Thankful

Last year, for the month of November, I tried to put one thing on Facebook that I was thankful for each day. I started off quite well and it really did make me more aware of the little, daily, things that I can and should be thankful for. But unfortunately as the month wore on and the busyness of the month increased, I was not consistent in my daily thankful posts.

I learned that I need to be more aware for the little things. And often awareness breeds thankfulness. And I also learned that I do not need to just wait for the month of November to be thankful!! So even though it is the month of November right now, hopefully I can be consistent throughout the year in giving thanks to the Lord for all the ways and things that He has blessed me with. Here, in no particular order, are some of my thankfuls lately...

Sunflower seeds...one of Gus and my favorite things to do at night when the boys are asleep is eat seeds and watch one of our favorite shows. We also consume very large amounts of seeds when we are road-tripping it; this was a discovery on one of our very long trips we took through the States before coming to Spain-the activity and work of eating the seeds keeps you miraculously awake! But with the discovery of seeds came the discovery that not all seeds are created equal! There are seeds and then there are seeds. A good seed is not too salty but still has good taste, is crunchy and does not leave your mouth with a weird taste when you are done eating them. Thankfully sunflower seeds are readily available here and we have actually discovered one brand that is our favorite. I am thankful for the cheap and super good seeds we have found here in Spain.

Another food related item is the cheese here in Spain. It's really good. Even the cheaper kind that you can buy in the grocery store is amazingly good. I've learned that cheese has more taste if it is eaten at room temperature. And combined with a piece of chorizo or salchicon, wow. Talk about taste and flavor! I know that such good quality food is a privilege of living here and it is something I am not taking for granted.

I am very thankful for the city that we live in and the sense of community I feel in it. Our city is on the smallish side, compared to LA or Madrid. And we live right in the center of it! After living here for a year, we have gotten to know many people here. We go to the same bakery almost daily for bread and know all of the ladies there so well that they get our loaf of bread ready for us when they see us walk in! Our pharmacy is right next door and the lady there always gives Coen two lollipops, one for him and one for Cael; in fact she thinks Coen is so cute that she has been know to run out of the building when she sees him walk past just to give him a hug! Many of our errands are done in the morning, when Cael is in school, and Coen with his tuft of very blond hair, blue eyes and propensity to greet everyone with "Hola" is admired by all! I monthly go to the same butcher who is very nice and when I ordered my turkey this year he even remembered my very large turkey from last year! I'm starting to get to know mothers of Cael's classmates and we will often stand and chat while we are waiting for our kids to get out of school. It's customary when you leave someplace, even the elevator, that as you are leaving to say "Hasta Luego", which means see you later to everyone and it's so fun to hear everyone answer back as you leave. I am also thankful for an improved level of Spanish which allows me much more freedom to converse with strangers, both for the sake of completing business transactions but also building friendships. We have a Christmas program coming up at our church and I really hope to invite many of these people to it!