Grateful

There was a really good talk in church today about thankfulness and gratitude. It is good to give thanks and to remember the things we are thankful for. Gratitude is thankfulness in action. It made me think how I am so thankful for so many things, but I need to try a little bit harder to turn that into gratitude. After yesterday I have had a chance to stop and think about all of that. When I get bogged down in my life and all of the little daily things I need to remember why I do them and the attitude that needs to come along with it. When I am picking up toys for the tenth time in one day so that my boys can play in their room I am grateful that they are able to play and that they are healthy. I am grateful that they are mine and that I have been given the gift of being their caretaker. When I give Kaleb a bath for the second time in a day because he had a really bad blow-out, I am grateful that he has enough to eat and that he is healthy. When I do dishes and fold laundry I am grateful to have people to do that for and I am grateful that they care for me as well. When I treat my kids with respect and try to understand them instead of losing my patience and my temper, I am grateful that they will grow up in the gospel and someday bring others to that knowledge. I know it doesn't come in an instant and all of these things will still seem challenging at one point or another, but when I stop and think about the real reasons I do everything I need to do, it helps. I am thankful for the wonderful friends and family that love and support me and always give me encouragement. I am still searching for ways to show my gratitude to them and hope that the Lord will bless me to be able to remember these lessons and continue to strive to apply them.