Today, I am thankful for so many things:
First and always, I am thankful for the freedom to homeschool, being with my children each day and watching them grow as beautiful and brilliant people with their very own thoughts and ideas and approaches to doing things has been the single biggest blessing of my life.  Having the full support of their father not only to homeschool but in everything I want to pursue has kept me both bolstered and grounded through the years.  He is my best friend for always.

Our friends, so many now I have to tick them off both hands and still I don't have enough fingers.  Women I can call with problems, ideas, schemes.  Playmates for my own children, good kids with great values and who are funny and full of adventure and energy.  Other dads my husband can connect with.  Long days spent exploring and laughing and talking and coming home damp and dirty and happy with another photo for the wall of fame, another memory of a favorite place or a new discovery, another beautiful day spent homeschooling.

Our pets, these small lives that have intruded upon us, discarded cats and dogs we woke up one day and did not even know they were in the world, found them and the next day, could not go back to life without them.  They bring us such joy, a wagging tail, a soft and contented purr, a constant companion on any task.  Antics that we watch daily: a wrestling match, a daredevil leap, a nap in the oddest place and body positioning.  Cats sleeping in tiny boxes with bits hanging over the edges, a dog on his back with his legs propped up against the wall, head upside down and flat along the floor, snoring.

I am thankful for my camera, my laptop, my van-all 'things' but I am glad to have them.  I am thankful for where we live, the little house on the edge of the pasture.  Acres of woods and creeks to play in, room to roam.  We should all be lucky enough to see our children running free, safe, laughing, with a couple dogs at their side and a mothering cat nagging them to slow down as she trudges along behind or keeps watch from a near-by tree. 

I am thankful for my life as it is now, for each day that comes our way, each friend we find on our path, each animal we can give shelter, for things always working out in the end, for our excellent health and the heart within our lives that binds us together with strength and contentment and good humor.  We are blessed beyond all measure.

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