thankful.

This year, as Thanksgiving approaches, I have felt overwhelmed by all that I have to be thankful for.  Mostly, I am grateful for my family. I'm grateful for their health and their happiness. I'm grateful that my husband is also my best friend and that adding a second baby to our family has helped us work better as a team. I'm grateful that he works hard in his career and makes being home for dinner a priority. I'm grateful that after a long day of work, he doesn't veg out on the couch, but instead gets right down on the floor to play and entertain Meredith.

I'm grateful for this toddler phase. There are moments, of course, that frustrate and anger me. But those moments are heavily outweighed by the good. She has the most clever things to say. She yells, "Mama, waaaaaaait!" when I leave the room and she wants to show me something. She calls, "Baba, aaahhhhr you?" when she's looking for him in the house. She sings the ABCs, Jesus loves me, Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star and Hush Little Baby in the cutest garbled way imaginable.

I'm thankful for my little boy. He's a peaceful presence in our home (except around the 8pm hour). He's letting me sleep and giving us smiles. I haven't felt as strong an emotional bond to him quite as quickly as with his sister.  It's more like a slow burn- day by day, I love him more.

We've been in California a year now. I'm thankful for the people we've met who are helping this far away place feel more like home. I'm thankful for our friends back home who stay in touch and remind us we're loved and known deeply. I'm thankful that we live in such a beautiful place. That I can take Meredith outside to play on most days. That trees are heavy with fruit and mountains are in sight almost everywhere.

I could go on for ages, listing more and more, but I won't. We have been blessed with so much and not a day goes by that I don't thank God, especially for my babies.