Thankful Thursday

Welcome to this week's edition of Thankful Thursday.  I can't express how important it is for me take a day out of my week and just express my graditude and humblness for all that God has done and is doing in my life.  In last couple of days, several people from my hometown have been passed away.  Sad to say that almost all of them were killed in some kind of car wreck.  Just hearing about so many people that I know die so young makes me even more grateful.

So, this week I am especially thankful for still having my life, health and strength.  I am thankful to have my family and that they are all in good health as well.  I am thankful to be back home and enjoying their company.  They are all excited to see how big JJ has grown.  They can't believe that he's already doubled his weight and looks so different than when they saw him a few weeks ago.  I am sure he will be somewhat spoiled by the time we go back home Sunday.

Speaking of JJ, I am thankful that he is five weeks and healthy.  As any parent knows, anything can happen to your kids.  This first year is especially dangerous for them.  There are so many germs and illnesses that can cause them be very sick.  Thankfully, JJ hasn't caught anything and everybody has been cautious of making sure that their hands and stuff are clean before interacting with him.  It means a lot when your family is proactive about helping your baby stay healthy as well.  I have known some people to get offended when asked to santize their hands before handling a baby.

I am thankful that Moo is still very in love with her little brother.  She's not threatened by his presence at all.  I was very worried that she'd resent him for stealing her spotlight.  However, she still gets her spotlight from Grandma and everyone else.  In fact, she likes to show her little brother off by asking everybody if they've seen him.  It's really cute.  I hope that she continues to feel loved and appreciated by us.

As many of you know, I have been working as a freelance writer full-time for a while a now.  Let me just say that this is not a career for the faint of heart.  It has taken me a year and some change to finally start getting an almost steady stream of offers and opportunities coming in.  I'm not even close to being rich or making enough money for my family to live off of month to month, but I am making money that is going towards rebuilding our emergency/down payment fund.  I am thankful that if need be I can contribute to gas for our car, money towards groceries and other expenses.

I've always been very independent.  The transition from a working outside the home to being a stay at home mom was quite the adjustment for me.  However, it was well worth it.  And I am thankful that I have had this time to start this blog, interact with you all and pursue my dreams again.  I am glad and thankful to announce again that I got my first article published by Yahoo! (Check it out here.)

It's blessing.  The door is now open for me to write more pieces for them and get paid.  As long as my articles keep getting views I will continue to make money off of them for months and years to come.  I am very thankful for this opportunity to reach millions and to share what I have learned. One of my biggest dreams has always been to be in a position where I am able to inspire, help, motivate, etc.  And freelance writing with Yahoo is giving me that chance.

So, I hope that  you all will continue to support me over there.  If you haven't read my article on ways that my family and I save money, I encourage you to head on over and do so.  While you're there please feel free to retweet, share on Facebook and click the Helpful button.  The more exposure I get, the more people I can reach and touch.

Last but not least, I am thankful that YUMMommy is growing.  I'm getting more readers and supporters.  I've had people approach me on Twitter to ask if they can guest post about parenting and to ask me to guest post and netework with them also.  It's just so humbling to feel the love and support you all have for me and my writing.  Please don't think for a minute that I take it for granted because I don't.  So, continue to comment and visit.

I will be doing more giveaways to show my appreciation because it goes both ways.  I do think you all should be rewarded every now and then for commenting and reading my stuff.  I promis I'm not going to turn this into one of those review and giveway only blogs.  I have too much to say and share to ever do that.

What are you thankful for this week?  Has anything happened in your life to remind you how fortunate you are?