This girl makes me laugh!  She knows how to have fun, loves to laugh, and is just a genuinely sweet girl.  I’m thankful for our close relationship and that I get to be her mom.  She is the princess of the family and very loved, no doubt!

These two silly boys melt my heart.  They both love to goof off (this is the Travis McClintick family so what else do we do?!) and have a close relationship.  I’m thankful for boys who have learned early how to take care of a woman, who open doors, use their manners and take the time to say I love you, mom, without embarrassment.  I still get those hugs and love you’s in front of their friends which I cherish.  They are getting so old but I enjoy them more every day.

Then there is this little man who loves to chew on socks.  I love this picture because it is “so Ryan”.  He’s 9 years old now and has taught me more in his short little life than I could ever learn in a whole lifetime without him.  God has blessed us with a very simple boy who is doing exactly what God wants him to do – teaching people God’s perfect will comes in many shapes and sizes, His love abounds to the broken and His mercy to face each day, no matter how big or small the struggle, is endless.  He’s a good God who has given us a very loved, spoiled and doted on little boy who is “exactly as I intended him to be”.  Thank God for His still, small voice that speaks to us when we most need to hear it.  My perfectly intended little boy is moving this world in ways I could never imagine possible. In spite of endless seizures, he is content.  He is my heart in a way words will never express.

Then there is the love of my life, my silly, can’t be serious for five minutes best friend whom I can’t fathom walking this journey without.  He is my heart through and through and the love I have for him and with him is something I cherish every single day.  I respect this man for all he has accomplished and endured, for his faithfulness to our family and his hard work ethic over the years to provide for us.  He is wise, intuitive and a man of great character.  We’ve faced a lot over the past eight or nine years and I can’t imagine not having him at my side to hold my hand through it all.  He has a heart of gold and is a gem;  I am so very thankful he is God’s gift to me. 

Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. ~ I Thess 5:16-18

This Thanksgiving, and every other day of the year, I am thankful for health, for stability, for God’s grace , for the ability to walk, talk and love.  I’m thankful for friends who know my heart and love me as I am, for a job I love and the opportunity to use my skills and talents there, for family who puts up with me, challenges me and believes in me, for a warm bed to lay my head on every night, for transportation, for the finances to put food on our table and buy my kids new shoes.   I’m thankful for Diet Coke, new recipes, a warm and cozy blanket, a good book and the time to read, curly hair, laughter, photographs, finger nail polish, the sound of rustling leaves, Watkins Vanilla, fun socks and dancing with my kids.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!  ~ Much love from the McClintick’s ~