Gratitude.

This last couple of weeks have reminded me of how wonderful my life is. I wanted to write down a few things that I'm especially grateful for.

#1: A wonderful husband who has no problem doing laundry, dishes, and putting the kids to bed. As I have accepted a new calling in our ward, I am gone more than ever, and he has not complained once.

#2: To have grown up in a home where both my parents were "real." I don't know how else to put this, but I've encountered a lot of people over the course of my life, and I'm VERY grateful to have been taught to be "real." I choose to be down to earth instead of in "la la" land, and I'm glad to have been taught how to work hard.

#3: I'm grateful for my education. Everyday I watch miscommunications happen. We are surrounded by sooooo many channels....blogs, facebook, text messaging, e-mail...yada yada, and it is VERY easy for miscommunications to take place through these channels. I am grateful for FACE to FACE communication where miscommunications are much fewer than through these other channels.

#4: I am grateful for the guidance of the spirit. I have relied on that guidance in my life. I love that warm feeling.

#5: I'm grateful for great kids who make me smile every day. I'm definitely not a "perfect" mom, and I give myself a hard time about striving for perfection, but I'm grateful at how wonderful they are, and how much they love me.

#6: I'm grateful for great friends. I love the friends that I can not talk to for weeks/years at a time and we can pick up from where we left off. I'm grateful for thoughtful friends who know me. I've always been a little on the "crazy" side, and I appreciate those that see that as a good thing and not a bad thing. :)

#7: I'm grateful for my calling. I have NEVER felt so much love in my entire life for perfect strangers. I'm grateful for that love, and I'm loving getting to know these girls.

#8: I'm grateful that I was blessed with a visual/creative eye. When people ask about "talents" I can't say..."I play the piano," or "I sing," but I can say I'm pretty creative. I'm grateful for that.

#9: I'm grateful for a family who loves me and has my best interest in mind. I love that I can call them when I have silly questions or if I need someone to help me edit something. (even if it is midnight).

I know this post is random, but I'm afraid random is my middle name. :)