Gratitude ~ Day 18

I remember waking up at one point in the night and putting the kids into their own beds, while Garth and I decided to sleep in the living room considering we didn’t have power and it’s almost always colder upstairs.

“What time is it?” I asked groggily, surprised by how dark the house is without the ambient glow of digital displays.  I figured we’d been sleeping for hours.

“11,” he replied flatly, exuding the same sense of disbelief I felt.

We peeked out the windows and added another layer of blankets.  At some point in the night, the kids must have come back out because I found one tangled between my arms when I woke this morning!

Since we’d forgotten to pick up the other van from church, it was going to be a family affair to head into school bright (well, not so much) and early.

En route, I called Consumers and learned that restoration would likely be Thursday night at 11pm.  Of course.  What’s more, Seneca was running a fever and ended up staying home with me.  We dropped off the boys and headed back to snuggle more.  Double layers of clothes, under blankets – it was grand.  We played a few games, drew pictures and rested.  Before we knew it – we heard the rumble of the furnace, and slowly everything came back on.

The TV came right back on to a different basketball game, but Seneca thought it was the same one we were watching when the power went out.  She was so excited, she recorded this to send to Daddy.

I made coffee and lunch, before putting her down for what would be a six-hour nap!!  I guess she really did need the time to rest, recover, and restore her own energy back to healthy levels!

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Gratitude ~ Day 17

in a dark house

i sit in the quiet,

listening to

wind and rain

deep breaths of sleep

and whispered fears –

“Daddy, I’m scared.”

i am thankful for

this house

and these three

who make it a

home

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Gratitude ~ Day 16

Today, I finally had the chance to finish up some pictures I took way back in September!  I love capturing great images that help me think and reflect.  The first few are from some shots I took to test out my new macro lens.

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These next few are from our last weekend spent camping in northern Michigan.  Do you see the deer bedded down right outside someone’s walkout basement?

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Love this cutie!

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She looks like a real explorer!  And when did she get so TALL!

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Gratitude ~ Day 15

I began the day by creating a to-do list on my computer.  Slowly, I chipped away at the tasks, and even got side-tracked by archiving messages in my email Inbox (please tell me there are others out there is 800+ messages in their Inbox as well?!).  Now, with only 5 little messages sitting there, it’s like I hardly know what to do!

So, in honor of some things accomplished, here’s a little six-word summary of what I’m thankful for today:

A nearly finished to-do list – finally!

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Gratitude ~ Day 14

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Today, I’m so thankful for the chance to talk to my kids about what color of hats they would like, and then surprise them with handmade hats at the end of the day!  When I think about those frustrating moments learning to crochet a sloppy chain with my grandmother, or wavy-edged scarves thanks to dropped stitches and inconsistent tension in my grasp – it’s all worthwhile to have a skill that I can fall back on.

Granted, I can’t read a pattern to save my life and I’m indebted to my friend Erica for giving me a tutorial on this pattern just last night.  Are they perfect?  Far from it.  But they’re made.  They’re complete and they’re just right.

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