Giving Thanks Day 30

Day 30: I am thankful to be alive. To be able to create memories with my husband and children. To be able to serve Jesus. To be able to go to work and show Gods love to the kids there. I am thankful for my friends who love me and encourage me. I am thankful for Terry Walling, Bob Kopeny and Todd Krombein my three pastors who taught the word of God to me and lived it out and are such great examples to me. I am thankful for Robyn, Becky & Julie their sweet wives and three of my close friends. I am thankful for Susan Richardson & Lori Eggenburg my bible answer woman who have such amazing insight into Gods word and are always willing to answer my questions without making me feel stupid. I am thankful for my new friends here in AZ and all my friends I had to leave in CA. I am thankful for my church family both here and in CA. I am so blessed by all of you. I am thankful God allows me serve in ministry it is such a joy. I am thankful that even though times get tough God carries me through, teaches me new lessons and strengthens me through it. I am thankful for the greatest husband ever, for my amazing children God has allowed me to raise and the ones I didn't get to know yet who are already sitting at his feet. I am thankful for my home. I am thankful I had a grandfather who used to take his grandchildren sit them at his feet and tell us about Jesus. I am truly blessed. Lord thank you for all you have given, for who I am because of you and most important for you. I could go on and on over why I am thankful maybe next year I will do this more often because I don't ever want to take anything you have blessed me with for granted. Thank you Lord I am so blessed.

Giving Thanks Day 29

Day 29: Date nights with my husband. Tonight we went out just the two of us we weren't very hungry so we went and split an appetizer & desert and talked and really enjoyed just being together, then we went and did a little Christmas shopping. It was so enjoyable to have uninterrupted conversation and laugh it was as if we were the only two people in the whole place. Thank you Lord that my dad & step mom ask if they could watch the kids so we could have a date it was such a blessing for Brian and I.

Christmas Lights & the Tree

Brian put up the lights
with help from grandma & the kids

working hard

a joint effort

Dad checking things out

We let the kids decorate (I will make a few adjustments)

Hannah feeling proud

Josh pretty content with himself

We did it

Brian making some adjustments

We put up the lights & the tree. The kids love to decorate so Brian puts on the lights and the rest is up to the kids and they had a great time.

Giving Thanks Day 28

Day 28: Today I am thankful for God's promises. I was outside watching Brian put up our lights and when I turned around this is what I saw beautiful. Even though Noah & the Ark were so long ago yet God continues to give us rainbows and reminds us of his promises.

Thanksgiving fun

Come on in and join us
being silly

watching the Cardinals struggle to play football

Loving all of the football games that are on today

coloring

I don't like pumpkin pie due to the consistency so I decided to make a pumpkin cream pie and it was so delicious

playing cards with their grandparents

my little girl

Jenga with grandma

snuggling with my husband

Today was a good day full of food, family & fun. We had a great thanksgiving day and everyone had a great time. We had a great meal of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes & gravy, candied yams, corn & rolls and then for desert we had chocolate cream pie, pumpkin cream pie, peanut butter fudge, seas candy & pumpkin bread. I love thanksgiving a great day to be thankful and eat, eat, eat.

Giving Thanks Day 27

Day 27: Today I am thanking God that my dad & my step mom are able to be her for Thanksgiving. It's so nice to have family around at Thanksgiving time. They drove here in the rain on Wednesday so they could be here and I am thankful that they got here safely.

Giving Thanks Day 26

Day 26: I am thankful for memories. Today as I get ready for thanksgiving tomorrow I am reminded of childhood thanksgivings with my grandma (who was the best cook God ever allowed to born) her house was always full of amazing smells and lots and lots of unconditional love. I loved having my family, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandma & pap all there being a family and creating memories. I have such wonderful memories of growing up I pray that I can create those kind of memories for my children to look back on once day with such happiness. _

Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

One of the things we like to do every year is watch Charlie Brown Thanksgiving so we gathered around the TV last night and for an hour we watched Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, Woodstock and the rest of the gang celebrate Thanksgiving. I am not sure who enjoyed it more the kids or Brian. This was something Brian always did when he was young and so we carry it on with our kids.

Thanksgiving Play

Joshua's class put on a Thanksgiving play he was a pilgrim man
The kids made their own costumes

The teacher sent home a picture of a turkey with all the kids and told them to disguise the turkey so no one knew what it was so it didn't get eaten for thanksgiving. Joshua wanted his to be and elephant and he got a blue ribbon for the most funny turkey.

Giving Thanks Day 25

Day 25: Today I am giving thanks for my dad. Today is his 74Th birthday, so Happy Birthday Dad I love you. You see I was raised by my dad from the time I was 9 years old, he was a single dad raising 2 girls and he did an amazing job. My dad has always been my rock, he loves Jesus and always puts him first in his life. He has been such an example to me and my sisters and he is an awesome grandpa. I grew up a daddy's girl and loved every minute of it. When I was little being with my dad was always the highlight of my life. He gave me my love for sports especially STEELERS Football and when I played sports he was always there cheering me on. He taught me about Jesus along with my grandfather and lived out what he taught me. He is a man of such integrity. When it comes to dads he is the best, So today I say thank you God for my dad and please bless him in a special way on his birthday today. I love you dad.

Giving Thanks Day 24

Day 24: Today I am thankful for Lori Eggenburg. She has been one of my closest friends for over 15 years. Leaving her behind in Calif. was one of the hardest things I did friends like her don't come around too often. It is so nice to know she's only a phone call away and always full of Godly wisdom. She is my bible answer woman if I need to find it or have a question I call Lori. She is a forever friend and I am very blessed. Thank you Lord for Lori.

Giving Thanks Day 23

Day 23: I am so thankful today that Jesse gets to go home tomorrow and spend Thanksgiving with her family. Lord continue to take care of Jesse and we pray Lord for a miracle for her. Thank you that she gets to be with her family for Thanksgiving and not in the hospital. Happy Thanksgiving Catron Family.

Giving Thanks Day 22

Day 22: I am thankful for the word of God. The word brings comfort when I am hurting, hope when I feel defeated, joy at the end of a trial, truth when the world bombards us with lies, it reaveals our future, it's the manual for life, it has no errors or contradictions and it was inspired by God. Thank you Lord for your word.

Giving Thanks Day 21

Day 21: I am thankful for our Friday night family nights. We go out to dinner and usually will come home and watch a movie that we can all enjoy. We just spend the night together as a family doing whatever we all feel like as long as it's together. Tonight we came home and sat in the living room and watched a movie together and in usual fashion when the movie is over the kids are sleeping and mom and dad are still awake watching a movie we probably wouldn't watch if it was just he and I . I love anytime we are all together as a family.

Giving Thanks Day 20

Day 20: I am thankful for modern technology. My phone and my computer help me to keep in touch with so many people who are so important to me. All of my family and most of my friends do not live here in AZ so I keep in contact with them via the Internet or phone. I am able to send pictures to my family & friends within seconds of taking them and keeping up my blog so everyone knows what's going on with my family or just picking up the phone and calling. Thank you Lord for blessing me with these things it makes being away from my family and friends so much easier when they are just a click of the mouse or a phone call away.

Giving Thanks Day 19

Day 19: I am thankful today for Joshua's teacher and her aide. They are so good with my son and they both just love him. He has had a few tough days lately and they both just worked so hard with him and really just encouraged him and loved on him and he has been back on green for a couple of days and doing great. They are both so patient and loving and we feel so blessed that they are both part of his life. Thank you Mrs. Coronado & Mrs. Avey you are the best.

Giving Thanks Day 18

Day 18: I am thankful for my sisters and my brother. I have 3 sisters and 1 brother who all love Jesus, what a blessing that is. They are all in different places in their journey with the Lord but they all love him and have given their lives to him. I know their love for me is unconditional and they are always there for me. I am so blessed by all of them. I don't live near any of them but we are all still close. Laurie, Susan, Sheri, & Douglas I love you all and I am so glad the Lord chose all of you to be my siblings. I pray God blesses you all in a very special way and that we can all be together again someday.

Giving Thanks Day 17

Day 17: Today I am thankful for my step dad Steve, today is his birthday so Happy Birthday Dad I love you. He's been part of my life since I was 9 yrs old. He is such an amazing step dad he has always treated me like I was his own biological child and loved me unconditionally. He is a wonderful grandpa and father in law too. I feel so blessed that God has brought him into my life. I always felt so lucky because my dad was such an amazing man then God brought me my step dad too and I grew up with two amazing men to call dad. Thank you Lord for such an amazing stepfather I love you dad and pray God will bless you in special ways this next year.

This is one of my favorite pictures of him when they were here visiting us last year he would go out and just relax on my swing and Hannah snuck out one day and took this of him.

Giving Thanks Day 16

Day 16: Today I am thankful that my family & friends in Orange County are safe. The fires surrounded so many of them but the Lord protected and kept them safe. We do have a couple of friends who had the fire come right up to there home in one case and even burnt a hole in the deck off the master bedroom at another but they are all safe. Thank you Lord for your protection over the people I love.

A little bit of fun on Saturday

Hannah & Joshua hanging out at the fountain at Westgate
Hannah & the Coyote

She wanted to ride the mechanical bull

Josh took a minute to adjust his shorts

check out this cotton candy we had for desert it was so yummy

loving my boy

my sweet little girl

This is love

Just kicking back

We went to Westgate today after Silas's adoption to walk around eat some lunch and stop at jobing.com arena to get some tickets to see Chris Tomlin but they weren't on sale yet. The weather was beautful and the lunch was great. We had lots of fun just hanging out. I love being able to spend time as a family on Saturdays.

Giving Thanks Day 15

Day 15: Today I am so thankful that we got to go watch Silas get re adopted and officially become Silas Shubin. (I have lots more pictures but this is Erica's big day and I will let her blog them) This was so cool and we are so grateful we got to be part of it. Afterwards there was cake, ice cream, soda, fruit snacks and more just one big celebration of everyone who was adopted today. What an amazing thing to be part of. Thank you Erica and David for allowing us to be part of this we feel so blessed.

Giving Thanks Day 14

Day 14 :I am very thankful for my job. I love working at the school and being there with my children everyday. I work with some great people who make my job so enjoyable. It is so much fun to be there with my kids and the kids of friends, I love all the hugs I get everyday from all the kids. My job has turned into a ministry for me with all the kids and I love it. I am so blessed.

Giving Thanks Day 13

My friend Tammy & her husband Ruben

Day 13: I am so thankful for my very dear friend Tammy. She is such an amazing woman she is a mother of 9, home schools her kids, she's involved in ministry and loves Jesus more than anything in her life. Tammy is such an example of a Proverbs 31 woman she has always been such an example to me and loves me unconditionally. Thank you my friend for you unconditional love and friendship for over 20 years. I love you my friend and miss you so much.

Giving Thanks Day 12

Day 12: Tonight I am thankful for the beautiful Arizona skies. My pictures do it no justice but it was georgous. My camera kept getting stuck I think the batteries are dying but this is the best I got. I love the cool fall nights and the beautiful skies.

Giving Thanks Day 11

Day 11: I am thankful for all of the men and woman who serve in our armed forces. Thank you for making this a safe place for all of us to live. I am forever grateful for your unselfeshness and sacrafice to keep us safe here in the USA. God bless all of you.

Giving Thanks Day 10

Day 10: The womans ministry leadership team. What a sweet bunch of ladies to serve with. These woman love the ladies in our body and enjoy serving them. They have been an encouragement to me and I feel blessed to serve with them. (not pictured are Rita, Ila, Carrie & Carolyn) This picture is from our leadership retreat we went on.

Giving Thanks Day 9

Somebody loves me
Isn't it pretty
And oh so yummy
Tonight I am thankful for Kathy Andrejko she made me this beautiful cake. You see for 3 years straight I have tried to win a cake in the cake walk at Hallelujah Party and I come home with nothing, so Kathy decided to make me my very own cake because she loves me. She is such a sweet lady always thinking of others and I just adore her. Kathy is the one who took Joshua under her wing when we first moved here and she loved on him and would take him for walks to calm him and just make him feel so special when we first moved here (he was really having a hard time adjusting) and he just loves her. This is the kind of lady she is. So Kathy thank you so much I love my cake and I love you. Thank you Lord for Kathy and please bless her in a special way.

Giving thanks day 8

Day 8 : I am very thankful for my house. I love our house it is just the right size for our family and even has a guest room for visitors. We feel so blessed by God to have our home and we all love it not to mention we live in such a nice neighborhood. I love it when it's cold out (which isn't often enough) so I can turn on the fireplace sit on the couch with a cup of coffee and just relax it's one of my favorite things to do. Thank you God for our home.

Giving thanks day 7

Today I am truly thankful for Toni Clifton she is such an amazing woman and a great friend. She is always willing to help out if it's within her power. Today she called and asked if she could bring Hannah home from school since Joshua is home sick with strep and she didn't want him to have to get in the van to go to school when he could be resting. She then took my daughter to the park after school to play for about an hour so she wouldn't be stuck in the house with sick brother. She always puts others first and she is such a blessing to our family. Toni thank you for your willingness to make my life a little easier. God bless in a special way my friend.

Giving thanks day 6

I am thankful for singing worship. I am so grateful that God has given me a voice to worship him. What a gift it is to sing on our worship team and praise God week after week. I sing from the time I get up until I go to bed at night. When I was younger I was told I shouldn't sing because it wasn't my gift so I started praying to God and asking him to give me a voice to worship him and if he would I would use it to only sing songs that glorified him and he answered my prayers and I have been singing on a worhip team now for 20 years and what a blessing it has been. So Lord thank you for my gift.

My thanks for day 4 & 5

Day 4 thanks : My Church. Brian and I feel so blessed to be part of Calvary Chapel here and honored that God brought us out here with Todd and Julie to be part of the planting of our church. What a great body of God's people.

Day 5 thanks : I am thankful that no matter what happens in our Country God is still on the throne and in complete control even if I don't understand it.

What I am thankful for day 3

Day 3 I am thankful for my children. They bring me so much joy and are such gifts to me. It is such a privilege to be a mom thank you Lord.

Giving Thanks Day 1 & 2

OK Donna Manning I will take your challenge and write 30 days of what I am thankful for here it goes:

Day 1 I am thankful for my salvation. I am thankful God listened to a 9 year old child back in June 1972 and saved her. I have been saved most of my life. Praise God!

Day 2 My good and perfect gift from God "Brian" He is such a blessing and the best husband and daddy. I am a very blessed woman.

Flag Football Season comes to an end

Flag football season is over
Ryan, Hannah & Caleb

This was our first season of flag football and Hannah had fun. She became the best center on the center on the team. This week we sign up for basketball which starts in January, this is the last season of coed basketball then she moves on to girls basketball. We enjoyed having Caleb on Hannah's team this season and spending time with the Harrells at the games.