Thanksday #12

I know, I know. What happened to my weekly day o’ thanks? I fell off the wagon. The reasons would sound like lame excuses, because they are lame excuses. But the main reason is that I’ve grown weary of interfacing with iWeb, so blogging has become a chore. And I’ve heard from several (okay, okay, three) people who have tried leaving comments and keep having error issues with it. (Which allows me to lie to myself by thinking there are tens of you trying desperately to comment but have just grown tired of getting error messages.)

The fix? I’m switching to Wordpress. But oh my lands, what a chore it is to switch everything over. And I have actual work to do each day. Plus a new iPhone to play with in my free time. Which is a perfect segue to my twelfth installment of Thanksday!

1. 1.Verizon iPhone 4. I’ve literally been twiddling my thumbs for the past year just waiting for its arrival. As an existing Verizon customer, I was privy to an early pre-order which started at 3 am last Thursday. I set my alarm for 2:47 am, logged in and ordered phones for both my mom and I in less than 20 minutes. They arrived on Monday. There is a perfectly logical explanation as to why I would spend an ungodly amount of money on something like an iPhone and its accompanying data plan: all my family lives 3,000 miles away and we see them about once a year. Small price to pay to keep in touch via video chat anywhere, anytime. We even video chatted while I was walking around Wal-Mart the other day. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Worth. Every. Penny. Especially since my mom only ever had dial-up and we couldn’t Skype. The end. 

2. 2.Wordpress. As I mentioned, I’m slowly switching over to Wordpress for this site. Vainly, I’m slower than normal because I haven’t found a design theme that really works for me and I’m too cheap to pay for a premium theme. And since‘restorative’ is one of my strengths, I’m of course trying to figure out end-arounds to fix the few aesthetic issues I have with the theme that will work best. But I’m thankful it will be much more flexible than iWeb, and will allow me to blog and post without having to have this actual computer. And the bonus? There’s an app for that!

3. 3.Community Bible Church. Yes, my husband is the Assistant Pastor, but I swear I really am so thankful to my church. We recently started a church-wide, 3-week Daniel Fast to focus on prayer and answers to prayer for each other, the church and this community. In addition to the fast itself, the church is open nightly for two hours each day during the fast. For 3 weeks you can come every single night to pray. I’ve been a couple times, and I can I just tell you...the answers to prayer that people are receiving since this fast started is unbelievable. Marriages being restored. Lives being turned around. Repentance from sin and visual transformation. Each time I long for a filet mignon or wheel o’ cheese, I just think about those testimonies and it keeps me focused. I can’t wait to see what the last half of this is going to bring. And I’m not being a Pharisee boasting about my fasting. I’m just thankful for a Pastor who has a vision for transformed lives and leads us corporately like this. (The Senior Pastor, that is, not my husband.) 

4. 4.Quiet Time. I’ve been making a point of setting an alarm and getting up early for some time alone to read my Bible and pray most mornings, and what a difference it makes. Yes, it makes me have to go to bed when the baby does. But, having an opportunity to focus properly before the mad dash of life happens that day makes everything run smoother. And keeps me from screaming, “Off with your head!” every hour. It’s a win-win.

5. 5.My car. My car is falling apart. The gas gauge is broken, so I have to add gas based on mileage. The engine light stays on all the time (but it’s not an issue, we had it checked out.) If I turn on defrost, the back vents click, click, click for a solid 2 minutes. But I like my car. I had to drive Greg’s for a few days last week, and I just didn’t know it like I know my car. It was too awkward. It didn’t fit. When I got my car back, it just felt right. Now, I wouldn’t turn down a new Volvo SUV should one show up in my driveway (hint, hint), but I do appreciate the car I have. And all the memories that come with it. 

6. 6.Picnik. Where have I been? Picnik is pretty cool. I haven’t upgraded to the Premium membership yet (see #3) but I think I might soon. I love what you can do with photos to collage them. I’ve probably wasted a lot of time there recently, but if you won’t tell my boss, I won’t. 

7. 7.My Wonderful Husband. We celebrated eight blissful years of marriage on Monday. Eight years! I’ve already gushed ad nauseum about him and how amazing he is, so I’ll spare you. Suffice it to say, I’m grateful to God for his favor over our marriage. I’m grateful to Greg for taking his vows seriously. And I’m grateful we just have so much fun being married to each other. 

8. 8.A Video. I had a video posted here that makes me smile all the way to my eyes. But it bogs down the @#$%$ iWeb publishing and makes the page blank. So I deleted it. But it was my sweet Paxton doing cute tricks like a circus monkey. So adorable.

9. 9.Taco Bell. No, I don’t love eating at Taco Bell. (Hello, fast? And plus, ew.) But I am totally loving their new piano bar commercial for whatever it is they’re advertising. Especially the part when the guy sings about “the whole honkin’ cow” and then the whole place joins in with “Four times the steak!” Tickles me.

10. 10.Jaana’s Sweet Spirit. Some of you probably saw this on Facebook, or heard Greg mention it at church, but Jaana is just developing the sweetest heart. For Martin Luther King, Jr. Day the kids in class had to write what their dream was. Jaana’s was, “I have a dream that people that don’t know about God, that someone will come and tell them about Him and start knowing Him.” And each night we do family devotions, she just has the sweetest, most tender thoughts and insight. I pray I cultivate that as she grows up...I pray God continues to remind me in those moments how important they are.

Join me in this weekly giving of thanks. You can list 10 things, or 5 things, or as many as you want. Let’s experience together the joy of being thankful in all things!