I'm Thankful For.......#51-60

So, I have to admit that I am not feeling very thankful today, but in the midst of my day I know that there are at least 10 things I can give thanks for...........maybe it will help change my attitude!
51. I have teeth
52. Dustin got to work safe
53. We have enough to buy a new tire
54. My husband knows just how to make me smile
55. My kids are happy with 2 large boxes for hours and hours and hours and hours...............
56. I got yummy smelling shampoo in the mail for a study I am doing
57. "Food Network" magazine
58. The first batch of chili of the season
59. Boys that will kill a roach for their mama
60. Quiet

I'm Thankful For...........#41-50

41. Quiet mornings
42. Tiptoes on stairs
43. Rainy nights
44. Overtime
45. Cardigans
46. Warm, clean towels
47. Text messages from Dustin
48. The first hugs of the morning from my just-out-of-bed kiddos
49. Bluegrass music
50. Days to sleep in

Broken Nets Academy

     For the past year our homeschool has gone simply by the name "Turner Family Homeschool"  It was not for lack of wanting that we came up with no other name, but rather lack of finding a good, meaningful name that really fit--really summed up what we wanted our school and home to be about. 
     These past few weeks of our new school year I have done a lot of thinking about and praying about what God would have for us to learn this year and how our days should be ordered.  As I have been pondering these things I have also been trying to sum up all these ideas into a "simple" name.  While reading the scriptures I turned to Luke 5 and read this:

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the
people crowding around him and listening to the work of God,
he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen,
who were washing their nets.  He got into one of the

boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a
little from shore.  Then he sat down and taught the people from
the boat.  When he had finished speaking,he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch."

Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and
haven't caught anything.  But because you say so, I will let
down the nets." When they had done so, they caught such a large
number of fish that their nets began to break.  So they signaled their
partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and
filled both boats so full that they began to sink. When Simon Peter
saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said "Go away from me Lord;

I am a sinful man!"  For he and all his companions were astonished
at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John,
the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon,
 "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men."  So they 

pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

     Aha!!!!!  There was the name for us--the name that I so longed to have for our school!!  Dustin and I want our school and our home to be a place where knowledge is actively sought after, desired and treasured.  We want our children to be so full of love, our home to be full of knowledge, comfort, security and creativity.  We want our children not only to seek after academic knowledge, but more importantly, a knowledge of their maker--who He is, what His plan is for them.  I want our family to be willing to give up all of our doubts (not catching any fish so far) in order to obey and reap the blessings of Broken Nets.  We now have a common goal, a reminder, a guidepost to aim for in our school--we want our home and our school to be marked with Broken Nets!

I'm Thankful For............#31-40

31. Open windows

32. My mom

33. Apples

34. Classic movies

35. One on one time in the car--talking to my kiddos

36. Bonfires

37. Chunky sweaters

38. Fresh air

39. Rainy, overcast fall days

40. Curling up with a really good book

I'm Thankful For........#21-30

21. Halloween costumes

22. The mail!!

23. Hot coffee in the morning--just the way I like it

24. The warm cozy spot on my favorite chair from a shaft of sunlight hitting it just right

25. The dust motes in that shaft of sunlight (kinda gross, but beautiful all the same)

26. A creative mind

27. Dreams

28. A really good deal

29. Photo albums full of memories

30. A little voice singing "Jesus Loves Me"

I'm Thankful For..............#11-20

11. Children who find joy in memorizing the scriptures
12. Project Motherhood
13. My bed
14. Cool fall breezes
15. A spinning, singing little girl
16. Reading
17. Curiosity
18. A vechicle that gets me where I need to go
19. Snuggling under warm blankets on cool nights
20. Soccer!!!

Camping.............

Tristan.....my handsome 1st born

Kaelan............my mischevious middle son

Addie..........my beautiful baby girl

What a joy it was to go camping with my family last night.  After we arrived at the farm and were setting up the tent, I was mulling over the preperation part of our day and was reminded of song lyrics by Sara Groves:

"Honey help me pack up the station wagon, I'm eager to leave even though

my feet are dragging'.  If we can get on the road by sunset we'll forget about

what we haven't done yet. Help me pack up the station wagon."

"Honey go put the baby in the car seat.  We're almost ready and

by the way I'm sorry. In all this hurry I forgot to be kind.  I got so

worried that I lost my mind--by the way I'm sorry."

"Honey I'm happy and I feel so alive.  I can't believe that we just

took the dive.  The water sometimes it's deep and cold, but it's a

beautiful place for growin' old.  Honey I'm happy and I feel so alive."

Although we don't own a station wagon and weren't going further than 20 minutes to my grandparents farm, I felt as though our day could relate.  The stresses of getting everyone ready and loaded up, making sure we have all the supplies and the dogs, checking the vechicles to make sure nothing was forgotten......in the midst of it all, I forgot to be kind to the ones I most want to be kind to.

Thankfully, the sun was shining, the weather beautiful and my husband and children are forgiving.  The day and night were wonderful..........."Honey I'm happy and I feel so alive!"

1000 Things to be thankful for..............

I have been inspired by an amazing blog at http://www.aholyexperience.com/ to chronicle 1000 things to be grateful for.  The writer of the blog, Ann Voskamp, challenges her readers to see the beauty in the ordinary, to feel God's love in the everday and to be grateful for the mundane.  I grew up tending to have an "Eeyore" personality and choosing to see the negative more often than the positive.  As I have grown, aged and had children I have tried harder and harder to over-ride that part of my personality and this seems like the perfect experiment to begin with!  So, here it goes--I think I am going to try for 10 a day...............
I AM THANKFUL FOR:
1. A God who loves me and is real to me
2. A husband who loves me and will never leave me
3. Three beautiful, sweet, healthy children
4. The opportunity to live close to family
5. Great friends
6. Music..........of all kinds
7. Sisters who "get" me
8. My dog Kira who follows me everywhere
9. Homeschooling
10. A washer and dryer that work