In An Attitude Of Gratitude ~

President Russell M. Nelson, our beloved Prophet gave a challenge to #givethanks for our many blessings for 7 days. Because I loved this experience, I decided to extend the time to November 30th, and then share my feelings after completing it.  First of all, I am going to share my thoughts on these past days in this post. 

Day 1 -Today, I have gratitude for many friends and family that have posted wonderful birthday messages. Thank you, I have felt loved.

The highlight of today was listening to this much-needed message by our Prophet, President Russell M. Nelson.

Here are my #givethanks thoughts!

Day 2 - I love our Prophet, President Russell M. Nelson's challenge to #givethanks for 7 days.

Today I am very thankful for good friends and family. Yesterday was my birthday, and I was overwhelmed with messages from dear friends and family. It warmed my heart and truly made me feel loved.

I am so thankful for the many good friends that I have made throughout my life. I have friends from many different areas we have lived in, social media friends, church friends, and precious family members. I consider them all brothers and sisters. I feel that I knew them in the Pre-mortal life and am grateful to our loving Heavenly Parents for them. May we all love one another, and recognize that all of this world's children are our brothers and sisters.

Day 3 - I #givethanks for our weekly Sabbath days. It is a day to worship our loving Heavenly Father. Through the sacred emblems of the Sacrament, we covenant to always remember our precious Savior Jesus Christ and His suffering for us in Gethsemane and on the cross of Calvary. It is a time to reflect on Him and the changes we can make to draw closer to him.

I love our moments together with our ward family on these sacred days. It is sweet to be with friends.

It's a day of study, pondering, and serving.

With Covid 19, we can also worship and partake in our homes the sacrament when we can't meet together. These moments have been a spiritual highlight for my dearest husband and me. He has prepared the sacrament for us.

I'm so grateful for these treasured moments. It prepares me spiritually for the days ahead.

Sundays are my favorite day.

Day 4 - #givethanks I'm so grateful for our little Sammy. Two weeks ago, he was very sick and could barely walk. We cried thinking we might lose him. With good Vet care, he is back to his cute self. We have had him for 12 years, and he blesses our lives in many ways. We love our Sammy!

Day 5 - Today, I have been thinking about my dear parents and brothers who have passed away, and my sister in law, Amparo. I miss them more than mere words can express. I give thanks to each of them for the impact they have had on my life.

I am grateful for my dearest parents. They are the best. I had a wonderful childhood with many fun moments with my parents. Their life was not easy and near poverty at times, but I never really lacked anything. My mother made most of my clothes, and they were lovely. They were faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ and instilled in me a love for the gospel, the Book of Mormon, and the temple. They served a mission, and I know that is exactly what they are doing in the spirit world.

My brothers were awesome too. Mac, who was 9 years older than me, was my protector and always showered me with love. Sometimes it was protecting me from my brother, John, who was 6 years older.

John was a relentless tease, but I loved him for it. We had a great family, and I am happy that we are a forever family too. My brother Mac's wife, Amparo, was like a sister to me, and I loved my moments with her.

Although my family is in the spirit world, I know they are near and busy doing good things. I miss them a lot, and I have beautiful memories of our time together—I #givethanks for them all; my eternal family!

Day 5 - I will be forever grateful that my dearest Roger and I were married for time and all eternity over 53 years ago. I #givethanks often that I have this incredible man for eternity. We are truly united as one and unified in our testimonies of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in our goals, and in our desires for our eternal family.

Through the years, we have had many difficult moments with various trials of life. This dear man has had severe medical concerns. A heart attack at age 45, open-heart surgery, and then later in life, a Pulmonary Embolus experience. Through fasting and prayer, along with Priesthood blessings, there have been miracles. He has always gone through these experiences with great faith, and the results have been increased faith and hope in our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. These experiences have provided deep growth for both of us. He is always there for me and has given me Priesthood blessings for health, comfort, and guidance. There have been remarkable miracles in my life too. Through fasting, prayer, and blessings, our children have had their own miracles happen.

We have had the privilege to serve missions together, which has brought wonderful blessings into our lives.

We both love the temple and our moments serving there. We know that through promised blessings, being in the temple is where we need to be.

This man of mine is kind, thoughtful, generous, faithful, true in all that he does. He cares deeply for our family and has worked hard through the years to provide for them all. He has always been a good Dad and Grandfather. His counsel is wise, and I know his children love and respect him for his desires for them.

He is the most devoted husband ever, and I love him with all my heart. I #givethanks for him today!

My Eternal Children above and their Spouses below, whom I consider my children too. 

Here are our Children, Grandchildren, and Great Grandchildren. 

 Oldest Grandson Jed & Jessica with Great Grandchildren, Myah, Lilly and Jadyn

2nd oldest Grandson Jacob & Dana with our Great Grandchildren, Sagan and Katalina

Here are photos of our two married Grandchildren - Our granddaughter, Justice and  our new Grandson, Jaxson - Then our Grandson, Austin and our new Granddaughter, Shamra. Below is a photo of our Granddaughter, getting engaged to our next Grandson, Josh - Then our Granddaughter, Sariah getting engaged to our next Grandson, Alex. 

 Day 6 - Today, Thanksgiving day 2020, I #givethanks for my treasured family. Roger and I have been deeply blessed with a large posterity. We have 34 Grandchildren, 5 Great Grandchildren. We have added one more Grandson in law and one more Granddaughter in law. We will soon be adding one more Grandson in law and one more Granddaughter in law. It is amazing how it multiplies. We cherish with all our hearts each individual that makes up our family. We have a deep love for them and marvel at how each is unique and has special gifts, talents, and other wonderful characteristics that we enjoy.

I am sincerely grateful for our Heavenly Parents and our Savior Jesus Christ for the spectacular plan of Salvation. I know that we are a forever family, which gives me comfort, peace, and joy.

Every day, I pray for Heavenly Father's watchful care over each of these precious souls. I love our family moments with them all. May they each know and feel the love we have for each of them individually.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our family and friends. May you have great joy this Thanksgiving day as you #givethanks to our Heavenly Father for all of your blessings.

Day 7 - Today, I wanted to #GiveThanks for all of you that come in and view this page and leave comments. I follow various blogs, and I want all of you to know how much I learn from you and how you have blessed my life in different ways. 

I have a love for all of Heavenly Father's children, which means all of you that I consider my spiritual brothers and sisters. May this day be a sweet one. May you feel the Lord's unconditional love for you. During the difficult moments, may you reach in prayer for the peace and comfort that you desire? 

Sending my love and hugs to you today! 

Day 8 - Today, I am grateful for this time of year when I can have a fire in the fireplace, Romantic Christmas music playing with a cup of hot chocolate, and then perhaps a book.

I am grateful for books. My first love is The Book of Mormon which is the most read. However, I like to read religious writings and Historical novels too. It is my perfect way to relax on some days.

I am thankful for good music. I especially enjoy the music of my era. My husband and I enjoy a dance or two when we play this kind of music. I love a little bit of country, but mostly Classical and religious music. At Christmas time, I enjoy Christmas music. My favorite Christmas song is: "Mary, Did You know."

On cold winter nights, I like to have our fireplace going. We enjoy reading a good book, listening to a story CD and sometimes, just watching the fire.

The best, of course, is the chocolate. I enjoy various kinds of chocolate—hot Chocolate in the winter for sure, and then all kinds of chocolate throughout the year. Yes, I am a chocoholic.

I do #givethanks for these sweet moments.

Day 9 - I have felt great joy today. I was blessed today to be able to work in the Jordan River Temple. I had the privilege to help with a parent to child sealing. A precious little 4-year-old girl was being sealed to her parents. Her two sisters, ages 11 & 13, are helping her get ready for this moment. They all were dressed in white.

It brought back sweet memories of being sealed to my parents as a 7-year-old with 2 brothers 67 years ago in the Manti Temple. My memories are good of

that day.

I have always loved the temple and have a strong testimony of its eternal importance in our lives. My sweet eternal Companion and I made a promise to make temple attendance a focal point

in our lives.

Now serving in the temple together has brought great joy into our lives. We are grateful for our Eternal marriage and family.

I #givethanks for temples and their eternal significance in our lives and the lives of our ancestors.

We love the Jordan River Temple.

Day 10 - Today, I #givethanks for our loving Heavenly Parents. I'm so happy to know deep inside my soul that I am a daughter of God. We are all spirit children of Heavenly Father.

I feel blessed to know that I have an elder brother, Jesus Christ, who completed the Infinite Atonement for us. Because of Him, e will all be resurrected and live again. Because of our beloved Savior, if we have faith in Him and embrace the covenant path, we can return and live with Them.

I have two favorite scriptures I memorized that remind me of the love, hope, and trust I have in Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

2 Nephi 31:20 - 20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

Our Savior is the way, the truth, and the light. Come believe in Him, trust in Him, have faith in Him. Because of Him, we have everything!

#givethanks

I close this Thanksgiving blog with my final thoughts on how this challenge has blessed my life. Living under the restrictions of Covid 19 has been difficult for us all. Because my husband and I are in the vulnerable age group, there has been growing concern as the pandemic has continued. After much prayer and study of the current struggle with Covid, we decided that we would follow our Prophet, President Russell M. Nelson's counsel on obeying our state's laws and doing the guidelines that have been given. Being a former Nurse and my husband a Pharmacist, we believe the science is good and that we are protected by wearing masks, physical distancing, and being wise as to where and when we shop.

We are grateful for the many front line workers that are tirelessly working to save lives. We have a son, and nieces, nephews, and friends that are on the front line. We pray for them daily.

We believe that by doing our part, we are showing true love for one another. As the pandemic has continued, we have been sad not to see our family members like we would ordinarily do.

As we were challenged by our Prophet to take 7 days and express our thanks for the many blessings we have; it has been a spiritual experience. I have felt the spirit and have felt uplifted and inspired by the many #givethanks posts that have been put on social media. I have a very grateful heart. I know that doing this has increased my gratitude for countless blessings and helped me with the courage to face whatever is ahead. I do trust in my Heavenly Father and in His plan for us.

This has been a life-changing experience for me to ponder upon my many blessings. May we all continue to #givethanks for our blessings.

I believe that prayer brings blessings from Heaven. I have prayed for individuals and families that are suffering with Covid 19, loss of loved ones, economically devastated, and our world and nation. I continue to pray for there to be treatment and vaccine for Covid 19. I have prayed for the front line workers, teachers, and for all of you.

May we all pray together for this pandemic and world chaos to end. May we love one another and give ongoing thanks for all we have.