More Gifts

Wow! This 1000 Gifts thing is a little more difficult than I thought it would be. The cool thing is that it's helping me to appreciate the little things in life. Things like...

49. Coffee and quiet time on my couch
50. Summer church camp for kids and the amazing people who pour God's love into our children's hearts
51. All God's creatures and critters — especially the ones who love you back


52. My dad
53. Libraries
54. Old friends (old, as in known for a long time...I don't have any old friends!)
55. New friends
56. Happy Hour — at Sonic
57. Sonic ice
58. Little helping hands


59. The little fingerprints on my glass-top kitchen table...because one day they'll be gone and I'll wish they were there
60. Hand-me-downs
61. Getting to give hand-me-downs
62. Lightning bugs
63. Watermelon
64. Ice Cream
65. Home-grown tomatoes
66. God's grace and the fact that I can rely on him to "cover me"
67. Tea parties
68. Pedicures and pretty toes
69. Playdates at the park with friends
70. God's Word says that "Gray hair is a crown of splendor"...because I'm getting a lot of it
71. A scale that say's I'm "thinner" (found this at the hotel we recently stayed at in Chicago). Gotta love it — especially because I ate enough of that deep dish pizza to gain 10 pounds!


72. The men and women who fight for our freedom
73. Fireworks
74. Sand and water...and the hours of entertainment it can provide


75. The power of prayer
76. Prayer-warrior friends
77. Crossing off something that's on my "to do" list
78. Coupons
79. My friends who teach me how to use coupons
80. A good night's sleep
81. My health (which I'm learning not to take for granted)
82. Laughter...especially from a child
83. When God gives me glimpses and I start to see the "pieces of the puzzle" coming together
84. Carousel rides


85. The way the Lord sends just the right person, just the right Word, at just the right time to encourage me
86. The fact that our toil is not in vain in the Lord (1 Corin 15:57-58). The Message puts it like this..."Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that NOTHING you do for him is a waste of time or effort." If the mountain of dirty clothes never goes away or the floor never stays clean, it is o-k-a-y!
87. The father my husband is to our children




88. Brownies (yep, just enjoyed one) :)
89. A swim instructor who taught my child to swim in 10 minutes
90. Bug spray
91. Sunscreen (and the fact that I've finally come to my senses about using it). Those baby oil days are long gone!
92. The freedom from a schedule (but just you wait...come September, I'll be thankin' the Lord for a schedule)
93. Cell phones — what did we ever do without them?
94. Blue skies and the feel of the sun shining on my face
95. Strongholds that no longer have power — "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds." 2 Corinthians 10:4
96. As I walk past the bathroom someone just used...boy am I thankful for air freshener/neutralizer :)
97. Microwaves that defrost in minutes — oh, so handy when I wait to the last minute to decide what to make for dinner
98. A good movie the whole family can enjoy
99. Opening my mailbox to find a real letter/card from a friend (rare in the days of email)
100. The way Facebook helps me stay in contact with friends
101. Financial Peace University (Dave Ramsey) and how it has impacted my family's life
102. Good conversation over date night
103. Saturday morning breakfasts — pancakes and sausage — my family's favorite
104. Researchers who develop new treatments for cancer (and other diseases)
105. Vacation
106. Exploring new cities
107. The incredible way that the Lord knit my Cameron together and is molding his heart. The other day we went to Gattitown to celebrate Hannah Grace's birthday. Cameron won almost 600 tickets (more than he'd ever earned in one day) and was so excited to be able to turn them in for a prize. We're talking...you can get a prize off the wall, not the ones in the piddly little bins. Without being told, he gave them ALL to Hannah Grace. Just gave them away...blows my mind! All glory to God!
108. "Mom and me" days with my mommy
109. The fun we have as a family on the Sea Doo

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights..."
James 1:17

How I thank him for being SUCH a giver! And for giving me the most precious gift of all!

"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us ALL—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:32