Well, I tried to put these in the opposite order, but this is the order the pics keep showing up. So here are my twenty-one blessings from 2021, in no particular order of importance.
- Getting to see both of my brothers at the same time. First family pic in a long, long, long time.
2. Celebrating both of my parents' 75th birthdays.
3. My beautiful handcrafted fake fireplace/cat cage/coffee table that Mike made for me (aka--piece of furniture that brings me peace)--I had it outside and just recently brought it inside. I let the fireplace run all day, and it brings me such peace to just sit and watch it "burn".
4. Two Colombian friends that surprised me with a bag of treats straight from Colombia, within about a week of each other!
From a coworker who had family visiting from Colombia.
From a friend visiting from Colombia in another state
5. Family dinners for birthdays.
With four very busy adults, it sure was hard to find time for us all to have coordinating schedules this last year.
6. Boots and Spazzie. Gotta love them.
7. Priceless pictures of Mike's family.
A trip that almost didn't happen.
No one had any idea how little time remained.
So incredibly thankful we made it in time.
8. Time with the Alspaugh cousins.
9. Watching my mother-in-law just radiate as she walked through breast cancer, chemo, and also cared for and honored her husband at the same time as his dementia progressed so rapidly.
She taught me the value of being comfortable in your own skin. Even with all the pretty hats and head coverings, she was just fine without them or her hair.
10. Summer morning bike rides.
They helped me get healthy after a very difficult semester post-COVID.
Literally just what the doctor ordered.
11. Church with both my boys. Doesn't happen much anymore with all of our different schedules, but I cherish it when it does. I love that they both love going to church.
12. A church that focuses SO much on fighting for a godly marriage. This picture was from a church-wide marriage night.
13. An in-depth study of Psalm 23 that really deepened my relationship and trust in God.
It stuck with me all year and is my go-to passage for prayer now.
14. The opportunity for both my boys to study at DBU.
David lives in a section of a house on campus that he shares with six other guys. He absolutely loves the community in his house.
15. Sweet notes from previous students that survived and actually thrived during the 2020/21 school year nightmare.
16. My walking shoes. They've walked a lot of miles with me this year. Whenever weather or daylight permit, I walk a mile before work every morning and sometimes another mile when I get home. Perfect way to collect my thoughts and talk to God--and keep my blood pressure down and gain the energy I need for the day. I can tell a big difference on the days I don't walk or ride my bike.
17. Front Porch Bible Study. Those five ladies (three not pictured) have become my strongest prayer warriors, as we all continue to rally around each other in prayer in each of our times of need.
18. LOTS of fun crafts to do with my mom. Our personalities can be quite different at times, so having something to do and create has given us a happy medium to connect in an authentic and memorable way.
19. Summer dates. It was a short, packed summer,
but we found time to enjoy a few extra daytime dates.
20. Hanging out with my boys.
21. Great friends who send you just what you need when you need it.
Little did she know how bummed I was driving home in the pouring down rain on my birthday, knowing I'd be eating dinner all alone because everyone was working.
I have been lost in thought quite a bit in the last 9 days of this year, still in shock that my husband and son are in Indiana preparing for my father-in-law's funeral on Monday. 2021 started unexpectedly hard and ended just as unexpectedly hard. But seeing someone's life come to an end so quickly really makes you think about our purpose in this world and how we spend the days given to us. Hard or not, every day is a day to be thankful to be alive. Every day holds blessing if we're willing to look for it. Every day holds purpose.
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