Thankful.



God's grace

It honestly amazes me. I am so unworthy of His never ending love but he is constantly giving it to me. I feel that the Lord has been absent from my writing a lot lately and I hate that. I want His love and life to be in everything I share and say here. He is my heart and I want that to show with this blog. I want the happiness to be shining through Him and for the struggles to be secured by Him. I want everything I do to be connected to His love and His grace. I am so fortunate to know this overwhemling and peaceful type of love that our Father can only give. I'm so thankful for that every single day.

Peter

That man. He is a good one and I am constantly amazed at his goodness. No, he isn't perfect… there are flaws, but those aren't meant to be shared here. I am a firm believer that those negative things should stay within your home behind closed doors. Something for a husband and wife to work out together, alone. I'm not broadcasting our negative attributes as spouses here, but I do love to share the wonderful things about him because he deserves to be doted on.

He is easy. Easy to love, easy to like, and easy to be around. I recently had a conversation with one of Peter's friends that has known him for a VERY long time and he said some things that made me feel like a proud wife. He complimented him in ways only a true friend could. Said things that I know are true because I live with him. He is a GOOD person. Easy to love, easy to like, and easy to be around. I'm so thankful to have a husband that makes life easy in the best way possible, but not by giving me what I want, or telling me what I want to hear. He pushes me, he asks the hard questions, but he also makes it so easy to give everything I can back to him. That man. He is a good one and I am so thankful that he's mine.

the unknown

Life as a type A planner can be hard sometimes. I like to have everything neat and organized in my planner but I know that my plans only mean so much. I know that HIS plans are in control. My whole future has already been written, which is comforting. I truly am thankful for the unknown ahead of me. The questions aren't scary because I know who answers them. I know that I can only plan so much, so the unknown ahead is exciting.

family

Not only am I thankful for the family of two that we have created in this past year as husband and wife, but I am thankful for the combination of our families. I have loved gaining a second mother. I love having sisters now, and more brothers. It is so amazing to have over 30 something cousins now, when I only had two before I said I Do. Family is such a beautiful thing and the way that we can grow with two families becoming one is a true gift from the Lord.

my mom

And speaking of family… I honestly don't know what I would do without my Mom. I'm thankful that I never went through that normal phase in life when it was cool to hate my mom. She has always been my best friend. The one person who I could tell anything to. She loves me like no one else ever could, or ever will. It is a deeper kind of love that only a mother can know. I look forward to knowing that kind of love because she did it so well. With every year that I live, I am reminded that she will always be there. On my side, by my side and always there for me.
I'm also extremely thankful for the amount of love that she has for Peter. She loves him like a true son. She supports us and I know that she would do anything for him. That is such a wonderful blessing.

girlfriends

I was told that my friends will cut in half after becoming a wife but I am so happy that this has not proven to be true. I love the girlfriends that the Lord has blessed me with. I love that we share the same heart beat for His Kingdom and we can be transparent with each other. We can vent, share our dreams, share our fears, and openly share anything else because we know it is a safe place. I love doing life with the core set of women in my life.

Grace Church

Oh, our church and how we love it. We are always learning new things to apply in our life from the biblically orriented teaching. The community that we have created there in the past two years has been so wonderful and I miss the weeks that we don't meet for our bible study. And the sweet kids, the precious (and sometimes roudy) three year olds that we teach every other Sunday have blessed my heart so much. I went into the teaching with Peter thinking that it would help cure some of the baby fever but it has done the exact opposite. I can't wait to have babies and see how their hearts will grow because of the teaching our church gives. It is a beautiful thing!

my job

I've started to say this little quote when I talk about work... "I don't hate Monday mornings, but I really love Fridays", and I think that is a beautiful place to be. I spend more time at work than I do at home, so I'm glad I love it. I'm thankful for the impact that I make during the day and the people I have around me. I know that is a true gift!

this space

Over the past several years this blog has evolved. It has changed into some things I thought I wanted, and I've realized just recently that I don't have to try so hard. This place shouldn't feel like a second job. It is a safe place for me to share myself and if that means not posting 5 days in a row or even taking two weeks off, that is okay. I'm so thankful for a husband that keeps me in check when it comes to my blog, also. He reminds me that I shouldn't care about how many clicks I have in a day - but focus on showing His love, grace and His story within our life here. Everything is for His glory, and I'm so happy that He gave me Peter to help me remember that.

Happy Thanksgiving, loves!

Hope you are surrounded by loved ones and filled with His love today!!

...and need stretchy pants for all that food, of course ;)

{Photo above is property of Living on Cloud Nine blog, 

& artistic property of Red Apple Tree Photography}