Happy Thanksgiving

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU ALL!

I just wanted to take a moment to wish you all a very happy holiday! I started a tradition with my family that I'd like to share with you all. Each year I ask the girls and my husband to make a list of 10 things they are thankful for and why. I make my list and then when it's time for dinner, we share them. It's been neat to watch the list evolve as the girls are growing up. It also made me cry because it's proof that they are becoming so appreciative of the things around them.

So here we go....

Jill's List~ 10 Things I'm Thankful For & Why~

• My Husband~ He gets up every single morning at 5am and goes to work all day as a truck driver and heavy equipment operator. He finally gets home around 6pm each night. There are not too many days he complains about having to work. He's a wonderful provider and works hard for us to have the things that we do.
• My Girls~ I'm blessed to be called "Mommy" and I thank God every day that he gave me them. They're my world and continue to make me proud each day. I'm so thankful they are "good kids" and have some pretty amazing morals and values that I know will carry them through life.
• My Mom~ There is not a day that goes by that I don't thank God she is around. She has been my rock and without her I'd be lost! I look forward to our Saturday mornings together.
• My new Church~ For years I have longed to find another church home. We'd been members of a church for a long time but when you don't feel like you're being fed spiritually anymore then I feel it's time to move on. It was one of the hardest decisions because we had become a big part of the church but it was time to move on. We visited a few churches but none of them fed me....until we were invited to attend CCC with my best friend. From the moment we walked in, I had goosebumps! I sat in the service that October sunday with tears streaming down my face. I felt so comfortable. I felt so at home. I felt like God was speaking right to my heart that day. And the sermon...well it just happened to be a sermon that spoke right to Frankie and I. I looked over to see Kayleigh smiling and clapping to the music. The two Sundays that followed, my brother was in town and we missed church....yessss we couldn't attend physically but we MISSED it! My girls kept asking when we were going to go back? That made my heart smile :) The following Sunday, they were actually up early and ready to go! We haven't missed a Sunday since. They are asking to get involved with the Youth Group activities and Kayleigh even asked to bring her best friend with us. I know this is where we were meant to be! :) Thank you Jillie for leading us in the right direction!
• Insulin & "Goober"~ I'm so thankful to Frederick Banting for helping to discover it. Without constant doses of this wonderful drug, Kacey would die. YES, DIE! I am also VERY thankful to "Goober", Kacey's insulin pump, for all the hard work he does every single day to keep Kacey alive. Before pumping, Kacey was taking 8+ shots a day and with the pump, she gets one needle every 3 days (most of the time). It's made life easier for her because she can eat with the press of a button. For a child, thats GREATNESS! :)
• My Friends~ I'm blessed to have some of the greatest friends I could ever ask for. They've been there for me through my roughest times and been there to witness some of the happiest! It's so nice to be able to pick up the phone and call them and know that if they can be there, they will! I'm also blessed with a BFF that tries so hard to understand diabetes and listens with an open heart. She's heard me complain & bitch, watched me cry, and seen diabetes...good and bad. And not one single time has she ever turned her ear or her heart. It's hard to find a friend that does that. Most of them get tired of "diabetes talk" or they get tired of the inconvience that diabetes gives us. But not her!
• My bathtub & hot water~ Sure it sounds silly! At the end of a rough day, I love to go sit in the bathtub and relax. All of the stresses flow out into those bubbles and I can usually get out a new person ;) It's called "Mommy Time"!
• My cell phone~ I'm not so sure what I ever did without one! It allows me to have constant contact with my husband, my girls, my mom, my brother and my friends. I can be reached anywhere at anytime and its a nice security blanket!
• My new minivan~ I LOVE IT!! It makes life so much easier. I'm thankful to my husband for working so hard to get it for me even as impatient as I was. He kept reminding me that the right deal would come along...and it did!
• My computer~ Because all my D-Moms live in it! :) It also allows me to keep in contact with other friends and family that aren't as close as they can be. It allows me to share all the amazing pics and scrapbook pages I create. It has also become a very useful tool for the girl's too!

Frankie's List~ 10 Things I'm Thankful For & Why~

• My wife~ My best friend and I love her
• My children~ I love coming home to see them
• My job~ Good benefits for my family
• Home~ Place to rest and stay with my family
• Health~ Keeping healthy so I can work
• Friends~ To do things with and talk to
• Jesus~ For keeping us together and taking care of us
• Brother~ Finally got to meet him after 34 years
• Mother~ For being my Mom
• Nae~ For helping my family when we need it, never having to ask

Kayleigh's List~ 10 Things I'm Thankful For & Why~

• Insulin because it keeps my sister alive.
• Family because they support me everyday and made me who I am today.
• My cell phone because it allows me to have a social life and to stay in contact with my family and friends.
• A house because it provides me with shelter and a safe place to go knowing that I can always come home. Lots of people are homeless.
• An education so that I can strive to be the best that I can be.
• A hard working father who loves me because he works everyday to make sure I have the things that I want and need.
• A loving mom who helps me with my cake business so I will be successful and is always there for me.
• My sister because she loves me and provides me with someone I can laugh and joke with daily.
• Nae because she always gets me what I need and then some. She put me through all of my cake classes as well!
• Janice & Josh becuse they are my best friends and I always have fun when I'm with them. They make me smile and laugh daily!

Kacey's List~ 10 Things I'm Thankful For & Why~

• The first thing I'm thankful for is my family because they take care of me and helps me when times are tough.
• The second thing I'm thankful for is the friends I have because they help me when times are tough and they are someone to talk to.
• The third thing is my toys because it tells me that my family cares about me and they want me to have fun.
• The fourth thing is my sissy because she loves me alot and cares about me. I love you my sissy!
• The fifth thing is the bed and room I have because it means my family loves me alot.
• The sixth thing is a house because it shows me my family wants me to have a good life and shelter.
• The seventh thing is my Mom because she takes care of my diabetes and gives me food and shelter. I love you Mommy!
• The eighth thing is my hard working and loving Daddy because he loves me very much and he shows me that he cares about me and that he gives me food and shelter. I love you Daddy!
• The ninth thing is my Nae-Nae because she loves me alot and makes me lots of beautiful pump packs. I love you Nae Nae!
• The tenth thing is my pump because it helps me with my diabetes and it shows me that my parents love me and trust me. I love you Goober and HERBIE!

So there ya go! Our Thankful Lists! They all seem so similar when I read them and we all did them in sperate rooms so we couldn't see what each other was writing. Funny how some of us are thankful for the same things! :)

Again, I wish you all a very happy holiday! We all have many things to be thankful for!