Today I am thankful for my children’s generosity and desire to serve others.
What are you thankful for today?
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Today I am thankful my husband didn’t have to work overtime for the first time in months, nor does he have to work this weekend. We’ve missed him terribly. Don’t get me wrong, the overtime is a blessing, especially with the Christmas coming up and we’re in the midst of purchasing a homestead, but it is nice to have him home. We have many reasons to give thanks to God. Many blessings.
Hello one and all from Australia :D.
Today I am thankful for good friends, one whom I have invited over for late lunch tomorrow to our home after church.
I am thankful for a healthy family.
In view of the events in Paris, today I am very grateful that my Husband and I have this morning to share together. All is quiet in our neighborhood and this is something I am not taking for granted. Thank you to you, Brandy, for teaching us how to be prepared for what may come our way! It is a comfort to me to know that my freezer and pantry are full!
We had beautiful huge snowflakes fall last night. I stood in the kitchen window and enjoyed watching them for a bit.
I am thankful for the Boston marrow & the butternut squash that grew in our garden this year. I used baked pureed squash to make gluten free “pumpkin ” pancakes for dinner last night.
I’m thankful that my children have so many cousins of a similar age to grow up with.
Today I am thankful for good, close friends who listen to me when I need to pour my heart out about a personal matter and do not judge. The know the personal grief I feel because we all have children who have made serious mistakes. Sometimes as a parent we can be judged by what our kids do. Even when those ‘kids’ are adults and we as parents have no control over their actions, we somehow feel like it is our fault because somehow me made mistakes when we raised them. I am in such a situation now. Last night I was able to share my heart with close friends who understood my broken heart and listened to me. I know that is a gift to me from my Lord. Now I do not keep it bottled up inside myself. God has put some wonderful friends in my life, a great husband, and many more riches. I am thankful for that. As a mother I sometimes ‘beat myself up” over things I no longer have control of. I worry about where “I went wrong” as a mother. I just have to let the Lord be the Lord and let Him handle the situation.
I am grateful for beautiful weather the last few days. I was able to harvest three small cabbages and freeze three quart bags of Brussell sprouts. That’s the end of the garden and I am thankful for its productivity.
Hi Roxie and it is a true blessing to have such close friends to share problems with.
We as mothers are natural nurturers, it is natural to have the what if I did this scenario, and feel it is our fault as a parent. I can say that we can only do our best and that is what we do as parents.
With worldly influences once our children reach age of consent, then our children take over their own decisions and have a choice to do things the way they were bought up or on a lot of occasions to follow what others are doing whether that be good or bad. We as parents as hard as it is have to let them make their own decisions and make mistakes in life, hoping above all hope that they learn by their experiences eventually.
I have one child who has gone very astray and is and has been an adult over the age of consent for some time. I know I bought him up well, and all I can do is pray that some day he will get back on the right track again. Until then I have put him and the situation in the hands of god knowing he will guide him on the right path. He has to of course be willing to change his life too, and see what a destructive course he is on before he can be helped, rather than blame the world for his bad decisions.
I am thankful that my husband arranged to have my snow tires on a week or two ago. There are subtle hints of possible snow in the weather reports, but I’m prepared if it happens.
I am thankful I have a husband who is “on board” with being prepared for emergencies. I am almost completely finished with our pantry restock – just need a bit more of the baking items that are coming up on sale + a few more cans of veggies and beans.
The generosity of children: you reminded me of this simple story my daughter told me this morning.
My 23 year old granddaughter is in NYC for an internship. She is a “country girl” and has been homesick and has few friends there. Last night she was in a bookstore in NY when the news about Paris starting coming in. One of the employees in the bookstore was very upset because her mother was in Paris. My grand-daughter stayed with her and offered what comfort she could until the woman found out her mother was safe. Sometimes as parents, we do something RIGHT, too.
I am thankful for the abundance in my life, family, friends, a wonderful dog, paid bills, a warm house. I am also grateful that Brandy has this topic because it reminds me to say thanks.
I am thankful for getting safely to Poland last night. I had 2 layovers and at a first one in Amsterdam I heard about the horrible tragedy in Paris. I am grateful that all my family and friends in Paris are safe as well
Roxie, this is all so true and heartbreaking. We did the best we could. There are many of us out here, but we are quiet because we’re so steeped in grief. This time of year makes it more difficult. There is a wonderful book called “When Our Grown Children Disappoint Us” by Jane Adams. I think it might help.
Today I am thankful for friends who gave us 4 Dungeness crab they had caught. Tonight I had a wonderful Crab Louis salad, compliments of our friends. I am very grateful that people are so thoughtful and caring. Crab is a big treat to us, but we don’t buy it; we only get it when we catch it or someone else does, and shares.
Lorna, thank you for the kind words. (it is funny to me that your name is Lorna, that is my sister’s name too) I have 2 sons. One, the oldest has made a huge strides in his life. He is about to turn 41 and is about to be a licensed PA. He has gone to school almost 15 years now. First to get into nursing then up the ladder. He has done it 100% on his own. He did some college help from his father and I but when he married he left college to support his family. He went to school and college at the same time. Got a masters in nursing and when that was not enough he went on to be a PA. I asked him why he did not just to medical school and be a doctor and he has not got an answer for me. Some people just have to do things the hard way. He and his wife have raised 2 of the finest kids I have ever known. (even if I do say so myself) His wife did not work till the kids were in middle school. My son wanted it that way. He wanted his wife, their mother at home with the kids like I was there at home with him and his brother when they were kids. I am so proud of that boy I could burst.
My other son, 4 years younger, is just such a different person. I don’t understand how 2 boys, same parents, raised the same way can be so different. I did not expect son 2 to be in the health field or do what his brother has done. But I never expected him to be in trouble with the law and lead such a different life since he was less than 15 years old. We tried so hard to get him help when he was a boy. We knew he had some ‘problems’ but had no idea they would lead to drugs and such. It is just so hard to watch someone you love go head first into trouble and feel helpless to help. I do pray for him. I do know he is an adult. We are raising his 2 sons. Since his boys were babies he has not had custody of them. Their mother is as bad or worse than my son. Her mother, the other grandmother, and I have raised these boys since they were born. We got physical custody of them before the youngest, now 13 was 1 year old. So as grandparents in our 60’s we are raising teens again. I am so afraid of making another ‘mistake’ and having these boys go down that wrong road. I try hard to make sure they understand that their dad is not a good example. They do not see their mother. We do not even know where she is. But their father does see them once in a while and they do know him. It just seems wrong to me to try and make the boys understand I do not want them to be like their father. They have seen me cry more than once because of my son. They know there is problems because when my son does come around he is often asking for money or something and I turn him down. The know that because of my small business (I am a licensed child care provider) that their father can not be in our home between the hours of 7:00am and 6:00pm Monday through Friday because he is a convicted felon. It just pains me so much some times.
Years ago I needed some help with raising my son. We spent a lot of money on doctors for him. Getting him some mental health help. We went to a group at our church called ‘tough love’ for parents trying to deal with kids in trouble. There we met some great people who understood our issues. Often times others, who have never had a ‘difficult’ child do not understand what is going on with the family. My oldest son, bless his heart, he shared with me that he felt lost and left out a lot because my husband and I devoted so much time and money to trying to help son 2. That is another load of “hurt” on my heart for him. So I sometimes get down about the situation. I should know better, but I never seem to learn.
Sorry Brandy, I did not mean to take over your blog. You write a beautiful blog and I don’t want to bring it down. I just wanted to thank Lorna for her comment and share more of my heart with someone who understood.
Hi Marcia and what a beautiful story about what your granddaughter did, a story of self sacrifice and pure love for another human being. It would have been a harrowing time for the employee of that bookstore until she found out that her mother was safe.
You are right that we as parents need to focus on the right things we do as well, more so than dwell on the things we think we have done wrong and blame ourselves too.
I remember one of my children who came home with a little boy in primary school who didn’t want to go home and was distressed. He asked me if he could live with us mummy ?. The little boy had high level autism and his parents as much as they tried could not stop him from running away from home or control his violent temper tantrums and were simply worn out.
We consulted with his parents and the foster children’s welfare department who didn’t have enough foster carers to take in all the troubled children and give them a home, they looked around our home and said they were happy for him to be placed with us. His parents would come and visit him regularly in our home. This simple act by a young child who recognised a friend in need, led to this troubled little boy living in our home for 6 months. After he left us and went back home, he never did run away again & his parents and I became lifelong friends.
Hi Roxie and as another parent I offer you support, my astray son has the same problem. You did everything you possibly could and took the same steps as myself. Remember it was his choice, agency and decisions that led him to this time in his life and the consequences and not yours. As an adult he is free to make his own decisions, but not in control of the consequences.
Your oldest son understands now he is grown too.
All we can do as parents is love them, not give them money to support their habit, and be there for them if they come out the other side realising their mistakes and changing their lifestyle choices themselves.
I understand how heartbreaking it is to see them deteriorate before your eyes as I too have seen it and experienced it. My son who was a gifted child and could read and write at the age of 2, can now no longer write his name and address. He was also a very healthy 6’3″ man with a good strong build and broad shoulders, he is now or when I last saw him thinner than I am for his height, and half the size man he used to be. To give you an idea I am 5’8″ tall and 55kg in weight.
The only way to get through this is to know that you have done your best and you have, put it in the hands of God, and realise that the rest and his recovery is up to him. Recovery for him and my son will only come when they want to change and take the necessary steps, we cannot do that for them as much as we would love to as parents.
Hi Melissa and like you I am blessed to have a husband who is “on board” with preparing for emergencies.
It is so helpful when both husband and wife are on the same page and it gets you better prepared more quickly. My husband even asks me each fortnight what we need and we compare notes about what we have noticed we have used in the house so that we can either replace it, or wait for specials and then replace it. It is sort of a double check system by the 2 of us and I do have to say, my husband sometimes picks up on stocks needed for the home, that I have overlooked too :).