Thankful Thursday - no hostess

I've been out of my blog routine due to how BUSY I've been - basically since the calendar flipped to 2010.

The lovely hostess for Thankful Thursday is on a blogging sabbatical, and I haven't been able to find a new hostess as of yet -- nevertheless, I still want to express a few areas of thanks from the past week:

1. Last Friday, I was working at my desk -- and when I work at my desk, not only my desk becomes mountains of paperwork but the floor around my desk becomes organized stacks of paperwork. I spread out everywhere in an effort to keep track of all I'm doing.
   Well, last Friday, a little girl wondered into my office going between the two classrooms at the end of the day to fetch her backpack. When she saw me in the office, she scampered over to give me a huge hug -- she scampered over in dirty snow boots, all over my piles of papers and her arms were around my neck before I realized what was happening.
   It was awesome - papers, smapers - this adorable four-year-old wanted a hug and no piles of 'important' papers were going to stand in her way.
2. My dad and my cat are awesome. Both so loving and so strong-willed. Yesterday, I heard a story from my mom that around lunch time my dad had just washed his hands and he was sitting at the family-room table. My cat, Lexie, decided this was the time she wanted to be pet, and so she started rubbing against his legs. My dad had just washed his hands so he made some verbal acknowledgment of Lexie wanting attention and ended with, "Not now, Lexie. My hands are all clean and I'm ready for lunch."
   Seemingly as a response, Lexie, jumped up on the table, as if to say, "Okay, you won't bend down to pet me, I'll come up to where you're having lunch and then you'll pet me." How innocent, her demand for attention. "I want to be loved in this way - right now... please?"
   Dad is no push-over, so he clapped his hands and instructed her to get off the table...
3. I've been running a few times this week and HOW WONDERFUL! I miss running during the school year - partially because it's too cold, too dark and my time is too packed to be running outside and I really don't like treadmills.
   Well, this week, I've run on the treadmill a few times and I still don't like it, but I do love running and it has been good to clear my head a few evenings.
4. On the way to work yesterday, I spoke a prayer and then realized how true is really was... I prayed,
   
   "Lord, I don't need to understand why this is happening; but I really wish I had the faith to trust You in it."
   
   As soon as those words left my lips - they were regarding how many substitutes I've had in the preschool this week (3/4 teachers have been subs or new) - as soon as I spoke those words, I realized how true these are for my heart in a number of areas of my life. I don't need to know why - I don't really care why - I really don't. I do wish I had faith to face circumstances the way they are.
5. I am thankful my parents have been in town the past two weeks and they have had an AWESOME time in Vail. They skied together 5 days and they had fun and were safe every day! Praise God for safety on the mountain. Last night, as I was falling asleep, I could hear my parents talking to each other in bed. Their conversation went:
   
   Dad: Love you.
   Mom: Love you too.
   Dad: Love you more.
   Mom: No way!
   Dad: DO TOO!
   
   How blessed am I that this is the way my parents say goodnight to each other after 29 years of marriage?!

If you know of another Thankful Thursday hostess, please send me her way. In the meantime, I hope you're finding a thankful heart in all seasons of life.