For these I am thankful

When I don't know what to say
I will speak praise to You

These words that we sang in one of the songs during worship today at church resonated with me.


With our move to Claremont, trying to get settled down, and getting the house all set up, it's been quite a busy hive of activity almost everyday so far. And in all my busy-ness, it's been hard for me to figure where to start when I pray. I have requests to put before God for all of us, and at the same time, there are many things to be thankful for.


A few nights ago, we made some changes to the kids' sleeping arrangements. We had initially put J in a room by himself and E with us (while my parents took the last remaining bedroom). It was quite hard on J though I think - he didn't do well being in a new room by himself - quite insecure and whiny. So what we did a few nights ago was to put both of them in a room together. Last night was their third night in the same room, and for the first time since we've been here, they both slept through the night. No crying, no looking for me. A gift. For this I am very thankful.


While J's been having a great time with exploring a new place, he's been acting up much more than he did at home. We've had to deal with quite a bit of cranky-ness, temper tantrums, stubbornness. It's been quite tiring dealing with this, to say the least. I figure it's the change of environment, which has maybe led to him feeling a bit more insecure. So: I'm praying over him and E as I wait for them to sleep at night. And just waiting it out. Since starting the prayers, there've been small improvements; he's a little less quick to launch into a full-blown tantrum. Small step, but for this I am thankful too.



Today was our second Sunday at church here. A big thanksgiving: both J and E seem to have settled into their respective Sunday Schools quite easily. They both have different rooms to go to, both filled with all manner of toys. J ran right in today, didn't even have to look back to say bye to me. E took some persuasion, but spent quite a while there before she started to look for me. Just the fact that she was willing to be there without me, for any amout of time, was pretty amazing to me. The Sunday School teachers have been great so far, really welcoming to the kids. Even suggesting preschools for J, which we'll look into later.

My parents leave for home tomorrow, after being here for close to three weeks. They've been a great help, with watching the kids, keeping them occupied, and even fixing up parts of the house for us. For them I am thankful. I'll miss them.

For K and the kids, I am most thankful!

(PS. Aren't they just the cutest?!)