A Few Things I'm Thankful For

1. A safe trip to Indiana and back. We just got back this evening.
2. Shane put Allie on the potty when we got home tonight and she actually pooped in it!!! I made a huge deal of it and even took a picture of it, which Allie was excited about. (Her pooping on the potty has been a rare thing so far.) Don't worry, I won't post the picture. :)
3. We got our car fixed the day after Thanksgiving and were able to drive to New Castle, IN and Fremont, IN on Saturday with no problems! It nearly broke down on Wednesday only half an hour from Shane's mom's. I thought it was the transmission but it was only an ignition coil. It wasn't cheap but it's better than paying for a new transmission!
4. A wonderful time with Shane's mom Kay and her husband Bill; Shane's dad Bob, wife Jo, and sister Reba; Aunt Shirley, Uncle Bill, and extended family on the Bentz side; my Grandma and Grandad Sieber and extended family on my mother's side; my dad, wife Diane, and brother Chris and sister Kayla.
5. The life of my uncle Don Mapes, who passed away Saturday after a long illness.
6. Those of you in Indiana who faithfully read my blog. I'm grateful you're there and I'm flattered you come back again and again.
7. The new Newsboys greatest hits CD. We listened to 900 miles worth of it this weekend!
8. Zicam!!! I felt yet another cold virus coming on yesterday. I've been taking Zicam, which is Zinc, and my symptoms are much less severe. Oh, praise God. I have a lot of work to do this week, including babysitting, and I was wondering if I'd be up for it.
9. My gym membership starts this week. Now that the Thanksgiving dinners are over, I'm more than ready to slim down. My current body shape is a lot like my Grandma Mapes': normal arms and legs but a round belly and a double chin. I don't actually mind that too much. When I was a skinny teenager, I wanted to be a homemaker like Grandma and I decided I wanted to look matronly like her too. Now that I'm a homemaker, I'm finding it not necessary or healthy to be (even a little) overweight.
10. Christmas is coming!! I'm looking forward to putting up the tree again with the kids and experiencing the wonder of the season through their eyes. I'm making a nativity advent calendar for them. I'll post pictures of it when it's done.
11. God's watching over us and providing for us and speaking into our hearts through His word and for fellowship with other believers and for contemporary Christian music.