Thanksgiving Week!

I've never been very good at refraining from complaining, but in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'm going to change my outlook and list my top things to be thankful for this week.

#5 Hood College did an abridged version of Handel's Messiah. Heath and I had our first time out away from the kids last Sunday, but we're on a 3-hour schedule for Tabitha's catheter. Add travel time to that, and we were wondering if we'd get to see the whole concert. We did. :) Some day we'll supposedly be able to be away for more than a couple hours at a time.

#4 Tabitha enjoys taking medicine and likes yogurt. Why are we thankful for that? Well, after four days of a high fever and abdominal pain, we thought she had a bladder infection or something serious related to her special needs. So it was actually quite comical when it turned out to be just strep throat. Thus we add another antibiotic to her daily regimen and more yogurt to her diet.

#3 Tabitha's a good actress. So far when we've gone out to other people's houses, Tabitha has been mainly good, with only a few tantrums thrown in for good measure. So everyone says, "Aw, ain't she cute. What a nice little girl." Ha--if they only knew! (OK, OK, sarcasm aside . . . she IS a cute and sweet little girl. When she's not having a meltdown she's quite adorable. And today at church, while I was helping in her class, she was sharing with another little girl and gave her a kiss on the cheek. The litte girl proceeded to hit her and pull her hair. At that moment, I really did appreciate what a sweetie Tabitha is.)

#2 I'm good at faking sleep. Well, I don't really fake it, but if I'm slow enough to get out of bed when Tabitha wakes up, Heath usually beats me to it, and I can stay in bed. =) (Just kidding, honey. Thanks for being so awesome and letting me sleep.) The last two nights at precisely 11:30, Tabitha has thrown tantrums in her sleep! Now that takes talent! I think it may be night terrors. She was incosolable for a good 10 minutes or so, and then finally she calmed down and went back to sleep. This has only happened twice, but most nights she's still waking up crying a couple times. (We have our first post-adoption visit with the social worker coming up soon, and we plan to discuss these issues with her. And if any adoptors of toddlers have advice, please share!)

#1 Children eventually fall asleep. This evening we had our little family Advent story, sang a song together, sat around the lighted tree, and then made candy canes together. It was almost picture-perfect. But then Ethan decided to touch the candy in the pan to see if it was cool enough yet. It wasn't. Tabitha decided that not being allowed to eat the molten candy was reason enough for a meltdown that lasted until bedtime. Jesse was fine until he was told to get in bed. So, at 7:53 pm Ethan's crying over his burned finger, Jesse's crying over having to go to bed, Tabitha's crying because that's what Tabitha does, and Heath and I . . . well, we had to laugh lest we flee the house in despair! But now, all is quiet upstairs, and I can revel in this moment of peace.

So this week has been another tough one, and even included a couple other challenges I can't post about. BUT . . . I'm not giving up. Some days I've been tempted to, but God (with the help of Heath and others) keeps bringing me through to the next good day.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair. . . . We do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. (From 2 Corinthians 4; And if Paul could call his troubles "light and momentary", mine certainly are.)