Since I will be moving this next week and really won't have much time to post what I'm grateful for on Facebook on Thursday (or all month, I guess, I am not a huge fan of following the fb trends, I just don't do as much on fb as I used to apart from like pictures, posts, or funny memes these days) I wanted to post here what I am grateful for and who I am grateful for in my life. Thanksgiving has always been a very fun holiday in my family because I have my mother, Mary, and she cooks like the angels of cooking have gifted each of her fingers with magic (am I right? All of my friends who have stayed over at my house can attest to this because they never wanted to leave, her food was that good) so I have always been spoiled with her very best of pies, apples and yams, stuffing (my favorite), fruit salad, vegetable and fruit dipping trays, yummy ham and turkey, and of course, her rolls that are to die for. My dad, always had the turkey and did a wonderful job with it, with getting family together, and starting off our family dinner. Together, they were and are a great team in the kitchen and in the home. Each year after we had stuffed our faces with yummy food, we would go around the table and talk about that which we were grateful for. I loved it, and I will miss being able to do that with them this year. I have yet to experience what it is like in Ben's family for Thanksgiving, and what traditions they have, but I can already tell you, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law make incredible food too, and already I have seen and appreciated so much the love, gratitude, and caring they demonstrate to each other, so I am sure this will be a great experience before we rush off to Idaho a few days later.
This year has especially been an incredible year for Ben and I. We have moved twice, and will be making our third move (I guess we should just get a fancy wagon and start a new life as gypsies because I am beginning to feel like we are wandering souls...Ben will shake his head when he reads this, I am slightly fascinated with gypsies and have managed to sneak them into a Thanksgiving blog hehe). I have graduated from college, and am now preparing to become a full-time mother. Ben is going back to school, and we are embarking on the journey of finding what makes him happiest as he finds the path that gives him a career he can love. There have been many ups and downs and many tender mercies from our Heavenly Father. I can already say that my testimony has increased exponentially, and through experiences that are sacred to my heart, I have come to learn that I am never alone, and that I have a Father in Heaven who loves me and my husband so much and has provided blessing upon blessing in our behalf. I am learning each and everyday that I am nothing without my Savior, Jesus Christ, and that I am so grateful for His teachings, example, and love in my life because I have always felt His love and light when I felt too dark to move forward. I am so thankful for the journey I have embarked on this year in growing closer to the Lord and for the joy I have found through it.
I am grateful for eternal families. Ben and I have been married for over a year and were able to go to the temple for our anniversary. That was so sweet for us to be able to relive our wedding day, but also to be able to help others find eternal joy. I am so grateful for temples so close by and for the blessings of being able to go so often. After almost passing out last time I went, I have had to wait for a little more energy to go, but I miss it everyday and am so grateful to know that if Ben and I live our lives worthily, we can be together forever. As we approach the time when our son is born, I can't help but feel eternally grateful for him to be sealed to us and for us to be sealed together. I love the joy of family in my life and the support we feel each day from our family, and I marvel at the love of a Heavenly Father that brings a plan of happiness to His children that enables us to be able to be with our families forever!
I am grateful for Ben. Each day he goes above and beyond to take care of me. When I hurt too much to sit up on my own he has me wrap my arms around his neck and he helps me sit up. If I need comfort, he snuggles me, holds me close, and talks through any concerns I have. He sings to me our songs when I need encouragement, and he is always trying to make me laugh. (He succeeds about 98% of the time, it's those cheesy puns, I can't help myself). When I fall asleep without being able to finish my nightly routine, he always makes sure my phone is plugged in, and that I am tucked in safely and soundly. Every morning before work, he makes sure to wake me enough to kiss me and Robbie goodbye before leaving. He has watched I don't know how many 80's and 90's pregnancy flicks over and over because I love them so much (Three Men and a Baby, Junior, Nine Months, Father of the Bride 2, Look Who's Talking, he knows them all word for word now). He truly is my best friend and my better half and everyday I find that I am more and more helplessly in love and irreparably unable to live without him. God truly knew I needed Ben in my life and I am filled with such happiness that he and I are together forever. He works so hard to care of me and Robbie, and works so hard to be the best husband and man he can be and everyday I strive to be a better wife, mother, and woman because of his influence and example. He has been the best decision I ever made, and I am so happy for all of the memories we share.
I am grateful for family and friends who love Ben and I for us being ourselves. On both sides of my family I have found such love and support I could never imagine anywhere else. I think I can boast to anyone at this point that even though my family isn't perfect, they are the best family in the world and the best family to and for me. I laugh all the time with them, I grow with them, and I feel such love from and for each of them. As I approach this upcoming week, I have family on both sides who are giving up their Thanksgiving to help us move. It's not the most desired thing to do on one of the biggest holidays of the year, but they are doing it for us and have only asked what more they can do to help. We are so blessed and so loved, and I am eternally grateful for each of my family members and what they do each day for us. I am grateful too for friends! For those of you I haven't seen in a very short time to a very long time, I love you all, and I miss each of you when I am away. There are so many memories to be grateful for, so many laughs, bonding moments, and times when support has been given and received, and I am grateful for such relationships. You all know who you are. Thank you, for being my friend. I know I have some quirks, but I have loved every moment being your friend.
I am grateful for my cat. Yes, the dreaded cat lady part of me is coming out and I don't care. I dedicate this next paragraph and probably a few future posts to my little Zola. Zola, you are a cat, and can't read this, but I'll probably force you to listen to this after this is posted so you know what I feel. We got Zola a few months after a losing a loved one. Ben and I were heartbroken and very sad, and I began to be very depressed. After a couple of months, my friend, Sheila, convinced me to go look at shelter animals in Rexburg (that was depressing) and after being depressed about stray dogs and cats without homes, we went to a cat shelter near our old apartment and I saw a little black cat in the driveway who molested me with his love. He was awesome and I felt very drawn to that shelter after. I couldn't help but wonder why I felt so drawn. Finally, I talked to Ben and our landlord about the possibility of getting a cat and they both said it would be fine. So we went, and I wanted a black cat after seeing the one on the driveway (plus, black cats are the least adopted cats because of superstitious myths). That specific cat didn't want my love, so I began to search and found Zola. After smelling my hand, she immediately jumped into my lap and wouldn't let me go. I was hooked and we adopted her on the spot. She has been such a blessing after so much hurt in my heart and has been an inspired member of our family. I think the Lord knew I needed something little and loving in my life and she filled that void. She is so sweet, and lets me hold her like a human baby and talk to her in my irritatingly high pitched kitty cat voice. She always talks up a storm and sits on a perch when I do my makeup so she can see what I'm doing. Since getting pregnant, she won't let me out of her sight and has even fallen asleep with her paws on my baby bump. She is very affectionate and protects Ben, myself, and even Robbie. I am very grateful for her and what she does each day for both Ben and I.
Last, but certainly not least (I hope anyone reading this isn't offended by the order of these gratitudes, I am grateful for everything, I just can't force my friends to read such a long post because it would literally be a novelette) I am grateful for my little Robbie. Robbie, I know you have my nose, and I know that you always send out love to me when I have a hard time because I feel so much love from you already, and I know you like to do somersaults in my tummy and make me hiccup like your dad. I don't know what your eye color will be or what your hair color is yet, but I love you so very much, and I thank God each day for you in my life and already can't imagine life without you. I am so grateful for my son, and for the joy he has brought into my life. Knowing that I will get to be his mother brings me such purpose and joy. I know motherhood won't be easy, but it is already worth it being able to be his mother. I can't look at fruits and vegetables anymore without thinking of how big he is this week and how big he will be next week and two months from now. I am so grateful for him and for what he brings to my life already. I feel like lifelong dreams are coming true.
Ben and I are so grateful for all we have and for the life we share. The Lord has never held back blessings from us and we are constantly showered with love, tender mercies, and hope. I am so grateful for Him in my life and for the knowledge that I am never alone and that I am His daughter and can return to His presence someday.
On a day like Thanksgiving, I think of these things, and want to engrave in the fleshy tables of my heart the blessings I receive everyday so that everyday I can remember to be grateful for what matters most of all. I have so much. I may be poor in money and possessions, but I have so much to be grateful for in my life. I love my husband, my son, my family, my friends, my cat, and I love my Father in Heaven and my Savior, Jesus Christ with all of my heart. I am grateful for every person in my life who makes me want to be better and who inspires me to keep going. I have so much, and my heart is full. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone reading this, may you enjoy all it brings and know that I am grateful for you!
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