Thankful Thursday! (202)

"For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.  Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement allow you to live in harmony with each other by following the example of Christ Jesus."  ~Romans 15:4-5

Today, I am thankful for:

1.  Jace Michael, who is currently in football and karate and still doing regular workouts at Shape - proud of the work he is putting in!

2.  Parker Elizabeth, a decisive preschool class leader ;-) who was excited to have her very first ballet class on Monday - gah, what a preshface!! lol

3.  That God is faithful in so many ways, including this being the verse of the day when I needed it.

4.  The inspiring podcast and free workbook by Mel Robbins on finding what you really want using the 5 Whys (asking what you want, then asking WHY you want that... then asking why again four more times as you keep responding and looking a little deeper).  Sounds simple, but it brings some profound insights!

5.  Catching up with Megan Elizabeth over dinner at Swadley's last night!  So good to see her and get an update on her life and family!!  Also thankful that I can wear the shirt Mom bought me in Vegas now. =)

6.  My 2-hour morning walk at the Station this week... loved the Peloton classes and the nice weather... did not love the five blisters on my toes afterwards.

7.  The productive feeling that comes with cleaning out my closet!!  Everything pictured here will be re-homed, and the clothes that fit me (or will fit soon) now have plenty of space and I can see them more clearly -- YAY!

Side Note:  I really do want to find something to help me with blisters - it's an ongoing problem that typically makes the second half of my races and/or vacations far less fun for me -- if there's a way to fix it, I'd very much like to find it before I walk the lovely streets of Disney World and complete the last 3/4ths of a marathon with painfully blistered feet.  Over the years, I have tried toe socks (that fit around each toe like a glove vs. a mitten) and shoe fittings and various brands of running socks and shoes, but if you have any other specific advice, please let me know!!  I'd also love to find some cute shoes like these for my next race, but I acknowledge the odds of both things happening at once are pretty slim! lol  I'll gladly settle for ugly shoes if it means no blisters!!

*Bonus:  I'm grateful that my Dad got this scary bug off of my car. lol  Ugh, look at it's gross, twitchy antenna and scaly back.  It was clinging hard to my car with its little suction-cup feet, so I drove to Mom and Dad's house from Swadley's to avoid crawling across and getting out on the passenger's side, and I'm gonna say it was worth the drive after what I learned later that night. lol  Google Lens tells me this is a North American Wheel Bug, "America's largest assassin bug" (disturbing) -- they can kinda fly, but it's noisy and clumsy (like June Bugs), and their bite is more painful than a bee sting -- soooo that's a hard pass on all the levels for me!  Having said that, even if I'd learned it was a very peaceful bug that couldn't fly, I'd still prefer it to be nowhere near me. lol

Okay, Happy Thursday, friends and fam!!  I love you and believe in you, and I believe you matter deeply to God and there is a great cloud of witnesses who are rooting for you and cheering you on from Heaven! ❤