Thankful Sundays

Today marks five weeks until we'll be back in Arizona. With that, and the turmoil in the country and world at the moment, I thought it would be good to express more frequently what I am thankful for and show appreciation for the blessings I have. So each Sunday for the rest of our time here in Rexburg, I'll be listing a week's worth of blessings (7, that is). Maybe it will help me to remember how blessed I really am. So here you go, week 1:

1. FAMILY. My family (at Jake and Nikki's wedding, 2007; Tyler was far, far away, so we missed him, but he is certainly included in this):

They have constantly offered love and support, even from afar, for John and me and our little family. We love them and miss them tremendously.

John's family (at ABCDEFG, in Pine, Summer 2008):

I am truly blessed to have such wonderful in-laws. I love them dearly, and am so glad to be part of them. And I love having sisters, especially such nice ones.

And our family (also summer 2008):

Our little family isn't perfect, but we have peace in our home and we love each other, and that is a treasure to me. I love my gentle husband and our sweet boys!

2. Cell phones. Hurray for free evenings and weekends! (So we can talk to the above-mentioned wonderful families without trying to keep the calls short to save money.)

3. Inspired prophets. Can I tell you how grateful I am for the continued counsel of our prophets, past and present, to stay out of debt, to set our homes in order financially and otherwise, to prepare for the future? We are not as prepared as we would like to be, with John being a full-time student for the past almost three years, but it could be much worse, if we hadn't been trying to heed the counsel of our prophet. I love that even with the warnings and counsel, their messages are hopeful, and they remind me that while what really matters is eternal, we have the help of the Savior in our temporal lives too. We are not alone, and there is great reason for hope. For the latest examples, click here. And here. And here.

4. Nursery. Those kids are so sweet! I'm excited to move back to Arizona, but I am going to miss serving in the nursery. We love it.

5. Target. We went to look for a new white Sunday shirt for Adam on Friday, in Idaho Falls (his old white shirt now has a pink pocket and sleeve, thanks to the red paper I forgot was in his pocket when I washed it). We went to the mall, and in the first store I looked in, something whispered to me that I would find a shirt for him at Target. Well, several stores later, we went to Target, and lo and behold! there it was, the perfect shirt, right price, right size.

6. Enough food to eat. I love this poem, given to me by a friend at my bridal shower:

"Thank God for dirty dishes! They have a tale to tell...

While other folks go hungry, we're eating very well.

With home and health and happiness, I shouldn't want to fuss,

For by this stack of evidence, God's very good to us!"

-author unknown

7. A warm home. Especially in Rex"burrrrrr"g. :-)

Four more Sundays to go!

Anna

PS-Thanks to my good friend Marily for the idea!