Thankful Thursday

What does it really mean to be thankful? Truly gracious of the blessings you have? The dictionary defines "thankfulness" as being "Aware and appreciative of a benefit". First things first, we have to be aware. It is so important to be aware of what people are doing for you, what gifts you have been given, and most of all thanking God and the people around you for their part in all of it.

So I thought it would be fun to share a few things that I am grateful for in this week!

1. Community

I have been blessed with some AWESOME friends and family. I literally can't say enough times how lucky I feel to have all of these people in my life! I had an opportunity to FaceTime with Johnny two days ago all the way from Singapore...how crazy is that! He is loving his study abroad so far and says it's a good thing he only has one semester at the Naval Academy left because he likes regular college way too much ;-) I am lucky to have 3 great roommates here in Clemson and can't wait for more fun times with them when everyone is fully moved in. I recently met another missionary who will also be on Clemson's campus in the Fall. Her name is Karly Petrella and she is amazing. She is working with CRU and graduated from CNU in Newport News, VA so we could relate about college things! I am so happy to have my intern partner, James, but it will be nice to have a girl around who I can relate to!

 Isn't technology awesome? I am able to FaceTime with Johnny all the way from Singapore! We had so much fun connecting with each other...I'm worried he likes real college too much and won't ever want to come home!

Oh, James. Just be prepared for lots of ridiculous pictures of him over the next year! He is a hoot...but he can pull of the mullet pretty well don't you think? He is my intern partner for Greek IV, and is a Clemson Grad from 2010, so he has been an awesome resource.

Meet Karly, my new friend! I am so thankful for her and can't wait to share our ups and downs of ministry life over the next year. She is awesome!!

Us Greek Interns know how to have fun! 

2. Good Health

I know this is super cliche, but I know a lot of people who have been getting sick recently or physically injured, so I am thankful to be doing well! I have been running almost every day and I am so glad I am able to do that. The weather in South Carolina is gorgeous (despite the humidity aka frizzy hair) and there are a fair number of running trails, so I'm having a blast exploring the area. I've gotten an unnecessary number of honks from F-150's though, haha! I think I need to stick to trails that don't border the road...

Gettin' my sweat on!

3. The little things

Reading

Iced Coffee

My front porch chair

My home office

My organization in my office

My Harry Potter closet

My fake reading glasses

"Shaping the Spiritual Lives of Students" is a book all of us are required to read this year and it is so much fun reading on the front porch!

I love it! I thought it would be fun to put my old ski racing bib on my chair ;-) You can't tell, but all of the little storage containers have my materials for my Ministry Partnership Development and it keeps me super organized!

Most of these items are self explanatory, but I guess I should explain the last two. I have a normal closet, but I also have a little Harry Potter closet under the stairs. At first I joked that Johnny and Stephen could sleep in there when they came to visit, but then decided to be a nice big sister. ;-) I had a good amount of boxes of things coming to Clemson. My cousin Carrie had most of the kitchen stuff, and I ended up not needing to open several of my boxes. So, I didn't know where I would put them! Fear no more, the Harry Potter closet is here! It was the perfect place to store those extra boxes and other random items I don't use all the time. I have had so much more space in my room and real closet because of it, which is awesome!

If this picture of me in these glasses doesn't make you happy then I don't know what will...yes I am the biggest dork ever. When I was a freshman in college, my roommate, Lynsee, and I both got fake reading glasses. We would wear them when we wanted an extra boost of confidence or wanted to feel extra smart. I still have mine and I think they are the bees knees. I wear them when I am working and need some motivation or if I know I am going to be having some hard conversations that day. Yep, biggest dork ever. But I love it!

Cheers to Thursday!

Of course the list could go on and on about what I am thankful for, but these are the things I have been thinking about this week! What are you thankful for on this Thursday?

XoXo,

Southern Saving Grace