This post is not meant to brag, I'm simply taking time to focus on the good things in my life! I know each and every one of us can choose to either focus on the good and positive, or to dwell on the negative and dramatic. I do have to say though, that at times in my life when I have been very down, it has been difficult to "choose" to see the good, and I'm very sorry if any of my friends or family are feeling that way at this time. If there is anyone out there who is feeling down (or outright depressed) know that I've been there and actually more people than we know have been there, and we can all relate. You are not alone in your struggles. I don't know why I felt I needed to write all that, after all, this is my "thankful" post. I just know that at times in my life I have felt alone and hopeless, and I have always had a soft spot in my heart for anyone who feels depressed, sad, low self-esteem, whatever. Okay! Enough of that! Here are some things that make me feel so LUCKY!
-I am alive! And I feel safe...many people don't. That is something to be grateful for.
-I have a family. This is a biggie. I'll have to break it down a little:
Husband: Having Ben for a husband makes me feel so lucky. I have recently been going through some big, unorganized bins of his life that turned up in storage. Included in these bins are highschool stuff, mission stuff, and every thing in between all mish mashed together in complete disorder! So I being the lucky one who organized it all was able to take a trip back in time and read some old letters that he and I had written to each other. I read one of my first letters to him, which stated something along the lines of "I'm just going to say it...I think I love you." His letters to me are so sweet and the best part is it helped me realize that he hasn't changed in how sweet he is. I highly recommend reading old love letters to help remember how it all started! I'm also grateful that he is so talented. Not only does he get up early every morning and go to work (a feat in an of itself!) but he takes time to ocassionally make us beautiful pieces of furniture, the latest being a georgeous new bed for Riley. I will post pictures of all the wonderful things he's built soon. It's not like he enjoys staying late to work to make these things, but he does it because he loves us.
Riley: How do I start? His personality has brought so much adventure to our lives! He definately tests us with his stubborness and willfullness, but I would gladly take that ten times over just to have him in our lives because he gives my life such meaning! I can't count how many times he makes us laugh, and usually it's when he is trying to be serious and tell us something REALLY serious. We both just have to turn away and hide while we laugh, and try to compose ourselves before we turn back around. He has been saying the funniest things lately. Ben was trying to take his gold fish crackers the other day, and that ticked Riley off so he said "Daddy! EVER don't you take my golfish away!" He really has not figured out yet that he is the child and we are the parents. He can often be heard saying "Don't you talk to me like that!" or "Mommy, do you need to go potty?" We love him so much. The only thing that bugs me lately is that he won't let me hold him as long as I want. I have to pin him down to kiss him over and over, and he only puts up with that for a few seconds. I don't know how to put into words how much I love Riley!
Baby: Boy or girl? I'm thankful for technology that will allow us to soon know what we are having (Dec 9th!!!!). Just the fact that I was able to get pregnant is a huge blessing. I know the heartache that goes along with struggling to get pregnant, although not to the extent of some I know and love. I wish so much for the same blessing to come to those who want it so badly. This time around I am SO much more excited because I know what to expect, and I now know how much you love your child. Ben and I absolutey can't wait! If it's a girl we are naming her Lafonda Shananae. If it's a boy it will be Harry Lloyd.
Other Family: I hope everyone knows that I was joking about the baby names. Family has become so much more important to me over the last several years. Of course they have always been important, but my appreciation for them has increased. I can't imagine moving far away where we wouldn't have the benefit of family. Even though my mom lives five hours away, I talk to her all the time on the phone and she is someone that I can tell anything too. Whenever I go on walks, I take my phone and call my mom. Although I'm getting more and more out of breath on these walks, and she's probably sick of hearing me huffing and puffing! I have a brother, Chris, who lives in Washington. I hope someday that he can move closer. That would be the icing on the cake! Okay, moving on from family.
-I have a place to live. It's a place that Ben and I have put a lot of work into and have made into an environment we love. We dream of having more space someday, but we are so lucky to have what we have.
-I can buy groceries. Food is pretty expensive at times, but we always have enough food and plenty of extra. That makes us extremely lucky.
-Ben has a job, and he is good at it. Who's to say what could happen in the future....we see people getting laid off all around us. But for now Ben's company is doing great and Ben is a valuable employee. I'm grateful that he is such a good worker and has made himself an important part of the team.
-I have had the opportunity to go to school...AND I'M ALMOST DONE! In fact today I just finished my last paper, and that feels SO good. I'm so happy that I picked a field that pretty much guarantees me a job, and these days that is good news. But more importantly I am excited to be a Nurse, and have the opportunity to learn and grow.
-I'm grateful to live in this country. I'm grateful to live during such a momentous time, when amazing changes are happening. True there is a lot of bad news these days, but focusing on that is depressing! I'd rather focus on the good and there is still plenty of that.
-Our car is fixed! For a long time it shook very bad, to the point of being dangerous. But we could not figure out what the problem was and spent a good amount of money trying to solve it. The other day Ben and his Dad (who I'm thankful for!) replaced a part and the problem is now fixed. That is a huge relief, as this is the car Ben drives to work and I worried that he would get in an accident.
Well, I'm sure I'll think of more later...but I've already been long winded with this. I really have been feeling very grateful lately, and not just because it's Thanksgiving. It's easy sometimes to forget that there is still so much good happening, and there is a LOT to look forward to. Of course the news doesn't often report what's positive...but if you look for it, you'll find it :)
My Dad and I. He was trying to make friends with this crazy horse who had been bucking at us when we first came to the farm. Looks like they are new buddies!
Ben, Darci, and Riley on the four wheeler pulling Ben and Sam on the sleds. Riley liked being on the fourwheeler watching Ben and Sam struggle to stay on the sleds and try to avoid the big weeds we would pull them through for the fun of it! My brother Ben actually got a bloody nose...all part of the fun :)
Family picture on Roger's four wheeler. Someday we will have our own, but where would we put it right now??? We have no room!
Riley got a new room! We moved him into the bigger room since we will be needing the baby room for the baby. His new room is Disney Cars themed. I couldn't get the whole room in the picture, but you get the idea. So far he is doing okay in it, but we are working on getting him to spend the WHOLE night in his new bed, not just the first half, after which he ends up in our room sleeping on the floor. I wouldn't mind so much except when he's dreaming he whines and kicks the floor really hard with his feet (like a tantrum) so this obviously interferes with my sleep! So I usually go into HIS room and sleep the rest of the night on his bed. 
Our best Christmas present of all! Of course he just HAD to climb in this box. 
We had a really fun Christmas together. Riley's really gotten excited about Christmas this year. He's loved having the tree with the lights, making treats, giving away treats, and eating treats. He loves seeing Christmas lights everywhere, the snow, the whole deal. So it has been really fun watching him enjoy the season. His favorite Christmas present from Santa (why does this guy always get all the credit???) was a big black remote control truck. I honestly think this is just as much for Ben as for Riley, but hey it's something they both love! 
