Long Overdue Part II- Four Fifty-Six thru Four Seventy-Five

"But the Lord reigns forever, executing judgment from his throne. 

He will judge the world with justice and rule the nations with fairness.

The Lord is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.

Those who know your name trust in you, for you, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for you."

Psalm 9:7-10

Tuesday, October 4th

456) Family gatherings- Tonight four generations from my Dad's family were gathered together. My grandparents, my uncle, aunt, and cousins here in Albuquerque and our family all spent the evening together. It was wonderful- almost like a little taste of family gatherings from when I was a child. I loved it and am so thankful we were all able to spend time together as a family.


Wednesday, October 5th

457) "What's that?"- This is our daughter's latest phrase and sometimes, it is the only thing she says for an hour. She will ask us about items that she knows. She will point to something way out in the distance making it next to impossible to know which item she is talking about. She will ask and ask again- without a break until I can almost wish for silence. Yet, I am thankful for this phase in our daughter's life. She is curious and she wants to understand the world around her. I am thankful for that interest and the chance to teach our daughter more of and about the things in this world.


Thursday, October 6th

458) A long way to go- I know and recognize that even if I have grown and changed for the better, I still have a long way to go. At one point, this might have discouraged me, but now I am thankful to recognize how much more God has in store for me. This is not the end, which means what is yet to come must be awesome and indescribable.


Friday, October 7th

459) "No h'air balloons."- We planned to go to a hot air balloon glow this week and once even were in the car with the hopes that the balloons would inflate. Sadly the weather has not cooperated and on that night, we had to tell our very anxious and excited two year old that we couldn't see the hot air balloons that night. We were worried about her reaction which made us so delighted when she told us just a few minutes later, "No h'air balloons tonight." What an amazing reaction and sense of acceptance from such a small child.


Saturday, October 8th

460) "The field is cleared to go."- This morning was our last chance to go to the Balloon Fiesta. We were up and out the door early to insure we didn't miss any of the festivities. So how discouraging it was to hear that the balloons may not be able to take off. The weather was questionable to the north and might make landing troublesome. We would never want to endanger the balloonists but it was still hard to hear. After nearly a 45 minute delay, we heard, "The field is cleared to go." What excitement as that first balloon lifted into the air and hundreds of balloons followed after. I'll never tire of watching hot air balloons and so I am thankful for another chance this morning.


Sunday, October 9th

461) Life is unfair- I am grateful I don't always get a fair shake. We often see how unfairness robs us of things we think we deserve or we recognize how life is unfair when it works against us, but so often the unfairness of life works to my advantage. With all the focus in our government on tax reform these days, I realized we benefit from the fact that life isn't fair. If it was, we would all pay the same percentage period. There would be no exceptions. (At least, that's how I see fairness playing out. I realize others have another idea of what would be fair). However we don't. There are deductions and credits that can help reduce an individual or family's tax and that is the case for our family. We have been financially blessed to the "unfairness" of our current tax system. More importantly, I am grateful for unfairness as it applies to my eternal life. Christ didn't deserve the punishment; I did. If life was fair, I would never have the chance to spend eternity in His presence because I am a sinner and have not kept God's law perfectly.  I was saved not out of fairness, but out of love and sacrifice.


Monday, October 10th

462) Herbs- Herbs are seemingly rather small, but oh, what a wonderful addition of flavor they can bring.


Tuesday, October 11th

463) Online shopping- Every move requires some new items for the house. With this house, the biggest issue is that there are quite a few more windows than we had in our last place and they are not similar in size. What this has meant is that we needed to purchase quite a few curtain rods and curtains. After looking for curtain rods at any and every store I could think of (I can count at least 10), I turned to the online world with more options and greater stocks at my disposal. This proved to be a good move as I was finally able to locate what I was looking for, in my price range, and thereby was able to finish one of our main living spaces.


Wednesday, October 12th

464) More visitors- I wasn't expecting any more visitors until the holiday season, and even then, I wasn't expecting to see my side of the family until sometime next year. What a wonderful surprise to find out my older sister and her son and daughter are coming to stay with us for a few days. I am so thankful they can come and cannot wait to spend time with them!


Thursday, October 13th

465) Being Uncomfortable- Recently I have found myself in some uncomfortable spots. There is really nothing I can do to change the situation; it is what it is. It stems from something that is just a part of who I am and cannot be changed. I have rarely had to deal with such a situation before, but I know others who must face this same kind of situation a lot. Through my uncomfortableness, I can and am learning more about me and others. It reminds me of God's ultimate design and plan in this world. So in the end, maybe being uncomfortable isn't always a bad thing.


Friday, October 14th

466) Re-purposing- With all our moving, I find that I re-purpose items each and every time we live in a new house. It cuts down on our expenses and allows me to get more use out of the items we already own. Plus it gives me some chances to flex my creative muscle.


Saturday, October 15th

467) Open late- We have been potty training our toddler the past several days and as it is in the early stages, I have not gotten away from the house much while she is home. I've wanted to focus on teaching her the basics in the hopes that she will apply them on her own in the future. All of this makes me quite grateful for stores that have later hours so I can run an errand or two after our little one is asleep. Not only am I grateful for the stores but I am also thankful for those individuals who work the later shifts that allows the store to maintain those hours.


Sunday, October 16th

468) A little ditty- Our daughter loves music, so to help encourage her during potty training and at the same time teach her some lessons about the potty, I have come up with a few potty song(s).   Not only have they helped pass along our expectations and goals to our daughter without being too "preachy" or serious but they have also helped keep my stress level down throughout the process.


Monday, October 17th

469) Confidence- Whenever I take on a new endeavor, there is always a little doubt. Can I really do this? I felt that way as I began each job I have worked. I felt that way at times throughout my pregnancy and I felt that way as I watched Drew commission into the Army. My confidence may still waiver or flag at times, but with each passing day I find I have a growing confidence that I can do the work set before me.


Tuesday, October 18th

470) Patience- I've known this was a blessing for a long time but haven't commented on it because it's not something I always have in great supply. I like tangible results and when I can't recognize progress, I get impatient and question myself. I see that happening now as we work to finally and fully potty-train our daughter. Sadly I can also see that my impatience is likely affecting her and slowing down her ability to be completely successful. Patience- a great blessing and something I need more of.


Wednesday, October 19th

471) Curtains- One of the first things I like to do after we move is arrange the large pieces of furniture and hang curtains. Since we have always lived in rentals, we cannot paint the walls so curtains have proved to be an excellent way to immediately add a bit of color as well as warmth and a sense of home.


Thursday, October 20th

472) Recipes- I've never been very confident with my cooking. I can cook basic things, but I would never try to just throw something together. I don't trust my knowledge of blending flavors and knowing tastes (like with herbs), so I am ever so thankful for recipes which allow me to expand our meal repertoire without the fear of absolute failure or disaster.


Friday, October 21st

473) New avenues- My last visit to a doctor concerning my migraines left me a little defeated. I knew I still had other options that I could pursue, but I just didn't feel up to it at that time. I've visited with many doctors and never walked away with more answers than I already had; this last doctor was the same. Today I was reminded that defeat does not have to be the final verdict. There are others- some who specialize in headaches- who I could still possibly see, and there are other non-medicinal options out there as well. I cannot say whether there is relief in my future, and if not, I am thankful for the level of functioning I do have and the friends and family who are here (near and far) to support me. However, I am not ready to resign myself to this life of migraines and I am blessed to be reminded that there are still other avenues to pursue.


Saturday, October 22nd

474) Allergy acceptance- When we found out that our daughter might live with a restricted diet because of her allergies into her preschool or even early elementary years, there were some concerns. One of those was how she would handle the fact that there are a lot of foods she just can't eat- even if everyone is. I am so grateful for the understanding and acceptance our daughter has, even at such a young age. Instead of throwing a fit or trying to sneak something she knows she can't eat, our daughter reiterates that the food will give her an "owie in her tummy" and asks to merely smell the forbidden food. It amazes me.



475) Waiting- Sometimes waiting can lead to incredible blessings, particularly when you have given a situation to the Lord and are waiting upon him. Many people have talked to both Drew and I about another child or the benefits to having children closer in age. Despite all the positives we have heard, I am thankful that we have waited to have a second child. We had our own reasons for wanting some time between our first child (and any future children we may be blessed with), but lately I have seen so many unplanned benefits to us and our daughter because we waited. I know it would be a joy to watch our daughter with a sibling, but I don't mind the wait.