Thankful Thursday

1. Paul got home safely from his five day trip to Baltimore on Friday evening after the kids were in bed, and then he surprised us by staying home on Saturday, which also meant he was able to see Nadia and Ian's basketball games.

2. Paul is feeling better after having a GI bug for a couple of days. I had the same bug on Monday, but in my case it didn't mean spending any extra time in bed - just extra time in the bathroom.

3. I had received some money from Paul's parents and from an Aunt for Christmas. I had been doing research for two months regarding lenses for my camera, and I was thinking of using my Christmas money towards one lens. On Sunday I talked to a photographer who owned all of the lenses I was considering, and he had one of them there with him. The favorite lens (it seems) of people in the photography website I am a member of is the 70-200mm lens, which is VERY expensive and VERY heavy. Talking to him helped me confirm that my next lens should be the 135mm f/2, and it arrived on Tuesday morning! It had been almost 2 years since I got a new lens so it was very exciting. I tried the lens out a little at Nadia's basketball practice on Tuesday night, and I am very happy with my choice. It's not going to be the lens I use the majority of the time, but I will definitely put it to good use. I have also decided to sell my one zoom lens as I seem to always prefer to use prime lenses (fixed lenses that can't be zoomed in or out). After I sell that lens I will own four lenses - 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 135mm; the first three were gifts from my parents over the last few years, and the last one is the one I just bought. In the past week I have used all four of those. I also got an extra camera battery because I discovered that is one negative of my new camera compared to my old one. Even though  I have the wifi turned off, the battery doesn't last nearly as long as it did on my old one. I found a generic battery that was MUCH cheaper than the Canon one,, and now I think I'm good to go!

4. Two Sundays ago the pastor started preaching an exegetical series after having done several topical ones. I prefer exegetical ones so I was thankful. We are studying Titus and Philemon. A veterinarian who attends the church always recites the passage from memory right before the sermon (ex. Titus 2 this past Sunday). She does it with great expression. She has memorized 3/4 of the New Testament thus far. Wow.

5. Two Sundays ago was the pastor's mom's 90th birthday. In her honor we sang "And Can it Be" in the second service at church. It had been awhile since I sang that hymn. I loved it. I wish we sang more hymns, but that is not the trend these days. This past Sunday we did sing one of my favorite choruses though - "In Christ Alone." My mom used to get goosebumps when she really liked a song. I wish that was my reaction. Unfortunately for me it's that tears usually fall from my eyes. As I get older it happens more frequently. Anyhow that's definitely a tear jerker song for me (in a good way). I also really loved the lyrics of the choir's anthem on Sunday that were based on Jeremiah 29:11.

6. The Steelers won on Sunday night! We had better get some touchdown's this coming Sunday as field goals will not be enough to beat the Patriots. If we win this next game it means we'll be in the Superbowl! Go Steelers!

8. Last week I received a wonderful and very inexpensive item from Amazon that I wish I had purchased 5 1/2 years ago when I got my first DSLR camera - a little strap thing that keeps my lens cap attached to the camera when its not on the lens. I can't tell you how many times I have searched for a lens cap over the last 5.5 years. That won't be happening any more, wahoo!

9. The kids and I have been enjoying the gift cards we were given at Christmas. Last Wednesday we had dinner at Wendy's and used about $10 of one of the gift cards for dinner for the four of us. Oliver requested something I think very few four-year-olds ask for - a baked potato. He was thrilled!

I enjoyed my cup of chili. I had only been planning to use one a week (at the most), but in light of the fact we were out and about all day last Thursday (11 hours to be exact), I packed our lunches but then we "splurged" and used a gift card at Cracker Barrel for dinner. The gift card covered our 4 meals plus part of the tip. I just paid $2 to make the tip big enough, and that was all it cost us to have dinner at a sit down restaurant. All four of us used apple butter on our biscuits or corn bread. Yummy! Nadia tried fried apples for the first time and discovered she loves them. I always get some when I'm at that restaurant, but we can go years in between visits there.
10. The Dr. Kaboom show on Thursday in Wilkes Barre was excellent. The only expenses were a few coins to feed the parking meter plus the gas to get there and back. I don't remember seeing pickles used as "light bulbs" before, ha ha!

11. The weather last Thursday was just balmy. If the weather were to be in the 50's all winter, that would be perfectly fine with me!

12. I finally found a setting I really love for the diamond from my great grandmother's bracelet. Now to find a jeweler that will make a ring that looks like it. It doesn't have sapphires like the others I had picked out earlier, but I think it is really pretty and has two-tone gold in it.

13. Yesterday Nadia and Ian enjoyed a three hour program about weasels, otters, and fishers at the state park. Oliver did puzzles, played a game, enjoyed looking at the squirrels and birds coming to the bird feeders, etc. I worked on my Bible study lessons. I'm doing I Samuel and Revelation 1-3.

14. Nadia has been exercising with me! In the first seven days we exercised six of those seven days - usually 20 minutes a day. Unfortunately my back wasn't liking the exercise At All. Monday was the last day of exercise for me until I find something that doesn't lead me to be in pain all the time.

15. The kids are really, really enjoying their guinea pigs, and the guinea pigs are definitely calming down and becoming more accustomed to being our pets. I am not keen on the mess they create - bedding and hay ends up in all kinds of places around the house, but the kids are definitely loving having pets. Even though we still have a lot of bedding left in the bag I bought, I put down a blanket in there instead today. I think this will mean far less mess.