Thankful Thursday

The unthankful heart... discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and, as the magnet finds the iron, so it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings! --Henry Ward Beecher




It's time to count blessings. Yes, indeedy. The repetitive nature of dishes and crumbs and reminding the kids to close the front door all. the. way... rattles the spirit like a pesky fly. Counting the beautiful swats the fly away, squashing the ungrateful, monotony-driven inner tirade.

I don't mean to compare my darling children to flies. I would never.

My children bless my socks off. Honestly. But their crumbs? Not so much.

Dear Lord, I thank you for these graces....

~ Tikki Tikki Tembo, retold by Arlene Mosel...because my girls get so excited when they successfully recite this long Chinese name. It's so catchy.




~ Cornfield Hide-And-Seek, by Christine Widman...because we're having a heatwave and my kids can totally imagine hiding in a shady, cool cornfield. We're sun dazzled too. They can't get enough of this sweet story.




~ Wallace's Lists, by Barbara Bottner and Gerald Kruglik. This story of young Wallace, who writes endless lists about anything and everything and fears many things, especially change, is incredibly heartwarming, especially as he starts a friendship with the adventurous boy next door. "Read it again!", they keep telling me. I cried at the end the first time and it isn't even sad. "You're not crying, are you, Mommy?"




~ The tween summer program at the library.. Tonight they threw paint-filled balloons onto a Styrofoam canvas. And the result? Striking art work. Every Thursday night is a different project or theme...not always art. The boys can't wait for next week.

~ Caring for young children in the evenings? Exhausting. The dinner and devotions, the vitamins, the dessert, the baths, the pajamas, the teeth. All of it with the time pressure to get them into bed at a decent hour while still enjoying stories, lends itself to aggravation. (Except the stories and prayer part.) My husband could easily let me do it all. He's gone twelve hours a day and many a man would just sit in a chair and expect to be served after such a long day. But not my husband. He tackles it all with me because we're in this together and he would never consider it my job exclusively. He's not always patient or exemplary about delays, but who is night after night? Certainly not me. Tonight I give thanks for a faithful, steadfast, sacrificial dad. A faithful, steadfast, sacrificial husband. I praise you God for this man in our lives. He didn't get his due on Father's Day because of my string of headaches. He makes a low wage and the world tells him he's nothing. But to us he's magnificent. Faithful, steadfast, sacrificial...that says it all.


~ Paul loves baking more and more all the time. A side job as a baker someday, he wonders? He feels so grown up to be doing it all himself, except for opening the oven--I draw the line there for now. His peanut-butter blossoms? Stunningly delicious. I daydreamed today about his someday bakery business. Could he call it Baking For His Glory and hand out baked goods to people in hospitals and nursing homes, along with encouraging Scriptures? A man's burden to provide makes it challenging to advise boys on job prospects. So many wonderful things don't make enough money (ask Shaun Groves). We can hardly send our boys out there to provide without devoting years of prayer. Many a Christian woman will want a high-earning man, but working for Christ doesn't always bring an impressive financial yield. And I want my boys working for Christ, above all. We can do many things for His glory--I suppose even at the stock exchange. But still. We mommies need to pray now for the right Christian girl to come along...one who will honor and uphold our boys' commitment to the things of the Lord. (Paul also wants to be a math and art teacher.)


~ My 3-year-old and 10-year-old wear glasses now. So studious, their new looks. (Our old, slow computers make it painful to download pictures, but I'll get around to it eventually.)


~ Simple things turn summer into giggles...like little water guns and $5 sprinklers and sidewalk chalk and bubbles and wands. Kids live to the fullest, uninhibited. What a privilege to witness it all.


~ Mary and Peter have taken up Japanese Beetle hunting. These pests attack the young cherry tree in the backyard every year and need to be annihilated. Mary and Peter? They're experts at catching any kind of insect. You'd be amazed (they keep a running tally). But Paul? Not so and that makes his competitive spirit come alive, even though insects aren't his thing. He wants his "yield" to be as high as brother's and sister's. Go figure. Not sure why I'm listing this as a blessing but it's an amusing slice of childhood. I need these slice of life moments to make me smile through dishes and laundry.


~ Daddy started The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe with the boys last night. More than a little smitten with this "very exciting" story, they were torn this morning about whether to read it themselves or wait for Daddy to continue at night. I think they're opting for both. 







~ Three-year-old Beth slept poorly through her arthritis-flare months. I ended up in her queen bed many a night, soothing. Frequent night pain passed away, followed by her dreams as my nighttime enemy. Several times a night she would cry out for me following vivid dreams. Sometimes a funny one would follow a bad and she would giggle in her sleep. According to other moms this is common for her age. Last night she woke up whimpering and after nursing briefly I thought she was asleep again. But minutes later she asked, eyes wide with fear, "when would we go outside?". A sleepy Momma responded, "After my shower in the morning I'll take you outside." Then she began crying and I realized she had a scary dream about being outside. I told her she didn't have to go outside at all and I pulled her toward me, completely engulfing her in my embrace--something she usually rejects because it's too confining. But her fear made the embrace welcome this time. And I loved it! It was a blessing to melt away her fears with my love and protection...to hear her return to sweet slumber in my embrace. Someday I'll sleep through the night again. But for now these night soothings can be so sweet. Being a nighttime Jesus to a fearful child? Awesome.


~ Without a working lawnmower our yard became an eyesore with the clover taking over. Bees became a big issue and the kids couldn't use the yard. My aunt and uncle heard about it from their son, who helped my husband change out our toilet last weekend. (Can I get an Amen?) Always generous, they gave us $200 to get a good used lawn mower (we've had a used lawn mower go out every year for the past three years...it's nearly comical by now, except for the bees). At the same time one became available through my husband's job, for just $40. So we tried to give the money back to my aunt and uncle but they wouldn't take it. Well, our kids have never had swimming lessons, ever. The cost was always prohibitive. Until my aunt and uncle's gift. I'm teary-eyed writing this. I hated taking this money, especially after their very generous Christmas gift of van- and car-repair money. I rejoice that in spite of my ugly pride, my boys are getting something they truly needed. (The girls are younger and can wait longer.) The Lord is faithful!


All of this generosity became possible after my uncle's father passed away last fall at the age of 93. He was a wonderful Christian man--loving, prudent, faithful, self-controlled. He and his wife--who died three years before him--lived in the same tiny house for over sixty-five years, even though on an engineer's salary they could have afforded bigger and better. They said no to materialism and ego. And because of inheritance my uncle and aunt can afford to be generous with us--because they, too, say no to materialism. When a Christian honors God faithfully, putting Him first and allowing His spirit to penetrate every aspect of life? Endless blessings flow, often for generations, because one man chose to worship God over himself. My boys will hear how their swimming money got into their hands--through one man's godly leadership and holiness. I hope they remember it long...for years after the swimming lessons end.

I realize it's no longer Monday or Thursday, but linking with these grateful ladies anyway. Ann's Father's Day post? Amazing and beautiful tribute to her husband. I cried over the unexpected gift from their kids.