Thankful Tuesday Aug. 23, 2011

Hello!  It's time for Thankful Tuesday, when I record my gratitude for the small and the big.

Today I am thankful for:

1.  Sardine Sandwiches
Today at the Hemminger home, Clyde fed Paul a sardine sandwich.  He enjoyed it and washed it down with a Coca-Cola.  I have never given Paul either one of those, but am happy for him to experience new tastes.  I'm not going to buy him sodas or sardines, so I'm glad he enjoyed them while he had them.

2.  Useful advice
When we registered Claire for school in June, the school secretary told me to go to the store immediately and buy all the uniforms I could find.  I did, and when the crowds started hitting the shops, we were done.  I was grateful that we knew to shop early, thanks to that advice.

3.  Family walks
So far we've all four walked Claire to school both mornings of kindergarten.  I hope to have everyone out of bed and ready to go so we can do this every morning.  Nothing is cuter than Claire walking in her uniform with her backpack on, right next to Adam in his business attire, and Paul and I bringing up the rear in whatever fashion we please.

4.  Early bedtimes
Getting up early means getting to bed earlier.  I am savoring nights when both kids are in bed by 7:15 p.m.  I feel like I have an entire evening ahead of me, even though I am hitting the pillow earlier as well.

5.  Family field trips
Adam took off half a day on Friday and we went to the Museum of Science and History.  We were able to talk the kids into watching the 3D video about gas drilling that they had been too scared to do before.  Saturday, we rode the TRE to the Nasher Sculpture Museum and had a fantastic time spending 30 minutes walking through the balloon room.  It was so nice going out as a family all weekend.

6.  Drinking water
Because we rode the TRE on Saturday, we did a lot of trekking around downtown Dallas.  We walked to the West End for lunch and then the downtown library to see the Declaration of Independence.  We were hot, but thankful that I had packed four bottles of water that were disappearing as fast as we could drink them.  Twice that day, I saw men going through the trash, looking for a drop to drink.  One man was pouring empty soda cans into his bottle, trying to get the last drop.  Another was sucking on straws of discarded cups, trying to get a drink from used McDonald's cups.  We were able to give one of them a bottle of water, but it broke my heart to see how some suffer in the heat.  I am grateful that not only do we have bottles of water to refill or discard, we also have a tap that is solely for our use. 

7.  Experienced teachers
Claire had a lot of anxiety about school starting, and we were able to fineagle a tour from the secretary.  I kept saying that she was anxious and everyone was so nice and caring.  When we left, Adam told me that Claire wasn't the one with anxiety.  Obviously, it was me.  I am glad, though, that her teacher has been teaching 29 years and I'm sure I'm not the first mom who's off her rocker.  Claire is now adjusting well and has a blog to prove it.  Read it at http://clairegoestoschool.blogspot.com/2011/08/kindergarten-day-2.html.

8.  Church choices
Last week, I took the kids to visit my grandmother.  I was talking about church and our new senior pastor, who happens to be female.  My grandmother let me know that she felt that was only a man's job, and I replied, "Well, thankfully, you don't go to my church."  Her Southern Baptist church suits her just as well as my Methodist church suits me.  I'm glad that we do have options and in the United States, you can go to whatever church suits your fancy.

9.  Love notes
At least four times a week I get a craft that says something about "I love Mommy."  I am blessed, even by the ones that are illegible.

10.  Wildflowers
Today when I was driving to church, I noticed a patch of wildflowers growing in the median of a busy street.  In these 100 + degree days, it's nearly impossible to keep anything alive.  It was refreshing to see that somethings apparently survive on their own.