So Thankful

This month I am thankful for:

1. Family Holidays - I didn't post much about the holidays but my favorite part is always visiting. Our winter holidays lasts for a week or more. We have family over and go visit and barely have time to have a celebration for our own household. I am thinking of having my holidays early next year so that we can have a calm and relaxing time.

2. Stray Dogs - I know this is a very strange thing to be thankful for. However, I am thankful for the little invasion that we had in the middle of January. We didn't keep the dogs or anything. They went back to their owner. Their invasion and subsequent attack on one of our hens showed us how relaxed and comfortable we had become. This level of comfort had left us vulnerable to predators. Our unwelcome guests pointed out our weakness without causing us great loss. We have since inspected our animal housing and made improvements. As a side note, the children loved hosting our very well behaved (once in confinement) guests until they could be returned to their owners. 

3. Friendly Neighbors - If you live on the East Coast you most likely got a little snow in January. We only received about 4 feet, give or take a few inches. When it all came down on Saturday, it was light and fluffy and didn't want to stay in one spot. The wind blew it around so much that there was no sense in shoveling at all. On Sunday, we all went out, armed with shovels and worked from 9am until 1pm and headed in for a hot lunch and s'mores. Then we headed back out and realized that we had only gotten about a forth of the drive finished. Our amazingly generous neighbor came over and moved the rest of the snow for us.

In addition to this month's specific list, I am also thankful:

- for my husband's awesome sense of humor

- healthy, bright, and beautiful children

- a warm and cozy home