Blessing upon Blessing upon Blessing

I feel blessed.

Even when I don't feel blessed, I know that I am. But recently, I've felt it.

In the spirit of that old song ("Count your blessings, name them one by one...count your many blessings, see what God has done."), I want to record some recent blessings for which I am thankful.

********

The day after this renovation project, when dust was EVERYWHERE in the house, coating every surface and proving surprisingly difficult to remove, one of our Old Order Mennonite friends who cleans houses called and asked if she could come and clean. Could she? Absolutely!!! I was feeling more stress than I wanted to at the thought of trying to get that dust up while keeping four little boys out of it. Her willingness and availability came at just the right time; when I was feeling discouraged, there she was.

She did it for pay, of course; but it was worth every cent...and here's where the second part of this blessing comes in. Jeff didn't complain a bit about having her come and needing to pay her. He didn't say or imply that I should be able to clean my own house, and why did we need to spend money to have someone else come to do it? He was SO supportive and so generous and such a blessing to me during that time!

********

The next HUGE area in which I felt incredibly blessed came as we prepared for the homeschool convention we attended a few weeks ago. As we were trying to figure out (months ago) whether to take the boys and if not, who could keep them, some friends of ours volunteered to take care of them and, I think it's accurate to say, really urged us to take them up on their offer.

Even more...

~ We offered to pay; they wouldn't take a penny.

~ We wondered how the boys (not including Shav since he went with us) would do spending the night in someone else's house, especially Tobin as he hasn't had much experience with that; Becky said she'd be glad to bring them back here at bedtime and stay with them so they could be in their familiar surroundings.

~ We discussed when we would drop them off at their house on that Friday morning; Becky said, "Let me come to your house and get them," saving us time and allowing the late risers to keep sleeping even after we left.

~ We talked about what time we would come by their house on Saturday evening to pick them up; Becky said, "Let me bring them to your house so you don't have to make the trip out here to get them."

~ I wondered how much gear I would need to round up for the boys; Becky said, "We have carseats for all of them, and I've borrowed a highchair that Tobin can use."

~ We KNEW they would have a blast (despite Josiah having some emotional insecurity the night before our trip--see #5 in this post for more details); Becky was thoughtful enough to show us, through pictures and video, exactly how much fun they had. :) It really made me feel like I was there, so to speak, and made my heart happy as I watched my boys having a ball--without me! :)

I wasn't reluctant to leave the boys, but it is a big deal to go off and leave your precious little ones with someone else for a few days. We were confident though that they were in good hands.

Becky's four children and two nieces and one nephew were all involved with making the weekend so much fun for my boys.
And the swimming pool--well, that was certainly a highlight for the boys!
I love this picture of Tobin just kicking back by the pool. He is one cool dude. :)
It's kind of hard to recognize him, but David is the one on the back left.
Tobin had three young ladies to "mother" him--Kathryn, who has taken care of him since he was an infant in the church nursery, and two of her cousins.

Josiah was SO excited about this game of Risk that he got to play with the older boys.
Anything involving world conquest is right up his alley. :)
Sandbox time.
Look how serious he is about what he's doing with that sand. :)
More time in the swimming pool.
Tobin would throw these nerf darts into the pool, and...
...someone would always retrieve them for him.
What fun!

The time away with Jeff (and Shav) was heavenly, and it wouldn't have been possible without amazing friends like these.

********

Yet another blessing fell in our lap two days after we returned from the convention. On Monday of that week, when I was dealing with a yucky case of tonsillitis, the phone rang and it was Emily's mom Julie saying, "Can I bring you some dinner tonight so you don't even have to think about it today?" I wasn't about to refuse that offer. I sort of felt like, even though I was sick, I should be able to at least make dinner for my family; but my, oh my, was I ever glad to lay down that burden and receive that blessing from her!

********

Another blessing that has fallen in our lap is Becky's daughter Kathryn coming every week or so during the summer to be a mother's helper and play with the boys for a few hours so I can turn my attention to various projects that are difficult to do when I'm focused on the boys. This was another situation in which Becky and Kathryn volunteered to do this and wouldn't accept any money in return. The boys and I are delighted by Kathryn's presence; I'm not sure who loves it the most! Regardless, we are overwhelmed--in the best way possible--by the kindness and generosity shown to us.

********

A family who loves and supports me...a husband who puts up with my weaknesses and shortcomings...friends who go above and beyond the call of duty...and most of all, a God who lavishes goodness upon me.

I am indeed blessed.