**My mom coming to clean the stuff out and throw in the garbage bags. I just didn’t have the heart.**
**That now the freezer is spic-n-span and can we can work on refilling it.**
**That our home is full of kids who could have left the door open!!** Would not trade them for a freezer full of stuff ever!! =)
Then Dw was moving a chair from “the cottage” today. He moved it into the back of his truck. He needed to get to an appointment and was heading down the road. He stopped too fast and that great big LazyBoy recliner banged right into his back window and smashed it to smithereens. ugh again So let’s see….
**We are grateful that Dw has a truck (even with the broken back window). It really helps when we have to move stuff.**
**We are grateful that no one was injured when the chair came flying forward.**
And then, I was thinkin…..this rental is something I would love for you guys to see. It is so-not-us. It has gaudy fixtures and is anything but simple. But we needed a four bedroom and there weren’t any around. After living in the hotel for 5-1/2 weeks (in two separate rooms down the hall and around the corner from each other) we were ready to get into a rental. There are big fancy/schmancy armoires (often seen in pictures I post) that belong to the owner. (He would sell them to us for $3,000 a pop. Ummm, no thank you. And if we scratch them, we pay. Such a deal.)
Anyway, I’ve mentioned that this place is built into the side of a mountain which interpreted means that there are 32 steps to get from the driveway (which is at a 45 degree angle) to the kitchen. After months of living here and carrying little boys in double leg casts and sleeping toddlers up and down these 32 steps I thought I would show you guys.
From the driveway, up these steps here….
Turn at the landing and go up these steps……
In the front door, up a landing step and then up these to the kitchen…..
And for these steps I am truly thankful because I am certain that my bee-hind muscles must be getting more youthful. They’ve got to, right? Work with me sweet bloggy friends, work with me. They’ve got to look like I’m 19 again, right?? Okay, maybe 19 is pushing it, how ’bout we meet in the middle?? 34ish sounds okay to me?? Does that work for you??
Thank you so much for this post. It is so nice to hear thankfulness instead of complaining! I am so thankful too. For everything. 🙂
Linny
I am in a really bad place right now and have been trying really hard to find/ really search hard to find things to be thankful for! Last night I sat in my bedroom in the dark, listening to the wind howl outside and was ''thanking' God and it started as the beautiful day we had to the beautiful children I had tucked into bed down the hall! But most of all I thanked him simply for loving me when I am not very lovable right now while I am going through this really hard time!
Oh yuck! I love that in spite of everything that happened to you today, you were still able to see the good and be thankful for it. It makes me think that I am thankful for a house to clean and children to make it messy! Love you friend!
O yeah…
At least 34ish, if that is what does it for you…. LOL
And hey, from here it could even be 19…AGIAN!!!!
WHATEVER….
Loved your thankful post…
I'm thankful that the mind (at least thinks it's young) even when the old body is saying something other….
Linny,
I'm going to institute the thankful game at my home too! And i love the way you see the rainbow through the rain.
Splashing for HIs glory,
Sarah Dawn
Thank you for the laugh. I needed it today. We have a bit of the grumpy gus virus at our house lately, so thank you also for the idea of the thankful game. I'm going to try it immediately!!
Love your family even though we've never met. I can't wait to see photos of your cross country trip.
Off-topic… We have submitted our papers to adopt from Amani Baby Cottage in Uganda. Hooray! I'm searching for a friend to travel with me…. Emma wouldn't be interested, would she? Of course not, who would do that? Who would send their precious teenage daughter with a total stranger halfway around the world for 4-6 weeks? Well, I thought I'd throw it out there. 🙂
Praying for showers of blessings.
Love in Jesus,
Amy
you look maw-valeous, dawling!
maybe i should come use your steps!
so sorry about the freezer, but so glad you found some kind of thankfulness in all of it.
xx
legs of steel!! i was in china for three weeks three summers ago, and each day we had to climb 180 stairs to get home each day. i had legs-o-steel by the time we got home. we used to complain about those stairs, but it was such a good workout.
i'd love to spend another summer climbing those stairs. . . really i would.
Awww….too cute- I am sure your hinny looks younger! Mine would after walking all those stairs! reminds me of Polyanna- when she plays the Glad Game. We do that too! Too much to be thankful for even when things don't seem pretty.
You did an awesome job being thankful and a pretty crummy day.
Hmmmm…I'm thinkin' I need your stairs…
Oh sweet Linny, you look absolutely fabulous just the way you are 🙂 Seriously!
It is amazing how a couple of minutes reflecting on things to be Thankful for, can drastically change an attitude! The first time I played that game with myself, I was lying in a hospital bed on Christmas Eve, facing many more days there and a long recovery at home after that. We are sooooo blessed in the country, it was really quite easy to come up with a long list of "Thankfulness", even in that condition. I had a hospital to be in with wonderful staff to care for me. A sweet husband sitting uncomfortably in a chair by my bed. A Savior who came as a baby to endure a crucifixion to redeem me to Himself. The picture of a little Asian boy by my bed, waiting for me on the other side of the world to bring him home to be part of a forever family. I may have gone on half the night that night with things to be Thankful for. It changed my attitude pretty much for the rest of my recovery. Just last week my Kindergarten class memorized the verse "Do everything without arguing or complaining" Philippians 2:14. Rephrasing that is essentially saying; be thankful/grateful in everything.
Thank you for reminding us often of God's Amazing love and power, and for sharing your "real life" walk with the Lord. I am thankful that I found your blog 🙂
Julie In Georgia
Hi Linny,
You are a wise woman! Thanking the Lord in all things is a real sacrifice sometimes but it is truly the path to Joy!
So sorry about your freezer and your window, that was just the enemy trying to steal the joy of your new RV. Am so excited for you and how the Lord gave you all the desire of your hearts. That's cause you are sweet folks and do the Lords will.
Blessings, Nellie
Oh you always make me feel better. I've had a "poor me" attitude lately, and boy did you just smack it right out of me. Although I think I would still be crying next to the freezer.
I'm still thinking about that sweet camper deal, I can't get over it. I'm so excited for you.
I'm so thankful I met you and your beautiful family.
Linny, you are so darn cute! You always seem to make me laugh. I love how you manage to turn some 'not so good' situations around and give praise to the Lord for what you still have. He will certainly bless you for that!! It's amazing how 'games' like that can quickly change ones perspective and attitude around, though, isn't it!?! Love it!! 🙂 In any case though, I am so sorry you lost all that food. It has happened to us, too. Only the smell is what gave it away! UGH!!!
And you can be certain that trudging up and down all those stairs has done great wonders for the hiner!…I'm sure DW would agree…and he's surely thinking 19-20ish!!! 😉
God bless! <><
~Tanya
Wow, are those a lot of stairs! We think you look great!
You crack me up! I had a very similar day and wish I had stopped around 2pm to have some thankful time! Your stairs reminded me of this apartment we lived in when we were in PA. It was 22 steps from the street parking to the front door, inside 3 doors then up another 12 steps to the apartment. It was a 3 story OLD house and we were on the 2nd and 3rd floors. The kids bedrooms were up another 12 steps after that. We didn't carry sleeping kids upstairs unless it was a life and death situation!! LOL!
Today I woke up to a thunderstorm (alone since hubby is out of town). The dog got out and ran and I had to jump in the car to go get her in my pajamas. Then I got 4 kids off to school before getting stuck in an hour of traffic (normally a 30 minute drive). Several other petty things with the kids… burned dinner, new stain on beige carpet… lets just say… I needed this post tonight! I can always count on your blog to be real and relative for me…
Blessings!
I love your positive outlook on those things that so many of us would let it knock us down. You truly are an inspiration.
I stumbled across your post quite by chance, and I am totally amazed by it! I love it so much! You have been through so much, yet you have all taken it in your stride and not let anything get you down too much! I love your camper van! I would like one too! It has always been a dream of mine to travel across the U.S. in one! Your children are so beautiful too, they are so happy!
Through out all your adversities you have all come through them without any harm. Surely someone is looking over you!
God bless you all. Much love and best wishes.
Linny I'm sitting here with a smile on my face. Those steps are something else. I'd say your behind must be getting in pretty good shape. I'd even go for 19!!
So sorry about the freezer and the truck. Hugs..
The best thing about your Thankful Thursday was that it made me laugh! Wrinkles-showing-by-the-eyes-full-on-smile!!! I will try the Thankful/Grateful game with my kids soon! Enjoy your day!
Thanks for the reminder of what we have to TRULY be thankful for!
Thanks for sharing your freezer sorrows. The same thing happened to me this past spring and I literally sat in the garage and cried. I felt like such a baby, but a whole packed freezer equals a whole lot of meals and a whole lot of money. But I'm so much more thankful for the little hands that left it opened and I wouldn't trade her for anything.
Oh and I have 30 steps right now to get to my sons bedroom. We just sold our house and are in a rental and I've been complaining about those steps…but you've silenced me 🙂 you've got me beat and that's just to get to your kitchen. Oh bless you sweet sister in Christ! I'm sure you're getting quite the workout these days.
Job comes to mind with all the misfortune you keep having–but like Job, you keep praising God!
Oh yuck…what a day. Hugs!! I think your choice to find things to be thankful/grateful for was a great way to unburden yourself. 🙂 I have often thought that the big things don't always knock me down as bad as a series of little things. Satan certainly knows how to steal our joy. I will remember this post next time I'm having one of 'those' days. 🙂 Having God's perspective on our circumstances is a good thing!!