Thankful Thirty #26 (Service)

Source: crosscards.com via Michelle on Pinterest

I'm grateful for the sweet woman who held a twin during church  
so my husband and I could wrangle older children without killing all of them.

Thankful Thirty #14 (Organization)

I am grateful for organization in times of trouble.

Thankful Thirty #1

Source: upliftconsulting.com via Cee on Pinterest

November could not have come at a better time for me with all it's thoughts of thankfulness.  Please join me this month as I focus daily on something in my life deserving a moment of extra gratitude.

Every once in a while something we've taken for granted or not paid attention to at all becomes strikingly meaningful.  This happened for me two months ago as I sat at home, awake late at night with my newborn babies miles away in our hospital NICU unit.  Watching television as a distraction, I watched a March of Dimes commercial intently for the very first time.  Never before I had really paid attention because never before had I considered the family the March of Dimes was helping could be mine.

It happened to me again this week as I watched live coverage of Superstorm Sandy hitting the eastern United States.  I was struggling with the feeling that this magnificently devastating storm was not moving me like I thought it would if it was happening somewhere else in the world.  And then came the images of precious but struggling newborn babies being evacuated at the height of the hurricane from the NICU unit of NYU Langone Medical Center.

This is the image that really did it for me...

Source: People.com

An ordinary nurse suddenly thrust into an extraordinary situation, curling over her tiny precious charge as together they brave the harsh elements raging all around them.

 It has reminded me today how grateful I am for the NICU nurses that so attentively watched over my little Jax and Lucca 24 hours a day for 16 days while I was unable to be with them.  Clocking in each day for a 12 hour shift where their sole responsibility was to make sure our defenseless wee ones had any possible thing they would need.  And assuring me that entrusting them with my two newest gifts from heaven was the way it needed to be.

Today I am grateful for those people in the world

who choose to live each day in the service of the littlest and weakest among us.  

In My Heart On Thursday

"We are all busy.  It's easy to find excuses for not reaching out to others, but I imagine they will sound as hollow to our Heavenly Father as the elementary school boy who gave his teacher a note asking that he be excused from school March 30th through March 34th."

-Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

When the Lord Calls You...

My parents moved to Alabama.  Two months ago my dad volunteered for a one-week missionary & construction trip serving an area devastated by last spring's overactive tornado season.  By the time he returned home, the Lord had spoken to his heart and he knew he was being called to dedicate more time to the work and the people in the hills of Alabama.  Everything else just fell into place...

Within weeks the finances to cover obligations at home had wondrously appeared, as well as the beginnings of what they would need to move from Iowa to Alabama and modestly survive while they are there.  Circumstances at my mother's job had been building towards an opportunity for long-term leave for quite awhile and made sense completely as soon as this opportunity was presented to her.  And another family member seeking a new beginning in her own life was right there to take over the day-to-day responsibilities my parent's would be leaving behind for an undetermined amount of time.

That's how they got to Alabama.  Here is what they are doing:  

Working directly with the organization Carpenter's House and the program Mercy Flows, my parent's find themselves working with volunteer labor and donated resources in an effort to help rebuild a rural area in northeastern Alabama devastated by multiple tornadoes during a one-week time period this last April.  My father's background as a construction foreman and owner of a small construction company have helped him seamlessly step into his new role coordinating the 10+ projects that Mercy Flows currently has in varying stages of the re-building process.  Along with getting her hands dirty right next to his, my mom has found her own niche getting to know the homeowners and community members personally by learning their histories, hearing their tornado-related experiences, and sharing encouraging moments of prayer with them and their families.  Together, they've left a house behind to live in a small camper trailer and serve wherever they are needed.

It's been an interesting few months for my family as we get used to the decision my parent's have made.  Even though I moved far away from home more than 10 years ago, part of me feels sad and alone knowing they are not there.  Some of my sisters were confused at the idea that they would just drop everything and leave; others didn't take it seriously until my parents had packed up and driven away.  Yet, in the first three updates we've received on the work getting done in my mom and dad's new home, it is impossible to deny that the Lord has important work for them to do there.

I hope you will visit my parent's website and learn more about the area in Alabama which they are working, more about the work that is being done, and opportunities for you and the people you know to share your support by getting involved.  Add the link for their blog to your reader.  And if it moves you, remember them, the people of Alabama, and the rest of my family in your prayers.


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