Proverbs 22:6

I took a much needed break last night and jumped on the four-wheeler (barefoot!) for a ride in the back pasture. I haven't done that in several years and I was amazed at how young and carefree I felt as the wind whipped through my hair and the grass slapped against the bottom of my feet. (Yeah, I tend to kick my legs out and not use the foot guards. I know that's totally not safe and I don't advocate anyone riding like that!)

Things like that make me realize just how blessed I was to grow up out in the country. I used to complain about watering the garden, spending my Saturdays cutting the grass/bush-hogging, and waking up early every single day to feed the horses, but I'm grateful for every minute of it. When I was 18, the only thing I could think about was getting out of our small town as fast as my car would go. I never knew how much I would miss our little country church with Fall Festivals and hay rides, Sunday dinner with my whole family, riding the horses down the old dirt roads, and sitting down with a good book under the shade of the old pecan tree.

As Brett and I get closer to starting our own family, I look back on all these memories and I realize how important it is to me to be able to provide those same experiences to our kids. As I was riding the four-wheeler last night (watching the fireflies - which is pretty rare around our place!), one of my favorite verses came to mind.

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
Proverbs 22:6

Thankful Thursday

I am so grateful that we have had many opportunities to spend time with our out-of-town family, both at home at and down in Fort Morgan, Alabama. They say that pictures are worth a thousand words, so here you go! I promise to have a better update here in the next few days!