Today has been a really crummy day. My mom, my dad, my husband and I all had things go wrong. The baby cried all day. The kids fussed and whined. So I knew when I was assessing the day on my way home from the used bookstore and I was adding up all the wrong things and all the crummy aspects of this day that I needed to stop. There are a couple of blogs that I follow because they help me keep things in perspective. One is Go Blog Yourself and this family has lost a child to cancer. Another is a missionary friend who is working in Africa with orphans and abused and neglected children. I read these because it keeps me mindful when I pray to remember them and their needs but also because God uses their reality to help me maintain an attitude of gratitude. How can I complain about a day where my family is healthy and safe? My children had 3 meals (and snacks) and played with many toys. My husband and parents had jobs to go to. I was holding a healthy baby. And tomorrow, we’ll celebrate my mom’s birthday.
I am so grateful for…
God
my salvation
my Bible
my husband
my children
my parents
my friends
my church family
my freedom
my physical and mental health
my home
homeschooling
breastfeeding
food to eat and feed my family
clothes to wear (and wash and iron)
shoes on our feet

One of my favorite quotes I collected in my teenage years was “I had no shoes and complained until I met a man who had no feet” I am not sure who said it but it helped me realize that it really is how we look at our circumstances that makes a difference, because most of the time there is someone out there who has it much worse than we do.