thankful: day 28

i am thankful for my cub scout den.  i have 19 second graders.  and while at times it seems like there are 119 second graders, i wouldn't trade them for anything.  they WANT to please me.  some days i have to remind them of that and some times it seems like i have to do it every 5 minutes, but they refocus and we get to work.  they work hard and are always eager to answer questions.  they want to do the fun stuff, so they will do the not so fun stuff.  this is my second year with them and i am thankful that all 12 from last year came back and my 7 new guys seem just as eager to come each week.  i am thankful for their parents and that they bring them to me each week.  it takes a community to raise a child and i am thankful that so many parents have entrusted me to be part of their community.

tara

thankful: day 27

i am thankful for my faith.  there are some things that have happened in my life and i could not get through them without my faith.  i lean on God for the strength that i don't have.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” – Phil 4:13

my faith has kept me moving, not always forward, but at least i was moving.  i read this once: i can't prove God exists, but you can't prove He doesn't.  i am glad i believe in Him.  i would hate to go through life and this be all there is.  all the people you meet you will never see again.  i am grateful He has given me peace knowing some of my biggest losses are not permanent.  i believe in God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and i lean on all 3.

tara

thankful: day 26

i am thankful for a family day.  we spent the day in amarillo.  we started at the movies and saw arthur christmas, which the boys and i loved.  after that the boys wanted to go to barnes and noble.  payton had earned five bucks and chose to get a book from barnes and noble.  i am also thankful that my boys like to spend their own money on books.  after barnes and noble we stopped at game stop to check things out for christmas lists.  with our final stop at chili's for a wonderful dinner.  i am thankful we enjoy spending time together.

tara

thankful: day 25

i am thankful for breakfast in bed.  lee cooked breakfast, so when i went into the kitchen payton looked at me and told me to go back to bed.  lee told me no.  payton said it again and wanted me to go back to bed.  lee finally gave in so off to bed i went.  payton came into the room and told me i had to go back to sleep so when he brought me my breakfast he would find a place to set it down and turn on the light.  then he would set it in front of me after he woke me up.  i am thankful that payton has such a wonderful imagination and that he has the whole scenario in his head a tries so hard to have it play out that way.

tara

thankful: day 24

i am thankful for a day full of blessings.  a loving Father, my freedom, spending time with lee's side of the family, great food, my husband, my children, watching my boys spend time with their cousins, having their cousins spend the night reminding me of the many times i did that as a child.  the list could go on because i am one blessed girl.  happy thanksgiving everyone!

tara

thankful: day 23

i am thankful that the boys let me sleep in..... kinda.  it was nice to not have to be any where at any specific time.

tara

thankful: day 22

today i am thankful for all the tubs of clothes i have for the boys.  right now i have a tub of clothes in all sizes 6 months to size 8-10.  well for boys anyway.  there is not telling how much money we have saved by keeping our tubs.  i have clothes that baylee wore when he was an infant and those same clothes kayson is wearing.  having a larger family means you make sacrifices.  i wear clothes that i have had well over 5 years and the boys wear hand me downs.  no one is any worse off for it.  and the funny thing is when you have 4 boys everyone must feel sorry for the baby because you get one of two gifts: diapers or clothes.  so kayson has had his fair share of new clothes.  the only downside to my tubs is making sure there is something different worn for pictures.  that way it doesn't seem like you dress your kids in the same things.

oh, and i'm also thankful that i am getting rid of my tubs.  as soon as kayson outgrows them they are out of here.

tara

thankful: day 21

today i am thankful for 2 things.

first, i am thankful that even though the volume on my phone was turned all the way down i still heard it vibrating on the table.  how i don't know because i sleep through everything!  and it was only going off for a minute before i woke up.  it's a thanksgiving miracle.  lee had to go to san antonio today and left around 4 this morning so i had to get up and get the boys to school, but usually i have lee moving around in the room as my warning that it's time to get up.  so i am thankful that i heard that phone.

secondly, i am thankful for the muirs that live down the street.  scouts is on mondays and with lee being gone i needed someone to watch kayson.  i asked katie after school and she said she'd love to.  when i dropped him off i surprised them with payton as well.  katie wasn't there but the doug and casey were.  they were just as excited to keep him as katie was.  katie kept him several times during the summer when i took the other boys to the pool.  doug has kept him once.  and they all seem to come around when kayson is there.  it is such a wonderful thing to be able to leave him somewhere and know that he is as loved there as he is at home.  kayson is so blessed to have them in his short life.  i am blessed they are around and want to keep my baby.  i am glad they are part of the village raising my boys.

tara

thankful: day 20

i am thankful that will all the changes to the mass, my kiddos are young.  in fact, baylee really is the only one that has learned the existing mass to any extent.  so i am grateful that i only have to change one of them, the rest will have to learn it as we all do.  some of these changes are good and do make sense, others seem unnecessary.  i'm sure they are changes for the better, but their purpose isn't crystal clear.  but, change is good and being able to adapt to new situations is a wonderful characteristic to have.

tara

thankful: day 19

i am thankful for the organizations the boys are involved in.  baylee is in 4h and cub scouts, and tayte is in cub scouts.  both organizations help teach the boys the value of being a positive part of society.  i believe it takes a village to raise a child and i want to make sure that the village my boys are part of contains a range of positive influences.  i want them to see there is more to life than sports.  i was an athlete in school so i'm not bashing sports.  sports are part of the extra things the boys do, i just want the to be well rounded and have lots of pieces to the puzzle that makes them, them.  as an adult leader in scouts i now get to see it from a different perspective.  i am seeing how the different things we do come together to show these boys to honor and respect God, their country, and themselves.

tara

thankful: day 18

i am thankful that my children are not picky eaters.  they will try almost anything i put in front of them.  they rarely complain about what is cooked.  plus they are really healthy eaters.  they don't really care for a lot of fried greasy food.  i am thankful that they will eat fruits and vegetables, and lately they don't have to be covered with ranch.

tara

thankful: day 17

i am thankful for the great insurance we have had.  i never really realized how great our insurance was until we had to look at the options for next year.  there are major changes to the insurance lee has had at the bank for the last 11 years.  our premiums are maybe high, i think, but i don't really have much to compare it too.  we pay about $400 a month but that's for a family of 6 so to me it's not too bad.  it starts day one paying 80% on all claims, 100% on preventative care visits.  and after reaching a $5,000 deductible for the family (i'm not sure what the individual deductible is) it's covered 100%.  well...i have had a baby by c-section: which leads to a higher service and longer hospital stay.  tayte has had an overnight stay in the pedi-icu, 2 mris, 2 eegs, 1 cat scan, 1 mra, 1 emergency room visit, and 1 ambulance ride.  plus we put tayte in speech and occupational therapy this summer.  and we have YET to meet our deductible.  and now i have to have an umbilical hernia repaired and probably still will not meet the deductible.  so next year someone please remind me that i need to be thankful for any insurance that we have because not everyone has it.

tara

thankful: day 16

i am thankful that we decided to pray each night as a family.  i say each night, but it really ends up being most nights.  we try hard to do it every night, but sometimes life gets in the way.  i know it shouldn't but, that's a whole other subject.  so i am thankful we pray as a family.  it has taken a while to get the boys to open up and pray, but now that they do they ask God for some of the sweetest, most amazing things.

 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." matthew 7:7

the door has been opened for me and these prayers give me an insight into their thinking that few things do.  to listen to them all thank God for their brothers, to ask Him to protect their brothers, shows the love they have for them.  if it wasn't for those nightly prayers i wouldn't get to hear those things.  and even though they are great kids, they don't always show just how much they love each other. God is doing wonderful things through them and i get to watch.

tara

thankful: day 15

i am thankful for the home we have.  even when we bought it, it wasn't the house i wanted.  but, it was the first house that lee wanted and i could live with.  we have been here for almost 10 years and we have made it a home.  it isn't huge and the boys share rooms, in fact until just recently all the boys shared one room.  it keeps us warm in the winter, cool in the summer and full of love.  we have a table full of food every night.  we have many things we are blessed with and much to be thankful for.  i am thankful we have made this house a home.

tara

thankful: day 14

i am thankful for the bible study group i'm in and for the renew group that just ended.  i have been wanting to grow in my religious knowledge and these two groups have been a great way to do that.  i have learned so much from both of these groups and am grateful.  many times people ask me questions, especially my own children.  it seems that for some of them if i knew the answer i have forgotten it.  and, i guess because of my age i want to be able to answer them and know that i can't use the excuse that i didn't ever learn it for long.  i have to take my education into my own hands.  and with these two groups i am doing just that.

tara

thankful: day 13

i am thankful for dr. pepper and the individual who invented it.  i have one almost daily and need it some days to get my day going.

tara

thankful: day 12

i'm thankful that my children truly love each other.  i see other kids around their siblings and the way they fight or talk to each other.  it really makes me sad.  my boys do fuss with each other and have had their fair share of fights, but not like some of these kids.  i am so blessed to have boys that love each other and don't mind hugging and kissing each other in front of other people.  of all the things this is my proudest parenting achievement.

tara

thankful: day 11

i am thankful today and everyday for our veterans.  i will never comprehend their selflessness.  i understand the desire to do anything to keep my loved ones safe, but i don't have that same feeling for complete strangers.  to choose to be in harm's way so someone i don't know can go about their life and make any choice they wish is beyond my understanding.  and for many of those people to only think about soldiers one day a year.  veterans are AMAZING people.  and for their sacrifices i am thankful.

i am also thankful for their families.  they sacrifice so much too.  to send a loved one away into harm's way and to then have to worry about them because they won't hear from them for periods of time.

i am also thankful that the boys go to school where they do.  every year there is a program that honors our local veterans.  kindergarten through fifth grade sing several songs.  all of which are so danged good.  junior high kids do a flag show and the high school band plays a couple songs.  i love the song the band plays which is a medley of all branches songs.  then when a veteran's song plays they stand and get an applause.  names of all the veterans from the county that were killed in combat are called out.  and all veterans who are present have their names called and the branch they served.  i tear up at that part every time.  i am glad this is done because it instills a sense of pride and teaches kids how to show honor to these individuals.  i had a few friends who grew up here mention that they have the respect for veterans that they do because of the school doing this.

it seems so inadequate, but THANK YOU VETERANS!
tara

thankful: day 10

it seems i have issues and can't seem to get all of my days posted on the day.  oh well, better late than never, right?

i am thankful for the opportunity to pay it forward.  every time i had a baby i would always have several people bring dinner over for my family.  it was such a Godsend for someone to take time out of their busy life to bless me and my family.  i would appreciate a warm home cooked meal that i didn't have to prepare so much.  there recently has been a family that i have been able to use to pay it forward.  i am glad that we are able to bless this family like we have been so many times.  i ran into one of the girls and she told me how much she loved the food, which just made my day.  i think it was so good because while i was making it i was praying for healing for this mother and comfort for the family.  so it was not only made with love, but prayer.

tara

thankful: day 9

i am thankful for my life and my birthday.  i have had so many people wish me well wishes today that i am truly overwhelmed.  my day has been perfect!  nothing extravagant, but absolutely perfect.  to start the day i had my 4 favorite boys wake me up and be the first ones to wish me happy birthday.  i love when they are the first ones.  i got a homemade card shaped like a heart, the rest of the paper that the heart was cut out of, and a store bought card wishing me a happy 7th birthday with 2 of tayte's friends' names in it.  "because payton wanted to give you that one."  so i am 7 with 4 boys, one of which is 10.  don't do the math on that one, it's kind of embarrassing.  then after kayson decided he was not going to go back to sleep and was fussy, i got up to start the day.  the next time someone sends my infant a memo about not being fussy and sleeping in on mommy's birthday please read it to him!  i went to amarillo for my bible study which was a great way to get my day in gear, starting with learning more about God's plan for people!  had lunch with lee and some good conversation.  came home tried to sneak in a nap, but kayson foiled that plan too.  got all my kids and the extras i pick up where they needed to be.  went back to amarillo for guitar and gymnastics.  got whataburger for dinner-my favorite fast food joint.  then it was hot tub time with some girl friends.  so i didn't get my 5 minutes of alone time, but i did get 3 hours of girl time which is so much better.  read over 100 messages on facebook throughout the day.  and the last few i got had some typos, so it makes me wonder if they were having hot tub time of their own.  :p  34 is starting out pretty dang good.

tara

p.s.  for a few years i had the before my birthday curse.  during those years something bad always happened sometime during the week before my birthday.  for the last 2 years it hasn't happened so i think the curse has ended.  and for that i am eternally grateful!

thankful: day 8

i am thankful for the small town we live in.  small towns are the best for raising kids.  there are more freedoms.  there is less violence.  small town values are the best too.  for the most part everyone has similar ideas on how things should work.  you know almost everyone or at least recognize them and if you don't know them someone within earshot does. i firmly believe it takes a community to raise a child.  i am glad we have chosen this community.  lee and i do a lot with the kids of this community and i am glad that people show that we are appreciated.

small towns are great when things are going well, but they are also amazing when you are in a dark place.  four years ago when i lost my dad i couldn't go anywhere without someone letting me know they were thinking about me and praying for peace and comfort.

in many, many, many years when lee and i are home alone without any kids i hope we still think small towns are the best.

tara

thankful: day 7

even though i didn't post this yesterday i thought about them all day.  i knew what i was thankful for just didn't have or take the time to post it.  i am thankful for my friends.  i have been blessed with many friends.  some friends are closer than others.  i have several groups that fill different needs for me.  and all of them are special to me.  i need to talk: shocking i know.  God has blessed me with friends who will lend an ear.  some even come to me for advice, crazy but true!  without these relationships i would suffer greatly.  over the last few years i have needed these friends and without always being a great friend in return they were there for me no questions asked.  i thank them for that.  my best friend, sheryl, lets me say whatever i need to say and never thinks poorly of me.  we don't get to see each other as much as we did but we always pick up right where we left off.  i am most grateful for her.

tara

thankful: day 6

i am thankful for my church.  i have been to many churches in my life, but only one other comes close to having the same tight knit feeling i get from this one.  maybe it's because so many of them are related....or, maybe it's because so many of them have a strong faith....whatever the reason i am blessed to be a part of this parish.  today we had a potluck lunch.  an elderly lady asked if she could sit at the table lee, some of the boys and i were sitting at.  she said it had been a long time since she had sat with so many "young uns."  i am glad she sat with us.  i know her from seeing her at church, but we haven't ever really talked.  just some polite small talk.  she mentioned that she knew lee's granddad howard, so she knew lee from that.  but....the best thing was she knew MY grandmother.  louise elliott.  she started telling me about my grandma when she was younger.

...she was a beautiful woman.  she had dark hair and wore it wavy.  she was a beautiful dancer, she was so talented.  she was so thin...well she gained weight but not until she was much older.  and she was popular.

i am so blessed to hear that.  i am thankful to have heard this bit about my grandma...all because of the awesome church i go to.  i have been blessed because of how this church has helped me grow in my faith.  i am  thankful for being led to this church, because it made lee feel at home too.

tara

thankful: day 5

i am thankful for my family, especially those i spent the evening with.  even though i don't have a relationship with some i am still thankful.  because if not for them and the experiences i have had i would not be who i am today.

tara

thankful: day 4

i am thankful that my boys go to a school that they love.  we never have the fight over going to school...how many days left...do i have too?  i think the things they love the most are the teachers.  they hug their teachers past and present.  the teachers know them by name.  and the best part for me is that when we say our nightly prayers one of the boys thanks God for his teachers and school almost every night.  someone is doing something right for him to be grateful for them.  the teachers go out of their way to tell me things the boys have done, or how great they are.  for my boys to be a part of a school where they are loved is a wonderful thing...maybe that's why i haven't ever cried when i sent one of them to school.  i know they will be in great hands until i pick them up.  except that one time tayte's teacher lost him....

tara

thankful: day 3

i am thankful for my boys... all five of them. the one thing i am most proud of is being a mother. in my opinion it is the one thing i have always done well. like anyone i have my moments that aren't stellar, but i come back better than before. it is one of the few things i will never quit being and i am grateful for that.

baylee: he makes me a smarter person. he has always questioned EVERYTHING. i have googled more things for him, things i have forgotten or things i never knew. he has a kind heart and tries to keep the peace. that's why so many people like him. he has taught me to have a kinder heart, and for that i am blessed.

tayte: he has the sweetest heart. i love that every teacher he has ever had he still goes out of his way to hug them. he is a head first hugger, from that you know that he wants to hug you. he has taught me unconditional love in a way no one else has. he is a thinker too, you can see in his face and the comments he makes that he thinks about things. but, most of all his sense of humor and laugh is contagious. he tells a joke and laughs before he gets the punchline out.

payton: he is strong. he sees the way things should be and he sticks with the path he thinks will lead him to his goal. he is also extremely sweet. he loves his brothers and doesn't bat an eye at showing them. he as taught me there is a balance between stubbornness and gentleness.

trayce: he is in heaven waiting for me. even though he was only in my life for a short period of time the lesson he taught me is one that i needed to learn the most. and because of him i am a stronger more empathetic person.

kayson: when we were looking for names i kept coming back to this one. and when i realized what it means i knew that was going to be the name we would use boy or girl. kayson means "healer". and in his short life he has healed me. he has made me as whole as i can possibly be. for being so small he has done such a huge job. he has taught me to slow down and to cherish the time we have together.

i am grateful to be called mom to these boys. even though they are so young they have taught me so much. and as the parent i thought i was supposed to be the teacher. funny how this whole thing works.

tara

thankful: day 2

i am thankful for lee. he is an amazing man. i am so blessed to be able to call him my best friend, my husband, and the father of my children. he works hard so i can stay home and raise the boys. he provides for all our needs. he is a wonderful role model for our boys, showing them how a man should treat his wife and raise children. the quote "my father didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it."[Clarence Budington Kelland] is lee. he lives and shows these boys how to live. he is an involved dad: he coaches the boys in almost all sports, he helps with cub scouts, and in fact as i type this he is in the living room playing catch with payton and tayte. we are all better for having him in our lives. i thank God daily for giving me lee.

tara

thankful: day 1

last year i saw this and it was well into november when i finally did see it, so i said i would play along next year. well, it's next year....

i am thankful for a loving God. a God who believes in me even when i don't. a God who is my father and loves me unconditionally. He loves me so much He asked His only son to suffer for my sins. And Jesus did just that. suffered a horrendous death so that i have the chance to spend eternity with them. and the Holy Spirit to help guide me in my daily life and choices. i am blessed by Him beyond measure and for that i am grateful.

tara