Day 13 - Thankful for my Mother

I am thankful for knowledge, skills and abilities handed down to me from my Mother.

She passed on the love of creating things. She used to paint and I have a few of her pieces and I have dabbled in this area. And she taught me to sew although I must admit I don’t have the level of talent she does.

She gave me the opportunity to take piano lessons, although this did not take, her love of music did.

She passed along her talent and love of flowers. We used to go to Will Rogers Park in the spring and walk through the Rose Gardens, we helped maintain a community flower bed with the Hoe and Hope club and she taught me how to arrange flowers (real and silk). Plus many of her paintings were of nature and flowers.

She passed along her passion for reading. She was a member and officer of the Friends of the Library Club. I had a Library card at a very young age and I got to go to reading club a few afternoons a week in the summer. Give me a good book and a free afternoon and I am set.

She gave me early an exposure to Jesus my Lord and Savior, she made sure I was in Sunday school at a very early age. She taught me Bible versus and Worship songs and passed along her desire to know Him.

She loved to travel and made sure we made our way to the Capitol State steps for a picture. And of course if you know me at all you know I love to travel and have a passion for capturing my travels in pictures.

She is a great cook and she was a good teacher. I was an eager learner and had 3 brothers to sample my wares. From her I learned the love of cooking and entertaining.

She was an involved parent, she was a Bible school teacher, a Girl Scout Leader, Home Room Mother. I was exposed to art, literature, music, camping, cooking, travel, serving the community, I developed a love of faith, family and friends all from observing her and the traits she passed down.

Yes, I am thankful for my Mother!

This is a recent picture...she is a pretty good Grandmother and Great-Grandmother too~

Day 12 - Thankful for America!! Home Again Indeed~

My Mom had to learn this poem in school; she asked me to look it up on the Internet and read it to her this week. I knew it would have to be one of my "thankful posts”. I am thankful to be an American and while I am enjoying my adventures here in Europe my heart too is turning home......

"AMERICA FOR ME” Henry Van Dyke (1852-1933)

'TIS fine to see the Old World, and travel up and down
Among the famous palaces and cities of renown,
To admire the crumbly castles and the statues of the kings,—
But now I think I've had enough of antiquated things.

So it's home again, and home again, America for me!
My heart is turning home again, and there I long to be,
In the land of youth and freedom beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars!

Oh, London is a man's town, there's power in the air;
And Paris is a woman's town, with flowers in her hair;
And it's sweet to dream in Venice, and it's great to study Rome;
But when it comes to living there is no place like home.

I like the German fir-woods, in green battalions drilled;
I like the gardens of Versailles with flashing fountains filled;
But, oh, to take your hand, my dear, and ramble for a day
In the friendly western woodland where Nature has her way!

I know that Europe's wonderful, yet something seems to lack:
The Past is too much with her, and the people looking back.
But the glory of the Present is to make the Future free,—
We love our land for what she is and what she is to be.

Oh, it's home again, and home again, America for me!
I want a ship that's westward bound to plough the rolling sea,
To the bléssed Land of Room Enough beyond the ocean bars,
Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars

Day 11 Thankful for those that Serve

Working on an ARMY Post in a foreign country I have been blessed to witness first hand those who are serving to protect our Freedoms at home and overseas around the world. Many put themselves in harms way to protect a way of life most of the world will never get to experience.

I get goose bumps every time I see the American Flags that fly here on our American Post in Germany. I get to witness the Hails and Farewell ceremonies for the service members assigned to our organization. The traditions that are a part of their every day lives, the exposure to their loyalty to country and their commitment to making our world safe make my contributions seem small and insignificant.

For many years on this special day I sent cards to some of the Veterans from my church and work place. I made it a tradition to take my father to lunch in honor of his service. This year I am away from my home church, away from my OKC work family, many whom has also served our country and can only thank my dad in my thoughts and prayers.

This year, I find myself in Germany where I am exposed to a much larger community of those who serve. It is an honor and a privilege to report to work on this installation, to see the faces of those that are headed off to soil even more foreign than Germany’s, to watch their children play and their spouses shop all the while knowing the possibility exist that their’s will be the next called up for duty in the battle field.

I am thankful for these service members and their families!

Take time today to Thank a Veteran!

Day 10 - Thankful for the Simple Things

It is the simple things that please me...

Hot Cocoa on a cold morning

A good book and a lazy afternoon to read

Singing a favorite hymn

Baking cookies and eating them still warm with a big glass of milk

A movie with a story book ending

Fond memories of my father

A drive around the lake

A warm pair of socks

A craft project to do with my granddaughter

Holding hands while walking through the forest

A smile on his face when I say something crazy

OnCue Ice Tea; mostly the ICE

A new picture of a granddaughter

A call or chat from Oklahoma

A Bible verse that speaks to me when I need it most

These all tug at my heart strings. Things that I would wrap up in brown paper packages tied up with string ( to borrow a line from Barbara) and gift to my loved ones if I could.

Psalm 100:4-5

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

I am thankful for His Word and am so glad I took my son’s lead and put some of these thoughts to word.

Day 9 Thankful for Travel Opportunities

Yes I am thankful to be able to travel while we are still young enough to enjoy it.

We have always managed to work some travel into our schedules. When the boys were younger most of our travels centered around camping at the lake and trips to ball tournaments with few side trips on the way home. Then as the boys grew older we got to experienced a few Caribbean cruises and a several trips to College Football Bowl games in Miami, San Diego, Tempe, New Orleans even extending a few of these for some extra time away.

And then the opportunity to extend our travels to another continent became a reality for us about a year ago.....

These days our travel plans revolve around places in Europe. On our bucket list to try and work in while living abroad are Rome, Dublin, London, Venice, Paris, Swiss Alps, Czech Republic, Munich, Prague, Berlin, Black Forest, Worms and Darmstadt and Delft Holland...this is just a partial list (those in blue have already been crossed off and red is booked). And we have managed some day trips from the house to wonderful towns surrounding Stuttgart.

Yes, 2011 looks to be the year of our European Vacation! Our plans are to take vacation time in Europe in 2011 versus flying back and forth to Oklahoma. But we are flexible and will work with what ever God hands us.

Day 8 - Thankful for my Job

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12

and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, ¹² so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

I started back to work 26 years ago more as a matter of necessity than looking for a career.

My job became a career and now my career has taken me to a foreign land. Early on we used to say my job provided "the benefits" and wow what BENEFITS it is providing these days!!

When I first started, I used to say when I have 30 years in I am going to retire. It won’t be a day longer than when I am eligible.....

But as I approach that date my thoughts have changed to "I could retire but I might work a few years longer”.... The urgency that I thought would be there just isn’t.

I don’t want to retire too early only to find out I want or need to go back to work. And I have a great job now, so why leave it until I am really sure I am ready....

With this job, there have been times when I have not enjoyed the assignments I was given but other times I felt I was in my niche. I have made life long friends from the work place. We have exchanged family stories, laughs and tears. We have suffered through miserable work assignments and laughed our way through rotating bosses. We have shared good times and bad, bowling tournaments and picnics, workload migrations and shift work.

Oh and the paycheck is nothing to sneeze about either.

Yes I am thankful for my job!

Day 7 - Thankful for our Granddaughters

Proverbs 17:6
Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.

We have 2 granddaughters, 'our children’s children' and they are indeed jewels to us. It is such a joy to be able to spend time with them. They make the day so much better even if for now that means just seeing them on skype or talking with them on the magicjack phone or on our infrequent visits to Oklahoma.

Years ago we watched a young child in front of us in church as his grandparents walked towards their pew. His eyes would light up and a smile would spread across his face as they started down the isle towards him. At that time I decided I wanted to have that kind of impact on a child.

And I am blessed to have experienced this very reaction with our oldest and it is grand indeed. I hope our newest will get to see enough of us via pictures and video phone chats so that next year when we come back to Oklahoma we can begin working on that same delightful smile~

Yes I am thankful for my grandchildren!