Be Grateful Challenge

March 2012

6th~ true friends; my pillow; the wind; my house; my job; Grant at 'H and R Block' in Sears in Joliet

7th~ my son's hugs; my daughter's smile; my customers; coffee; washing machine; 55F in the morning; Avon being delivered; bookkeeper at home office being consistently friendly; kind words from coworkers; God; my salvation; Lady Pat; an unexpected opportunity; Michael visiting our church for Bible study; Eme and Idara; a young lady being good at Bible study so she can join us in Sunday school; my church home and how welcome every visitor feels!

8th~ morning snuggles with Matt; silly waving; rain; a light breeze; text from a friend; coffee; 'left-over omelette's'; toothpaste; my clothesline not blowing away/ getting twisted in knots; Jinn being there to answer my Avon questions; an unexpected opportunity; Matt's friend from school being at McDonald's playland

9th~ a long chat with Jinn (love you); peaceful day; love of God; happy son; my freedom; being free through submission (or trying to); firewood; a reality check; a helpful state employee; Biblical truths I can stand on; Avon and the hope it brings; choir practice; Lady Pat's friendship; 2nd Ave Apostolic Church; my bed and pillow; Pooh to snuggle

10th~ a sunny morning; Matt's sillies; caramel frappe; refocusing on people/ things that really matter; hearing Matt read proverbs 10 and explain how it applies to his life, then watching his behavior change; a poke from a friend; my daughter being kind; the beginnings of a new plan; Matt cooking me Sloppy Joe's from scratch for lunch; a lot of spring cleaning getting done; finding the right program for our Sunday school kids to sponsor a child :)

11th~ supportive adults at church; Sunday school kids picking a child to sponsor and truly embracing what that means; a good long hug from Lady Pat; quiet afternoon at home; Matt chatting with Antone

12th~ peaceful day at work; true friends; Boy Scout meeting and maybe making friends there; early to bed

13th~ being able to call off work when I am sick; sleeping until 11:00am; Matt making me breakfast in bed; Matt and I snuggling and blowing our noses together all day; Matt being such a good boy; nice conversation with Nancy at Will County Code Enforcement~ she's so sweet :)

14th~ sunny morning; sparrow on the empty chicken run; daffodils blooming; 2 newspapers at the end of the drive; coffee; breakfast; Matt being so sweet; real friends; Dr. Carpenter at JFK; Livingsocial Deals; an apple in my fridge at work; cup of hot green tea with real honey; a church home where we are safe and loved unconditionally; Bible study @ church

15th~ scent of hot coffee brewing wafting down the hall; huge good morning hug from Matt; peace in my heart; a breeze through my office; bills paid; Avon orders coming in; a friend on the phone; a long chat with Mom; Matt being good

16th~ my little snuggle-bug; a quiet neighborhood; sound of a rooster from blocks away; a nice chat with a trusted friend; a surprise planned for Matt; the peace of knowing "This is not my home, not where I belong. Just windows and rooms I'm passing through. This is just a stop on the way to where I'm going. I'm not afraid because I know, this is just my temporary home!" eventually God will move me forward out of this; juice from Abid's store and his sincerity; choir practice; visions; sitting on my bed quietly knitting; bills paid

17th~ pop cans crushed and taken to Berlinsky's by Matt; rent books balancing; Matt's Bible study done; hot oatmeal a la Matt; peaceful office; Teri getting better; Avon order put in early~ then we added to it; visiting Teri at St Joe's Hospital; Irish festival in Plainfield (yummy dinner!); Matt liking the meal at the Irish fest ( Ooooo! I can cook that!); home; fresh sheets; captain attitude in bed in his own room; adding to my Avon order~ again; knowing there has to be some good coming out of this sore throat; new clothes and sheets for Matt; wearing my hair in a pony tail 'cuz I'm only as young as I feel; St Patrick's Day and being Irish

18th~ a sweet boy; coffee; making it to church in time for breakfast; Sunday school children (they make me grow!); innocent letters to Meuni; learning to love each other and lift each other up; church service; serving meals after church; hugs & kisses x 1000 (love church); dinner from church (yummy!); down time at home with my son; visiting a sister church to honor their founding Pastor and First Lady; singing with choir (and knowing all but one song); Sister Joanne and Brother Simon; a peaceful car ride with friends; knowing Matt and I are loved; a sweet boy who is so patient with this old Mommy; a dear friend from my past adding my on facebook; getting Avon fundraiser into computer; a peaceful neighborhood; my pillow

19th~ Matt's sleepy little boy voice; school clothes and work clothes laid out ahead; a simple bowl of grits with a bit of sugar; hot coffee; a minute to breathe; my parkway coming back to life and looking better than I could have dreamed; turnip greens ready to harvest; May Apples up looking magical in my rain garden; 104.7 WBGL; Lady Pat; getting youth group up and running soon

20th~ the promise of Spring; a quiet day; a hike with Lady Pat and Matt; laundry hung out; a peaceful neighborhood; Brea offering a washer and dryer to replace mine that died

21st~ work (having a job); a new Bible (cute and compact to carry along); a quick bath; Lady Pat and Pastor Wallace; Avon being delivered; getting Avon fundraiser items to customers; lady Pat and LaCreshia's help sorting and bagging Avon; a long chat with a friend in Homer Glenn; Matt being so good; my pillow

22nd~ a comfy bed; my pillow; a morning breeze; Matt being sweet; driving Matt to school as that gives us time to really talk; customers being patient as not all the Avon orders were bagged correctly; finding all the 'missing' items so they can be delivered quickly; Candi being so sweet; Aiden spending time with me and not wanting to leave me; playing cars with Aiden; Boys and Girls Club; Abid stocking my favorite green tea (my tummy's upset and I needed tea); unexpected letter from a friend and it's unexpected tone

23rd~ quiet morning; my soft pillow; Pooh Bear; night rain; Matt's sleepy voice; my job; Avon; my salvation; my cute new Bible; the promise of a 'new' washer and dryer this Saturday; watching Matt read his Bible most of the day; some pop cans getting crushed by Matt; salad for lunch; 'a coke and a smile'; mileage logs; customers; hope; an evening of 'double scrubbing' my house tonight; my cute new Bible; watching everything play itself out; staying on track; the staff at Joliet Boys and Girls Club for taking such an interest in Matt's future;

24th~ a sweet boy; a 'new' washer; a friend who responded to our need (Thank You!); a scavenger; valves holding; Matt doctoring my toe after I dropped the washer on it; a chance to deep clean behind washer and dryer (hadn't been done for three months); a quiet evening at home; snuggling with Matt

25th~ Sunday school children and all the hope they hold; Ashante's letter to Mueni; Youth Group falling into place; Lady Pat and her friendship; a working washing machine; my clothesline; knitting hats for MorningStar Mission; Matt reading Proverbs 26 to me; my DVD player and DVDs; getting a letter written to a friend

26th~ fresh hot coffee; bacon and eggs; Matt sewing a patch on his Boy Scout uniform; salad for lunch; Avon orders (hope); groceries gifted to us; listening to Matt's chatter while I work; cold coca-cola; Boys and Girls club; Will County Center for Community Concerns

31st~ hope; true friends I can count on; my Jeep; Avon; my clothes line; opportunity; groceries; a sweet man; Lady Pat; my blog; permission to start youth group; 1000 youth group ideas running through my head; Matt helping Teri & Del clean their apartment for his Sunday school homework;