Counting My Blessings

Today was my birthday, number 47 to be precise.  I have been pondering that number in anticipation of this momentous day, enjoying the intrigue surrounding it, and imagining all manner of fanciful happenings awaiting me during my 47th year.  Who can predict what might befall?  The possibilities are too delicious.

But in the meantime, I can and will recount a few of the blessings that flowed throughout my celebratory day!

1. I slept in.  Well, actually, I got up before 7, took some acetaminophen for my excruciating back pain, and went back to bed for a couple of hours, when I was again awakened by excruciating back pain.  I took the hint at that point and got up for good.
2. My darling eldest daughter had prepared a pot of rich French roast coffee, of which I happily partook while noodling on my Kindle and doodling in a Mandala coloring book – my favorite pastime of late.
3. After several sweet birthday greetings from the family, my two eldest daughters went on a mysterious errand.  When they returned, it was bearing birthday gifts, which, due to the hodge-podge, here-there-and-everywhere schedule our family had today, they wished for me to open immediately before they had to leave for an afternoon and evening assisting two performances of the SSJ school production of The Music Man.
4. I received these delightful treats from my thoughtful daughters:
5. And then in another package I found this beautiful decorative piece, which fits perfectly right beside my front door:

   
   

6. And then, if that wasn’t enough, I had to go out to the van to discover that I now have my very own…

   
   Dashboard Hedgehog!
   He is yet to be named… but I luv him!!

7. Not long after that, I found two generous gift certificates in my inbox, from my brother and Madré, with which I immediately went shopping at Amazon.com and purchased a much needed tool in my photo-centric tech arsenal: a Datacolor Spyder4Pro S4P100 Colorimeter for Display Calibration.
8. Around noon, I took off with Jeffrey for a birthday excursion. We stopped for a quick bite along the way, then picked up friends Koos and Talitha and drove a considerable distance to a fancy theater in Scottsdale, where we got to see (Jeff, for the 4th time) the extremely fascinating documentary, Tim’s Vermeer.I enjoyed it so much, I want to go again. And I want to take all my friends. If it is near you, GO SEE IT! 🙂 I now have the itch to paint something, and I’m not going to be satisfied until I do. Nothing I paint will ever match either the genius or determination of Vermeer, or Tim Jenison… but I’m inspired nonetheless!
9. Floating home on a bit of an intellectual high, I arrived home to find this very happy mamacuddling her little boy after missing him for 5 months.  It was quite beautiful, and we had a really good visit with Malinda, her mom and her brother.  We got some pizza and ate together, and there was lots of running around and goofyness and laughter. It is wonderful to see Malinda doing so well, looking so beautiful, and most of all, for Junior to have family time! He is surrounded by so many people who love him. 🙂
10. Later in the evening, my darling husband took me out for dinner to a place of my choosing.  Mom and Jeff came along, and we had a good time at a Chinese buffet I just discovered along our drive today and wanted to try. Our time was somewhat truncated by a phone call from the Gonzales house, where the electricity had mysteriously been turned off right in the middle of dinner preparations. We sped home, and then Paul went over to find that it had come back on, but he needed to make a milk run for Jovis the MOST adorable baby ever, and then he had to snoogle the Jovis for good measure, and tease the kids that he will have to wake up early tomorrow morning to get to church by 8am. 🙂

And now, finally, in the quietness of the ending of this day, I am able to reflect on this beginning to my 47th year and give thanks to the Fount of Every Blessing — for family, friends, good food, intellectually satisfying films, and for the opportunities I anticipate that my Heavenly Father will provide in this coming year for growth in grace and holiness.  I will close with the words to this longtime favorite hymn:

1. Come, thou Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
mount of thy redeeming love.

2. Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I’m come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.

3. O to grace how great a debtor
daily I’m constrained to be!
Let thy goodness, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
prone to leave the God I love;
here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
seal it for thy courts above.

Lord tune my heart to your will, help me to listen, and help me, with a willing and thankful heart, to obey.