Simple thanks

Pretty regularly, thought not as often as I would like, I sit down and reflect on simple things that I am thankful for.  I think that sometimes it is easy to pray to God for the things that we need or the areas that we are struggling in, and forget to have an attitude of thanksgiving throughout the year.  My heart and spirit are

always encouraged when I am able to take a step back and say thanks to the Lord for what He has done in and around me.  Here is my most recent prayer of thanks for some of those things:

Thank you for iced hazelnut coffee, for whispy white clouds, and for a living room full of laughter and friends.  Thanks for being able to bake with kids who don't always get to be "kids" at home, for heart to heart talks with co-workers at lunch, and for a bedroom with a beautiful view out the window.  Thank you for the way you created each and every one of us unique and gifted in so many different ways.  Thanks for books and music and nature that can all point us to you.  Thanks for the access to the Internet that allows me to have sweet time with my precious niece and to send silly pictures to my brothers and parents.  Thanks for my reliable car that gets me where I need to be, and for safety as I zip around this country of crazy roads and driving.  Thanks for the freedom to vote and to voice your opinion about politics and all that stuff that goes with it.  Thanks for friends who will call you out when you're being mean and who will encourage you when you're feeling down.  Thanks for hugs from little ones and for smiles and laughs.  Thank you for each and every day you give us on this Earth.  It is a gift and I pray that I will live it to the fullest.

I'm thankful for friends like Rose

Angry Bird pizza success with some of the older students

Science experiment with the younger students