Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Day 16. I'm Thankful with Karina, Inc.


Thankful week is here and I'm excited to kick it off with Karen from Karina, Inc!  Karen joined us last year and I'm so happy she is back.  Both for I'm Thankful week and from her break from blogging.  I admire her strength and courage.  Plus she is friggin hilarious.  So with out further ado...




This morning, sitting around a heating vent with all four of my boys, our cold toes pointed toward the heat, I'm so grateful for many many things.  One of those things are memories. I have multiple sclerosis.  I know it should be capitalized, but I always feel like capitalizing it gives it that little extra boost of power that no disease should have.  So there it is.  I have multiple sclerosis; with a teeny tiny m and an even smaller s. Because of the way that my ms works, it's taking up a whole lot of space in the cognitive portion of my brain.  It is slowly taking away my cognizance.  That's why I'm grateful for memories.  So many are disappearing, which makes the ones I have left that much sweeter. Little boys singing hymns at night; very very off key but with so much soul. The yummy way my husband looks at me when he gets back from a business trip. Boys who rush home from school so that they can tell me how much they missed me during the day. The way my oldest held my hand on the day of his baptism, squeezing it in anticipation of a new life. Watching my four year old teach his two year old brother how to spread Nutella on bread. The sparkles of happy in their eyes every day. Every occasion becomes a special one.  Christmas.  Dad's homecoming after a week away.  A soccer game.  A trip to the grocery store.  Breakfast.  Thursday.  My rememberances may be fleeting and my recollection getting fuzzier, but I'm so grateful to be holding on to the memories that mean the most.  Especially the simple ones where we sit around a heating vent, warming our cold toes.


As a huge thank you to Jenn for letting me post here, I want to offer a very special someone one of my "to market" bags.  The bag will be filled up with goodies that will be perfect just in time for the holidays.  Maybe a banner?  A burlap wreath?  You'll just have to win to see what kinds of surprises might be in store for you!

Thanks so much Karen!  If you would like to win Karen's generous giveaway please leave one comment telling us what you are most thankful for.  The winner will be chosen at random next Wednesday.  

Photobucket

16 comments:

  1. I am most thankful for my wonderful family. What a precious life we have. God is so good.

    sarah
    srockney@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just found this blog yesterday, and I'm so glad I did...very thankful for my two amazing children that bring joy to my world!! Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm most thankful for photography.
    I have a brain injury (car wreck 3 years ago) that has ravaged my memory. My daughter was 7 at the time, and many of our "memories" only exist for me in pictures. I've always loved photography, but now, I rely on it.

    Thanks for the opportunity! Love your blog, and your guest post, too!

    ReplyDelete
  4. beautiful, karen!
    i love these sweet memories.
    so glad you shared.

    xo
    i'm thankful today for cozy quilts:)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am thankful for the health of my family and me.

    Alexandra
    msalex28a@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am grateful to Karen Wynder for being my niece. She is a very courageous young woman who was specially chosen by her mom and dad and that makes her very special to me. I call her my little "April Shower". I have Fibromyalgia and a host of other debilating chronic conditions so every day that I can make it to the shower and get dressed is a day I am grateful for.

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a lovely surprise!
    I am thankful for this snow we are having!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I loved this post. memories are such a wonderful thing! But today I think I am thankful for my cozy home to be able to stay warm in this cold weather.

    tiffanyjoy83 at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  9. That was beautiful Karen.
    I have so many things to be thankful for but at the top of my list are my cute kids and watching them love each other.

    carlybringhurst at yahoo . com

    ReplyDelete
  10. I am thankful for my family! No matter what life presents, as long as I have my eternal family, nothing can stand in my way!

    specialk.roxygirl(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  11. the small things.

    for me its the way that only buttons can make my fingers feel as they tumble out, after i've dug my hands deep into a bucket of them!

    the way my soul jumps for joy when i'm holding brand new pencils, or smelling a brand-new, freshly opened pack of crayons.

    the lilt i feel when i hear from a kind friend, for the first time in a while.... or the bated-breath-anticipation that comes when dropping a note in the mail for someone dear.

    it's the lightness i suddenly discover in my step after connecting with a new font, or the flutter a small handful of words can give my heart.... kinda like my new faves from karen's post above:

    "The sparkles of happy in their eyes every day."

    it's the small things that make everyday feel like Christmas. they're what make my existence feel significant.

    yep. i'm grateful for the small things. :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm thankful for my husband - without him I wouldn't know how deeply you could be connected to another person, I wouldn't know the joy of creating a life together, and I wouldn't have our two beautiful children. ♥

    ReplyDelete
  13. Beautiful post, Karen! I am thankful for my sweet son that is here, and the sweet babe that is on the way!

    ReplyDelete
  14. the truth is - i am most thankful for rarely getting what I want. God knows soooo much better than I! If my life had followed the plan I had in MY head ...I wouldn't be married to my best friend, have my 3 amazing daughters and delightful son, I wouldn't be living in virginia, and I wouldn't have the vast support of wonderful friends.
    sometimes the biggest gifts come out of great disappointment. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. it may sound cliche but I'm most thankful for family! :) I love my crazy little brood of kids and my amazing husband, not to mention our extended family, who bless us immensely.

    nicole
    gidgetblog{at}gmail{dot}com

    ReplyDelete
  16. I really enjoyed your post, and I love the picture!!

    I am so grateful for my two little boys-who drive me crazy and melt my heart, sometimes at the same time :)

    ReplyDelete

I la la love hearing from you!