Thankful Thursday ~ Brought to You By the Letter Mm

Today is Thankful Thursday.

Being thankful today is brought to you by the letter Mm.

Here are a few things for which I am magnificently thankful:

~ moms

~ Messiah

~ money (it does help us purchase necessities)

~ mud (to play in)

~ Mabel and Monet (the gray kitties)

~ mountains

~ my Mazda - it gets great gas mileage

~ mahi mahi

~ machines that help us

~ magpies and meadowlarks

~ mail (real, not junk or bills)

~ my man

~ manger (the, where Jesus was born)

~ maple trees

~ maple syrup

~ markets, especially produce and antiques

~ marriage with my man

~ massage, and oh, and I needing one on my neck

~ melodies & music

~ merry making

~ mind (all the better to think about you, my dear)

~ mittens

~ motorcycle (we love the Honda Shadow - it's our hobby as a couple)


How about you? Mm is a marvelous letter for thankful thinking.

Busted

Sometimes I just fail.

And other times I think I'm doing just fine, until it's pointed out that I just failed.

This morning, while driving the Nana Bus, I was frustrated by the crowded school parking lot. We were a minute from being late, due to heavy traffic, and the car in front of me stopped - to let some children and parents cross, of course - blocking me from parking and getting out to walk my boy to his teacher.

"Come on," I mumbled in a voice loud enough for the Bubba to hear me, "you're gonna make us late!"

The car soon moved on, in reality taking only seconds for the pedestrian pause.

We quickly parked and beat a fast path to the cross walk to enter the playground. Beside the parking lot is the drive through lane, where parents can stay in cars and drop their children off, instead of parking. I've often noticed that the drive through lane is slower than actually parking and walking, due to the number of stops the drivers must make to allow for the cross walk students. (All I can say is, I am so glad there is always a staff person on cross walk duty with her little flag and official vest).

As we walked up to the cross walk, I heard a man cursing and yelling, "Come on, man, get going! What the deal?" It was quite loud as his window was open. (Colorful language removed.)

Wow, I thought.

"Someone is grumpy," I said to the crossing guard as we passed in front of waiting vehicles.

It's so silly to be riled up when you know you have to wait. It's a school zone, for crying out loud.

It took me maybe 15 steps before I realized my hypocrisy.

Yes. I might as well have yelled out the window, for all in all, I had done the same thing when I was complaining about the woman stopping in front of me for a bare 20 seconds.

Busted. It might not have been obvious to those around me, but the Lord knows my heart. And it was cranky.

Tomorrow is a new day. I will try to take my time and not worry about the little stuff. It's all good, making sure kids are safe. Better to be late than hurt someone or have a cranky heart.

They never mark us tardy anyway.

Big D Update ~ Eye Surgery

Donavyn decorating eggs. You can see some of the problems with his eyes that were addressed by the surgery. Cutie pie boy just wanted to eat the eggs.

Thank you so much for praying for our boy, Donavyn, and his double eye surgery he had yesterday (Monday).

Prayers were answered even before we expected it!

Instead of the 1:00 surgery time, Donavyn had surgery at 7:30 AM. What a wonderful treat for a boy who would be hungry, thirsty, and probably cranky all day if he had to wait. Not to mention the overactive nerves of parents and family members. I was actually still in bed at a friend's house (thanks, Alyson) not too far from the hospital when my son let me know of the change in time.

The surgeon reported that all had gone well in the two-hour surgery. The 2 and 1/2 hour drive home went quickly and Donavyn was able to sleep in his own bed.

Today, mommy reports (and we have eye witnessed) that the boy with two brilliant red eyes is moving like a wild 2 year-old. He is eating, talking, playing, and climbing everything in sight. He is still at high risk for infection and must be away from other children for a week. But try telling this bundle of energy that he can't play outside in the dirt or see his cousins... Oh, boy.

Thank you, again, for praying and thinking of our boy. We won't know until his 2 month check-up whether he will need a second surgery or not. But until then, we pray for a healthy, quick, and complete healing for the Big D.

Big D helping his cousins with eggs while exploring the whisks and colored water.

"Swingin' on Nana's Swing..." ~ Please Pray for Our Boy

Nana had the cutest little boy visit her house.

And what did the Nana and her boy Donavyn do?

They went swingin'.

Yes. And Nana sang a silly song while they were seated side-by-side on the glider swing.

We're swingin' on Nana's swing,

Swingin' on Nana's swing.

We're swingin' on Nana's swing,

Swingin' on Nana's swing.

Donavyn's swingin' on Nana's swing,

Swingin' on Nana's swing,

Yes, he's swingin' on Nana's swing,

Swingin' on Nana's swing.

The song and the lovely swingin' continued, accompanied by Nana doing all sorts of jazz, old tunes, and harmonic pieces.

But the absolute best part of the swingin' and singin'?

Each time Nana said, "Nana's swing," a certain little boy would grin, glance at Nana, and sing, "Nana!" And then he would giggle.

We also," Whee'd" and pumped our legs for joy.

What a precious gift!

Today, Monday, May the 4th, at 1:00 PM, Donavyn has double-eye surgery at Bellevue Children's. He is 22-months old and the light of his parents' eyes (and the rest of his family).

We would all appreciate your prayers for this bouncing bundle of boy. Thank you!

PS And Nana would like to know where the YouTube people were, for this would have been the perfect video! But Nana was too busy singin' and swingin' to run and get the camera.

Thankful Thursday (on Friday) Brought to You by the Letter Ll

Today we are going to celebrate Thankful Thursday - though it be Friday. LOL

Happy Friday!

Here are some things beginning with the letter Ll for which I am thankful:

~ love

~ LORD

~ languages

~ laughter

~ lollipops that turn your tongue bright colors

~ linguini with lots of parmesan

~ leisurely walks

~ lounging fireside

~ lover (my best friend and husband)

~ lemons and limes

~ ladybugs

~ luggage arriving when I do

~ land

~ landscaping

~ lavender in any form

~ legs for walking, dancing, and leaping (though I be mostly doing the walking and occasional dancing)

~ leather saddles, shoes, and the accompanying smells and creaks

~ Liberty

~ lilac, my absolute favorite spring flower

~ LIFE

~ light - it's so much easier to do things when one can see what is being done

~ literacy

~ Louvre (The, in Paris)

~ losing weight

~ lunch

~ lyrics, amusing, thought-provoking, clever, sentimental

How about you? Could you leave me a short list of things for which you are thankful?