Sunday, October 6, 2013

Ten Things of Thankful, Week 18, Part 2

Because we can't have Clark (writer of TWO thankful lists in one weekend) showing us all up two weeks in a row now, can we?? 

No, we can't.

1.  I am thankful for rain.  Lots and lots of rain.  Yesterday we sat in it during a cross country meet and a few soccer games and a "Saints in the Street" volunteer morning.  Today, because of the rain the last two days and through the night, all four soccer games were cancelled.  We were walking into church when we got the last email alerting us to the fourth and final game cancellation.  I did a little cheer and said a big prayer of thanks.

At the cross country meet.  He was just there to cheer.  Afterwards, I realized I had taken 10 photos of him, yet none of Giant and Buttercup.  You know, the kids who were actually running.

After a 30 minute lightening delay, Buttercup's team was able to take the field.  They were part of a benefit soccer day which took place at IUPUI downtown.  While sopping wet, they did appreciate the puddle-free turf field.

That yellow blob you see is Star.  He was the extremely unlucky one to have both of his games occur in the worst of the downpours yesterday.  COW took this from the safety and warmth of the car..

2. I am thankful for hours and hours of unexpected time at home with my whole family

3.  I am thankful for a cleaner house.  When we have hours and hours of free time at home after weeks and weeks of little time at home, you know cleaning will be added to the agenda.  We spent one hour going from room to room cleaning up clutter and vacuuming.  Thus the "cleaner".  We didn't do any scrubbing or anything, but the canvas is now set for me to get some scrubbing done tomorrow.

4.  I am thankful for football.  While I could take it or leave it, watching football games is a huge bonding experience for my boys and husband.  And with us participating in a Fantasy Football league this year, everyone has a dog in the fight.  As we all know, dogs in the fight make the games even more exciting.

5.  I am thankful for coffee and doughnuts after church.  Not because I like to eat the doughnuts, nor do I like the sugar rush my kids get from consuming a doughnut.  I am thankful for them, because it is something I can take away from a certain four year old when he is a pain in the neck at church.  It really hits home (while he is sitting in the van and everyone else is in the hall eating) that his behavior was unacceptable.

6.  I am thankful for modern medicine.  Not that we need it right this minute, but when Cuckoo comes down with some horrible illness from repeatedly licking the pew in front of him at church this morning, despite multiple warning to cease and desist, that modern medicine will come in handy.

7.  I am thankful for modern transportation and grocery stores.  We live in the middle of Indiana.  Without modern transportation and grocery stores, we would not be able to enjoy salmon for dinner this evening.

8.  I am thankful for our Confirmation Prep Co-Leaders.  Phoenix will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation in the spring (For you non-Catholics, this is the final sacrament of initiation into the Church.  He will be a full-fledged Catholic come April.).  To prepare for this momentous occasion, the teens have small group meetings to learn more about God's teachings, the Church, and what Confirmation truly is.  COW and I volunteered to lead these meetings with another couple.  They are great people we have known for years.  Besides the fact that they bring all sorts of knowledge and spiritual leadership to the meetings, they like to talk and organize things.  It's a pretty easy gig for COW and me.

9.  I am thankful for cooler weather.  Let's be clear, I do not like cold weather.  I like cool weather, when it is the perfect temperature to wear pants and closed-toe shoes without being too warm.  Let's be even more clear.  I like cool weather, because I can forego the shaving of the legs and the painting of the toenails but not have to bundle up in layers of coats and gloves and hats and blankets. 

10.  I am thankful for COW.  He normally makes me laugh, but these last few days, he has been in rare form.  He even made me tear up and shake in an effort to not guffaw when he cracked a smart-aleck remark during Mass this morning.  Oh, how I love to laugh.  Although, he won't be allowed to sit next to me in the pew anymore, because laughing during Mass when you sit in the front row is just bad form.  (Well, I guess laughing during Mass, regardless of where you sit, is in bad form.  It's just a whole lot more noticeable when you sit in the front row.)

Hope your weekend is better than you expected.

Have a lovely day!




Ten Things of Thankful


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29 comments:

  1. Hah!
    no time to say anything...gotta get my first comment in

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    1. Winner, winner, chicken dinner. Unfortunately, I can't send you that dinner, as there really is no prize for being the first to comment.

      And Lizzi, what does "gitfeatures" mean?

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  2. Oho! I see a competitive streak coming out...this coupled with the (slightly mind-boggling) image of painted toenails in wellie boots around the pig-pen leads me to but one conclusion.

    You know.

    Glad you have your disciplinary actions under control, courtesy of the church (which, as an aside, sounds WAY better than Catholic church here or in Ireland, where no-one has tea-and-anything after, and people don't really have a sense of community. Especially in Ireland, where no-one makes eye contact and they all leave for home the second they can) and that you don't need to resort to my usual technique of "Aw, I wanted to take you to the park/shops/moon later and now you've behaved so badly, I don't think we should go any more. Maybe another time, if you can get your act in gear"

    Also, what IS it with little kids and LICKING STUFF WHICH ISN'T LICKABLE! Shoes. Pews. People. Just why, kids, WHYY?? (not looking at Niece, oh no, not at all)

    Gratz on Phoenix's confirmation. That's a Big Step :) He's taking a lot of those lately. Turning rapidly into a Ma...(no, I'll let you think of him as your baby for a while longer...but the day is coming)

    Also EW to the volume of rain you've had. You can keep it. And the cool weather! We're enjoying a kindasorta bright and shiny autumn so far, and long, long, long may it continue.

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    1. Ah, no competition. Just had a few more thankful things to get out there. It's just more fun to make fun of Clark in the process.
      And, no, you don't know. Or I don't. I don't think. What?
      How sad that there's no community. That is what church IS! I've done that song and dance with my kids. Oh, I was going to give you/take you, but can't do it now... I don't know how much it works, but I do it anyway.
      He is in one seriously annoying phase of licking and chewing. He has ruined countless shirts from his endless chewing on them. And the licking is just gross.
      Yes, another big step. Don't you even start saying the M word.
      The sun has returned, but the cool has become a little cooler than I like. I pray there is a warming back up soon.

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  3. ok... made it.
    Now what's this nonsense about competition?

    lol

    "Because we can't have Clark (writer of TWO thankful lists in one weekend) showing us all up two weeks in a row now, can we??"

    to borrow a line from Samuel L Jackson in the movie, 'Pulp Fiction'...



    (yes, that was deliberately spaced like this in the hopes that this will not show until a few seconds of mentally reviewing Pulp Fiction lines of dialogue runs through the Reader's mind ...lol)
    the line:

    "whats the matter? oh! you were finished. Well, allow me to retort!"

    This may be funnier in my head than out there...

    in any event. you assertion is closer to the truth than one might think on one level, but nowhere near accurate on another... am not trying to compete, am taking the atmosphere that you (and Lizzi and all the co-hostini have managed to create at this bloghop) as an encouragement to compete with myself...to push myself further than I think possible (don't tell Dyanne!! lol ).

    and that is a good thing and I appreciate being allowed to hangout with the cool kids

    ReplyDelete
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    1. well, damn! don't tell Christine! I'm still trying to figure out this cryptic answer left by this scottian chick back at the Doctrine... gonna have re-read ever Comment I made this weekend!

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    2. Pulp Fiction. I remember it being an awesome yet gruesome movie. I only saw it once, so don't remember the lines very well. Mostly I remember the guy's brains being splattered all over the inside of the car.
      Your lead up to the quote was funny, though! :)

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  4. Family Rule #694: "If you lick the pew during church, you don't get donuts afterwards."

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    1. You'd think it would be an easy rule to remember. I mean, there are only 695 rules... :)

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  5. We have so many things to be thankful for if we just take the time to see all the wonderful things around us.

    Have a terrific day. ☺

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    1. Very true! Taking the time to see them is usually the hard part.

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  6. I suspect that pew licking illness will set in shortly after the salmon dinner. Do kids still get to pick a confirmation name. Of course when my kid made his confirmation they were still choosing names and in order to be as cool as possible he went with St Blaze....we had a flaming cake to celebrate! Congratulations Phoenix!

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    1. Yes, they still pick Confirmation names. I don't think that will ever change. St. Blaze? That is hilarious. Isn't it spelled Blaise normally?

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  7. 1. Is it wrong to wish for rain so your kids' outdoor activities are cancelled and you can just stay home? Nope, not at all.
    5. That's why we were glad we went ahead and got our kids cell phones when we did - then we had something to take away from them when they needed to be punished.
    6. I watched a doctor's 3 year old kid lick everything in her reach on a field trip to the Titanic museum. I thought it was pretty funny, since it wasn't my kid and she wasn't under my jurisdiction, i.e., in my preschool class (I have a licker in there, too. Haven't been able to break him of it yet.). Cuckoo will spite you and not get one bit sick.
    7. When "local seafood" means sucker or catfish, then it's even better to have modern grocery stores at our disposal, isn't it?
    9. You and me, both, sistah!
    10. But isn't it fun to misbehave somewhere completely inappropriate like that? Have you see the Mary Tyler Moore Show episode where they attended the funeral for Chuckles the Clown?

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    1. 1. I agree. Usually.
      5. It doesn't work with Phoenix, though. He isn't attached to it. It's more of a pain when he doesn't have it. However, once Buttercup gets one, I will have the power!!! :)
      6. He spites me all the time. And spits. He's mostly over that phase, though.
      7. Absolutely! We wouldn't eat fish if it weren't for the grocery stores.
      9. Haven't shaved in days. And I'm lovin' it. Of course, I'm not so sure COW is all that thrilled.
      10. It is fun. Sometimes. This was the first time we have actually sat next to each other at church in YEARS. We usually space ourselves out to separate the children. I have not seen it, but I imagine it was hilarious.

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  8. I would be happy to send you some of our rain! Grrr!
    Licking the pew, huh? Yummy.
    I also love the cooler weather but HATE the cold!

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    1. We're good, thanks. I'm glad to have the sunshine back.
      Yeah, great. I'm sure the people sitting there after us appreciate it, too. EW.
      Cold is miserable.

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  9. hey!...wait a minute!! who is this really?

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  10. With all that rain, did your sump pump go off? ;) We may have sent our rain your way....

    I know what you mean about having a husband that makes you laugh. ... it is a blessed thing!

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    1. No. It hasn't flooded in that area again pretty much since we put the sump pump in. Now it floods in a separate room where the kids' toys are. A room without a pump, but also a room without a furnace. Add it to the list of problems we need to solve around here.

      Blessed indeed.

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  11. OMG I am cracking up at the comments. And wondering if I'm even a Clark at all today...as I was the last (scrambling last) to get in yesterday. Hubs has been working because he's exempted from the gov't furlough which means he doesn't get paid but wheee he gets to work like 70 hours a week. We had rain today.
    Sorry. Forgot about COW making you laugh and all your other awesome thankful things because the comments are just freaking awesome. HA :) Thanks for the smile.

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    1. There are some funny people in this hop, isn't there? Well, ain't that nice of the government to do to you.
      Anytime. :)

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  12. Great list! Especially rain that leads to unexpected free time that leads to projects getting done.

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    1. Thanks! A wonderful chain of reaction indeed.

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  13. Oh, my! I laughed at this: "Not that we need it right this minute, but when Cuckoo comes down with some horrible illness from repeatedly licking the pew in front of him at church this morning, despite multiple warning to cease and desist, that modern medicine will come in handy."

    THAT, my friend, is both very funny AND something to be thankful for!

    Hugs from Minneapolis,

    Pearl

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Thank you for taking the time to tell me what you're thinking!