Thankfulness M, N, O.....

"The Ocean"

"Moms and Mom-in-laws"
"Noise"


M - Moms and Mom-in-laws
I have been blessed with the best mother in the world, some of you may beg to differ but really it is true. My Mom is one of my best friends in the whole world. I have missed her so much since she and my dad have been on their mission. I am incredibly proud of both of them for what they are doing and yet I still miss having her close. She is a great grandma and is a great example to all the grand kids. My Mom had always been there to support me and love me through my decisions whether or not I made the right one. I can remember even as a teenager looking forward to telling her how my day had gone. I hope to someday be half as smart as she is and I pray that my children will feel the same about me as I do about her. I love her so very much! Thanks Mom for everything!
I have also been blessed with a wonderful Mother-in-law. There are snide remarks, jokes, and even entire TV shows based on having a bad mother-in-law but I have the exact opposite situation. Sherry has gone out of her way to show support for Barry and I and is always willing to help us with the kids. She is a wonderful Mother to my husband and a fabulous grandma to our kids. We love living in the same town and ward as them, it's wonderful to have grandparents close by. Thanks Sherry, I love you!

N -
Noise and Naps
I am sure that some of you are thinking that noise is a very strange thing to be grateful for and I'll be honest, I am not always grateful for it. If you have ever spent much time at our house, especially when we have all 9 of or kids there, you will know that we have a fairly noisy household. Occasionally when we are all around the dinner table and there are 4 or 5 fairly loud conversations all happening at the same time and food is being passed and moved around I get a little overwhelmed at the intensity of your little family. On the other hand, not so long ago I imagined that I would never be happy again, but my life is truly amazing. Many times over the past few years I have stopped and taken stock of the events in my life and asked myself, "How can this be my life?" It's funny but I do it even more often now only the question is much more positive, "How can this be my life?" I am so blessed. I have a firm testimony of the Gospel, I have a wonderful husband who not only loves me but respects me and has earned my trust, I have been blessed with not 2 or 4 or even 6 wonderful, noisy, and amazing children but 9 of them. I have been blessed with a great education and now a job that I truly enjoy. True there is much noise in my life but that noise serves to remind me how wonderfully blessed my life has become.
I have also come to enjoy a nap. Occasionally Barry and I are able to sneak a nap in. I love it. Today during lunch at the office I was able to close my eyes just for a few moments and get a quick 10 minute nap. So refreshing. Sometimes when my alarm goes off I hit snooze which gives me 8 short minutes to grab a quick nap. My favorite of course are those with my husband but I'll take what I can get.

O -
Oxygen and the Ocean
Ok I'll admit it some letter are harder to find words for then others. But lets face it without Oxygen we would all be, well for lack of a better word, dead. So each day I will be thankful for the air I breath that contains enough oxygen to feel my lungs and then carry it on my red blood cells to each and every portions of my body! And I do love the ocean, when we were in California for Christmas last year we spent part of Christmas day on the beach. It was a little chilly but fun nonetheless. I am sure the kids had a great time even though there was a little whining about how cold it was.