Day 30

Day 30: Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;


Praise Him, all creatures here belows

Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Wow, it has been a ride during these 30 Days of Thankfulness!  I see it only fit to thank the ONE who made all the other 29 blessings possible!  If you are counting your blessings this month, I challenge you to continue!  Also, remember to check out this life changing book.  If you allow it, it'll change your life!!! I promise!! 
 

Day 29

Day 29: Very thankful to have my workout buddy back from England!  Gillian Williams you killed my abs this morning! Tomorrow I might not be able to get out of bed! HA! Feel the burn ... LOVE the pain!

A picture to capture yesterday's Thankful THOUGHT! :)

Day 28

Day 28: Sweet memories with Sophia as we put up the Christmas tree this morning!


I was also blessed by this excerpt from Ann's blog today ..
 
“Christian thanksgiving is the life of Christ in the heart — transforming the disposition and the whole character.
Thanksgiving must be wrought into the life as a habit—before it can become a fixed and permanent quality.
An occasional burst of praise, in the midst of years of complaining, is not what is required. Songs on rare, sunshiny days; and no songs when skies are cloudy—will not make a life of gratitude. The heart must learn to sing always.
This lesson is learned only when it becomes a habit which nothing can weaken. We must persist in being thankful.

When we can see no reason for praise—we must believe in the divine love and goodness, and sing in the darkness.
Thanksgiving has attained its rightful place in us, only when it is part of all our days and dominates all our experiences.”

J. R. Miller, 1912

Day 25-27

Behind again ...

Day 25:Awesome niece (Lexi Martoia) and nephew (Tyler Martoia) that think their Aunt A and Uncle N are still cool and worth hanging out with!!


Day 26: Great Thanksgiving Celebration with the Kiesel side and some Euchre to finish off the night with a great partner Harv Kiesel!!

Day 27: Family PJ day with our own "church service" during kids nap time! Love listening to Focus on Family podcasts to stregthen our relationship with each other and Christ!!

Sophia: mommy and daddy and jackson

Day 21-24

Wow, so much to be thankful for ...

Day 21: Thankful that Nate is home with us all week long!! I don't know who is more excited ... Sophia or myself!!



Day 22: Thankful to have a great gym where I can workout and slowly get back into shape! Thanks Mei Fitness for having awesome equipment and top notch customer service!



Day 23: So thankful for the ability to laugh and smile through life!! I am especially thankful for all of Jackson's sweet, sweet smiles!



Day 24: Is very thankful our family is willing to drive down to Indy to celebrate Thanksgiving! Can't wait to see u Naomi and Mike Martoia, Lexi Martoia, and Tyler Martoia!! Bring your game face!!


... are you having a hard time by the end of this 30 Day challenge?  Ever since reading THIS book, I find myself daily thinking about all of the blessings God has placed in my life!  Also Ann has encouraged us to find even the smallest things to be thankful for in life!! I encourage you to add this book to your Christmas List!

Day 17-20

Sorry I have been a slacker on the blog ... I have kept up on FB, but keep forgetting to post here too!!

Day 17: I am thankful for the long stretches of sleep I USED to get from j-man and am praying for those back again!! Already can tell I am gonna need a nap today! :( Also very thankful S is an amazing sleeper!!


Day 18: Thankful to have friends that know just what u need to keep u going including playdates and lunch! Kathy Taylor Mulder we r excited to see u guys soon!


Day 19: Date night! 1st one away from both kids in 10 wks!!


Day 20:  For God's goodness and many blessings on our lives!! A great church service to remind us how truly blessed we are! Oh yeah, also Jackson's 11.5 hr sleep stretch!! Debbie Lewis Kiesel -- what did you do to get that boy to sleep that long? This past week we haven't hit longer than 5-6 hr stretches!! HA!! Too bad I couldn't sleep to enjoy it!

Sophia: Forgot to ask her ... will get a list from her soon!  She is running out of "new" ideas without prompting .. she keeps saying the same like food, food, food, mommy, daddy, mimi, papa, grandma, grandpa, and on and on and on ...

Day 15/16

Day 15: I am thankful to have a warm place to sleep at night and always food on the table!


Day 16: Thankful for food to put on the table although tonight's meal was an epic disaster! I have NEVER thrown out a whole meal before until tonight!


Ok, so I just realized they both kind of deal with food!  You can tell I REALLY love food!! Yum Yum!!


Sophia: Baby Hannah (although soon we won't be able to call her "baby" anymore b/c she will be 1!!)

Day 14

Day 14: So thankful for an awesome breastfeeding support group! We have the best LC's!! Janice Miller Record -- love love love seeing your smiling, encouraging face every Monday!! So thankful Jackson is gaining weight and for an awesome milk supply this time around!!


Sophia: Grandma and Grandpa Long coming to visit

Day 13

Day 13: So thankful for the gift of FRIENDSHIP! I have so many incredible friends in my life right 

now ... I am humbled by their generosity, caring spirit, encouragement, and humble hearts! 

Some are near and some are far ... but all are close to my heart!

Don't ya just wanna bust into SONG?  "Friends are friends forever ..."

Sophia: CHURCH and her black shoes from Faith

Day 12

Day 12: Thankful to have my favorite seester (Sarah Kiesel-Jeffers) living only 5 minutes away from me!! It has been fun watching our girls grow up together! Plus it would b horrible if we had to fight over the grandparents time! right Debbie Lewis Kiesel? "Now it's 1-stop shopping"!


Sophia: Aunt Sarah and Hannah banana

Day 11

Day 11: So.very.thankful for the brave men and women that have fought and will continue to fight for my safety and freedom! (Cue Lee Greenwoods God Bless America)!! Also thankful for my MOPS group, especially my awesome table!! What an encouragement on Friday mornings!


Sophia - milk

Day 10

Day 10: So thankful that my in-laws come out one am per wk to give Sophia 100% attention plus free me for a few hrs to workout!! Also so very thankful for Jackson's 10hr stretch on this 10th day of Nov!!! Holla!


Sophia: yogurt and crafts

Day 9

Day 9: I am very thankful for Sophia's incredible preschool program! I can't ask for a better place for Sophia to grow, learn, and develop!! Thanks for all your hard work Beth Jennings Welch! Plus I love having all Wed AM to spend alone with my baby boy!


Sophia: Miss Paula and Miss Dawn (her teachers)

Day 8

Day 8: Thankful for my wonderful father, Brad Kiesel, and celebrate with him today the big 6-0!! Also thankful for Jackson's 9 hr stretch last night! Finally thankful for the right to vote!!

Sophia: Isaiah, Miss Jenn, Mr. Adam

Day 7

Day 7: I am so thankful for incredible parents! They have always been so loving and supportive throughout all the stages in my life! They totally rock in their new role as grandparents to 3!!


Sophia: Mimi and Papa Kiesel, Grandma and Grandpa Long

Day 6

Day 6: Thankful for a great church and a wonderful Sunday School class! We have the best teacher ... a wise man .. Jon Arvin we always look forward to 9am Sunday!

Sophia: her friend Maeve

Day 5

Two very healthy children who bring smiles to my face and joy to my heart!!

Sophia - The outside and trees

Day 4

The 9 hr stretch Jackson just gave me and I had to wake him to eat!! Woot woot!!
Sophia's Gratitude Journal ...

Day 1 - Daddy
Day 2 - Mommy
Day 3 - Jackson
Day 4 - Herself ... hahaha

30 Days of Thankfulness Day 1-3

This year I wanted to join in on Facebook for the 30 Days of Thankfulness and thought ... heck, why don't I blog each of my days as well!

Catching you up...

Day 1: A wonderful, loving husband that supports our family and allows me to stay home and raise our children!


Day 2: The 7 hr 25 min stretch that Jackson just gave me!! I *think* he might be catching on to this sleep thing at night!!


Day 3: A saving faith in Jesus Christ with the knowledge we are not home yet!


 
Have you joined in naming the 30 days of gratitude campaign?? I really encourage you to write them down in a journal!  I plan to include Sophia's as well on the blog!  It could be quite commical! 
 
We are very blessed!!