Thankful Thursday

I'm pretty sure that we just had the best summer holidays of our life. It wasn't "fancy" or expensive, it was two road trips with our family of five. We are in a big transition week as the kids are headed back to school and Nya is going for her first time! This means that I am having to figure out what life will look like–maybe not all that different as she's part-time and I'll just continue working one day a week. 

Every week I write ten things that I am thankful for. This week I am grateful for:

1. Thrift store finds. I try not to go too often as we are decluttering but the boys are LOVING golf and we don't have a yard for it. This was a great $6 find. My dad's wife also found left-handed golf clubs which was a major bonus with three lefties.

2. The perfect last day of summer. We went to White Rock beach for three hours and it could not have been more beautiful. I felt so relaxed and our kids are at a wonderful day.

3. Our new paddleboard! This is the one that we chose (not sponsored) and we are very happy with it.

4. Alone. Gary and I are sort of addicted to the show Alone from the History Channel. Ten people are left in remote places on Vancouver Island and left to survive on their own. This definitely would not be a show that everyone would like but being that we have hiked a lot of Vancouver Island (West Coast Trail, Cape Scott Trail etc) and also hiked for days without seeing other people in Grizzly country (Stein Valley Trail!), we really enjoy it. I could NEVER do it but could possibly do it as a team, with Gary, for seven days only. The photo below doesn't quite relate but they do collect a lot of seafood ;)

5. Kai being in grade six! He has his first male teacher and has several friends in his class. Kai enjoys school and I'm glad that he will have more opportunities to play on school teams this year.

6. Koen being in grade three! He has a great teacher and good friends. Koen does not love school as some subjects are difficult for him and he needs his alone time but we have better ideas on how to support him and know that he is in a great community. We're so proud of our Koey.

7. Gary heading off to work for his 17th year teaching. Friends, teaching is hard. Full-time teaching grade 8's year after year is no joke. I am thankful for all that Gary does to support our family and that he does so without complaint. High five, Gary.

8. Nya Bear going to kindergarten. She is so excited to finally be in school and I know she will just love it. I have a feeling her report cards will indicate that she's a bit too social and doesn't stop talking (like her mama's did) and we are so happy for her.

{Her real first day–she started after the boys}

9. UGM's Afterschool Program. Being foster parents, we see the struggles that parents have to support their children. I am thankful for programs like UGM that step up to fill that supportive role for parents on the Downtown Eastside. If you don't follow UGM, you can find them on Facebook here.

10. Time to myself. With Nya in school I can now work more than one day and I can declutter my house and stay on top of cleaning. I could go on field trips if I like and just be more flexible. I look forward to seeing what this year will look like. 

What is something that you are thankful for today?

Love,
Louise