30 Days of Thankful

Another November has come and gone and the we listed out things we're thankful for. I really love this little tradition we started back in 2011. Its so sweet to make time to speak out the ways we've been blessed and notice all the good that surrounds us. Hearing things from Zachari and Jonathan's perspectives is really special too and often humbles me to remember to be grateful for all of the little things I so easily take for granted. Without further ado, our 2016 list (in no specific order):

Zachari
Jonathan 
pool
school
lunch
Liz, Annalise & Kathleen (Bonar)
Jonathan
Mama
fall
cats
Papa
anteaters
music
rocks
Jonah
ImmyLou
Ms. D.
food
hikes
church
love
friends
home
car
God
dogs
the sun
food (again!)
pork chops with bacon
gas for cars
Play-doh
Blinntoberfest
gnocci
and then this...

That's right! It says dirt, poop, water & pee...with diagrams.

Jonathan
Nathan (Cates)
superheroes
my tiny pumpkin (that he chose from his preschool field trip in October)
music
Heather, Josie & Paxy (Mohrman)
Papa
Zachari
Jonah
Zachari (again!)
fire
tortillas
strawberries
cucumbers
chicken
water
Mama

Matt
parents
Zachari
Jonathan
Wife
fall weather
pot roast!
Watershed
feeling healthy
playing games with Zachari
beer
hikes
a good job
woodworking 
stories
friends 
art 
music
bike rides

Kelli
twinkle lights
nights by the fire pit
hooded sweatshirts
warm slippers
Apple Music
Spotify
lunch dates with Matty
Fox in the Snow coffee
Hounddogs Pizza
fresh fruits and veggies
Aunt Flow
101 S. Westmoor Avenue
Raymond Matthew Blinn
creativity
wine!
Mrs. Distefano
Ms. Khristina
our car & ZB's repairs
the Obamas
my phone
the iPad
Bethel Music
Patty Griffin
wine (again!)
coffee
ProDoula
Columbus Birth & Parenting
Bekah
Matt's job
Reid family
Cates family
Bekah's natural cancer treatments... and success!
Westgate and our neighbors
all of the amazing food/drink options in Columbus
79˚ days in November!
Zachari Jane
Jonathan Francis
Hilltop YMCA
Advent dinners with Bekah
Zachari's love for J. She's caring, helpful, patient, encouraging and a great friend.
warm, cozy blankets
Andrew Hendrixson
Peter Stevens
the Psalms
God's grace, love, forgiveness and peace
Myca
Jan
Sara
Brooke
water with lemon

30 days of thankful

I really love the tradition we've started of intentionally listing out things we're thankful for in the month of November. Its made me more aware of all the little things in our days and I've found myself more easily giving thanks for even the mundane after practicing this so often. 

The Blinns have much to be thankful for and these are just some of the things that came to our mind last month. They're in no particular order, just how I weeded through the stack after all the tags were taken off the branches. 

Something fun about this year: Zachari hand wrote all of her thankful tags and Jonathan drew pictures and/or "wrote" out his things too. Its fun having kids sometimes. 


Zachari
Mom
Annabelle
Miss Washam
family
God
Mama
Katelyn
plants
Jonathan
food
Pax
vitamins
Peter
our old house
the year 2015
Nancy
Thanksgiving
Sara's turtle


Matt
101 S. Westmoor
friends
my parents
Zachari Jane
our kids' amazing spirits
Westgate
weekend without kids
bandsaw
CBP - Kelli's new job


Jonathan
Sara Kear
Bob the Builder
"Workers, Jonah & Lindsay, Elys & Zachari's friends. The end."
a bug... and more bugs
dinosaurs
Zachari, my friend
Jesus, Papa, Mama, Zachari
Jesus again!
Matthias and Mama getting to have coffee
boots and rain jackets
the ocean
ham & Cheerios & spicy cheese & raisins & hummus & cucumbers
Zachari, Mama, Papa
Jake
my candy
paper punchers
ABCs & Jesus
Mason, Baby Graham, Layne... & their mom & dad


Me
Jan & Carol Bell
Sara Martin
nail polish
48 hours kid free! - & the Moormans & Kuhns for babysitting
Columbus Birth & Parenting
changing seasons
beautiful, fall colors!
my in-laws
our health
Carla, Kim, Rick & Mike
music, coloring books, sewing
our years in Bowling Green
Mom teaching me to cook
the gift of encouragement
Matt's job
date nights courtesey of the Elys
God's G-R-A-C-E
Life Church & the Forsythes
my best friend & husband, Matt
Andrew Hendrixson
Patty.
beautiful, smart, sassy, creative, wonderful Zachari Jane
riesling
coffee
the beach!
MacCaughey framily
pink-purple-blue-orange-white sunsets
Matt's handiness & creativity
sunny, 70˚ days in November!
lazy weekends with family
Trader Joe's & Aldi
sense of smell & taste
coffee dates with Myca
handsome, charming, silly, curious, ornery, wonderful Jonathan Francis
Reid family
Jenni Stockberger & fam
our new house, great neighbors & a beautiful neighborhood

30 days of thankful

This is the fourth year in a row that, together as a family, we've taken time out in November to list things that we're thankful for. I'm so glad that we've started this tradition and a couple months ago, I realized that it meant something special to Zachari as well. She started asking if we were going to decorate the mantle with "our thankful things" again. This girl remembers everrrrrything, but this particular memory she had brought me joy. Maybe it'll be something we all cherish for years to come and who knows, maybe my children will pass it down to their children one day?

We often talked about what we were thankful for while we were eating a meal which is why several of Jonathan's have a food "theme".  This list doesn't even touch the tip of the iceberg as far as the millions of things this family can give thanks for. It is, however, a good reflection of where our hearts are right now in this season and for that - well - I'm thankful!

Matt:
Kelli's cooking
small group
coffee in the mornings
Zachari Jane
my best friend Kelli
a good job
Saturday morning with the kiddos
Wednesday AM coffee with the guys
spell check
our church

Zachari:
dates with Mama or Papa
going to the pumpkin patch with my family
letters and packages in the mail!
my family and friends
Papa
COSI
Jonah
pumpkins
pesto pasta on Sunday nights!
Jonathan getting to have swim lessons with Mama
shows and movies
play dates with Maggie and Marion
friends at my school
snowy, sunny days
Halloween
my room
food
my dolls
Corry helping me swim
dinners
LOTS of fruits!
my best friends Marion, Annabelle, Matilda and Haley
brats!
peanut butter and jelly
my preschool teachers

Jonathan:
Mama
trucks
pumpkins
Zachari
Papa
grapes
blueberries
books
pasta 
bowls
bubbles
paper
sweet potatoes
markers
pool
sausage 
eyes
breakfast

Kelli:
spiritual direction from Deb and Mandy
Central Vineyard
small group
Zachari Jane
Jonathan Francis
the gift of song
the Reids
sex :)
MVNU friends
swimming lessons and our great instructors
Matty Boy!
Monica teaching me how to sew
Kelsie and Kyle Meyers
Sara Kear
Jake
Myca
morning coffee dates with friends
warm, sunny days in November
Zachari and Jonathan's creativity and love for books
Deb Woods and Mandy Shumaker
my Lactation Counselor certification
early, quiet mornings - seeing the sun rise
S-M-E-L-L!
days when the kids listen and play well on their own
Papa working so hard so that I can stay home with J and Z

On turning 33

Another year older. Another year wiser. 

Isn't that what they say? Whoever the proverbial they is anyway. Hmph.


When I turned 30 it wasn't a big deal to me like it has been for some of my friends. I wasn't sad to say goodbye to my 20s, I wasn't depressed to be entering my 30s, it was just another day, really. I was thankful for a new decade and as I've continued to settle into this new age, I like it more and more. I like who I am better now than when I was in my 20s, I like who I think I am gonna become. 

But this year, August 12th came with some melancholy attached. I realized that by turning 33 I was older than my own mother when she gave birth to me. I was two years older than Palmer when he died and a whopping eight years older than Jenn at the time of her death. I realized that it was at the age of 33 (or so we think) that Jesus Christ have His life for mine. I'm not this much closer to my mid-30s. It all just felt heavy to me and so I started the day in a very pensive, quiet mood. 

It was a good day though, for sure. Matty was off (all week, actually!) and together as a family we enjoyed a lovely summer day. Kim babysat for us so we could have an afternoon date, something The Boy had planned. We tried Basil, a super-delicious restaurant in Short North that I fell in love with. The decor/architecture was as wonderful as the cuisine and the company wasn't too shabby either!

The weather was perfect and so we enjoyed walking around to shops before and after lunch for a bit. We stumbled upon this fabulousness outside of a salon and spa, randomly. Being part of Hannah Estabrook's Self Esteem Summer Camp the last several weeks, this sign felt especially poignant to me... and on my birthday no less!

The Boy had quite the surprise up his sleeve for me... A helicopter ride! And what might've been the bigger surprise, is though I am so afraid of heights and never really had a desire to go up in a helicopter and the freaking floor was glass and I could see straight down all the hundreds of miles, I did really well up there! I sat in the front next to the pilot and took in the lovely sights of Fairfield County. I mean, the day couldn't have been more picture perfect for such an excursion. Thank you, Lord!

I think we look pretty cute as "co-pilots"!

Back at home that night, the fam made me a tasty, summertime meal of barbecue ribs and roasted potatoes, onions and mushrooms all made on the grill. The beautiful salad came from our yard with some store bought extras and it was all so deliciously satisfying!

The day ended at the Upper Arlington Graeter's where everyone had a sweet treat but me. I didn't really care for one, but thought it would be fun to go there anyway! I love my sweet lil fam and I love that I am now 33. Here's to a new year!

Family photos

I just got these from Val today - yay! I have a feeling these might be sent out in Chrisamus cards this year! The photos were taken on August 11th and it was so muggy. These were taken just before a downpour too!

The All Horse Parade!

We had a great time at the All Horse Parade in Delaware this afternoon! 

I think my favorite part was watching Jonathan watch all the horses and people go by. There were some moments when he was obviously so excited, he just didn't have words to describe his feelings and then there were other moments where he was totally in awe and sat or stood motionless as he marveled at what was before him. So amazing to watch things through the lens of a child's eye. 

Zachari and Lincoln had tons of fun together and after the parade, we all enjoyed dinner at the Mosleys'. I'm thankful for this small-town tradition and I hope our family is able to add it to our list of things we do for many years to come.

I only had my phone with me as a camera so there aren't lots of pics to share, but enough to remember the day, for sure.

The first day of summer!

Yesterday was a beautiful first day of summer and we were all too excited to celebrate it and bask in the  light of the longest day of the year!

The day started off a little muggy and gray, but that didn't stop us! A new friend, Merilee, so graciously offered to babysit for us in the morning so Blinn and I got to enjoy hot-out-of-the-oven cinnamon rolls at Sassafras Bakery with fresh Cafe Brioso coffee. Fannntastic.

Later, we met back up with the kids and ran some errands which included a stop at Lowe's for some landscaping stuff and supplies for making a picnic table! While J napped, these two took less than an hour to build this!

We ate dinner outside - such a summery meal of BBQ ribs, fresh green beans and corn on the cob... at the new table outdoors, of course!

After dinner we headed to the airport where we got to enjoy the fabulous sunset and see a couple of planes land. There wasn't as much activity there as we had hoped for, but the kids didn't mind. It was a fun way to soak in some of the moments of the longest day of the year. 

I was in love with how the soft sun looked on Zachari's skin so I wanted to snap some more photos of her. She however, wasn't in the mood for any sort of serious poses so this is what we got. I'm alright with it. She still looks beautiful and it would be silly of me to expect that every time I want my kids to stand a certain way in just the right spot they'll do it! These are the real moments of life - the goofy, hands-over-the-mouth memories that make up Zachari Jane.

After the airport, one more stop before heading home! It was the longest day of the year, after all, so we justified letting the kids stay up later and giving them sugar right before bed. What?! Coldstone Creamery has never really been on my radar as a place to go because when I've been there in the past, I found it to be too rich, too large of a portion. I had a coupon that Matt and I used and we learned that they had a dairy-free sorbet for the kids so it was a nice break from the norm. As you can see, Z was thrilled to get to have a special dessert: strawberry mango sorbet! She had to share the cup with J, but he ate more than half of it, I'm pretty sure! These kids sure get their sweet tooth from their papa!

It was a simple day, but one I am glad we shared together. I'm thankful for the change of seasons in this state. Its like a chance to to hit the restart button every few months.

Cheap fun

Thank you, Dollar Tree, for the two squirt bottles that provide endless hours of fun for a measly $2.00.

Thank you, Freecycle for this wonderful water table.

And thank you, Aldi for the green kiddie pool for just $7.99. (pictured above, but hard to see.)

For less than $10.00 I've provided my kiddos with tons of outdoor summer fun which means that I've also provided myself with a slight reprieve from their toy-stealing, fighting, complaints of boredom and the general funk of being cooped up inside. Hallelujah!

Whetstone Park of Roses

Today we visited Whetstone Park of Roses. Beautiful, mildly warm evening, setting sun, gentle breeze. Lovely roses all over the place, lots of space for Z and J to run and explore. A simple evening outing that I'm glad we made happen. Matt and I were so, so tired today and all we wanted to do was sit around the house and feel sorry for ourselves, but out we went! I told him that it would be better to get out of the house for an hour or so and let the kids play, than to have them chattering and climbing all over us within these four walls. It worked! Not sure how sound my parenting method is, but whatev!

The setting sun and the crisp, blue and white clouds with all the rich green of the trees and the grass was all so gorgeous! These  pictures don't even touch how magnificently the sun seemed to gently kiss the tree tops and how vibrantly it lit up the green fields near the parking lot. I was distracted by all the beauty though and marveled over a god who loves us so much He creates breathtaking masterpieces such as these. 

Here's our family photo from this evening...

And here we are last year, June 10th. My, how the little ones have changed!

Fun along the Scioto Mile

Last night after Blinn got home from work the fam headed downtown to enjoy the beautiful spring weather and see bits of the sunset. I was so thankful for the chance to get out of the house and do something a little different after Blinn got home. Many times he's so spent from the day and I am too so we stick around our block and while that's been fine, to explore something else for a change was nice. 

As photos show, it was really hard to get a picture of both kids at the fish fountains because they were so excited and rarely still. They were totally soaked when we walked back to the car, but they didn't mind and the giggles they both let out were totally worth it. 

The last day of school

Today marked the first last day of school that Zachari Jane will ever have. I can hardly believe it. One, because I swear it was just early September and she was starting preschool. And two, because its frickin May 14th and the year is already over? I am not happy about the length of the school year or all the snow days we had (and don't get reimbursed for or at the very least - get more days tacked onto the end of the year), but that's about all I have to complain about concerning our experience with Overbrook Preschool. 

The place is wonderful. 

We gave Mrs. Napoli and Mrs. Kurth some beautiful calla lilies as thank you gifts today and in their cards I wrote about how much Zachari's changed and how thankful I am that God placed her in their particular class. I couldn't have asked for more loving, patient, kind teachers to introduce Zachari to the classroom and school-like structure. She has flourished under their care and encouragement and they're going to make it really hard for any teachers next year to fill their shoes. 

I've been working on a 2014 Summer To Do List and since Z's officially on her summer vacation, I suppose its time to start checking things off! First up: Worthington's Touch-a-Truck on Friday morning. Both Zachari and Jonathan will have a blast!

And now to end this post, pictures... of course!

WHO is this girl? She looks so grown up!

They have my heart.

J and I arrived at school a little early so I could snap some pics of the daily routine like storytime. 

Left - Mrs. Tiffany Napoli, Right - Mrs. Katie Kurth. Such wonderful women!

To celebrate the momentous occasion we finally visited Sassafras Bakery in Worthington, a place Z and I tried to go to nearly a year ago! Even though there were so many months of anticipation, the bakery did not disappoint! The kiddos and I shared a snickerdoodle and an iced sugar cookie and because it was "happy hour", I got a free cuppa Brioso coffee to go. It was all fantastic. We were the only ones in the place, though the amount of cookie crumbs we left behind might've made you think otherwise. 

Walking back to the car I found a colorful bench on a brick wall which I thought would make a lovely backdrop for (another) photo session. These two hams didn't quite cheese for the Nikon like I would've liked, but the moments are fun to remember like this anyway!