Days 5, 6 and 7 of we are thankful for...

 



Maxwell is representing Day 5 of, "I'm Thankful For".  The sweet little dear is thankful for his Mommy.  When asked why he said, "Because I love you, you tuck me in at night and you give me ice cream.  You also play bad guys with me."

 

Magnolia is representing Day 6 of, "I'm Thankful For".  She is thankful for "having time together as a family".  When asked to elaborate on that she said, "No, I'm good."  Apparently, for the first time since she has started talking she has nothing to say.  :)

 

I will cover Day 7 on behalf of Michael and I.  I am thankful that we were able to vote for our President yesterday.  First off, how lucky am I, a woman for being able to do this!?!?  Just a few "great grandma's" ago this would have been only a dream.  I am glad to know my voice was being heard.  For Michael, I am glad he always listens to both canidates openly and makes decisions based on his head.  I personally tend to vote with my heart.  We truly do help balance one another out.   

 

Thanks to everyone who's been checking in to see what we are thankful for.  You all are great!  Here's a picture of the world's most adorable voter.  I know he's not 18, he was just casting my vote!  Afterwards we got to check out the firetrucks as we vote at the Schoeneck Fire Hall. 

 

 

Day 4 of we are thankful for...

 

 

(Here is a picture with me and my parent's Marie and Bob Fryberger)

 

 

Today we are thankful for our parents.  Being a parent is such a selfless job and you never truly realize how much your parents loved you till you have a child of your own. 

 

Parents survive many a sleepless night while you are a newborn, then many an early morning while you are a toddler/preschooler.  Just once you decide you want to sleep-in, so starts the season of your life called extra-curricular activities.  There's soccer, football, baseball, gymnastics, ballet, student council, etc., runs to make.  Now they have the joy of fighting you to get up when all they want to do is sleep-in too.

 

Now that I am a Mother I asked my Mom, "When did you have time to do X while we were growing up?"  She laughed and said you stayed up late or you got up early, but she didn't seem to mind at the time nor even now.

 

This is why we are thankful for parents.  For the sacrifice, the love, the lessons and even the mistakes.  They've helped us grow in into who we are today.

 

I am especially humbled by the fact that my children are thankful for me.  I love the minutes where they come up and hug you and say I love you. When they shriek excitedly when you give them good news.  When they just want to lay next to you and hold your hands.  I am thankful for them too. 

Day 3 of I'm Thankful For

Today we are thankful for extended family.  To us this means, grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. (Special mention to friends that have become family, you know who you are!)

These are people that know how goofy we are or even if we become distant at some point, will always be your family.  Especially cousins, cousins are your first friends.  They teach you so much about life at every family gathering.

Blood truly is thicker then water and there is something nice about knowing there is a large group behind you that supports you.  You may not talk to them regularly or even seem them regularly, but you feel in your heart they are there.  They will always be a part of you. 

This is a picture of Magnolia and Maxwell with their Uncle Jason, Aunt Katherine, Cousin JJ and their Daddy.  A wonderful example of how even though our family may be far they are always with us in our minds and hearts. 

Day 2 of I'm Thankful for.....

Today we are thankful for friends/friendship.  We are so blessed to have such an amazing group of friends.  I truly believe that our friends are what enable us to remain such a strong family unit.  Nothing is more theraputic then an afternoon chat with your girlfriend, a beer out with your guy friend, or a play date with a friend.  Right behind family laughter, there is friendship laughter.

Friends, we are so thankful to have you in our lives. 


“If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together... there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we're apart... I'll always be with you.”
― A.A. Milne

"Just remember, your girlfriend will out live your husband!"

 

25 Days of I'm Thankful for (Kiddo Version)

My favorite holiday is almost here...THANKSGIVING!  I love the crisp feeling of fall in the air.  The beautiful colors, comfy sweaters and Thanksgiving food is by far my favorite!  (Turkey, stuffing, pumpkin anything, pies.....need I go on?)

My absolute favorite thing about this holiday is it is a time to get together with friends and family and just BE TOGETHER!  No pressure or rush of Christmas, no spending money on presents.  Just a celebration of our heritage, our thankfulness and our togetherness. 

I want to pass this love of the holiday on to  my wonderful children (and the lovely kiddos I baby-sit), so I am going to do 25 days of I'm thankful for and post it on here as their "online journal".  Plus, it will be interesting to see what some of their choices are.

Day 1 Thankful For:  SIBLINGS

Magnolia: I am thankful for, my brother! 

Maxwell:  I am thankful for, my sister!

Sophia:  I am thankful for, my brother!

Trent:  I am thankful for, my sister's!

 

The Magnolia and Maxwell Show

My lovely children are incredibly creative.  I was trying to up load a film of the "Magnolia and Maxwell Show", but the system is not letting me.  Instead here are a few pictures of Magnolia with her first lost tooth and Maxwell with his new hair cut!  I will keep working on getting the video up!

Random Thoughts

"Even when expected a loss can still come as a shock."  For some reason I have had this thought in my head a lot lately.  When I say loss, most people immediately think of death.  That is not necessarily true though. Loss can involve death, but can also be friendship, childhood, marriage, job, security or even just a loss of genuine faith in someone.


Being an optimist I always see the glass as half full so it is odd to me that I have such a negative thought swirling in my head.  Yet here I still sit with it, swirl, swirl, swirl.  I guess loss, even though it is not your own can effect you.  You empathize with others and imagine how they must be feeling.  Perhaps it is hard to identify what your loss is because it was minimal enough for you  not to appreciate it when you had it, but strong enough to miss it once it is gone.


Maybe it's not even loss, but realization.  The revelation of the fact that there is something you always wanted to do, but you can no longer do.  Perhaps it is something that you weren't even aware of wanting to do until you have realize that you are too old or to far away to do it?  Is it a process of aging to mourn the things that you are too old for?  Good bye American Idol shot or joining the military?  Maybe it is coming to realization that my kids will keep getting older; no matter how much I want to freeze our moments in time in their small years.  I know they will turn in to wonderful adults, a true reflection of their mother's love, but that doesn't mean I won't mourn it.


What about our friends or family's losses?  Is it possible to mourn for them, right along side of them, even if it isn't our issue.  When you love someone you can feel their pain, even if they are thousand's of miles away.  Maybe that's the toughest.  The fact that you feel their hurt, but you can't do anything but help them bandage it.  Help by being a listening ear and a shoulder to rest their weary head on.


I guess this is why we must live for the moment.  Love every minute of our lives yet take time to find balance within.  Acknowledge the different types of losses, embrace them and then move on with them.  We can never forget the different losses we have in our lives.  They have made us who they are today.  Even the ones we feel vicariously through loved ones help shape our future.  So we need to keep feeling our losses, changes and keep taking care of one another.