I pulled this post from my other blog, to share on here. This was my list of things to be thankful for at Thanksgiving.

Because of Thanksgiving and my purpose in teaching five kids how important it is to be thankful for what we have, I have been thinking about it a bit myself.

Here’s what I am thankful for:

• first and foremost, God, my church and my very supportive church family, which extends into…
• my very supportive boyfriend who loves me and shows me that everyday.
• my two amazing biological children that I love more than life itself.
• my three additonal children that I couldn’t love anymore than I love my own.
• my amazing blended family and everything we do together and the love we have for each other.
• my mom, brother, aunt and uncle, I’m lucky I have them both and how accepting they have been to my blended family.
• my cats that keep me company all day everyday (Maple & Sassafrass), now updated to include my new puppy (Molly).
• my writing career that has been a lifelong dream come true for me
• my home, my life and everything else in it!
• my health as well as my families health.
• my awesome friends, even the ones who don’t live close or that I don’t see too often.
• my neighbors who have become part of my friendship circle!

Take a few minutes to reflect today and express your thanks and gratitude to the people you love.

There are just days, when you have to sit and reflect about what went wrong. It is often a time of reflection not just for analyzing the days events, but yourself as a parent too.

There is one thing I tell my friends and the people from my blended families groups, and that is to always have faith. If you give up faith, and you stop believing in your family, things will go terribly wrong. Hey, they’ll go wrong anyway, and without faith, you won’t have the tools or the patience to handle those things.

Every night before I close my eyes, I talk to God. I thank Him very much for the blessings in my life, for the ability to be a mother to five, and for all the gifts He has given me. I also remind myself that, unanswered prayers are often hidden gifts, that we just don’t understand yet. Our master plans are not at first divulged, but God knows whats happening, and if you turn your life over to Him, you will reap the rewards immediately.

Giving my life over to God was certainly by no means, an easy task. In fact, as a human, I will always struggle with that control, and of course, like any Christian, I am not perfect. I will always seek someone to blame, but that is not always the best answer. When you remind yourself of that, on an almost daily basis, it honestly makes dealing with situations, so much easier.

Blending a family is never easy.

Having faith in your family, is extremely important.

Remembering to love, and never judge is even more important.

Always have faith, because the rest will come. Time heals and changes everything.

Have a great weekend!