When I was asked to write about something I was thankful for I kept going back and forth on what I wanted to share. There are so many things in my daily life that I SHOULD be thankful for. I’m thankful for the beautiful roof over my head. I never imagined living in, let alone owning a home like ours. Things like our house were what my parents lived in, I am not adult enough for that, am I?
I am thankful for a husband that works so hard at a job that is not always fun so that I can stay home. He doesn’t have to be the sole provider for our family but he is. Just last month I was wondering whether I should go back to work full time or not to contribute to our income and he asked our 3 yr old daughter a question, “Do you like staying home with mommy?” The question alone made me cry, but hearing her say Yes and that she doesn’t want to go back to daycare made me cry more. I am thankful for him beyond words.
The list could go on and on, when I sit down and think about it there are so many things I am thankful for. But I am hoping that I am not alone, I don’t FEEL thankful most days for the everyday blessings that I take for granted.
I don’t often feel thankful at night when I am cleaning a sink full of dishes and putting away food. But I should. I should be thankful that I have dishes to clean, that we have food to eat. So many even in our own Coastal Bend go to bed hungry, they didn’t have even enough food to have dinner let alone leftovers!
I don’t often feel thankful when I have piles of laundry to wash and put away. But I should. I should be thankful that our whole family has enough clothes to wear during the week, plus some. There are many kids here in the Coastal Bend that worry about having clean clothes to wear to school on a daily basis.
I don’t often feel thankful when our kids are running around the house screaming. But I should. Sometimes they are squealing with joy and other times they are screaming that someone stole a toy. Either way the volume is always one step away from deafening. Instead of taking that moment to be annoyed or beg for them to use their inside voices I pray that I can take a step back and be thankful that they are able to run, and scream. Many do not have their children here on earth to hear and would give anything to have a loud house like mine.
This is not to say I will always enjoy these daily chores, but if I can find a way to stop myself in the moments of being frustrated or annoyed with the to-do list and be present and remember just how very blessed I am!
Starting now I am going to do these few things to give myself daily, weekly or seasonally perspective on being thankful:
- Start volunteering with the kids at the Coastal Bend Food Bank. Recently the CCMB Moms and I got to take a tour and they let us know they are ALWAYS looking for volunteers and that they would be happy to have even my young children helping! You can find their contact information here.
- Stop and play with the kids. I am the queen of saying “in a minute” to my kids when they ask me to play. I don’t want to do that anymore, I want to enjoy these moments and be thankful for them.
- Keep a thankful/gratitude journal. Maybe not something that I write in everyday since I am not good with keeping up with journals but on the days I struggle actively finding a way to change my point of view.
What are ways that you stay thankful for even the mundane chores. Or did you need this reminder as much as I did? As moms we are trying to do it all, and some days these everyday struggles will just stink and will make us cranky. But I am hoping for myself to be able to have more thankful days than cranky days!
