Blessings (a REAL post!)

I am thinking today that I am SSSSSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOO blessed. Some people would look at my life and think that I am not living to the fullest.

Some would see I live in a town without a mall, craft store, or even a Wal-Mart. I see that it takes me 2 minutes to get to the grocery store or Dollar General which is not crowded and the basics are there. I see that the students at school that serve food at the restaurant, show animals, play sports, act in plays, play in the band, etc are a part of an extended family of sorts.

Some would see that I seldom take time off to relax and recoup, vacations don't happen b/c of many reasons (seldom the fault of the Home). I see that I get to hang out with some of the most committed people at the Home and at church that love the Lord and what He has done for them. I get to work for/with people I respect and learn from while occasionally teaching something myself. I see that when I do get to go on trips, it is often to promote the Home I have come to LOVE and get to hang out with even more people who are committed and have a similar hope for children and God's Kingdom. I get time off when I need it, and am willing to take it, to refuel in ways that work for me.

I have been so blessed in the little and the big things. Years ago, I committed to see that the little things that go right are actually blessings from God.

So, while getting ready in a Salvation Army retreat facility room, I will blog to you my blessings (in no particular order):

I have friends that make me laugh on a daily basis! Whether it is a HILARIOUS pregnancy story about your own bodily functions and subsequent puking or a story about a 5 year old and how he sees the world. They help me get over myself daily and get out of my own funk to enjoy life a bit.

I get to hang out with God's kids all the time. I LOVE to be with the boys we have here. It is such a blessing to be trusted enough to do this. We have decided that no matter what happens in our personal family, we are so happy to love the kid of God.

Some of those kids from our past have allowed us back into their lives and allowed us to know what we have meant to them. THANK YOU GOD! We see that what we are doing is working and worth it.

I have chosen to thank God regardless....and He has given me support and encouragement for this.

Today, my straightening iron cleaned itself...for real! This is what initiated my thinking for this post. I saw in a magazine that one lady put her straightening iron in an oven mitt (brilliant, huh?!) so that she could immediately store it in a drawer without worry about the consequences of melted makeup. Troy bought me an oven mitt while I was at the chiropractor the other day. I stored it yesterday after fixing my hair. The melty hairspray stuck to the stuffing and once cooled...PEELED OFF! So I now have a self-cleaning straightening iron!! Praise God!!

I have a husband that understands what is "Manatee lipstick" and is unashamed of this! In other words, we work together as a team lovin' up those kids and their families that are ours by choice for as long as they will let us. We continue to love them and pray for them after they leave our circle, but it is on their terms.

I plan to add to this, for real, in the future. Since time is waning here, I better get cracking to pack up to head home. I challenge you to also post on Thankful Thursdays. I will not tag you to call you out, but I hope you'll join me. (Remember that you can delay post in the post options section. So if you think of something on Monday and have time to write about it on Tuesday, you can post it on Thursday!)