a heart FULL of thanksgiving and praise...

man it has been WAY too long since i wrote a new post...

yesterday was Thanksgiving and it was a WONDERFUL day...we had our dear friends over (they're practically family) and, of course, gorged ourselves on delicious American food, played board games, and had a very personal time of giving thanks to our Father...it was the first time i've ever played "apples to apples" and i loved that game!! it got pretty heated though, haha, as you can well imagine if you've ever met the Monger family...i'm STILL fuming over some of the "judges" decisions...not really, but seriously, it was a GREAT day...the best word i can think to describe it is a chinese word, "re nao"...gives the idea of noisiness, closeness, warmth...so, yeah, i'm grateful for a very re nao thanksgiving day!! God has given me so many opportunities this year to be thankful for...He never works in the ways you expect...He didn't send a funny, awesome highschool girl for me to "hang out" with this year like i wanted, He sent a married couple for me to confide in, learn from, and grow to love...He gave me a group of girls i've never met before for me to worship with and be encouraged by, who i LOVE...He hasn't given me a foster baby to take care of, He gave me the two little boys down the road to be a friend to...He hasn't given me an easy school year, I've wanted to pull my hair out, but He's given me the most patient mother and teacher who's there for me through it all...He didn't give me what i asked for, that is, a giant neon arrow reading "My will" pointing me in just the right direction, but He has given me SUCH a wise father who is always there to hear (and sometimes laugh at) my PLANS...I'm thankful that He NEVER does what we expect, that He catches us off-guard, that He pushes us to our limits so we lean on Him...this is probably my last Thanksgiving with my family for a while, but I am SO thankful for the MOST perfect family for me...I don't know what i would do if i didn't have a mother and father i could completely trust and confide in...they're my best friends, counsellors, prayer warriors, teachers, preachers, and (sometimes, especially these days, to my extreme annoyance) they're always trying to make me into a better person...
now, what am I not thankful for (HEY i'm only human) i'm NOT thankful for the pile of school work waiting for me on Monday...but it's mainly my fault for LETTING it pile up on me, haha...but seriously, SO thankful for this week OFF from school!!
thankful for the FOUR people out there who follow my blog, haha!
thankful for the people who pray for my family and our work, we love and appreciate you!