Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving has officially come and gone (but hopefully the leftovers will be around for a little while longer). I must be the only blogger in the world who hasn't done a Thanksgiving post. I think I was too busy enjoying it! But as they say, better late than never. Here are just a few things I am thankful for.

1. My husband. As I am typing this, he is in the kitchen baking cookies. Yeah. Mixing ingredients like a pro and everything. My husband is sweet. He gives me many hugs and kisses every day, and is always telling me how much he loves me. He is silly, and he makes me smile and laugh. He is passionate, has big dreams and big plans, and works hard to make them happen.

It might surprise some people to hear this, but I feel like Art and I were stuck in rut for a while, and now we're finally coming out of it. During our first year of marriage, we were so happy, even though we had no money. In our second year of marriage, we both had jobs, and were in more comfortable spot money-wise, but I feel like we weren't as happy. I remember thinking, "We've only been married two years, and I'm already wondering how we get back to being more happy and in love."

It's not like our marriage was in trouble. I never felt that way. But I felt like we weren't as close. Something was missing. And now? I think we're closer, happier, and more in love than ever. And I think this baby was definitely instrumental in bringing us back to that place.

2. Which brings me to the next item on this list. I'm thankful for our baby. Up until a couple of weeks ago, I told people that I wasn't necessarily enjoying pregnancy. I have always loved this baby, and I'm not sorry that I'm pregnant. But for the most part, being pregnant isn't...fun. It's mostly a seemingly endless string of odd, random, and annoying symptoms. But that all changed when I started to feel the baby kick. Up until then, I still had a hard time believing I was pregnant.

Yeah, I peed on a stick and saw a plus sign. Yeah, I went to the doctor and their tests confirmed it. Yeah, I got to hear the heartbeat. But before I could feel the baby inside me, I wondered if I would have to wait nine months for my reward. I didn't. Those little kicks and punches and tumbles and wiggles are a constant joy, for both Art and me. It's so incredible, to know that there is life inside of me, and even more so that it's happening without my having to do anything (other than eat and breathe).

All those verses in the Bible that talk about God weaving together life in the secret place become more real when it's happening inside of you. With the exception of the ultrasound, I cannot see our child. I cannot control how fast he or she is growing. I have no say in the order the organs are made, or how many fingers and toes s/he will have (hopefully 10 of each), or who they will look like, or who they will become. God is doing it all, and I can't see any of it, but I can finally feel it. I get to be the vessel inside which God is forming His favorite creation. It is awesome and humbling.

3. I am thankful for my family. At one of the family gatherings for Canadian Thanksgiving, my relatives kept repeating how blessed we were as a family. I have a large extended family, and every one of us is a Christian. That in itself makes us rare. We're also all close. Many people expressed that we are family AND friends. So many families out there are feuding, or estranged. There is none of that with my family.

That's not to say that there aren't struggles. But I have never once dreaded a family gathering because of those certain relatives who cause tension or embarrassment. There is only joy when getting together with my relatives.

And now that I live here, I don't get to be a part of most of those gatherings. But I never feel as though I don't have family, because out here, we've created our own. There are Art's parents and his siblings, and then there are friends who have become family. It's a much smaller group than my family back in Manitoba, but it's comforting to know that we have friends who are so close, they feel like family. People we expect to be with during major holidays and celebrations, and also get together with whenever we feel like it.

This also means that our baby won't be without "uncles", "aunts", and "cousins". In the absence of an abundance of blood relatives, God has provided adopted family members as well. They started out as friends, and now they are so much closer than that.

4. I don't really have a fourth item. I could go on and on. I'm thankful for the beauty of Washington, I'm thankful to be living in America, I'm thankful for my job, and Art's job, and our apartment, and the car we just bought, and our gym....

God has been so good to us. How often I forget. Really, we should never stop being thankful. But since I'm so prone to forgetfulness, I'm glad that there is a time of year specifically set aside for us to remember God's goodness and thank Him for His blessings.

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow
Praise Him all creators here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost