Being Thankful

I am hosting my family's Thanksgiving this year.  This is the first time EVER having my family for this holiday and I'm super excited!  Of course 2 of my siblings and their families will be missing b/c they have to go to their outlaws husbands families this year. ;)  (Just being silly...so if my sisters see this they don't get upset with me...:))

Anyway, I have been busily making preparations (and probably spending too much money...but hey, everything has to be just right you know...), cleaning, cleaning, and more cleaning.  ;)

Of course I have to make it fancy...that's my way!  So for the first time since mom passed away we are digging out her china and having a sit down, pass the dishes, dress up, fancy dinner!  Mom would be so excited! Of course my dad will love that we are having a sit down dinner...he hates buffets!  LOL

I have my napkins for the adult table all ready...

My sister found them for me super cheap...and the napkin rings too!  I have some other pre-prep things done as well, but I'll do a full Thanksgiving day post after the fact, so I need to save some stuff for then...besides I don't want all my family to see everything early. ;)

 

Today I made my noodles, so they can be drying.  Have to have homemade noodles...I mean it's part of the dinner!

 

In "other" news...Firefighter must be totally stressed out with school, clinicals, work, social life, no sleep...I found 3 more grey hairs in this dudes head!  He is trying to claim it's the lighting, but uhhh...NO!  I found one over the summer and it's so funny b/c I haven't found any on myself yet...(yes I know I will probably find 10 tomorrow, but so far...or else they are where I can't see them!)

 

And finally for today, I seen this quote the other day and it couldn't have come at a better time for me.  Someone...who thinks I need "old-hurts-to-be-resurfaced-over-and-over-again" tried again last week...and this quote was so perfect!  Love it!

 

I remember my mother telling about someone who had hurt her so terribly and she remembered a devotion in Streams in The Dessert that talked about digging a hole and burying the hurt.  (I don't know the date right off, but if I find it I will edit the post.)  She said one day she was determined to bury that hurt.  She got down to pray and she started mentally digging a hole.  She got so far, but no, that's not deep enough, that's too shallow to easy to dig it back up again...She wanted it buried so deep that it would be very difficult to dig it up.  I have been thinking about that a lot the last couple days.  Mom finally got her hole deep enough and let it go.  I'm trying...I'm working on it.  I'm digging that hole...

 

Hurts are all part of,



  

If you can read...

...you can travel anywhere!  Right?  We've all heard that.  But my Lego Man has struggled, for YEARS!  And because of that he hated reading.  He has been behind on his reading level.  I was determined that this year we are catching up.  If we learn nothing else this year he will be reading...at the level he should be at. 

He has a condition called binocular dysfunction.  Meaning his dominant eye changes.  If he is looking at something and looks up when he looks back the dominant eye changes and he loses his place, making it difficult to follow a story or thought.  He went through eye therapy for this and was pretty much finished when we moved to another state, and things kind of got away from us.

While trying to figure out how to make this year be "THE" year...I was spending a lot of time praying about this situation.  I then remembered a set of small chapter books I had as a child.  Each book only has like 4 or 5 chapters in them.  I thought these would be perfect.  Not too big to "scare" him but no pictures and fun at the same time. 

My aunt was currently borrowing my set so I got them back from her.  On the first day of school I introduced them to Lego Man.  I said, you have to read 1 chapter a day.  That's all...one chapter, then you have to tell me what that chapter was about.  The first day he spelled...out loud...about every other word and asked what it was.  It took him all day long to read one chapter...bless his heart.  I was feeling a bit discouraged by the end of that day.  The next day wasn't much better.  The third day, I was like, "Lord, I can't do this!  This is insane!"  But I felt strongly, just keep doing what you are doing.  Don't quit, just keep going.  I honestly feel that God was encouraging me to just keep going.  So that is what we did.  When he started on the third day to ask every other word, his older brother, Firefighter, and I had a discussion with him about context...and all that.  He asked a few words but not nearly as many.  The next day I think he only asked about 2 words.  Friday-one word.  Now he very rarely if ever asks!  There are 23 books in this set and he is on book 14.  He is enjoying them!  He often reads more than one chapter a day...some days he reads the whole book and asks for the next one!  Brings tears to my eyes!

 
One day he brought his book to the table for family game night.  Firefighter was like, "Whoa!  I never would have gotten away with that!  Bringing my book to the table!"  But I was like, "Leave him alone!  I'm so happy to see him reading AND ENJOYING it that I don't even care!"  When he is done with this series I will give him a bigger chapter book, but I am so elated!  So thankful!  So thankful that I kept plugging on!  Like it was some kind of test or something and I passed!  THAT made ME feel good!  And to see him reading and loving it!  He gets so excited about some of the stories he is so funny!

Love my sweet boys!  Yesterday I fell off a chair and landed hard on my backside.  Kind of stoved my back a little.  When the boys found out, they hugged me and said, "I'll pray for you momma!  I'm praying for your back, hope it gets better fast!"  Just hearing them say that made my eyes quickly fill with tears...and suddenly my back didn't hurt so bad.  These boys could be giving there momma a rough way to go, but they are praying for me!  I have much to be thankful for!  So much...

Thankfully,

Smile big!

Finally!!!  After a little over 2 years the braces came off yesterday!  I can not find the before pics right this moment, but trust me when I say it's drastic!  Especially for Firefighter!

 
 

 
 



 



 After we left these dudes, were hilarious!  They gave them "goodie bags" with all the chewy candies in it they weren't allowed suppose to eat.  They are popping that candy in their mouths and say, there take that Dr. _______.  "Look what I'm eating!"  LOL  They keep me laughing!

 

Then last night we are sitting here and the boys are talking about their "braces removal experience". They were talking about the drilling process of removing the glue and how much they hated it. I said yeah and you looked like you have chalk dust all over your faces. Their dad being concerned about Pilot's lungs points to him and says, "didn't he have on a mask?!". Firefighter looks at his dad and says, "are you serious?!" FF then says, "Job security."  Oh how I love my family!  These boys make life so much fun!

Part of,
 

Closer

I woke up this morning with this song running through my head

 

When I grow weary with the toils of the day

Oft in the secret I knees and pray

there I can hear my Lord Sweetly say

Come Closer my child to me.

 

Closer my child to me

Closer my child to me

Closer my child to me

Come closer

Come closer

Closer my child to me.

 

Then during my devotional this morning my Streams in the Dessert devotional book (which I absolutely love btw) the title of todays read was:  "Come Close to Him".

 

You see last night I became engaged in a conversation that I feel very passionate about, but have come to realize that who it was being discussed with is not appropriate...they can do nothing about it.  I keep telling myself it is not going to happen again, but then I find myself in the middle of it, then I feel bad by the time it is over.  Leaving that place last night and feeling like I had taken a beating, I once again determined that the only thing I can do about this really is just pray and leave it in God's hands.  Why do we think he will not take care of these things that are important to us.  Yes the other party agrees with me and we just get in a passionate conversation about it, when really we should be praying.

 

I begged God to please forgive me and PLEASE help me.  Off and on all night...everytime I would wake up...I would pray about this situation.  Then being the faithful God that he is, I woke with this song running through my mind, and reading this devotion.  I can't say it will never be discussed again...because it very well may come to the place that it has to be discussed with the PROPER "authorities", but by the help of God I do not plan to put myself in that situation again!  I do not like feeling like I have let God down...or myself! 

 

This is life...

this is learning...

and we are still,