2011 Ends...

 2011 is ending...it really was a good year. 
I thought I'd do a re-cap of what my hopes were for this year and where things are at with those hopes!

Update are in blue:

~I hope to be a better wife, "maschia" to the ducks, daughter, sister, granddaughter, aunt, friend, nurse, etc. Who doesn't want to be better in all their relationships? 

Obviously this isn't necessarily something that can be measured or assessed...but I think there's always room for improvement in this area.  So while I feel like I'm a pretty good wife, maschia, daughter, sister, grandaughter, aunt, friend, nurse, etc...I know I'm not the best and don't always live up to my full potential in these areas.~I hope to work/focus on our marriage more. I LOVE my husband...after all, he is the BEST HUSBAND EVER. And...I'm a very happily married woman. Having said that, every marriage has to have effort put in by both parties to make it work. I believe that Chris and I have a strong, healthy, wonderful marriage...but who's to say it couldn't be stronger, healthier, more wonderful????? We're starting this by doing an 8 week Love and Marriage class. Our church presented this the last few weeks, and without trying to sound like either of us thought there were problems, we had that awkward..."Ummmmm...what would you think...about...us...ummm...doing that...uh...Love and Marriage class?" conversation. To which we both responded with a resounding "YES!" We've never done any sort of marriage enrichment course/class/work...so we're both excited about this opportunity to learn from each other, and to be better spouses! YAY TEAM Elliott!

Chris and I really enjoyed out Love and Marriage class, and we learned a lot about each other and how to be better spouses to each other.  I hope we can continue to remember the lessons we learned and keep the promises we made.

~I hope to communicate better. This may be a surprise to some of you (but I doubt it)...I'm somewhat of a people pleaser. I don't particularly like to rock the boat (unless it's whipping my freshmen into shape). So when I don't agree with something, or I'm not particularly jazzed about something, or my feelings have been hurt (usually in a small way) I have a tendency to not speak up. I realize this is all my fault! My husband is not the overbearing/controlling kind that wouldn't let or want me to speak my mind (on the contrary, he would advocate for me to do so)...but I have trouble sometimes expressing to him how I feel about things. Again...totally my fault, and I think it has to do with the whole "failing" thing again. I don't want to let anyone, specifically him, down. I think that going through this love and marriage course may help me to be a better communicator when it comes to speaking with Chris about how I feel...which will in turn help build up our marriage more (look at that...two hopes taken care of all in one)!

I definitely feel like I've been able to communicate better, especially after our Love and Marriage class.  There are times that I don't say things still, because I know it's just my OCD coming out...but I have learned that things don't/won't change if  I don't speak up and say if I'm frustrated.  And on the flip side of that, things won't stay as I like them if I don't say that either...so I definitely feel like this has been a positive for me.

~I'm hoping to be better about letting things go! I am a non-diagnosed person living with OCD! I don't mean I have to unlock and lock the front door 567 times before I leave the house, or count to "20" 10 times before I can walk into my bedroom...I mean, I like things in their proper place and when someone moves it even 1/8 of an inch, inside my head I FREAK! When something isn't put where it's supposed to go, I become annoyed. I've gotten a smidge (but just a smidge) better about this since college. I still don't understand how when a towel is used to dry hands it can't get nicely and neatly put back on the rack, or why when the cleaning lady at work dusts my office, she doesn't notice that the picture frames aren't equally facing inward at an angle, and she put the boyd nurse bear and rubber duck facing the back of the shelf and not the front! To me...these things seem obvious and irritate me when I have to fix them daily...But they are not life/death issues. So...again, I'm hoping to be better about letting these things go!
Okay...super OCD am I, but I do feel like there have been areas with this that I have gotten better and been able to let things go.  Yes, it still irritates me when I nearly trip over a chair walking into my office because for some reason the cleaning lady pulls them out from the wall to sweep behind but doesn't push them back...but, I don't obsess over the picture frams and decorations being moved in my office so much anymore.  And as I said above...I'm trying to think about the little things that are part of my OCD and not make them into big things.

~I'm hoping to get more organized! How, you ask, can I not be organized when I have above said OCD tendencies? I am organized...I'm VERY organized. But heavens to Betsy I LOVE organizing things...and there are a few things in my life that I've lost my organizational touch with. Such as, since we moved into this house, I somehow magically stopped being able to send out birthday and anniversary cards! January 11th would come and I'd say to myself (if Chris didn't ask about it and remind me already) "CRAP, I didn't get a card out to my father-in-law for his birthday!" AND...to make matters worse, I became very flippant about it! Because after that initial thought, I'd then say to myself, "Well, Chris will call him tonight, so it's okay! But the next person with a birthday I'll get a card out, and next year I'll make sure to send one to Dan!!!!" But then it just kept happening! So that's one area of need for organization. *Side note: I did get a card out to my father-in-law on time this year...AND I made it with the cricut cartridge my mother-in-law got me for Christmas! I think that should earn bonus points!d

I definitely did better with the birthday/anniversary cards this year...but I'm still not quite up to 100% yet.  On another organizational note...now that we've got the man cave set up, I was FINALLY able to organize the tubs and shelves in the basement! YAY!

~I'm hoping to start working on menu plans and use them regularly. Chris and I are in the rut (as so many people are) of making and eating the same things, all the time for dinner. It's just so tiring. I LOVE to eat...and the fat girl inside me needs to be sedated with food on a pretty regular basis, multiple times a day. So the fact that eating the same foods, coinciding with the fact that we HATE going to the grocery (so we put it off as much as possible) make us not in the mood for anything come dinner time...is hard to deal with. I've been slowly going through all of our cookbooks. I'm making a list of the recipes that sound yummy, easy, and don't have 5 million ingredients that we never knew existed. I'm breaking them down by Chicken/Turkey, Beef, Pork, Seafood, Sides, and Other. This way, when I make my weekly menu, I don't end up with 5 beef meals...plus, if I know I have chicken in my fridge/freezer already, I can just look up a chicken recipe, without going through all the cookbooks again. My organizational skills at work ;0) Hopefully this will get us trying new things...and give us more options to put on our staples list!

I did really good at this...in spurts!  I think I got about 2 weeks per month, up until October.  Once October hit it seems like there was so much going on that I never got to it.  I really enjoyed having the menu planned out when I did it.  It made preparing for dinner so much easier...it's just so time consuming to actually get it done.  I really need to just make sure I devote time to doing it. 

~I'm hoping to catch up on some of my scrapbooking! I have a tendency to not scrap in order...which means, when 2009 was done and I was going to a crop night with the girls, the first thing I wanted to scrap was what had happened in January of 2010! Sadly, I succumbed to that pressure, and have put off 2009. However, I tried in 2010 to start at the beginning of the year, and work my way through the calendar, working in order. This seemed to do better for me, and with the exception of a few pages here in there (due to not having pictures printed), I am up to August of 2010, and just moving right along. This might be the first yearly scrapbook I finish in it's entirety, in well...EVER! So, I'm going to try to stay strong and continue working on 2010 until it's completely finished, before I start on 2011! Wish me luck!

This one I am extremely excited to report on...I have finished 2010 in it's entirety.  I was on my scrapbook retreat in October and finished 2010 (or so I thought) and I actually made it through February of 2011...then I got home and when going through the calendar to put the pages in the albums I realized I had more to do...and I still had to do our Myrtle Beach vacation album.  I thought 2010 was never going to be finished.  However, thanks to Christmas vacation and my friend Amy wanting to get some of her own scrapping done, I spent two days and finished up 2010 on December 30th.  I really think the scrapping in order has worked well for me, and I plan to continue working on this.  I don't think 2011 will be as time consuming and full as 2010 (2010 actually was 4 albums - 3 for the main/whole year, and 1 for our 30th birthday and M.B. vacation), so I hope that once I get 2011 finished I can get going on 2012 and maybe eventually work my way back to previous years.  Woo Hoo!

~I'm hoping to do a weekly blog! I realize I've said this before...and I know you're all snickering at me for this one. But, I truly do. There is inspiration all around me...and using the excuse that I have NOTHING to blog about is just a cop out! I have a friend who is blogging daily for one month...now if she can find something to blog about on a daily basis (without it just being that she went to the grocery and had to fill up for $4.00/gal, ya know, the boring daily stuff) then by golly, I can find something to blog about once a week! Who knows, there may be weeks I surprise you and have more than one thing to say...YIPES!!!

Hahahahaha...I'm just going to laugh on this one.  You all need no update because as my blog stalkers you know just how well this one went.  ;0)

~I'm hoping we can move forward and buy a house. Chris and I are interested in buying the house we are living in (it was my grandparents and we've been renting for a little over a year now). Since Grandma passed away, and the process of closing the estate has been on the horizon for my Dad and Aunt, the idea of what to do about the house has come up. We like living here. We like that we know the house, the people who built it, it has sentimental value, it has character that NO other house has. It's a great location, great school system (should we ever need to look into that), on a state road, but has a field out back that we can have bonfires in! We love it...it suits us, and since we've moved in, we've been so honored to call it home. I think Grandma and Grandpa would have been proud knowing that we've been here taking care of it, and cherishing and honoring what they worked so hard to build.

You all know the answer to this one.  In July Chris and I officially bought the house!  YIPPEE!

~I'm hoping to be better at encouraging others on a regular basis. Not long ago, when were in a series with our church, and one of the things we were encouraged to do, was to think of 3 people to encourage that week. I got more out of doing this, than probably, those that I encouraged got out of the encouragement. It felt good lifting others up, which makes it sound very selfish to say that I want to do more of this (since I enjoyed it so much). However, I know that the words of love that I spoke to them were things I should have been saying all along, and more regularly. Sometimes God puts people on our hearts for reasons we don't understand...and it's in those moments that our encouraging and loving words or actions are welcomed most abundantly. I want to show others that I love them and that God loves them at all times.

I had a few specific times this past year to encourage others in a specific way...but that wasn't necessarily what I really meant when I wrote this.  I was really meaning that I wanted to do more random acts of kindness/encouragement.

~Which leads me to my last hope (well...that I can think of at the moment)...I hope to grow more in my faith this year. Like most other Christ followers, I have my "on" moments and my "off" moments. You know what I mean? The "on" moments when I feel like I'm very in tune to what God is doing in my life and I'm praying without ceasing, and I'm looking to God to carry my yoke. Then there's the "off" moments when I can't put down my cross! It's like I HAVE to carry it to get through the day, week, month. It's so easy to tell someone else to give it to God and let him be in charge of it...but when it's my turn to heed my own advice I fail miserably (Ann you're not allowed to disagree with me on this one). I've become stagnant in my relationship with God...and that's just completely UNACCEPTABLE! I'm starting to work on this by signing up to read through the New Testament over the year. I feel that this is a good building block for continuing to grow in my relationship with Christ. It will get me reading His words, and processing how He's working in my life, and reminding me how much He loves me! 

As of today, I have a few days to catch up on...being on Christmas break and out of my normal routine during the week (usually I read my Bible reading when I get to work) I've fallen a smidgen behind.  But I plan on getting caught up on this by tomorrow.  There were sections of the reading where I had trouble finding a connection between it and things that were going on in my life...and then there were days that I read exactly what I needed to hear at that very moment.

So there you have it.  I plan on getting you my 2012 hopes in the next few days.   

Happy New Year!  See you in 2012!

Luke 2

The Birth of Jesus ¹ In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while^[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.
⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
²¹ On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.


Merry Christmas!

Thankful November's final posts!

Day 30 – YAY we made it to the end…well…
I realize I was a little lax here toward the end of the month with my posting.

But today I’m thankful that I have SO many things to be thankful for!

I mean seriously…it wasn’t hard at all to come up with the 30 + things that I mentioned over the month.

I know I have way more blessings than just those!

I am extremely thankful for all of the blessings in my life.

Day 29 – Sydney (and all my nieces and nephews)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SYDNEY!

Sydney is one of my nieces.

She’s is too cute for words (as are all of my nieces and nephews).

By the way, I have 11 nieces and nephews! 

That’s a lot of cuteness!

I am thankful for each and every one of them.

They all teach me and stretch me in different ways.

I love to spend time with them.

I love to hear what’s important to them and what new discoveries they’ve made.

They make me smile, laugh, sometimes cry (with joy), and sometimes they turn that Aunt instinct on and I’m ready to go to battle for them.

The Elliott side:  Collin, Isaac, Timothy, Ava, Kaylen, Sydney, Harrison, and Ethan...

 and Mariah (she was still in the womb when the above pic was taken)

Killian and Keegan

I love each and every one of you!

MWAH!

Day 28 – Our house

It’s not new…well it’s new to us.

But it’s ours.

And I’m thankful that we have a warm house with a nice new roof over our heads.

We laugh, cry, and spent time together here making memories.

I know we’ll have many more memories made in this house.

Sure it’s got its downers and there are things that we have to fix ALL THE TIME (or so it seems).

But I do love it…

If for no other reason than the fact that I get to share it with Chris.

Day 27 – Friends

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but Chris and I truly do have amazing friends.

I mentioned my high school friends and college friends earlier…but we have all kinds of friends that fall outside of those two categories!

~ Hope

Chris hired Hope to work with him at the Pizza place he worked at in college.  Since then we’ve been fabulous friends!  Hope, you complete me.

~ Dan and Kristin

You’ve seen them around the blog before.  Dan and Kristin are friends we met at Crosspoint.  Dan led our Life Together Group for a bit, and we started hanging out at non-Crosspoint events and became really close!

~ Barbie and Jenn

We met Barbie and Jenn (and their husbands) at our Sunday School class when we went to CATC.  The ladies got together one night to learn how to make jewelry.  I was a smidge nervous about going since we were new to the class, but it sounded fun and I knew it would be a way for me to get to know the other wives a little better.  Barbie, Jenn and I were the last to leave, and so we sat and chatted for a LONG time.  Now, we get together (or try to anways) once a month to scrapbook.  I love these two girls so much!

I know I missed so many of you…I’m sorry.  I promise I didn’t purposefully leave anyone out.  There are just WAY too many people that I call friends to single each one of you out.

All of my friends have a special place in my heart. 

I have learned from each one of you.

And I am so appreciative of the gift of knowing each and every one of you.

Day 26 – Tiffany

 Today is Tiffany’s birthday.

Tiffany is Chris’ cousin.  And we have gotten pretty close with her and her family.

I am thankful for our friendship.

I am thankful to have another nurse in the family.

I am thankful for the memories we share and the laughing that has been a part of those memories.

I love you Friend!

Day 25 – Family

As has been said many many times before…I was born into an amazing family.

I was blessed with so many great people to model after and learn from.

I’ve already mentioned my Parents, Grandparents, and sister…but there are so many more people in my family that I’m thankful for.

~ My Aunt Pam

Pam's on the left holding the T-shirts ;0)

My Aunt Pam has spent years and years devoting herself to helping raise money to find a cure for CF…why?  Because of little ‘ol me, that’s why!  But there’s many other reasons why I’m thankful for her.  She was a huge part of my life growing up, and she still is.  When we went swimming on the weekends, we went to her house.  She was at every single choir performance I ever had.  She gave me one of my favorite childhood toys (a HUGE dollhouse), I spent hours playing with it.  She ALWAYS buys me peanut butter fudge when she see it somewhere.  She loves to give me Longaberger (and until I became a consultant she sold it to me too).  She’ll sit down and chat for hours with me about anything and everything.

~ My cousin Brigette

Brig and Heather have always been close because they're closer in age and life stage...but I love my cousin.  And I've always looked up to her.  I hope that no matter what happens in life, with our family..she knows I love her.  And I'm always here.

~ My Great Aunts and Uncles and all the millions (okay maybe not quite that many) of other cousins have had such an impact on my life.  I'm so thankful that we are a close knit family and can rely on each other for support.

Day 24 – FOOD

Oh…I LOVE FOOD!

Always have and I’m pretty sure I always will.

When I lose my appetite I know there’s something wrong with me ;0)

Thanksgiving is a wonderful day to celebrate food.

And believe me, I had my share. 

Sheila was a happy GIRL!

Day 23 – Breaks from School

I love breaks from school…especially this year.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my job.

But some days/weeks/months/semesters are just hard.  And having that time away from the kids to chillax and wind down is SOOOOO needed.

So breaks from school are definitely something that I’m thankful for.

Day 22 - Mom

What to say about my Mom.

My Mom is my rock...

My confidant...

My support...

She's my Mom.

She's this beautiful, strong, amazing woman.

And everything in my life I've learned from her.  Okay maybe not everything...but pretty much everything that truly will ever matter.

My Mom has been with me through everything in my life.

And I can't imagine my life without her.

I talk to her every day.

I laugh with her.

I cry with her.

She's AMAZING!!!!

My life is richer because she's my Mom.

Again...I don't know what I did to be so very blessed with such a wonderful woman to raise me and to role model after.

 I love you Mom!!!!!! 
   xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Day 21 - My Daddy

As I've said before...I was born into the most AMAZING family.

One of the best people in my family is my Dad.

The Tromster, Tommy T., Tromma-rauma, T-Bone, if he were bubble gum he'd be Tromiliscious...I'm weird, sorry...moving on!

Okay one more...

El Capi-Tom ;0)

I'm a Daddy's girl!

And I don't know that I really realized that until right before Chris and I got married.

Am I the only girl that felt like they were leaving their Dad when they got married?

I've always thought  I was closer to my Mom...and I am very close to my Mom, but there's something about the relationship between father and daughter that has this closeness that I just can't describe.

And no matter what happens, it's like there's no way to tear that apart.

I have so many wonderful and vivid memories of my life that include my Dad.

*Heather I'm speaking in first person here, but  I know this all comes from you  too.

Some of my favorite memories of my Dad include:

~Playing softball in the school field behind our house.

~Him coaching me in softball and Basketball.

~ Building us the playhouse

~ Teaching me how to ride a bike

~ Putting my dollhouse together

~Teaching me how to ski

~Pulling us behind the boat tubing (for HOURS)

~Percussing me at night

~ Rolling me up into a ball in his arms

~Judging Heather and my towel folding contests

~ Buying me baseball pants  ;0)

~ Holding my hand in the hospital

~ Moving me in and out of dorms and apartments in college

~ Letting me sit on his lap and cry that wedding plans weren't going as I wanted them too.

~ Walking me down the aisle

~Dancing with me at my wedding

~ Coming with me to the gas station and helping me fill up my tank (located on the opposite side of most cars) after the guy at the pump was mean to me and told me I had to pull in on the opposite side because I was screwing up traffic if I didn't.

~Rescuing me when my car dies and Chris is unable to help at the moment.

~Bringing me Captain D's after I had my kidney stones removed

~ Fixing up the Hoosier Cabinet for me.

The list could go on and on.

I have such an awesome Dad. 

A Dad who will do anything and everything for his family.

He's funny and he has such a giving and loving heart.

He can fix anything!

I don't think it's possible to tell you all the things that are great about my Dad.

I don't think it's possible to tell you all the things I love about him.

But I do, I love my Dad!

Happy Birthday Daddy!  I am so blessed to be your daughter and I thank God for you every day!

Catching up on Thankfulness

Day 20 - My Sister-in-Laws
I have some of the best sister-in-laws anyone could ever ask for.

We all have quite a few things in common and we have a lot of fun when we're together.

Plus, we all married great men!


Day 19 - LTG friends

I am so thankful for our friends we've made in our life together group. 

Since we've been at Crosspoint we've been in 3 LTG groups.

Some of the group peeps have been the same and some have been new.

But being part of other people's lives and being in community with them has been wonderful for us.  We've learned so much from them.

Lots of laughs and smiles and some tears along the way.

Thanks for all the fun!

Day 18 - Tiki and Silver

I am thankful for our cars.

While they are both 13 years old they still get us everywhere we need to go.

I love my car...her name is Tiki.

I've had her since college, and this summer we thought we were going to have to replace her. 

I was extremely sad and I would have cried if we'd needed to get rid of her.

But thankfully she was just a little sick and so she's still a part of our family!  YAY!



When I met Chris he was driving Bobbo:

But soon after we got married, we realized we needed an SUV.  So Tiki said goodbye to Bobbo and hello to Silver, our Jeep.

I am thankful for Silver because he gets Chris where he needs to go and brings him back home to me every day!

*Side note:  I realized I have no good pictures of our vehicles, only pics when they've been "out of commission".  I will rectify this soon.  ;0)

Day 17 - Grandparents

Today I'm thankful for my Grandparents.

I was very blessed to be born into the family that I was...and a huge part of my childhood consisted of spending time with my Grandparents.

My Grandma and Grandpa Whetsel...

 lived 10 minutes from us and we saw them nearly every weekend.

We used to spend hours playing in their basement.

Grandma and Grandpa are a big part of why  I love antiques.

Chris and I live in and recently bought the house that they built in 1953.

I have lots of memories of them and spending time in this house when I was little.  I look forward to the memories and traditions that Chris and I will have here in the future.


My Grandma and Grandpa Friedline...

Unfortunately I don't have any pics on the computer of Grandpa...trust me, he was super cute!

They lived in Fort Wayne, and Grandma still lives there.

We didn't get to see them quite as often as Grandma and Grandpa Whetsel, but I think that made it even more exciting when we did see them.

Each Summer Heather and I would take turns spending a week on our own with Grandma and Grandpa.

Grandpa helped teach me how to ride a bike without training wheels, and he'd always go swimming with us.

Grandma took us shopping and has been such a huge inspiration and confidant.

My childhood is filled with rich moments and love.

I owe this to my Grandparents...for the love the showed me directly and the love my parents learned from them.

Days 15 and 16 - The In-laws and H.E.

Day 16 - My Health and Dr. Eigen
Today I am thankful for my health and for Dr. Eigen...my Pulmonologist.

He rocks.

You see, I was diagnosed at 5 days old with Cystic Fibrosis. 

Dr. Eigen has been my doctor from the beginning.

He knows me!

He knows my lungs, my CF, he knows me!

Now, some naysayers in the CF community might not be too keen on the fact that since I'm 31 years old I still see my pediatric Pulmonologists.

To you, I say BOO!

You see, because he's taken care of me from the very beginning and he knows me so well, he knows what works for me and what doesn't.

He knows when my lungs are about to make a decline.

He knows when to push and when to gently nudge.

He knows what to say when it needs to be said.

He listens...My doctor LISTENS to what I have to say about my health.

And he works with me to come up with the best plan of care.  The one that not only keeps me at my optimal health but works with my body and lifestyle.

I don't go to the Adult CF clinic for a multitude of reasons...but the number one reason is because I have the GREATEST Pulmonologist on the planet.

I get the best care possible from Dr. Eigen, and I don't think the adult CF center can meet or excede what I've already got and been given.

I'm healthy today because of him.

I'm alive today because of him.

I have more opportunities in my life because I listened when I should and I learned about my disease and the best way to manage it...from him.

I'm a very lucky girl to have had such wonderful care from such an amazing physician for my entire life.

So I'm thankful today that I'm here.

That I'm healthy.

That I can run up the basement stairs without hacking up my lungs or getting short of breath.

That I have been blessed with the best CF care possible.

I am thankful for my Pulmonologist and all the care that he has shown me and continues to show me.

Day 15 - My In-laws

I have some amazing in-laws.

I have some friends who tell me that I'm lucky, because I get along with my in-laws. 

And ya know what?  They're right.

I love my mother-in-law and father-in-law.  Partly because they raised the man that I married to treat me like a princess (a pretty pretty princess).

He loves and respects me.

He puts the toilet seat down.

He opens doors for me.

He apologizes when he's wrong.

He tells me he loves me every night and every morning.

He does so many things out of love and respect for me...things that my girlfriends have said their husbands don't do for them, and wish they would.

And while some of these things may have been of his own accord to love me as God asks him to do so...I do believe that he also learned how to treat me as a direct result of his upbringing.

I'm thankful that I have in-laws who treated each other well and taught their boys by example how to treat their wives.

Thank you Dan and Karen!

At Mariah's Dedication - My in-laws are the two on the left ;0)

Good gracious...here's quite a few days of Thankfulness all caught up.

I'm going from today back...because that's how the days would show up on my blog anyhow.

Day 14 - Sam

Ahh...my Wamster!

The little sister I never biologically had...but grew up with like she really was.

I love everything about you!

Your beauty inside and out.

How you know me like no one else.

How your smile and laughter can turn a sad moment into something totally wonderful and amazing.

You are a fantabulous friend!

I hope you know how much you are loved and respected.

I can't imagine what my childhood would have been like without having you right next door.

I love you!

P.S.  *Head


Day 13 - Crosspoint

I LOVE our church!

Love, Love, Love!

If I miss a Sunday, I don't feel complete.

Crosspoint is full of real people, just trying to figure out their lives and God, and how to live out their lives with God as the driving force.

None of us have it all figured out.

None of us claim to be perfect.

And that's what makes Crosspoing so perfect for me.

We have met so many wonderful people because of Crosspoint.

People we can live our life with together.

I am so thankful to have a wonderful place like Crosspoint to call Home.


Day 12 - College Friends

I spent 6 years in college (I know...it's slightly crazy)!

And do you know what one of the best parts (okay, the best part) of College was for me?

The people I met and the friends I made.

When I think back to college, I don't really think about the classes I went to, what I studied, how I did on tests and careplans, my clinicals, or how I never got out much because I was too busy doing nursing (Okay I guess I think a little about that last one).

But what I do think about is the friends I made.

The people who I shared those experiences with:

My nursing girls:  My gosh, we literally grew up and spent 4 years together practically attached.

My girls I met in the dorms:  Life in our hallways were never dull.  There are times when I miss those days...the whole, walking right out of your room and inevitably being able to walk right next door and watch a movie, or just chat.

Chris' roomies and friends:  You were an extension of Chris, and I love everything about him...including all of you (except maybe one...Yep, definitely the one...)!

All my other College peeps:  Some of you I met in classes, where I worked on campus, or just because you lived down the hall (or upstairs or downstairs as the case may be). 

 I am who I am today because I've know all of you! 

Thanks for sharing AU with me ;0)


Day 11 - Veterans (3 in particular)

My Grandpa

My Dad

Jason

Thank you...for the sacrifices you've made to serve this country...and for protecting us all!