Thankfulness

Sometimes, I get so overwhelmed by thankfulness that I could just burst. This weekend was one of those times. It came on sort of sudden, makes me fight moments of extreme weepiness. Saturday, Alexa and Emily both had friends over. The older girls were sort of lamenting that they were unsure of what they wanted to do. They are both on a pretty tight budget and wanted good, clean, cheap fun. We were all coming up with nothing. So, we decided to play kickball. We went outside and divided the teams 4 -4. We played kickball until it was almost to dark to see the ball. We were pretty evenly matched - the scored ended in a tie. Then we came in to eat supper and decided to have a bonfire. During supper, Alexa decided she would like to play murder - her all time favorite game. So, we played a couple of rounds of murder then went outside to the bonfire. I was sitting there listening to the chatter going on, looking at the stars, watching the fire, sipping hot cocoa, listening to a few play on a rope swing in the barn and that is when it hit me - that overwhelming gratitude. I am just going to be a nerd and say for probably the 9millionth time: I love my house. Almost six years ago, when we first began building, we would come over to our "land" and have picnics and just hang out. Every single time, it was calming to me, peaceful. The feeling has never left. I know that it is not really the house, that it is the home we have made but I am still extremely grateful. A couple of days before closing, I remember being so fearful that something would happen and our house wouldn't really be our house. Ryan thought I was crazy. I just remember feeling like it was too big of a blessing. Early on, we were committed to using it for His glory. I hope that we have pleased Him with our efforts. I will forever be in awe of the many, many blessings He has bestowed on me that I do not even come close to deserving. I know at the end of the day, even as much as the kids laugh at me over my "love" for our house - they know what it means to be thankful - for both the house and the One who built it.