Grateful #9: siblings

I have 9 siblings. In my family there are 7 girls and 3 boys, and the girls definitely have strong personalities. As girls we probably like to go out and eat the most. We probably like food way more than we should. As we've grown older we've definitely grown closer, and become friends. I think we're more like friends than sisters. We tease each other, (in fact we say that when we're not teasing you, is when you should be worried) and tell each other almost everything.

My relationship with my brothers is different. I'm grateful to Matthew for being friends with Nolan pretty much his whole life, because if he hadn't we probably wouldn't have wound up together. I'm much closer to Ben now that we both have kids (it's good to have things in common).

We can talk about movies, politics, discuss current events, go on vacations, and not kill each other. So I'm grateful for siblings that are also my friends.

Grateful #8: My parents

I purposefully left family posts closer to Thanksgiving day. Here's a list of why I'm grateful to my parents:

-Without them I wouldn't be here.

-They still buy me things when they go to the store including clothes and food even though I'm married and have kids of my own. (This may sound materialistic but to me it shows they are thinking of me.)

- They baby sit my kids.

- They reassure me that I am not a terrible mother.

- They are fantastic grandparents.

- They taught me how to cook.

As I grow older, and have kids of my own, I realize that parents truly never stop loving their children. I will always be their daughter, and they will always be my parents, whether they like it or not. (hahaha) And they never stop taking care of me. For example, the other day, I was just making the remark that I needed to go to the store to buy milk on Monday, and my mom was like, oh, we have extra milk, just take some, Dad bought extra. So I took some of course, because she would have been insulted if I hadn't.

Grateful #7: Facebook

Facebook is an amazing social network. Without it I wouldn't be able to keep up with all the doing and goings on of my extended family. I've had friends move all across the country and I still can keep up with them on a day to day basis because of facebook. I can see their pictures instantly, offer condolences, offer congratulations, offer advice, ask for advice, etc. Some might say that Facebook has no redeeming qualities, but I say those people have not looked and indeed might not want to look and might only want to see the bad. But Facebook can be an excellent tool to build relationships with those whose location to us would not make it otherwise possible.

Grateful #6: naptime

Naptime, enough said!

Crocker Art Museum

I went to the Crocker Art Museum for the first time today. I went with friends from church as a playdate. I didn't actually get to see much art since I had the kids, but Oliver loved it. We did the Wee Wednesdays which is the group every Wednesday for young children. They showed the kids a painting and read a story and talked about warm and cool colors and went around and tried to find warm and cool colors on other paintings. Oliver looked at statues and told me what the statues looked like to him. It was really a neat experience because I thought he would be too young to appreciate or even pay attention to the pieces, but he surprised me. Then of course I had to go see Uncle Eric who is the executive chef at the cafe there, and had lunch with him. It was so fun to see Oliver interested in art when I thought he would have no interest at all.

Grateful #5: Ready to wear clothes

Imagine before you can wear a shirt, you have to first shear the sheep, pull the wool, spin the wool, weave the fabric, cut the fabric and then finally sew, by hand. Now, I just go to the store, shop the clearance rack and find a couple pairs of jeans, each for only $9 (yes I went shopping today and found some jeans at Old Navy today for only $9). I know that's two posts in a row about modern conveniences, but I think they are pretty darn amazing. So I am totally grateful for ready to wear clothing that fits and looks good, and is inexpensive.

Grateful #4: Refridgerator and Freezer

I love that I can just go grocery shopping once a week or even once every 2 weeks and throw my perishables in the fridge or freezer and know that they will last a while until I can use them. I think back to the days before fridges and try to imagine having to go to the market everyday for your daily food, or having a ice house and having to cut out an ice block from the river and dragging it to the ice house, covering it with hay, and hope it lasts a while. We are so lucky to have this amazing appliance that keeps our food fresh and cold. Next time you open that door, just hink about what you would do without it.