Thankful Monday

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Today is Monday and before I plunge into a busy week, I want to sit and ruminate on the previous week and give thanks. It felt like a strange week mostly because I was away through Tuesday and then we had the holiday on Friday.

We managed to pack a lot into the week. Besides catching up on some work-related items, Dan and I got in a 6 mile hike one day. Hiking is still our favorite thing to do together and there are so many beautiful places around here.



I connect best to God when I'm out walking so try to do that almost every day.





We did something different for the 4th of July this year. We took a road trip and went to the zoo. It ended up being a great idea and we had a wonderful time.


After church I went and spent a couple of hours with my father-in-law. He's struggling and lonely and complaining has always been a part of his personality, so it's hard to get him to see the bright side of things. However, by the end of the visit he was happy and much more positive so I am thankful that I took the time to do that. Dan is headed there one afternoon this week to take him out for a drive and to run some errands with him.

I think he was having an especially difficult weekend because it was a holiday and there were no normal activities going on at the facility. For the past 30 years, he and my mother-in-law have always gone to a barbecue at a friend's house and the friends decided that they were not going to do it anymore. So he is adjusting to his new "normal" without mom, living in assisted living and without his normal activities. It's a lot of change in a short amount of time for a man who hates change!

I am thankful for the following things on this Monday:

💓 A beautiful area to live that has many places to explore.

💓 Reminders that God is still in control even when the world seems in chaos.

💓 Many visitors in church yesterday.

💓 Encouragement from a friend.

💓 Opportunities to lead and teach.

💓 Time with my family.

💓 Safety as I traveled at the beginning of the week.

💓 Conversations with my children.

💓Learning to say "no" to some things and being okay with that.

and finally...

💓 Being stretched in the hard things because that is where I find I grow the most. 

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