September 21

Abby's back up at school for the week and Adam is away for work for a few days, so it was just me and Brady this evening.

I picked him up after his baseball practice and then he drove us over to Chick filA, where we retrieved our mobile order for dinner.

Once we got home, we plunked down in front of the tube and turned on the Monday Night Football game. We agreed that he could watch the Manning Cast until halftime (because that's about all I can take of Peyton and Eli's slack-jawed staring), so we ate our food and he told me about his day with the hum of the TV in the backgroud.

His vaguely goofy expression aside, it was a good time with my baby. And I am so grateful to God for those precious minutes.

September 20

I didn't feel great when I woke up this morning. I had a pounding headache and felt vaguely sick to my stomach, so as I fumbled my way into the kitchen in search of coffee, I considered staying home from church.

I asked God about it, and ultimately decided that I should go, so I did. But I also did something unusual: I put on a jacket over my dress instead of my typical lightweight sweater. That may seem like a weird and random detail, but I'm at a phase in life where I tend to run a bit warm. 

But when I stepped into church, I immediately realized why I felt the need to wear a jacket: it was COLD in there. The pastor apologized to the congregation for the chill and explained that she'd fiddled with the thermostat a bit too much.

Given that I already didn't feel my best, I was very grateful for that jacket. So for the prompt that didn't make sense at the time, I am thankful.

September 19

I was bummed out when, about four weeks ago, I accidentally gave my big, beautiful volunteer tomato plant too much water and it slowly, slowly turned brown and withered. (I put the hose in the pot with the plant, unaware that it was leaking.)

I did all I could to try to save it; I drained the extra water, gave it fertilizer, pruned off the dead limbs to maximize nutrients to any remaining healthy part of the plant that might've still been in there. But nothing seemed to help. So I stopped watching it and told myself I'd be more careful next time.

And then earlier this week, I noticed something surprising: bright green leaves and little yellow flowers sprouting from the same root system as the original plant. (And right next to it, an itty bitty volunteer that must've sprung up from one of the tomatoes that fell into the dirt last month.) 

The sight surprised me and reminded me of a Biblical truth. God often takes things that we think are dead --relationships, dreams, goals-- and breathes new life into them. And He often acts when we're least expecting His hand to move. So for that great blessing, I am thankful.

September 18

I had what I'd call a really nice Friday. Abby and I enjoyed our morning together, Adam came home from a brief work trip, and Brady got back several positive test results at school. So praise the Lord for all of that!

And then after Adam wound up his final work call, we loaded into the car and Brady (our learning-to-drive chauffeur) drove us to Five Guys for dinner in honor of National Cheeseburger Day. (And yes, today is indeed THE day!)

The place was packed to the gills so it took a long time to get our food, but we were able to snag a table fairly quickly. So we talked as we waited, with Adam sharing some details from the retirement party he attended in Oregon and Abby regaling us with tales from her latest week in the second grade.

Good days are a huge blessing, so I am grateful to God for this one.

September 17

After Adam and I cleared out the first batch of (very overgrown) plants from the hydroponic garden, I refilled it with peat pellets seeded with lettuce, spinach, and kale. And then I waited. 

And waited some more. And eventually, a handful of tiny lettuce and kale sprouts appeared. (No dice on the spinach.) Last week, this little guy here had a few very small leaves, and now it's almost ready for his first harvest.

The whole experience of watching and (impatiently) waiting mirrors human life: a lot of the time when we want something, we want it now and have zero interest in waiting. But it's often necessary to wait to allow the full blessing time to reach its state of completion. As frustrating as it may seem, God does indeed want us to wait upon Him and His plan.

So for the blessing of this reminder (and for the yummy homegrown lettuce we'll soon enjoy), I am grateful.

September 16

I get into cleaning jags every now and again; I'll feel a sudden jolt of inspiration and will go until the wheels fall off the bus. I had what I'll call a mini jag today.

I unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, wiped down the countertops, took out the recycling, cleaned the bathtub, and ran several loads of laundry.

I'm not a fan of folding laundry, but instead of just letting it sit in the basket as I'm often tempted to do, I prayed for motivation and got to work. So I sat there in front of an old "Matlock" re-run and folded socks and pants and shorts and shirts and underwear. And I didn't stop until the last socks were rolled together.

So today, I'm thankful that God answers prayers -- even the dull everyday ones.

September 15

I've always been a fan of crescent moons.

Maybe it's because I was born under a waxing crescent (two days past the new moon, in fact. I didn't actually know that last detail, for the record; I just looked it up). Or maybe it's because I can picture a little mouse sitting on it with a star hung from the top portion, like you might see in an old children's book.

Whatever the reason, I always like how they look. And I like how seeing one fills me with a sense of calm serenity.

God made the earth and the moon and the stars. And I am continually in awe of the scope of His creativity.

September 14

My Bible Study group took a field trip to a local non-profit this morning. Little Miracles collects and distributes baby items to underprivileged families in our local area. It's an amazing ministry, and seeing the facility --and hearing that they include a baby blanket with each gift they give away-- inspired me to get to work.

This particular item that I started when I got home isn't a blanket because I already had a specific pattern in mind, but I've gone through my (extensive) yarn inventory and am planning to get to work on my first donation soon. 

Fortunately, I have an ample supply of yarn that will work well for baby blankets. So today, I'm grateful to God for showing me another organization that can use what I make to bless my neighbors in a practical (and hopefully powerful) way.

September 13

Our church's annual meeting took place this morning after the service. 

I'm not much of a meeting person; I don't get much out of sitting in a room and listening to talk about vision and budgeting and so on. It's not my cup of tea.

But I was voted in to serve another few years as a Deacon, which I enjoyed the first go-round (a number of years back, before I served as an Elder). I hope to be a blessing to others during my term.

And I was also pleased to see this guy interacting with others. Brady got the last seat at this particular table and I watched him from my perch a few yards away. He's growing up, and I am thankful for the gift of watching him morph more into the young man God wants him to be. 

September 12

I predicted that there would be much less overt wrestling at our house when Isaac went off to college, and I was right.

But what I did not necessarily predict was that Abby and Brady would devise new and creative ways to harass one another. They don't wrestle, per se, because Brady would have a clear advantage. But their verbal repartee is top-notch and they routinely chase each other around the house, striking some of the oddest poses along the way (like this one. They were NOT practicing an aisle-stroll, even though it looks like they were).

It's definitely quieter around here these days, but these two manage to keep things lively. And for their youthful spirit, I am grateful.

September 11

I went to an A's/Orioles game during Cal Ripken's farewell tour back in September of 2001. Among a throng of eager autograph seekers who lined and pressed against the infield wall before the game, I was one of the fortunate ones: he reached for and signed this baseball for me, and it now sits in a display case atop a dresser in our room. This was before marriage and kids, so it was a benchmark moment and I was thrilled.

That was a few days before 9/11. And now every time I look at it, I remember that day.

I was 23 years old, living with a pair of roommates in a house in Castro Valley. I was awakened abruptly when one of those roomies --a guy named Mike-- banged on my bedroom door. I was groggy and didn't fully realized that anyone had knocked until he did it again a few moments later. When I peered out into the living room, I found a wide-eyed Mike and Andrea --our other roommate-- staring at the TV across the room. It took me a few minutes to figure out what had happened. And a mixture of shock and horror took over. 

I spent the rest of the day alternately watching exhausted TV reporters sharing updates and silently worrying about my own family back home. I am, after all, from the DC-area, and the notion that I might have known someone at the Pentagon wasn't a silly one. It was chaotic. It was surreal. It was unspeakably awful that human beings could do this kind of thing to other human beings. And I quietly mourned the innocence that had been so violently stripped away from all of us.

But then the healing began to happen. It was slow-going, of course, but it was real and tangible. And seeing the helpers emerge --watching the first responders put their own needs last-- and watching as neighbor assisted neighbor... it was beautiful; an unexpected silver lining on an impossibly black cloud.

Twenty-five years later, I worry --often-- that we've forgotten how to be united like we were in the months and years after 9/11; that we've forgotten how to love our neighbors as ourselves. That we're so wrapped up in our own wants and desires that we forget to consider the needs of those around us. Given all that was lost that day, it would be tragic if we continued to fail to remember the very expensive lessons we learned about grace and humility. And about living and moving together as a truly united nation, which doesn't mean agreeing all the time, but does mean coexisting in peace. The healing that happened post-9/11 was a gift from God, and I feel blessed that I was able to see it for myself. And my prayer is that one day, we will again be able to love and care for one another like we did 25 years ago.

September 10

When Brady was younger, he loved educational coffee table books. You know, the big ones with lots of pictures that are ostensibly designed to teach, but often just sit unopened. On coffee tables. And credenzas. Anyway, he loved those and gobbled up the information like an eager little beaver (which is probably why he, to this day, has much of the Periodic Table of Elements committed to memory).

Although his enthusiasm for learning has waned a bit over time, he still gets into moods where he finds himself wanting to figure something out. And tonight, he's been trying to teach himself how to code. He's been sitting right there on the couch for two hours now, quietly attempting to understand the wide, wide world of computer language.

It's a blessing to see him interested in something new (to him) because knowledge will (hopefully) lead to wisdom down the road. 

September 9

It was boss-level gross outside today, with a 105-degree high temp and virtually no breeze. I chose to stay inside as much as I could.

But it was also Back to School Night for Brady, so Adam and I sucked it up and ventured out early this evening so we could attend and put faces to his teachers' names.

As the program closed and we headed back to the car, I admired the late-day clouds in the distance, and then, a little later, the pink of those very same clouds as the sun dropped completely behind the sightline.

It was definitely a yuck kind of weather day, but it ended on a high note. And it served as a reminder to me that beautiful things can result from less-than-beautiful circumstances. Sometimes we just need to be patient and wait for the loveliness to show itself.

September 8

It's Tuesday so not surprisingly, Adam and I went to dinner while Brady was at Youth Group.

He shared about his day at work and I tried to remember what I bought during my post-Mother Ship shopping trip. (Incidentally, it's amazing and vaguely alarming to realize how bad my recall is at the moment. Yikes. One of the many gifts of being a woman in my late 40s.)

Nothing extraordinary happened but was good to be out with my hunny. So for the gift of that time on a regular old Tuesday night, I am grateful.

(P.S. Those are my new glasses, which I got from Costco last week. I'm grateful for them because my previous pair was very old and the prescription was quite wrong.)

September 7

This is my squish.

He's a knock-off of those dumpling-things that've been so insanely popular for the last several months, and other than being a wee bit stinky, he's a good, reliable squish.

I'm someone who has always had issues with anxiety and although recent years have seen a marked decrease in that area, I still look for practical ways to manage stress. And squishing my squish definitely helps.

So today, I am grateful that God gave someone the idea to create squishies.

September 6

All of the unicorns came down to the kitchen this afternoon, and I had to commemorate the moment.

I love that these two are 21 and 15 and have zero reservations about hanging out with this particular gang of stuffies (and a few others. These are just two of the major players plus BearBear). Although they're not little kids anymore, they still maintain playful personas.

The whole scene makes me smile, and for that not-small gift, I am thankful.

September 5

Brady accompanied Adam and I to Costco this morning.

Actually, he drove us there after we dropped Abby off at the Toyota dealership to pick up her car after its service.

Anyway, when we arrived at the store, he scurried over to get a cart and then proceeded to push it all throughout the trip. There were no arguments and no sassiness and no complaints. 

After we checked out, we enjoyed lunch in the food court, where he sampled (and finished) his first-ever chicken bake. (He was pleased when I informed him that they do indeed sell them boxed in the frozen section. Or at least they used to do that.)

It was a very pleasant time with our baby. So for that --for his willingness to just go with the flow-- I am grateful.

September 4

I engaged in two notable but very different activities today. The first was a coffee meet-up with a woman I met in the parking lot at the Mother Ship nine months ago. (Long story.) Anyway, Margo and I finally got together and we had a lovely two and a half hour chat. I'd use that as my entry today because discussions of faith and of God and how He shows up were definitely part of the conversation, but I didn't take a pic.

So I'm using this --my second activity-- instead. I've been working on this for a few days now. I love lacy patterns that require a little more thought and effort, and this one fits the bill. I'm not entirely sure what it will be just yet, but I like it so far. And I like that as I stitch, I'm more likely to whisper prayers as they come to mind. 

So today, I'm grateful for restful projects and for potential new friendships, because both make this life much more colorful.

September 3

I was taking a walk around the neighborhood this afternoon when I saw this:

Whether or not the little green plant is actually growing out of the garbage can is immaterial; what really struck me is the thought that came to mind as I looked at it.

"Grow where you're planted."

A trash can isn't an ideal place to be planted; after all, it provides no easy source of water or nourishment. Yet somehow, this particular little guy thrived in its humble environment.

So regardless of your situation or circumstances, I challenge you to bloom where you are; to take the blessings God has given you and shine.

September 2

I was crocheting early this evening when Brady appeared and told me that he'd been pitching in the backyard. He then said that he wasn't sure if he was throwing hard or not and his voice trailed off, so I read between the proverbial lines and asked if he wanted me to watch. (He did.) 

So I followed him out the back door and observed as he got set, kicked his leg, and delivered what was a pretty hard pitch at the target. He repeated the process several more times and I confirmed that yes, I thought his velocity was good.

He hasn't thrown all that often of late; he's not currently on a team, school is in session, and Isaac isn't here to play catch. So it was a blessing to see him out there of his own volition, doing his thing. 

My baby is growing up, and I am grateful for the gift of watching that happen.

September 1

I'm not entirely sure how it's already September but here we are, on the brink of my beloved pumpkin season. How sweet it is.

Anyway, since today is Tuesday, I dropped Brady off at Youth Group (or more accurately, he drove me over and I left with the car). And then I met Adam at Gay 90s downtown for dinner. 

We hadn't been there in quite some time, as we tend to get into a rotation of eatery destinations and it wasn't one of them, but I think we both enjoyed the experience. The cheese curds were light and tasty (and the cheese had an excellent pull factor) and the pizza actually felt healthy; not greasy at all with a delicious crust.

And of course, the company and conversation were top notch. 

So for another night out with my number one hunny, I am thankful.