Thankful

“Gratitude for the seemingly insignificant—a seed—this plants the giant miracle.”
― Ann Voskamp

I am grateful for new parks in our city. We have discovered a beautiful new park with a splash pad just a few blocks from the kids' school. What a fun spot on hot summer days!  The city has also been doing some major repairs on a large park that is just up the main street from us. We are looking forward to new suprises there. It is a joy to see the children laugh and play together.

I am also grateful for some awesome teens in our church.  A couple of weekends ago, our church had a campout at our district camp at Silver Lake.  The location is absolutely beautiful, and we enjoyed tenting, swimming, kayaking, picnicking, chatting, and playing together with others from our church community.  For my kids, it is really special to have time with some of the "big" kids, who choose to  include the younger folks in what they are doing.  One young woman brings fancy nail polish to paint fingernails for all the girls (a treat that Abby loves, of course!).  There are several strong teen boys who wrestle and play with younger folks in such a fun and energetic way.  I would imagine that these teens might prefer other things to being climbed on, chased by, and accosted with questions from 5-9 year olds, yet they have shown themselves to be so gracious and loving and inclusive.  The Tapper children adore them, and I am truly thankful to belong to a community with such a culture.  And I hope that my kids will be shaped by the love they have received from others.

Here are some thank-you pictures that my four made to express their appreciation for the teens:

I'd love to hear what or who you are thankful for today!  Leave me a comment!