* I'm thankful for insurance. Josh's back recently was hurting worse than it ever had before so we started sending him to the chiropractor. His appointments included X-rays, massages, laser treatments, and adjustments. However, since we had met our family deductible for the year, these appointments only cost us $16.
* I'm also thankful for coupons. When I went to order Christmas presents online I placed an online order that would have cost me $403.60 however because I have been entering codes for coupons all year long towards my account with this company and because I qualified for free shipping I only paid $35.13! This means I saved $368.47!
* I'm thankful to live in Raleigh! I love our city. This month we had to cancel preschool for a couple days because of little ones getting sick but we were able to take spontaneous and free field trips to the science museum and to the library. We also drove downtown at night on many occasions to look at the beautiful lights and trees decorating the city's streets.
* I'm thankful for our "family" away from family. December is always a month filled with fun celebrations. This month the kids were invited to an ornament making party.  We had an amazing time with other leaders of our church at two different functions. I had a wonderful time at a friend's holiday tea party and a relaxing day with my small group ladies Christmas movie marathon. Our small group also had its annual party and white elephant gift exchange. We celebrated the season with another couple by going on a double-date to Dave 'n Busters and had an absolute blast.  We were able to have Christmas Eve dinner and dinner on Christmas day with several of our favorite people in the whole wide world. In addition, we had a super-fun, and family-friendly, New Years Eve party. We are so blessed to have such amazing friends to celebrate life with!
* We are thankful for babysitters (some who volunteer their time) so that we can do fun things together and with friends.* Last but not least, our bedtime routine. Yes, I'm thankful for our bedtime routine. Each night as we lay our kids to bed we read a bible story and maybe a library book or two, and then we sing songs. Recently the music line up has been Before the Throne of God Above, Jesus Loves Me, My God is so Big, Amazing Grace, Holy Holy Holy, and wait for it...Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. :) As if hearing my little ones try to sing the sometimes unidentifiable words to the hymns isn't sweet enough, the part that makes my heart melt is what happens when I tuck them in. First we do hugs, then kisses, and then "hugga-muggas" (Eskimo kisses). Next comes high fives, fist pounds, and "squeezes" (where we squeeze one another's hand three times while saying "I love you MORE").  Instead, Josiah likes to say, "I love you ROAR" (while  roaring, of course). Finally we wrap up with a series of really silly things like fishy kisses, "honk-honkers" (pushing one anthers' noses and making silly honking sounds), tickles, blowing raspberries, and "pushes" (where they push me away as I make a dramatic slow-motion explosion to stand up). I know, who thinks of these things right? As I close their door we yell to one another things like, "Nighty, nighty, night-night" or "Love you to the moon and back." Now, this doesn't mean that 10 minutes later, or let's be real, 2 minutes later they won't come bounding out of their bedroom as if they just had 10 hours of wonderful sleep, but at least I've gotten a good fill of cuddles, kisses, and "I love you"s form my most treasured little blessings.