Last Day of 2007

Here it is...the last day of 2007. So, I think this is going to be my last post of the year.

Happy New Year!

May 2008 be full of hope, love and joy for you and yours.

What a Difference Antibiotics Make

Here's what Kate looked like on Christmas Day...when we didn't know she had double ear infections. Can you see why I thought she might have pink eye?And here's what she looks like after just a couple days on Amoxicillin. Big difference.Thank goodness for drugs.

Should Have Known Better

I should have known. It should have been the first thing I thought of. All those months we spent last year on antibiotics should have triggered my memory.

But no.

When Kate started getting sick last Friday, I didn't think much of it. Then Saturday and Sunday, as she progressively got worse, as she complained about her eyes, as snot started pouring forth from her nose...I still didn't consider the possibility.

On Monday, Christmas Eve, when she had a fever and super red, puffy eyes that she was constantly rubbing and complaining about, I contemplated the possibility that she had pink eye. Of course, Tuesday was Christmas, so there wasn't much I could do about it then. She still had a fever, super snot, cough and red eyes. She went to Papa and BonBon's with us in the morning, but she and Daddy stayed home from Grammie's in the afternoon. No point in contaminating everyone.

Yesterday morning I called the clinic and managed to get her in right away. I wasn't convinced she had pink eye due to the fact that her eyes weren't goopy, but she looked HORRIBLE and was SUPER CRANKY and had been awake almost EVERY HOUR during the night, so I was desperate.

Double ear infections. Didn't even cross my mind that she had an ear infection, which is fairly ridiculous since she had them all winter and spring last year.

So, lots of videos this week. Fortunately, due to the holidays, we aren't missing any of our normal stuff. Just Momma's exercise. I guess I should be disciplined in my eating this week.

Next time I'll think of that first. Hopefully. Maybe we'll sleep more.

Oh, and no pink eye. Just a cold.

Seven for Stairs

Yesterday we did Christmas at Auntie's house in Sacramento. We had a full house for a while. Between my sister's kids, my cousin's kids, and my kids, there was never a dull, or quiet, moment.

Here's a series of shots as I attempted to get all of the cousins on the stairs. You can see what we had to work with. Which shot do you think is the best?

Clockwise starting at the top: Padyn (4), Trevor (3 months), Bella (4), Michael (8), Russell (2 months), Katelyn (20 months), and Reilly (2 1/2)

Christmas Musical 2007

I don't know if you remember what I wrote about Padyn's preschool performance last year, but I sure did as we got ready to "enjoy" her performance this morning. I remembered how, last year, she sat when she should have been standing, stood when she should have been sitting, and how the 45 minutes up in the front row on that stage must have felt like an eternity for her...an eternity where she wasn't singing or hand-jiving the way all the other kids were. I was ready to watch her, struck with performance anxiety, stand mute and motionless amidst 100 other preschoolers who were having the time of their life.

This, however, did not come to pass.

I don't know what has happened to my little Padyn, but she was a different child on that stage this year. Was it that she was back in the 3rd row, or the fact that her best friend, Emily, was standing next to her, or the pretty red party dress she was wearing? Who knows. But this Padyn...she did all the hand motions, sang all the songs, and looked like she was enjoying herself. (Shelby, the one in the blue shirt in front of Padyn, looks like she's also having a good time.) It was a drastically different child than last year.I guess a year really does make a difference. I'm so proud.

Kate, on the other hand, was bored after about 13 seconds. She sat in Daddy's lap for a bit, got tired of that, and started finding other trouble to get into. Eventually she decided that digging through my purse was a good idea.

I wonder what she'll be like up on that stage in a couple years...

Wagon? Minivan? Econobox?

Actually, it's all three...

I feel compelled to answer Angie's question about what the heck our new car is. Ok, Ang, here you go.

Oh wait. I already wrote about it. Never mind. Just read this.

For my day to day usage, it stays a wagon with 4 seats. Those few times a week where I lug other kids around town with us, I just have to make sure I don't have too much crap in the back when I pull that 3rd row up and make it a mini-minivan.

So far, we love it. Even Padyn loves it. I don't think I told you, but she was very against getting a new car. After we test drove the 5 for a day, she was always talking about how she didn't want a new car. She wanted her car. Who knew a new car would be that traumatic for a 4 year old? (I hate to think about how she'll feel when we move.) We had actual tantrums that stemmed from not wanting a new car. In-her-room-screaming-for-10-minute kind of tantrums.

Even when we went to the dealership on Saturday to pick up the car, she was still complaining about it. All our reassurances about all of her stuff getting transferred to the new car did not appease her. She was adamant. This was not o.k. with her.

Then, the second she stepped into the 5, she said, "I LOVE our new car, Mommy!"

Man, those 4 year olds are fickle.

But, after 3 days, she still says she loves her new car, so it must be true.

We love it, too.

Word Genius

Today we walked past a dirt patch in the middle of the sidewalk. It has rained all day, so there was a significant amount of water in said patch.

Padyn looks at it and says, "Hey, look! A muddle!"

Set aside for a moment the fact that muddle is a real word with a real definition and look at how clever my dear girl is. Mud + Puddle = MUDDLE!

I can't wait until she's old enough to play word games with me...

New Addition

We added a new member to our family this weekend. It doesn't have a name, or even gender, but we are all already in love. May I introduce you to our new car...the Mazda 5.

You're jealous, I know. I would be to if it wasn't sitting in my driveway.

Final Word on Kate's Leg (Hopefully)

We made another trip back to the orthopedist this morning. After seeing Kate walk and feeling her leg, he declared her to be on the mend. No additional x-rays were needed and there are no more follow-up appointments required. Whew. Mommy's pretty thankful for that. (Waiting in the orthopedist section is not quite as easy as waiting in pediatrics. There are no fish and TV in ortho. There aren't even magazines until you get into the exam room!)

The doctor thinks that in another 3 or 4 weeks she'll be back to her normal running self. But he did tell me to keep her from strenuous activity for the next 6 weeks. I guess that means keeping her home from gymnastics. Because, really. How else do you tell a 20 month old she can't be strenuous? That should be interesting. And really. What is strenuous activity for a child this age? Jumping off the couch? Probably. And you know I can't stop her from doing that if she really gets an inkling to do it.

Seriously, I am very happy to know she's healing and that we did it without the cast. Next time we might not be as fortunate.

Photo Friday

I have made up for my lack of photoing shooting over the last few weeks this past week. This morning I took 133 pictures off my camera. Over half of them aren't even worth sharing with you, but that's ok. At least the camera was in use again, right?

So, without further ado, here's a few of the things we did this week. Enjoy!

Padyn and Kate enjoying some reading together. (This was actually one of the two pictures I took the week before last. I figured you should see it. The other was of the same shot, just darker.)

We hit the streets last Saturday night to check out the Christmas lights around our neighborhood. Both girls think Christmas lights are the next best thing to Dibbs. And yes, that is a Jamba Juice Kate is drinking.

That same night, we made pizza for dinner. Aren't they so helpful?

I loved that all three of them were sitting quietly on the couch watching Super WHY. I just had to document the quiet moment. That doesn't happen much when Owen is over to play.

Padyn's been practicing her poses lately.For whatever reason, bagels have been a big hit this week. Every meal, Padyn wants a bagel with strawberry cream cheese. Of course, Kate immediately asks for the same thing. She can't quite figure out how to eat it without smearing it all over her face, though.

Padyn's dance class had a little Christmas performance yesterday. They did a little singing and dancing to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. When Padyn's back was to the audience, she did all the motions, no problem. But once she was up front, facing the audience, she wasn't as into it. Performance anxiety, I guess. It was still pretty cute.

Happy Friday!

Interview with a 4 Year Old

I missed writing an update for Padyn's 4th birthday last month, and since I haven't been motivated to write one, I thought I'd try something different. I got this idea from another momma.

I interviewed Padyn to find out what she thought about herself. Who's in a better position to tell you all about Padyn than she is? Some of her answers were expected and some were a complete surprise. I don't think she gave much thought to them. She just gave the first answer that came to her. So, I can't say how valid this information is, but here it is...

Favorite color-pink and purple
Favorite book-Berenstain Bears and Too Much Teasing
Favorite TV Show-Super WHY
Favorite thing to play with-the doll house
Favorite dress-up outfit-princess
Favorite food-Peanut Butter Toast
Favorite drink-"special water" (ie Propel with calcium)
Favorite place to go-Emily's house
Favorite animal-duck
Favorite game-Hullabaloo
Favorite thing about Christmas-the tree

I couldn't think of any other "favorites" that she would know the answer to.

So there you have it. What Padyn thinks are her favorite things. I'm sure it will be different next week.

We Have some Walking

Katelyn tentatively started walking yesterday. Well, she did a bit on Saturday, but only while holding my hand. And yesterday, she would only take a few steps, then ask me to pick her up. Today she's walking even more, but it's still very careful. She favors her left leg and takes very short steps. But she seems happy about it.

It's a bit strange to see your very active child learning to walk again at 20 months...

Update on Katelyn

We went back to the orthopedist today for a follow-up. It's been 12 days now since Kate injured her leg on the slide. I think the doctor was surprised to hear that Kate is still not walking. But after I told him I'm not giving her Motrin anymore, and she's pretty happy, he decided that she was healing. His diagnosis was supported when she didn't leap out of my lap as he pressed on her little shin today. She didn't like it, but her reaction was not as dramatic as last week. Getting better, it seems.

We also took another x-ray. Dr. F said there is a shadow on her tibia which might be bone growth. It would make sense that it was growing there over where he believes the fracture to be. So that was good news, too.

But, she still isn't walking. She absolutely refuses to. He thought it might be another week. I hope it's not too much longer. My back is getting tired from carrying her 26 pound frame around.

We go back next Friday again. I'll let you know.

Big Girl Bella

Happy 4th Birthday, Bella!

Your cousins, Padyn and Katelyn, really wanted to come to your birthday party today. I assured them that we could have a birthday party for you next week.

I'm sure Padyn will let you pick what kind of cake you want. I don't think she'll let you help make it, though. She'll want it to be a surprise.

Wish we were with you today! We love you!

Photo Friday-Fun with Camera

I almost didn't post today because I have not taken a picture in a week and a half. A WEEK AND A HALF! And I only took TWO pictures that day. How insanely stupid is that? My beautiful camera...just hanging forlornly on the coat closet door...dying to come out. I'll try to make up to it this weekend, but for now, let's figure out what pictures I can show you.

I can't show you the two pictures I took last week because they are still on the camera, and that's downstairs, and I'm lazy. I just looked back over old posts to see what photos I've already shared. Padyn dancing? Check. Kate sticking her tongue out? Check. Girls in pretty dresses on Thanksgiving? Yup.

Ok, let's try to find some recent, yet random, possibly not good enough to post, and post them today. Won't that be fun? Of course it will. It's Friday. Everything is fun on Friday.

I looked in the folder of photos that my mom took on her camera when she was visiting at the beginning of November. The doggies were with her. Kate LOVED them. Here's a couple of Kate trying to get better acquainted with Tori. The rest in that folder are of duck pond pictures, which you've seen already.

How about a couple from Padyn's camera that I just downloaded? I think Kate actually took one of these shots. I don't think she knew it. I think she was just playing with the camera and it kept snapping pictures.

This is the one Kate took. Can you see it? It's Padyn watching TV, and apparently, that's the couch Kate is sitting on.

Padyn wanted to take pictures of me. I won't show you the one she took of my (covered) chest, or the one of me and Grandma where we both look extremely pissed off. Not at her...just in general.

How about some pictures from the car? Padyn must have taken these when Bella was here and they were going to breakfast with Papa. Because this is my car, and that's Bella, but in the next picture (not shown), it shows that Papa is driving, not me.This one is actually one of the best. It's clear, almost focused and has decent light. Too bad my backyard is such a mess. But the dogs look good, right? (Leo and Tori don't like my backyard much. I think that's why they are pacing.)

She had a lot of pictures of the dogs. And of blackness. And wall hangings. Funny kid. But hey, now that I've uploaded her pictures from last month, she can finally take more. Maybe the two of us should use our cameras together tomorrow. We can compare shots. I'll try for that. Maybe I'll have something more interesting to share with you next week. Until then...

Happy Friday.

Trying to Find the Time

Once NaBloPoMo ended last Friday, I really have not been motivated to blog. I stopped looking at all the details of the day through my blogging filter, so nothing has seemed post worthy in a few days.

Add to that a few stressful issues that I have on my plate, and I REALLY have not been motivated to post. I'd rather address my Christmas cards. That should clearly tell you how unmotivated I've been.

But, I did miss a few important days, and cute little phrases that have spilled forth from the mouths of my babes. I can't remember the utterances anymore, but I can tell you about one of the days...

Tuesday, Dec. 4th was Daddy's birthday. I didn't end up posting about it because all my allotted computer time was spent trying to create something for his birthday that in the end, didn't get created. (Don't you hate it when your photo project is lost forever due to the computer freezing up? Yea...that pretty much bites.) So, anyway, it was Daddy's birthday. I wish I could have done more to celebrate it, but I worked with the limitations of the day. It's funny...the two of us are kind of going in opposite directions concerning our birthdays. He is less and less interested in making a big deal out of his birthday, while I'm becoming more interested in celebrating mine. So, it was a mellow birthday date. I had fun, anyway. I think he did, too.

I did make him a chocolate chip banana bread, which made the whole house smell like bananas for the next 24 hours. And if you know me well, you know I hate bananas, so it was appreciated. Padyn helped. She didn't want to mash the bananas, but she did a good job stirring.

So, Happy Belated Blog Posted Birthday, my love. Here's to 50 or so more.

Kate's New Trick

Actually, it's more of a terrible annoyance than a trick...

Katelyn has recently decided that she should scream when she doesn't get her way. Not cry...scream. Loudly. Eardrum-piercing loudly. Her face gets all red, her eyes are squeezed tight, and her mouth is open as far as she can make it go.

This has yet to work for her, yet she continues to try it out.

I wonder how long this will last. Because, really? I'm thinking if it doesn't end real soon, she's going to be spending a lot more time in her crib than she's used to.

Things Padyn Taught Me This Weekend

She's a cowgirl and cowgirls don't like cookies.

If I drive faster, her tummy won't hurt.

Katelyn is a "chunker" because she spills yogurt on her shirt.

She will only eat spinach in something, but no tomato.

Blinking lights on the tree are better than not blinking lights.

It's a good thing she's around to keep me up on the latest...

Hallelujah! We Have a Diagnosis!

We went back to the clinic today. Our pediatrician called this morning and wanted to see Katelyn again. She must not have been happy that Kate wasn't walking yet either, because she convinced the on-call orthopedist to see her. It was quite fortuitous how it all happened. At the end of our visit with the pediatrician, Dr. A , she said she would try to get him to see her and I said I was going to call other clinics to see if anyone else would see her, and we agreed we would be in contact later in the day. As I was about to pull the car out of the parking space and go home to make a million phone calls, my cell phone rang. It was Dr. A. Good news! The on-call doc will squeeze her in now! Yippee!

So, after a not-too-long wait (you expect long when being squeezed, right?), Dr. F took a look at her. He poked and prodded, twisted and pulled. We made her stand and tried to make her walk, but she just stood there crying. He poked and prodded some more, then went to re-check her x-rays. He came back, poked yet again and declared that she had either a bone bruise or a slight crack in her shin bone. Actually, he was quite certain it was a crack. He thought he could make it out on the x-ray, but it's so hard to tell with baby bones.

It's on the inside of her leg, right in the middle between her foot and knee. That confirmed the suspicion I developed this morning as I watched her crawl around and play with her foot, but yelp when I pulled that leg up to change her diaper. I had thought all week it was her foot, but I realize this morning it could very well be her shin bone. (what is the name of that bone, anyway?)

The good news-both the doc and I are comfortable leaving it uncasted. She isn't walking on it, so chances of her injuring herself further are slim-ish. She's certainly feeling better and more active today, so it isn't making her miserable. And to me, a cast, even only up to her knee, just seems miserable.

We go back in a week, unless of course, she gets worse or seems to regress in her healing.

And me? Even though I know now that it's probably a fracture, I feel SO MUCH BETTER.

But, unfortunately, this does mean I have to cancel gymnastics for the next couple weeks. Better go make that phone call right now before I forget.

Still Fuzzy

Well, according to X-rays, Kate does not have a fracture in her foot or hip.

Are you tired of me talking about this yet?

I apologize if I've become boring, but it's hard to think of anything else to write about. I've been frustrated by it most of the day. I did talk to a few friends and relatives today to get their expert advice, and the general consensus is it's not unheard of for a kid to have an injury that is not a break that keeps them from walking for a week or more, but she should be seen by an orthopedist just to make sure it's nothing that won't heal on its own.

Since apparently the orthos in our group don't want to see her immediately without an x-ray that shows some type of fracture, I'll be making a bunch of phone calls tomorrow to try to find one that will see her immediately.

But hey, progress tonight. She is crawling! That's something, right? She stood a few times, but I think those were accidents. She was not happy about it. She'd get there, then look at me with this very worried expression and cry while trying to hold her left foot off the floor.

Poor baby.

We'll see what happens tomorrow.

Park Pics

In an attempt to make up for the extremely brief prior post, here are some pictures from the park last Thursday morning.

Still Not Walking

Kate still refuses to walk or stand. I may try to get her an appointment with an orthopedist tomorrow. We can't x-ray it again until at least Friday, but it's not right that she still won't stand on it. Right?

Right?

Good News

Well, according to the x-ray of Kate's leg, she has no fracture. The doctor was very surprised. She was pretty positive that there was a break in there somewhere because of how Kate REFUSES to walk AT ALL.

She could still have a fracture somewhere that we didn't x-ray, like her foot or hip. But we'll wait until Friday and see if she improves any. If not, back on Friday for more x-rays.

But for now...HOORAY! No cast! Can you just imagine?

Sick Little Invalid

Poor little Kate. First, she came down with a slight fever sometime Sunday night or Monday morning. Then, Monday at the park, she caught her leg in a funny way going down the slide with me, and has refused to walk on it since. The fever and "off-ness" due to illness would be bad enough, but add not walking to it, and it makes for a highly pathetic little girl.

We are going to the doctor in a couple hours to get the leg checked out. We'll keep you posted. For now, Kate and I are sitting on the couch (where we've been for over an hour) playing with Mr. Potato Head and watching PBS. A fun, if not slow way, to spend the morning.

Fire! Fire!

I alluded to being on the scene of a house fire on Saturday morning. It was quite a surreal experience. The house was a few blocks from ours, and when we pulled out of our street, we could see the black smoke. As we turned down the next street, we could see flames from over a block away, coming out of an open garage. Here's the strange part...we saw no emergency vehicles. No one had responded to the scene yet. So what do we do? Well, when you have two people formerly trained to respond to emergencies in the same car, one of them jumps out while the other calls 9-1-1.

You can guess it wasn't me that jumped out. I'm the mommy. I stay with the kids. I get us out of the way. Joel, he's the responder. He goes up to the house, then around the back to see if anyone is still in the house. He gets the older woman out and takes her a house away, where he makes her use his cell phone to call family members. He's the one that tells the cops and the fire fighters (when they arrive 3 minutes later) that no one is in the house and any other facts he knows. He's the one whose adrenaline was pumping so hard when he returned to the car that he could not drive to Oakland.

It's been interesting talking to Padyn about the incident. I pulled around the corner and kept her strapped in so she could not see the garage window exploding and the flames licking the roof. But, she knew what was happening and wanted to watch, so once the firemen got there, I let her unbuckle and watch the fire fighters do their job. I figured she should see that they would take care of it and that it would be ok.

I just remembered that this was the second fire incident she's had experience with. The first was a year ago when a townhouse down the street caught on fire. She and Daddy walked over the next day and saw what the house looked like. She didn't talk about that one as much. Actually seeing the fire this time made it much more real.

She's asked me a few times a day how the fire started and if we'll have a fire in our house. So far, no nightmares or fear associated with it, thankfully, but I'm waiting for that. We just talk about it calmly and how the fire fighters were there to put it out, and that everyone was ok. Not really a scenario you think you'll be dealing with with your preschooler. Not one you are readily prepared for.

Oohhh...the Lights!

The Sunday after Thanksgiving is the annual Festival of Lights Parade in the next town over. It's quite fun, especially since it is the town I grew up in and I remember many parades, sitting on the sidewalk drinking hot cocoa out of a thermos. We don't do the hot cocoa, but we do like to go oh and ah over all the pretty floats and twinkly lights. This was our third year going to the parade since we've moved back to the Bay Area.

Padyn loves it. Heck, even Kate loves it. There's lights AND dogs AND music. What could be better? And of course, Santa rounds out the parade at the end, so there's something to look forward to when it gets a little boring (which really, it doesn't).

Afterwards, on the way to the car, we asked Padyn if she liked it. She replied that she liked it more than she thought she would. Ok. Then, when we asked her what her favorite part was, she surprised us with, "The cheerleaders."

Now, mind you, these weren't real cheerleaders. They were girls in elementary school. One of the local Catholic elementary schools. It was dark, they were in green, they weren't really doing much...just sort of hanging out behind the band. But apparently, they left a big impression on Padyn. She now wants to be one when she's older.

Great.

No offense, Callie. I know you are a great little cheerleader. I was just hoping Padyn would be more interested in dancing than cheering. Personal bias. That's all.

When I asked her again later what her favorite part of the parade was (secretly hoping her answer had changed), she still said the cheerleaders, but at least she added, "The princesses and Santa."

Ok, that's a more acceptable answer. I don't have to hold my breath now.

Can't Miss One Day

Here it is, 10:04pm on Saturday night. Normally, it wouldn't even occur to me to post anything now, but it is NaBloPoMo...how many days left? So, while I should be preparing for my Sunday School lesson tomorrow, I'm racking my brain trying to figure out what to post for today.

Tomorrow, I'll tell you about how our morning started with assisting at a house down the street that had caught on fire. But that will take a little more time. For now, you must be satisfied with hearing about my new favorite Thanksgiving meal side dish: Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Bourbon and Maple. I made it tonight. We went to our friends for a post Thanksgiving dinner. (We made a Thanksgiving meal tonight because we didn't get to cook one and I was missing the leftovers.) We split the meal between 3 couples. I was in charge of the yams, the salad, the rolls and the apple crisp. All were good, but the Mashed Sweet Potatoes were the best.

I'd give you the recipe, but I sort of combined a few, then came up with the final product based on constant taste testing. I can tell you what was in it...just not all the amounts.

4 yams
bourbon (probably 1/4 to 1/2 cup)
maple syrup (about the same amount as the bourbon
1/2 cup whole milk (would have used cream if I had it)
toasted pecans pieces on top

I mashed the yams (after boiling them) in a potato ricer. (Loved the ricer, BTW. I usually mash my potatoes in a Kitchen Aid, but Shauna had the ricer and I wanted to try it. Super easy and it produced nice fluffy potatoes. It's one of my new favorite kitchen gadgets. I must put it on my Christmas list.)

After mashing, I added the liquids, stirred, tasted, added some more, stirred again, etc., until it tasted pretty good. Then I stuck them in the oven in a casserole dish covered with foil. They ended up being in there on 350 for about 30 minutes, but only because we were waiting on some other guests, and the oven was FULL of stuff, so the 350 wasn't really 350. I covered them in pecans right before serving.

Fabulous, even if I do say so myself.

Oh, and I ate brussel sprouts for the first time ever tonight. I won't ever make them for myself, but they were tolerable. I felt like a right grown-up, trying something new and all.

Photo Friday

I had a hard time choosing the photos for your viewing pleasure today. There were so many, uhhh...interesting ones of the week, that I wasn't sure which you would like better.

Maybe you'd like Padyn's new hairstyle, created by her. "One on the top and two on the bottom." This was the best I could come up with for that description. She seemed happy with it. I felt like I was back in the eighties with the top side ponytail. That's how my hair was worn for most of 8th grade.

Or maybe you are more interested in the tongue/drool pictures that Kate was so proud of. She kept wanting to see herself after I took the picture. Look closely...you may still see food in her mouth.

I know, I know. You want to see the towel-as-a-superhero-cape photos we took. I don't know how Kate knew that a towel tucked into the back of her shirt would make a cape, but she did. (She's the one who came up with the idea initially. I may have helped just a bit.) Too much Super WHY, I guess.

Personally, my favorites are the ones we took yesterday as we were trying to get a family photo for the Christmas card. I am particularly fond of the one showing off Kate's snotty nose.The one with the Momma isn't bad, either.

Happy Friday.

Five Days of Gratitude-Day 5 Part II

I can't let the Five Days of Gratitude pass without telling you why I'm so grateful for my husband. Therefore, today deserves two posts of gratitude.

I don't think there can ever be another human that loves me more than Joel. And for that I am forever grateful. He accepts my shortcomings and irritable traits (though he doesn't like them) while constantly reaffirming how wonderful he thinks I am, how beautiful he thinks I am, and how lucky he feels to be married to me every day. I feel the same, but can't express it nearly as well as he does. I am grateful that he is free with his words of kindness and love, even when he might be having a hard day or when I'm not as deserving of them. He doesn't want a day to pass where he hasn't told or shown his love to me.

I am not anywhere close to deserving of his love and admiration. Sometimes, I am sad to say, I'm also not very accepting of it. Usually it's because I don't feel I qualify for his praise. But apparently he thinks I do, which means I need to believe it.

I'm so thankful that he agreed to marry me, raise kids with me, and figure out this whole "rest of our life" thing with me. I really really can't see myself doing this with anyone else.

Nor do I want to.

Five Days of Gratitude-Day 5

There are two things I'm most grateful for in this whole wide world.

This......and this.
Happy Thanksgiving. I hope and pray you are feeling just as grateful for your many blessings as I am today.