Thankful

I have always tried to be a thankful person. I try to make a special effort to recognize the blessings I have. There are times in my life where it has been harder to be grateful, and then there have been times where I am bursting at the seems with gratitude and wonder how I will ever be able to repay the debt. When Mark was sick, it was extremely hard not to be angry. I truly felt we had been kicked while we were down. Whether it is right or wrong, or whether they have anything to do with one another, or perhaps I am doing better at recognizing my blessings, but this year has honestly been a year of blessing overload. I look at the trials we have had, and the blessings we enjoy, and it makes the trials more than worth it. Perhaps Mark would disagree since he was the one that had to physically carry the burden for us, but even he would have to admit that a lot of good came out of the cancer days. Like I said, maybe they aren't related at all, or the trials taught me to look at things differently. Either way, I feel like we have been richly blessed and are truly indebted to our Heavenly Father. I hope that we can live by the creed, "where much is given, much is required" and show our Heavenly Father we are grateful by blessing the lives of others.  In my last few posts, and honestly, most days, I have had a pretty bad attitude----especially when it comes to construction. I get so caught up in what isn't happening, that I have forgotten what IS happening and how blessed we are to even have the opportunity. I haven't shown a spirit of gratefulness that is for sure! I know that there will still be times I want to scream and pull my hair out, but I hope I can remember to be more positive and thankful.

I am not very good at the Christmas card thing, and with the holiday season officially underway, this year isn't looking very good for them either. I posted most of our family pictures on Facebook, but I know I have a lot of family members that aren't on Facebook, but read my blog. So, taking the lazy route, here are some of my favorite shots:

 

Family pictures were an adventure, and Paige was super grumpy, but we were still able to get quite a few shots that I can't wait to hang on the walls of our new home.

For FHE this week, we built a fort, or a pretty poor representation of a fort. I don't know if I was a better fort maker when I was a kid, or if my childhood expectations of forts were lower, but this was one poor excuse of a fort! Paige seemed to think it was pretty cool, especially crawling in and out of it. The shoddy construction didn't quite hold up to her constant movement, fortunately we were able to capture one good "cheese" moment before demolition.

Paige and Grandma Mary Lou. Paige finally discovered this is one sweet grandma and went to her on her own accord. She is usually all about Grandpa Thaylon and hangs Grandma out to dry. It was fun to watch Paige spread the wealth a little bit at our last big family party.

Mark has been living the dream this fall. Between construction and harvest, he has gotten to "work" in many different tractors and loves every second of it. Paige is definitely a daddy's girl and loves a good tractor ride. She will sit for hours with him in a tractor. She told us the other day that cows are cute. Mark has sufficiently brainwashed her!

Mark convinced me to hop in for a tractor ride. Pretty grateful to have these two in my life!

 

 

I hope this Thanksgiving finds all of our family and friends well. We love you all and count you among our richest blessings. Thank you for all the love and support you have shown us. We are looking forward to this holiday season and having a toddler around to make it even more magical!