A Day of Thanks

Today I am thankful for about a million different things. I could go on and on to list them but that would take the rest of my life I think. The one thing I really reflected on today is that I need to have more of a spirit of thanksgiving every other day of my life and not just today. It's so easy to get mired down in circumstance and struggle and look at the needs instead of looking at the ups and the victories and the praises I could sing of everything I have been blessed with.
And believe you me, I have been BLESSED!!

Most of all, I am thankful to be the daughter of the Father, the bride of the redeeming Christ and the receiver of the Spirit that surrounds and protects me. I have a loving husband, a healthy son who fills my life with joy and family that loves and supports me. I have friends who have stood the test of time and have been by my side for the tears and laughter (and the times that those two things occur together) and I couldn't ask for anything more from them. I have a bed to lay my head down on each night, under a roof that doesn't leak, in a house that runs heat and clean water whenever I need. I have food a-plenty and clothes to keep me warm. I am free to worship who, how and where I want (The Living God....in case you were wondering).
What more could I possibly ask for?

I AM BLESSED!

Baring It All

The trees are becoming stark and bare with the leaves having turned and now most have fallen. I love the fall, but dislike this time of transition of autumn to winter when the colors have gone and the trees are so bare. I actually look forward to the snow as I think it's beautiful....I guess that's the Minnesota gal in me!

The good thing, however, about the leaves falling is you get to rake them into big piles and have some fun. While I didn't run and jump into the pile or set up a slide to slide into the leaves (this year anyway) I did get to take some cute pictures of our little pumpkin sitting and playing amongst the fallen foilage.

All Hallows Eve

Happy Halloween!!!

The whole clan at the Greene/Ostman household.

Zachary and Daddy at the church party - Jesus and candy, what more could you need?

Octoberpalooza

Fall fun and October updates!
The first weekend of the month we took our annual fall trip to Emma Krumbees for breakfast and autumnal activities. Zach was with me insitu last year, but I think he enjoyed himself more this time around.

Riding on the "Barrel Express" with Daddy.

Feeding the mini-horses at the petting zoo.

"Hey - Mom & Dad, I want thisssss one!"

"Shhh, don't wake Daddy - I'm 10 months old today!"

Zachary was 20 lbs and 28 1/2 inches long this time around. Still no crawling, but there are now 7 teeth chopping on everything in site with an 8th one on the way. He can also pull himself up on things and loves to stand at the ottoman and play.

10/14/08 - Our 2 yr anniversary! We had a great dinner with the fam at Red Lobster and then had some delicious alone time chatting and playing our favorite card game at Caribou.

Zach and Daddy hiking around at Taylors Falls.
We decided to take a "fall colors" drive and ended up at Taylors Falls. It was a beautiful autumn day and it was good to be outside enjoying nature and each other in such a gorgeous setting.

Zachary Greene - Outdoorsman Extraordinaire

"Can we get ice-cream on the way home?"

Squidoo

Shocking that I'm posting 2 times in one day I know! I was just going through my normal blog-hopping/reading for the day and found this and thought it was worthy to pass on!

Squidoo (http://www.squidoo.com/) is donating $80,000 to charity. There are several you chose from and when you vote, the charity you chose gets $2. You can only vote once but if you pass this on, then some great charities could potentially get some great money! You don't have to sign up for anything, just go to the page and pick your charity. If your favorite cause isn't listed, they have descriptions for the charities listed so that you can make an informed decision.

I went for Oxfam -don't know an incredible amount about it, but they are working for social justice and the ability of people to get educated to pull themselves out of poverty, both locally and globally.

Let me know if you went there and what you voted for!

Better late than never!

Silly me, I forgot to do a 9 month birthday post for Zachary! So here's the scoop:
20 lbs 3 oz, 28 1/2 inches long with a crazy head size in the 90% :) Also, in honor of the event Zach decided to debut a new tooth which is on the top - he's so excited to have an opposing muncher and is using his teeth to bite and chew. He is also now starting to show his other front top tooth and a few more on the bottom, he'll have a full set of chompers before we know it!
No official crawling yet, but he now thinks that his mom and dad are jungle gyms and he never sits still. I'm sure he'll be crawling around soon and the real fun will begin (read: mom will get a work out chasing Zach around every day)!

Bathing Beauty

Yes, beauty can be masculine! Oh, how I wish that my kitchen sink were deep enough to give Zachary a bath in. But for now I'll settle for a dish tub that I set atop the wash machine - don't worry, it's secure! Zach fits perfectly in it and it's a real back saver instead of stooping over into the bath tub. I know eventually here we'll have to transition to the "big boy tub", but for now we're enjoying the laundry room :)

Zach's very first bath - not lovin' it.

9 months later - LOVES bath time!