josh + kati + marion

I’m concluding that I’ll never get caught up on this since it’s now December and the holidays are in full swing. So I’m just going to wrap up by saying two things.

One, if you ask and purposely set your mind to be full of joy and thanks, you’ll be tested. We have had several life altering events happen in the past forty days that have really made me search hard for a reason to be joyful. (As a side note, it’s a lot easier to be thankful because you can at least always say you’re still breathing and have a roof over your head. It’s a whole, whole, whole lot harder to be joyful.) So if you set your intention towards a joyful mindset, expect to be tested.

Two, as cheesy, corny and predictable as it sounds, I come away from this absolutely amazed on a daily basis how lucky I am to be Marion’s mom and Josh’s wife and Doug and Gail and Tony and Debby’s daughter and Amanda and Darren, Brent and Bregitte, Al and Amanda, Chris and Abby and Taylor’s sister. This time of year it seems you see so many marriages falling apart and couples and family arguing and children being neglected and abused and it just stands out in such a horrible stark contrast to what this season is supposed to be about. I’m so blessed, so very blessed. When you’re young, you are forced to be a family. A joy of getting older is the ability to actually chose to be a family. I’m so glad that my family is filled with some of my best friends. Sometimes, it takes distance to make you appreciate each other, sometimes it takes tragedy to bond you together, but it’s wonderful when you can look around a room and say, I chose to be here, I chose to be with my family because I love them and they love me. And there simply are not words to express what it’s like to see your baby girl run up to you in a crowded room and have her arms stretched out wide saying “mama!”

I am thankful.
I am joyful.
I am loved.

we’ve been having internet problems here at the house and didn’t have access while we were gone over the holiday, so I’m a bit behind. But we’re still thankful and hope to be caught up soon!

I’m pretty sure I’ve been thankful for this before, but it’s okay to repeat it. Today, I’m so thankful for my friends here in Houston. Friends just don’t come better than these girls. Today was pretty stressful since Mar and I leave for Mississippi tomorrow morning, and it’s always a production trying to get us ready for a trip. I was trying to fit in a trip to the gym, a last minute run to Target, three loads of wash and all that other fun stuff in addition to an impromptu playgroup. Playgroup always takes priority! An hour or two with my friends and their babies and everything is just better.

Today, I am thankful for unexpected three hour naps. Oh, the wonderful, blissful sound of silence!