She announced, “Mommy, I made a nine! I made a NINE! Come see my Nine!”

I put my hand in hers and let her lead the way.

She proudly led me into her room where she had been playing with Little People.

She had arranged them into the shape of the number nine.

Okay, it’s kind of a backwards nine. But it’s a nine none-the-less.

As a former special education teacher and a mom who is learning so much about being the mom God has called me to be, I feel the need to stress the importance of praising and encouraging your children.

In this moment, MC did not need to hear about the backwardness of her “nine” she needed to hear that it was the best Little People Nine her Mommy has ever witnessed. The time for teaching the correct and proper way to form this number will come later….maybe when she’s four.

Taking a family picture using the self-timer is h-a-r-d!

For more Wordless Wednesday participants, visit 5 Minutes for Mom or the Wordless Wednesday Headquarters.

For Tackle it Tuesday this week, I was planning to decorate the Christmas tree that I put up last week. But, well, that just didn’t happen.

Instead, yesterday I tackled taking the girls and Will to our convention center (believe me, it isn’t as large as that title makes it sound) for the annual Christmas Tree Lighting and photo with Santa.

And what a tackle it was!!!

We didn’t make it to the tree lighting last year, so I had no idea what a big deal it would be. No idea!

We miraculously ended up being inside the Rhinelander when Santa came though. Actually, we snuck in during the ceremony to warm up…it was soooo cold outside!

Anyway, we were at what we thought was the beginning of  the line for Santa pictures and ended up waiting for over an hour. Apparently, there was alreay a line the length of the ballroom formed from other people that were strategically already inside. I just felt sorry for the poor people that were outside when the line started.

It was such a madhouse, though. And I am a people watcher, so it was actually fun standing in line….waiting.

There is a misconception that the Army is organized, regulated, and put together. It’s a misconception in most cases. This was one of them.

When we finally got up to see Santa, MC and Will both F-R-E-A-K-E-D O-U-T!! So…we have a very classic picture with the two of them crying!

I also happened to pull a muscle in my back yesterday while I was exercising.

That made standing in the infamous Santa line and carrying around children in the cold a very painful tackle. I’ll be on the couch today with a heating pad….not much will be tackled around here at all, I’m sure.

To see what other moms are tackling this week, be sure to visit Tackle it Tuesday at 5 Minutes for Mom.

I hate being such a grump. Really, I do.

It’s not pleasant for anyone.

So, I’ve decided that I’m going to make some changes to improve my well being.

My top three changes are:

1. Make my time with God a PRIORITY. I am not writing this to sound super spiritual in any way at all. I need quiet time with God, praying, and reading the Bible. I really need it. When I am able to have this time, my whole outlook changes. I am a much more pleasant person. I am more peaceful, and my soul is at rest. Lately, since we’ve been potty training through the night, the girls have been getting up earlier in the mornings and cutting into this time. I have to find a way to work around that.

2. Exercise regularly. I was doing well with my exercise routine for, oh, about three weeks earlier this fall. And then I missed a day, which caused me to miss another day, which caused me to miss a week, which caused me to miss a month. And, now it has been several months since I have done any exercise at all. So, starting today, I’m going to be spending nap time, or at least a part of it, working out. I’ll either be on the treadmill or Walking Away the Pounds with Leslie Sansone.

3. Create Weekly. I have found that I have a need to create. I usually exercise this need through scrapbooking, specifically digital scrapbooking. Remember the baby books I was working on?? Friday I finally completed EA’s page for her 5th month. That’s the fist time I’ve scrapbooked since I last posted a page on October 13. That’s almost six weeks since I’ve done anything creative. My goal is to produce at least one layout a week. That’s a minimum for my sanity.

One other thing that I am doing is making a conscious effort to be more consistent with disciplineing my children. This is such a struggle! The girls are in the middle of terrible threes which the terrible two’s can’t come close to holding a candle to. And Will is at an age where he’s really starting to push some limits. They need me to act calmly and consistently instead of letting things go until I’m reaching a boiling point. But, unfortunately, that’s what I’ve been doing because in the moment, it’s easier. I’m not going for easy anymore.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end:
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”

I just love that with God, I don’t have to remain in the funk that I am in.

I can begin each day fresh and new.

And that’s just what I’m going to do.

I happened to look in the trash can while I was throwing something in there and thank goodness I did.

I noticed several nesting boxes and a golden book.

Will has been learning to clean up along with the girls before their quiet time and before bed.

Unfortunately, he has not learned that EVERYTHING does not go in the trash can.

This spirit of thankfulness is something that I want to life everyday and instill in my children’s hearts.

Today I am thankful for many, many things, but I’ll leave you with this list.

1. Christ and the gift of salvation that I have received from him. I am so thankful for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. Because of his salvation I have eternal life and I can have an eternal perspective in this life. I have truly been given a life of abundance (John 10:10). I can have peace in any circumstance because of his constant companionship. My relationship with Christ has been challenged over this last year. It has been challenged and it has grown. I thank him for molding me and making he His!

2. I am thankful for my husband. He is a true servant to God, to his soldiers, and to our family. He gives so much of himself. I am thankful for the love that we share. I am thankful for the support and encouragement he gives me from miles away. I am thankful for the wonderful father that he is to our children. I am thankful for his calling and his passion to serve. And I am thankful for his sacrifices, they are many.

3. I am thankful for my children. They are such amazing gifts from God. I fail them daily and I feel so unworthy to be their mother. But God has saw fit to give me the opportunity to be just that. I am thankful for their sweet little hearts, for their love of people, for their excitement for life. I am thankful for the many, many lessons that they teach me. I am thankful for their companionship. And I am thankful for the beautiful people that they are going to become.

4. I am thankful for my family. I will be missing the big Thanksgiving meal at my Grandmama’s house today. It sounds like almost everyone will be there. I am thankful for their love, for their support, for their encouragement. I am thankful for the way my relationship with them has grown over the years. I am also thankful for my husband’s family and the support that they give me. They have graciously accepted me as one of their own.

5. I am thankful for my friends, both near and far away. At the beginning and even before this deployment began I prayed about my desire for friends and while I wanted to develop strong friendships during this time, I was also completely prepared to be lonely. By that, I mean, I was at peace for whatever God had in store for me. And if that meant that I wouldn’t be surrounded by friends here, I was ready to spend my time growing in my relationship with Him. But He has blessed my life immensely with good friendships, beyond anything I could have imagined. Just last night I received an e-mail from a friend full of thanksgiving for our friendship and how God has brought us together during this time. I have had several friends move away but God has been gracious in providing new friends every time. I’m also thankful for the friendships I’ve been able to develop and maintain with those of you who are on the other side of the ocean and in the blogosphere. I don’t take you for granted!

6. I am thankful for technology. Because of it I have been able to communicate with my husband. He has been able to stay connected with us. We are so blessed that we are separated during this period in time when we have such an opportunity to keep in touch with each other through e-mail, chat, blogs, and web-cams. I am thankful that my parents recently got a computer and web-cam so that we are able to communicate with them more and I can see my family that I miss so much. I am thankful for this blog and the opportunity I have to communicate our life with all of you. I am thankful for the support and encouragement I have received from all of you that take the time to read what I write. And I am thankful for other outlets of social media like Facebook and Twitter that I can always have a way to communicate with friends and other moms.

7. I am thankful for all the things that I didn’t mention. I am thankful that there is so much to be thankful for that this could never ever be a complete list.

We truly have so much to be thankful for. Every breath that we breathe is a precious gift from our God and an opportunity to serve him faithfully.

I pray that you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving with hearts full of thankfulness!