Thursday, August 21, 2014

Thankful Thursday: "Our Disease" & Pocket

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. Please take this time to share with us what you're thankful for as well. If you have a blog expressing your thankfulness, please share the link! Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I’m thankful for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. What a delightful way to raise funds for a cause. I know some people love it and some people hate it, but I say, if you’re raising funds and awareness through something fun, you’re doing something right. I also know there’s been talk of starting one (in some form) within the CF community, but I think us rare disease communities need to stick together. It’s their time to shine!! I’m thankful for the generosity and fun-spirit being shown through the campaign and the millions raised!

I’m thankful that “our disease” is CF. Go with me on this one for a minute. We often see our challenges as huge. CF is a gnarly disease. There is a lot of headaches and heartbreaks that it causes. But when I read about ALS and watch videos of people with ALS my heart breaks, and I can’t help but feel blessed that our family’s disease is just CF. It really puts our daily struggles in perspective! 

I’m thankful for a kind and loving daughter. Tuesday when we picked Mckenna up from school we got the report that she wasn’t a good listener while there. We did all the typical parent things: talked to her about her behavior, coached her up before school today, I even created a good listening sticker chart for some good old positive reinforcement. Well when we went to pick her up today, I stopped at the front desk (where the timeout chair is located) and asked if Mckenna had visited today. I found out she had not, but that the receptionist actually secretly loves when she does because she’s “a doll” and “so sweet". On the way out the door, we happened to see the school’s owner and director and chatted a minute. She proceeded to tell us how loving and friendly Mckenna is to everyone…not a bad reputation for being a month in. As a mom, my heart broke to hear she was naughty earlier in the week by not listening (and even requesting timeout…that little control monger)…something the teacher had mentioned another time or two in the past. Of course my mommy-side kicks in. I worry about how she will do in school. I picture what it would be like if she was the dreaded kid in a class. I understand that that’s all a little premature, but I’m a mom, so I worry! Ha! But man am I thankful for the feedback we received today. If Mckenna is strong-willed and not a great listener from time to time, but is ultimately known for being loving, kind and friendly to everyone, I will feel pretty good about the human she’s become :)

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for beef jerky. I've been focused on eating more protein lately and you can pack quite a bit of protein without an absurd amount of calories with dried meat. I like that I can pick at it and also let it set in my mouth to really taste the flavor. Actually, when I eat it, it kind of looks like I'm chewing tobacco because I often store it in my lower lip!   

I'm thankful for YouTube. Mckenna has something called "Wee Worship" at her school that she absolutely loves. They direct the school through interactive worship songs and most of the kid seem to really enjoy it. She enjoys it so much, that she requests to sing the same songs at home and do all of the hand motions. Mommy and Daddy do not know the lyrics, music or the hand movements. YouTube has us covered!! Mckenna has enjoyed "practicing" her singing voice in the comfort of her own home lately.

I'm thankful for Pocket. I'm not a big book reader, but I do like reading articles. I often come across articles that look very interesting, but don't have the time to read them when I see them. Pocket allows me to push a button that saves the article to one central place and even lets me access it without internet or phone service available! I generally hammer through as many articles as I can when I'm trying to wind down for bed. Pocket makes it easy.

What are you thankful for today?