Ten Things of Thankful - Week 8, 2017

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Reading MessyMimi's Ten Things of Thankful post this morning put me in a great frame of mind. She was talking about it being "easy to be thankful", and I didn't have to think very hard or long to realize how right she is.  Even on the difficult days when I tend to focus on grumbling far more than gratitude, I realize how very blessed I am, and then it truly is easy to be thankful.  The coolest thing about being thankful is that the more you adopt an attitude of gratitude, the more you'll find you have to be grateful for!  Here's just some of the ways I've been blessed this week...
 

I am over the moon happy with and thankful for the great response we're having to the new TToT blog. It's really nice to see everyone reconnecting there!  I am grateful for Lizzi's behind the scenes support which made this possible. She created the atmosphere of caring and sharing which we've come to love.

I am thankful for new folks coming to join in at the TToT.  I tell everyone what a friendly, supportive group of people it is, and I know they will discover I'm right if they give it a try.  I want everyone to feel comfortable there, whether they're already blog friends with other TToT members or are meeting us for the very first time.  Diversity is a cause for celebration!

I am thankful for the gorgeous sunsets I've seen here this week.  One night the sky was painted in amazing shades of pink and purple that my phone camera couldn't do justice.  West Texas is a flat, dusty, most often brown place, but God makes it amazingly beautiful every morning and evening when He paints the sky.  Because it is so very flat the horizon extends forever!

I am thankful for having sufficient resources to obtain good food for our table, and for never going hungry.  There's not a time that I walk through the grocery store or set down to eat a meal that I'm not acutely aware of how many people in our country and in the world exist in a state of perpetual hunger.

I am thankful for my husband's limitless patience with me. I've been a little moody/grumpy/stressed this week, and he never responds in kind, but rather always with kindness and encouragement.  He is amazing!  If I could clone him I would be a millionaire!

On the same subject of how I handle things, I came to a realization this week that I don't cope as well as I'd like.  There are many reasons/excuses I can give for that, but the bottom line is that I'm going to focus more energy on remaining calm and positive, being an example of what to do instead of what not to do.  I am thankful for self-awareness.

I am thankful for the wonderfully mild winter we've had.  When you get older, fear of falling on slippery patches of ice is very real, and I haven't had to contend with that at all.  I do have to admit that the unseasonably warm weather we've had here, not to mention my family in Midwest, conjures up legitimate concerns about global warming though. 

I am thankful for the renewed enjoyment I am finding in crocheting.  I'm making good progress on the Spring wreath I'm crocheting and hope to share a picture of it completed in the next week or two.  Along with a few other things I loved doing, I stopped crocheting about ten years ago when my life was in critical survival mode. One by one I'm reclaiming the things that I love.  I am proud to be a survivor, but I want more than that, I want to celebrate being alive!

I am thankful for the antics of my furkids that never fail to entertain us.  We laughed watching one of them taste-test a bite of something sweet we were eating the other night by tapping her paw in it and then licking her paw, repeatedly.  I guess she couldn't quite make up her mind if she wanted to eat it or not. :-)

I am thankful that, if all goes right, our small tax refund will make a road-trip vacation possible at the beginning of April. I love road-trips, especially to places I have never been!
 

Peace and blessings to you in the week ahead!  Please stop by as many of the TToT linked-up blogs as you can, everyone appreciates comments!

 

Trust Doesn't Come Easy

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I've always loved the above sign, it makes me laugh whenever I see it posted somewhere.  But in reality, I often find dogs and cats to be far more trustworthy than many humans.  At the very least, their behavior is predictable, and they aren't likely to blindside you.  People, on the other hand, can be surprisingly deceptive, and what you see isn't always what you get.  The saddest part of that is that the ones who are most likely to betray you are those closest to you, because they are the ones you most likely felt safe with and ended up trusting too much.

When I look back on all the times in my life that I've been blindsided by someone I trusted, I am astounded.  Sometimes I question whether I am a good judge of character at all, and most certainly as I've gotten older I've learned to be a little more careful with how much of myself I share with others. I've also learned to distance myself from people that I don't feel I can really trust.

As any of my long-time blog readers know, I'm a fairly open person and I don't have many secrets. I am frank and likely to tell you how it is without much prodding.  I know when I do that I am putting myself at risk for backlash, for contempt or ridicule or both.  That doesn't worry me too much, I am what I am at this point in my life, and people are free to take it or leave it. 

Far more troubling are the people I've invested time and caring in to build relationships, only to later have that come flying back in my face in the most painful ways.  When I love someone, I love them freely; and when I trust someone, I trust that they are as they represent themselves to be.  Perhaps sometimes I have wanted them to be what I needed at the time so badly that I was blind to the signs that I was being played and misled.  Sometimes we really don't want to know, but sooner or later the truth will out itself and we'll have to deal with the fallout one way or another. 

When I met my husband just over nine years ago, I had reached a point where I no longer trusted anyone to truly be what they seemed, and expected everyone to hurt me at some point.  It took several months, maybe even a year, for me to realize that he is exactly as he appears to be, one of the most authentic, caring, trustworthy people I know. He doesn't manipulate, he doesn't play games, he doesn't have a hidden agenda.  I can't tell you what a blessing it is to know that I can share everything with him, including all the facets of my very-flawed self, and he will still love me and still want me, and still value me.  He is able to see the me I want to be and try to be, and he never, ever throws anything back at me, or throws me an unexpected curve.  I trust him implicitly. 

Learning to trust again because of him, has given me the courage to also trust the very small number of people I consider true friends.  I know they would never do anything intentional to hurt me, and won't one day wake up and be someone totally different from who they are now.

I am blessed to also be able to trust my children, we have close relationships where we can share our thoughts and opinions without judgment.  I wish I would have had that with my mother and father, and perhaps that's why I've worked so hard at maintaining that level of openness with my kids.

The ultimate level of trust, is the trust I place in God, at this point in my life I believe that no matter what happens that trust is pretty much unshakable.  I don't blame God when things go wrong, I also don't say "well then there must not be a God, because look at this or that."  I trust God with my soul and with my life.  I trust Him to walk with me through the darkest times and never to abandon me. I trust that He is exactly what the Bible tells me He is.  I didn't always feel that way.  I went through a period of anger and rebellion that lasted many years, because I didn't understand the nature of God and I felt that he had let me down.  I can tell you those were dark times, and I felt very lost and alone. It's not that God abandoned me, He was just waiting for me to come home. Eventually I did, and I am thankful, so very thankful.

We live in uneasy times, and getting older is a very scary thing for me and my husband too, it is nothing like we once thought it would be, not exactly the golden years.  But no matter how much clamor I hear about all that is wrong with the world, I refuse to live in fear and wallow in anxiety. I am not naïve,  I know that bad things can happen, they can happen to me or my husband, or my children, or any of the people I care about, or totally innocent groups of people.  But, no matter what happens in the years of life I have remaining, I'm going to place my trust in God, and in those I know to be what they claim to be. I trust them to walk with me until the end.  

I'm going to continue working on forgiving those in whom my trust was misplaced too. I don't know why they did what they did, but it really doesn't matter now.  It's over and done and I learned from it. I am more cautious with my heart, and with what I share, but that won't stop me from reaching out and loving others, it won't stop me from opening myself up to show I care, because that's what I was born to do... to encourage and to care, and I know that God has me in His hands.  That kind of trust is a wonderful thing!

I am linking this post up at Rory Bore's Coffee Chat

where the topic of the week is trust.  Come and join us!

Ten Things of Thankful - Week 7, 2017

 

The weekend is fast disappearing and I haven't gotten my thankfuls for the week shared yet, so it's time to get started...

 

I am so very thankful for the good turnout we had last week on our first TToT at the blog site. It was heartwarming to see how many of us find this weekly exercise in gratitude worthwhile and worth sharing!

 

I am thankful always for Lizzi Lewis who created TToT in the belief that we always have things to be thankful for and that we can uplift each other by acknowledging and sharing them. She is so right about that, and with our posts here we remind her and each other that there are many reasons to realize that our lives are good and we are blessed.

 

I am most thankful that both my husband and I are hanging in there despite recurring bouts of congestion and flu. Each time we think we are past it one or the other wakes up feeling sick again, but it seems at this point that both of us are finally headed in the right direction. So many people have struggled with various bugs lately, and I'm hoping that we can all move on to being more healthy in the weeks and months ahead!

 

I am thankful for lavender microfiber bed sheets my daughter gave me for my birthday, they are so incredibly soft, pure luxury.

 

I am thankful for the beautiful coffee table book of South Dakota places that my son gave me. Although I haven't lived there since I was 22, South Dakota will always be home to me, and it's fun to revisit familiar places that are shared in the book.

 

I am thankful that our income taxes have been filed, and the refund was in our bank account on Thursday. Money we can put to good use. 

 

I am thankful for tentative plans to take a short trip later in March before the weather gets hot. Our last trip anywhere was in June when we went to the mountains in Southern Colorado, such a beautiful place!

 

I am thankful for the lessons God is teaching me each day, most notably not to panic when things are stressful, most problems ultimately resolve themselves in a day or two, and larger ones will have ways to deal with them if we remain calm.  Sometimes I can almost hear God saying to me... "See, I told you I was taking care of things!"

 

I am thankful for the rescuers... both individuals and groups, who take in abandoned, neglected, abused, and injured animals and give them hope and new lives.  This surely is doing God's work here on earth, taking care of His innocent ones.  The effect that love has on healing is truly amazing!

I am thankful always for the freedom we have to speak, write, and believe as our hearts and minds lead us. 

I believe that if we remember to trust God, live honestly and uprightly, treat each other with kindness and compassion, and take care of the earth in our custody, we are going to be okay.    

Peace and blessings to you in the week ahead!

 

Come and share your gratitude with us!  

Ten Things of Thankful - Week 6, 2017

 

I had originally planned to write and post this much earlier, but my husband has been home sick with a bad case of flu, so I've been busy tending to his needs and being a bit distracted by the tv and such.  He's settled in with his Kindle book now, so let's see what thankful thoughts I have to share....

 

First off, I am thankful that Ten Things of Thankful has a new blog home of it's own for us to link up our posts each week.  I've pledged to do a TToT post each week this year.  I hope you'll join me... and bring your blog friends along too!

 

Next, I am thankful for Lizzi of Considerings, who is the creator of Ten Things of Thankful. No matter what's happening in my life, if I focus on gratitude I soon realize just how many good things I have, and I always end up smiling by the time I get to the end of my list.  Just as the quote above says, it's important to be aware of how blessed we really are at any given moment in our lives.

 

I am thankful for the blessings of family, friends, and furkids.  It goes without saying that my life would have very little meaning if it wasn't for all the love that surrounds me!

 

I am thankful always for the faith that sustains me, I am who I am because of what I believe, and because I know that I've been given a purpose for my life.

 

I am thankful that my husband's illness is only temporary, and although he feels pretty miserable with his aches and fever, I am mindful of the many people I know who are dealing with much more serious medical issues.  They are always in my prayers.

 

I am thankful for the time I got to spend online with my daughter this week helping her choose just the right dress and accessories for her sunset beach wedding in Hawaii next month.  I am so excited for her!

 

I am thankful for the wonderful long conversation I had with my son on my birthday, he has always been so kind and loving.  It was fun to hear about his relationship and the plans he has for his future as well.  I am truly blessed to have such awesome kids!

 

I am thankful for the wonderful surprise gift my husband ordered for my birthday... a set of lighted crochet hooks which will make it so much easier on the eyes, especially in the evenings, as I begin a new project.  I haven't done much crochet lately and I love it, I find the repetition and the soft yarn very soothing. My cats find the wiggly yarn fascinating, and no doubt there will be some cat fur stitched in along with a lot of love!  :-)

 

I am thankful for all the great reading linked up at Zoe's Six Sentence Stories each Thursday.  I've been working on a serial story for it, a definite creative stretch for me.  I look forward to adding another six sentences to the tale each week.  If you aren't a regular at 6SS, I urge you to check it out... it's fun!

 

I am thankful for our hot tub, our one and only material luxury, purchased with inheritance money from my father. It's being moved to a concrete pad tomorrow to give us more room on the deck, which will be nice. Nothing soothes old achy bones and a weary soul like a warm soak under a canopy of stars.

 

Most of all, I am thankful for the life I have now, one I would never have believed possible just ten years ago.  My life story is a lesson to never, ever give up hope.  God has plans in store for you more wonderful than you can possibly imagine!  (Yes, this is #11, it's a bonus blessing :-)

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Visit the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop to read about the good things

happening in other lives this week and share a gratitude list of your own!
 

 

Join Us At Ten Things of Thankful

Ten Things of Thankful

 

The Ten Things of Thankful blog hop was started by Lizzi Lewis at Considerings as a means of seeking out and sharing the good things in her life, and changing her attitude in the process. She soon discovered that her sharing inspired others to look for the good things in their lives too, even at times when it is difficult to find those silver linings.

 

 TToT has been an ongoing weekly blog hop since June of 2013, and many people have taken up the challenge to join in and share their own reasons to be thankful. Lizzi has done an amazing job of hosting TToT with the support of an awesome group of co-hosts, for the past three-and-a-half years, and she is ready for a well-deserved break. She has graciously allowed Josie Two Shoes to take on the role of TToT administrator and move TToT to it to it's very own blog address.  And so, we begin again, with this week's link up!   

 

A new link-up will open early Friday morning each week and will remain open until the following Tuesday night, so you have plenty of time and don't need to rush or worry if your weekend is busy.

The only requests are that you include a link back to the TToT link-up in your post, and that you take the time to read and comment on as many other posts as you can. The whole point of this blog hop is to share and to encourage each other... that's where the magic begins! I hope we'll see you there! :-)

Ten Things of Thankful - Week 5, 2017

With a birthday coming up this week,  today seemed like a good time to think about some of the things I am most thankful for in my life...
 
1.  I am thankful for my faith which gives me the courage to face each day and the obstacles life presents from time to time.  I spent a portion of my life angry and in denial, and it was a dark and scary place indeed.  I've come home to an understanding of the beautiful and blessed gift faith is, I wouldn't be here without it.

2.  I am thankful for my husband, and for my experiences with previous husbands which enables me to love and appreciate this one so much!  In my case, God truly saved the very best for last.  I could go on for a whole page just on his attributes alone,  he takes care of me in a way I've never been cared for before.  He brings love and laughter, patience and understanding, and integrity and rock-solid determination to get things done. 

3.  I am thankful for my children, they too are the best of the best.  They are responsible, independent, thoughtful, caring, funny, and so very kind to their mother.

4.  I am thankful for my parents who provided for my needs growing up, and raised me with love, and the knowledge of right and wrong.

5.  I am thankful for my few and very precious friends, all very real to me no matter where or how we originally connected.  My life would be so much less without them.

6.  I am thankful for my furkids.  They add so much pleasure to my life and give me something to take care of now that our "nest' is empty.  I am happy that I've been able to give them really good lives too!

7.  I am thankful for my health which isn't too bad, all things considered.  I know how blessed I am to be able to live without great pain, limitations, or illness. 

8.  I am thankful for our home, our little house in dusty West Texas that keeps us safe and warm and suits us very well.

9.  I am thankful for my past,  all of which has combined to make me who I am and bring me to where I am today.  It hasn't always been easy or fun, but it's been a learning experience, and I wouldn't be me without it..

10.  I am thankful for hope, for believing that good things can and will happen,  and for being convinced that love is still the greatest super-power of all.

11.  I am thankful for everything I've listed here, and so much more.  What I'm saying is that I am so very grateful for the life I've been given, it's been a really good life all in all!

 

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Ten Things of Thankful was began by Lizzi at Considerings.  It's a wonderful way to refocus on the good things that happen in our lives each week despite whatever problems we are facing.  There is always something to be thankful for... always!

 This week we are linking our posts up at the TToT Group on Facebook

 

Share A Little Love

I'm joining Zoe at "Uncharted" for Six Sentence Stories where our cue this week is "share"...

I saw the above picture on Facebook last week, with the suggestion to post a heart on your child's door each day until Valentine's Day telling them something you love about them.

My children are 37 and 41, and no longer living at home, so I thought why not send them a text each day with a heart photo and something I love about them.

Yesterday on my son's I wrote, "I love you because you have such a kind and caring heart."

 This morning came his awesome reply, "Thank you mom, I learned it from my mother... hope you have a great day!"

I am sending daily love notes to my husband too, and my sister is going to paste them on the bathroom mirror for her husband to find each morning. 

It's not to late to share a little extra love this month, beginning today, make some love notes for your children, or your spouse, or your mom/dad, or a best friend; it's guaranteed to warm their heart!

 

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Visit Six Sentence Stories for some great reading,
and add a story of your own.