With Thanks

I snapped this photo while little Ellie-bean was sitting pretty in the morning sun, surrounded, no doubt, by the slew of baby toys her helpful sister saw fit to arrange meticulously around her.  She started to crawl this week, as in move forward, intentionally, even occasionally lifting her belly off the ground. These last eight months have flown by.  I remember telling my husband, just before Christmas, that it was all down hill from here: that six months was the ideal baby age – blissfully immobile but fully engaged with smiles and coos.  No tantrums, all cuddles.  But I think I feel that about each stage (tantrums and all), that each moment we’re in is the sweetest, and that I don’t want to give it up, only to be surprised at the new joys around the corner.

We’ll be moving in a few months.  Ted started a new job this week, our normal routines have been thrown to the wind, and we’re in the middle of the complex chaos and waiting game of attempting to purchase a short sale. So many of the things that have been constants during the formative years of our life together are changing. But somehow, the simplicity and contentedness of little Ellie’s sweet presence has reminded me today that I have a lot to be grateful for.

I’m thankful for these sweet girls.

I’m thankful for a husband who shares his heart with me freely and loves me deeply.

I’m thankful for family & friends who love and encourage me, despite my many shortcomings.

I’m thankful that regardless of this house, I belong, and have found a home in Christ.

I’m thankful for the sunshine pouring in my windows, and that my girls took naps today.

I know it’s easier to be thankful in some situations, or seasons, than in others, but I want to encourage you today to embrace a posture of thankfulness.  It’s like a good sugar scrub for your heart: exfoliating the grime and sweetening up your perspective. So, tell me, what are you thankful for?