Day 4 of my Thankfulness Challenge.

This is day 4 of my thankfulness challenge.  Today I am challenging Molly Anderson, Terri Hornbeck Oxner, and Charla Morford to spend the next 7 days sharing 3 things each day that they are thankful for, and on each day, challenging 3 more of their facebook friends.
For me today:
1. In 1997 I got on line and through my in real life friend, Laurie Poch,  found a wonderful group of women.  They called themselves HAH. (Homeschooling a Houseful) mostly homeschool moms with a housefull of children. At the time, my youngest was 10. I was about a decade older than the majority of ladies in the group. This group has lasted through various types of social media, changing media types with the times. Our group, now becoming more of a "gramma's group" as our rolls have been changing with the times.
I can honestly say this group of women have been truly a group of sisters in Christ like no other. We ask HAH to pray, and HAH prays.
In every medical crisis my family has been through, every financial crisis, every emotional, or disiplinary crisis, these ladies have been there. They are there at the loss of a child, the loss of a spouse, the loss of property,  or if a family member strays, no judgement, just love prayers and advice.
We also have times when we get to share our joys and our success.  We know we can share, and our trials and private joys will stay safe with HAH.
I wish everyone had a group to go to like my awesome HAH ladies! I truly love them so very much. While we were doing our trucking, I got to meet quite a few of my HAH ladies at truck stops along the way.  Some of my precious ladies have driven upwards of 6 hours to visit in real life (IRL). Such a blessing those flesh and blood meetings were. My little sister, Terri has become an IRL friend, sister and total joy in my life,  and but for  HAH, we would never have met.
Oh, forgot to mention, we actually even shared the joys and trials of homeschooling a housefull once in a while!

2. Some of you can now relate. Some of you will have to wait. I have been totally blessed with the absolute best grandbabies in the world. I have 18 here with us, and God chose to take 3 of them straight to heaven with no downtime for doting grandparents. What a day that will be when we get to hug! 
My goodness,  we are so stinking blessed, they are all beautiful, or handsome, and smart and funny and talented and totally absolutely perfect in their own unique way!
Nothing melts this gramma's heart more than having one of these sweet little short people zoom in to see  me in a crowd and come running to hug all the while yelling "Lou Lou,  Lou Lou!!!" Nothing more precious than looking out the window and seeing that no longer short person grandbabie spending time with his Pappa (grandfather) doing whatever they happen to be doing at the moment. Nothing compares with the times they come and spend time camping the night at LouLouburg.  I love teaching them, and just spending cuddle time, or hanging out with them and the sheep.
God says it best:
Proverbs17:6
" Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers".

3. On June 25, 1981, while trying to help all the VBS kids finish their craft projects, I was having contractions so severe I was dropping to my knees, trying to not let the kids know I really, really needed them to hurry. Finally about 1 that afternoon, I got to get in my car and drive home. So exhausted I dropped into my wonderful chair, as my water broke..... Somehow I got hold of Terry at the mine, and he got home to take me to hospital. I had been sick a lot with pneumonia that sent me to the hospital in December,  and I had never really fully recovered from that bout with my enemy pneumonia.  It was the worst delivery ever, I hemmoraged, literally nearly died.... (long story will share privately if you really want to hear it) but 24 or more hours after my water broke, I finally got to see my baby. He looked like a miniature  of my dad on my first look. And the doctor commented "this is the strongest baby I have ever delivered." His name was John Walter Anderson. He was named after my dad, my maternal grandpa, and Terry's step dad. Eventually he looked more like the Salsbury side of the family.   Oh what a wonderful baby!  I remember commenting to a friend about how blessed I was because I really did have a perfect baby. John never fussed. He slept from the very first night home from hospital for a full 8 hours every night. I know God blessed me in this way because I needed my rest. John has always been a very tender hearted, loving fellow.  Very sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and very aware of the stuggles others are going through. He is a genuinely good man, so very talented musically,  an amazing talent with a welding rod in hand, and already proving to be awesome behind the wheel of a big rig.  I think of all my children, John is probably the most "kindred spirit" with me.  We were privileged to have John and his family live with us for 3 years. Yes, that time was indeed a blessing for Terry and me. John helped us in so many ways. No idea what would have happened if he had not been here last November.  I shudder to even think about it. John has always been there for me. So often, no matter the need. While he lived with us, he was ministering to a group of young men from the neighborhood.  I know he has been a blessing to them and their parents.
Yep, I am blessed with this young man who is serving God, a wonderful husband, father, teacher and son.