30 Days of Thanks - Day 9

I am grateful that B is employed and that his employment is sufficient enough that I can stay at home with Y.

Then and Now

Then:

Y  with her Uncle L on the day he left for his mission.

Now:

Y with her Uncle L on the day he returned from his mission, bonding over a can of peanuts.

After two years of looking at and pointing to his picture on her photo memory board, Y was finally able to reunite with her Uncle L!  She was just 2 months old when he left, you can see him holding her on the day he left to begin serving his mission in the first picture above.  I remember thinking to myself that day, and saying it aloud, that she would be 2 years old when he returned.  Then it seemed to far off and the idea of Y being 2 seemed completely impossible.  I also remember telling him before he left that when he returned he would have yet another niece or nephew to become acquainted with (I was wrong on that account).

Those two years seemed to creep by when living in the moment but in hindsight it seems lightning fast!  I doubt Y has any recollection of those first 2 months with her Uncle L but I have no doubt that she knew who he was.  She was very shy and timid but when I asked her, "where's Uncle L?" she pointed him out without a moment's hesitation.  She never did warm up to him completely (which is why I had to get peanuts involved so that she would even get close enough for me to take a picture) but I have no doubt that over the coming months and even years she will grow to love and adore her Uncle L just as she does the rest of the family. 

I know that L had an awesome time on his mission and was able to have some amazing experiences and meet some tremendous people.  I am happy that he was able to do it, BUT (and you can call me selfish if you must) I am more happy to have him home again.  I've missed him.  B has four siblings and I love them all dearly but for whatever reason the youngest two seem more like my little brothers than my brothers-in-law.  Maybe it's because I feel as if I have watched them grow up and become men whereas his other 2 siblings were already adults when I met them.  But whatever the case or reason may be, I am extremely glad to have him home again!

30 Days of Thanks - Day 8

I am thankful for the abundance of technology which is available to us.

30 Days of Thanks - Day 7

I am thankful that L has landed safely and was able to fulfil a full-time mission.

30 Days of Thanks - Day 6

I am grateful to the people of Argentina who loved, fed, and took care of my brother-in-law for the last 2 years.

Confessional

Ever since we bought our home we've got the question, "so how do you like your new place."  Our answer varies at times, but only slightly between, "we absolutely LOVE it" and "it feels like home."  So let there be no doubt that I love our home and I am completely satisfied here, well almost.  There is one thing and only one thing that I have come to miss about our apartment.

It's not the awesome view of the lake each and every day, or watching the ducks swim in it.  It's definitely not those loud, annoying and mean Canadian Geese that seem to only honk as they fly over in the middle of the night.  It's not even the ability to have the maintenance guys come fix my every little complaint.  No, it's none of those things.  By now you're probably wondering what it could be.  Well, I miss not having to pay a gas bill each month, more specifically, I miss having FREE heat.  You see, it was like having a piece of Florida in Michigan!  Cold and snowy on the outside but nice and toasty on the inside!  I could, and did, turn the heat up as high as I wanted without a second thought.  If it was one of those really cold, blustery days outside it didn't matter to me...I just cranked the dial up a little higher.  Sure the windows allowed for some cold drafts of air to creep in, but it didn't matter because I just cranked the dial a little higher!

Now I suffer the harsh realities of home ownership...keeping the thermostat at 69 degrees (F).  Might not seem to bad to most but when you're used to setting it between 75-80 it can come as a big shock.  I tell myself that by the time January gets here I'll be more accustomed to it and that 69 will feel pretty warm to me.  But for now I must confess...I MISS MY APARTMENT (if only for the free heat)!

30 Days of Thanks - Day 5

Today I am expressing my gratitude for family, immediate and extended, and for being able to have positive, loving relationships with each and every member of my family.

30 Days of Thanks - Day 4

I am so grateful for Y and the blessing that she is and will continue to be in my life. She is such pure joy!

FYI:

All Systems Are Go...

I'm pretty sure most of you know what I mean!  If not, then I think it's time you did some catching up on reading our blog!

30 Days of Thanks - Day 3

I am grateful for B and our eternal marriage.  I wake up everyday and fall more and more in love with him!