For the month of November I am writing every day about something that I am grateful for.

Thursday I kicked things off explaining why I am focusing on Colossians 3:15.

Yesterday I went kind of deep with my essay about our table.

Today there will be no preaching. I have a very simple object that I am thankful for. I know it’s outdated, but I am thankful for the keyless entry remote that unlocks and opens up my van.

I realize this is 2018 and keyless, self-parking and self-driving cars are where things are at. However, I tend to be at least 5 to 10 years behind when it comes to technology. My van is the nicest vehicle I have ever owned and it has a 6 disc changer. Some of you just wrinkled your nose with pity, the rest of you have still have tape decks.

Anyway, this is the first car I have had with a remote and I LOVE it. I have had it for three years now and I am still super thankful nearly every single day for this magic clicker!

It obviously can lock and unlock doors, but it can also open the side doors as we approach the vehicle. This is fantastic news for a mother of four. I love opening the doors for my kids!

1. I no longer have to worry about them opening a door and banging it against the car next to them.

2. I don’t have to rush to the car while they run ahead and wait for me. They can get in and get buckled so that when I reach the vehicle it’s all systems are go.

3. When my neighbor calls to say the van door was left open and it’s about to rain I don’t have to go outside. No way. I just push the button like the Judy Jetson diva that I am. It’s great.

The other thing this fancy contraption does is open and shut the trunk door! I never knew how much I needed a button to open and shut my trunk until I had one. When I pull up to Wal-mart to get my online grocery order and they come out with the wagon-full of groceries I just push a button and the door gracefully opens on its own. I have to pinch myself. Is this real life?

Lastly, my remote has a red button on the bottom that says “PANIC”. I don’t know the exact intended use for this button, but I know that babies love it. Why wouldn’t they? If there is one thing babies know how to do it’s push mom’s buttons and make her panic, both metaphorically and in this case literally. What a great opportunity for babies and toddlers to learn cause and effect. They push the button and hear an annoying siren come out of mommy’s car. Mommy panics. Mommy takes keys and gets distracted. Baby gets them again and they know exactly what to do with that panic button. Baby Geniuses!

Okay, maybe that’s one aspect of the clicker that I was never as excited about, but the rest of them are true.

I love being able to use my keyless entry! In fact, one time I went to a conference at my daughter’s school. It was just me by myself which is extremely rare. As I was walking back to my car after the meeting I used my clicker to open the two sliding doors out of habit. Every weekday I walked out of that school and pushed the sliding door buttons. Except for this time I had no children with me. I sheepishly looked over my shoulder to see if anyone noticed then casually exclaimed “Just kidding. That was a practice round.” and shut the doors.

So there you have it. I am so very thankful for my magic clicker.