with a thankful heart....

I love this time of year....Definitely my favorite. It comes almost as a tradition to ponder all the things I am thankful for. So, while the twins are taking a nap, I'm going to take a shot at listing some of the things I am thankful for.

First of all, I'm thankful for my husband who loves me unconditionally and is a good man. He sacrifices a lot for our family, and works very hard to be where he is today. I'm thankful that he is willing to work 12 hour shifts (standing up) so that we can have a comfortable life and doesn't complain (much) about his aching feet. :)

Second, I'm thankful for my children and the joy they bring into my life. They are all miracles, and I'm thankful for my last two who really made me realize how blessed I am to have five wonderful treasures in my life.

Grace is such a good girl. She is getting so grown up. She wakes up to her alarm clock, makes her bed, gets dressed and brushes her teeth, does her hair for the most part, and THEN wakes me up to adjust her hair and fix her lunch. I'm so thankful for the extra sleep this allows me, for never having to worry if she'll get up or be late, and for such a self reliant daughter.

Emma helps me all day long with the babies. She brings so much sunshine into our home, and I'm so thankful for that.

Garrett.......he just makes me laugh. All day everyday. I'm thankful for all that he does to help me each day, and if he didn't wake up asking to go to the park, I'd feel like something was missing. I am thankful for this conversation which has kept me laughing for hours. It went like this:
"Garrett, do you know what daddies name is?"
Garrett replies, "yeff" (we're still working on pronunciation )
mommy asks, "Garrett, do you know what mommy's name is?"
Garrett sweetly replies, "poop".

I'm thankful for Jacob and John. They are so much fun to be around......they are so happy and have such ready smiles. They remind me daily how blessed we are to have them safely here and thriving.

I'm thankful for the forum this blog gives me to record thoughts and actions that are meaningful to me and for the opportunity it provides me to be introspective. I especially thankful it records my thoughts and then spits them out looking so professional.

MORE of a thankful heart:
I'm thankful for my dad. He is a great person and taught me so many important things growing up by example. Some of the things he taught me was to be responsible, on time and prepared. He also taught me how to manage money (DON'T waste it), and how to have an even, easy temper. Because of him, I was able to overhear this conversation:
Grace talking to her grandma:
"we were going to grandpa Scott's for Thanksgiving, but we don't know now".
pause
"I think it's because he put his dog in the freezer".

I'm thankful for my siblings. They've each added so much to my life and we've shared so much together. I'm especially thankful for Rachelle who has always been there for me, always will be and is one of the best people I know.