A quick one.......

So I'm blogging from my parents house and I just wanted to say a few things I'm thankful for on this Sunday:

--simple, old toys. My mom has never revamped her toy collection here. She has no new fangled gadgets. She has one thing of legos, a set of toy dishes, a small box of cars, many books--the newest of which is about 11 years old, and a jar of little beanie baby type animals. The kids have so much fun and I'm just amazed that they can stay occupied with these few simple things. Actually, she did buy one of those $5 plastic golf club sets awhile back from Walmart and the boys have had a blast with that.

--Ironically, the hot weather. Texas is hot. Real hot. But funny enough, Noah wants to be outside more than he even does at home, which is a lot. He has been sweaty for probably 15 out of the 24 hours we've been here. I went for a jog/walk and even though I felt like I was running inside of a broiler, there was something so gratifying about it===call me crazy.

--Gardens. My dad has a huge garden. Probably much bigger than he really likes or can handle. But he works his old behind off taking care of it. Noah and Wesley are thoroughly enjoying picking loads of black berries, onions, and zucchini. I can only imagine what the Garden of Eden looked like, but I think God put in us a natural awe and respect for gardens.

--Church. Being at my parents church today made me love, respect and admire things that maybe at one point in my life I felt a little "above". It's hard to put my thoughts into words here but I just appreciate a faithful group of believers so much. My parents go to the oldest Church of Christ in Tyler (really old) but it is big, and thriving and has a Spanish speaking congregation as well. It's definitely traditional, but I don't mean that in a bad way. I loved the people that taught my boys this morning. There is such a respect for the older generation. And even with a congregation of great size (I'm guessing 700 or more) they take so much time to pray for the hurting, sick, and aging....something God tells us to do but I admit I don't nearly enough and neither does my church family back home (atleast publically in Sunday morning worship). They truly treat everyone like family and they are more about the people that make up this family than sticking to schedules, programs or a perception from guests. However, I think when a guest realizes how much love is in this church, they immediately want to be part of a body of Christ that truly loves and takes care of one another.

--My parents. I love them. I'm so happy to be with them. I'm so happy to be on vacation at their house. And I'm so happy for the time my kids get to spend with them. Family is one of the most simple pleasures in life. I'm so grateful for a good one.