What I Am Thankful For

So, as most of you know, yesterday was Thanksgiving.  I got to spend it with my sister and some of her in-laws and we had a great time.  But, because we were there most of the day I didn't get to say what I was thankful for, so I'm going to take that opportunity now.

I Am Thankful For...

• My husband Daniel.  He spoils me rotten and takes such good care of me and Will.  He really is the best husband/father ever.
• My son William.  He is the joy of my heart.  He is so sweet and funny and he is growing up so fast and gets smarter everyday.  I can't believe he's two years old already.
• Being pregnant.  I know I complain about it a lot because I've been pretty sick this go around, but over all, I'm excited and happy to bring this new little life into our growing family.  I feel it is an honor, given to us women by our Heavenly Father, to have and bear children.  I am proud and grateful that I can.
• Our new life here in Colorado.  Daniel has a great job, we live in a decent area and we are in love with our new ward family here.
• My family.  My siblings both near and far who I can talk to and who I know, despite everything, love me.  And my parents, who did a great job raising me and are always there with advice and laughter.
• My membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I'm grateful for the peace that the Gospel gives me and the truth it teaches me.  I know I'm not always a perfect example of my faith, but I do try.
• Being a stay at home mom.  After having to work for the first year of Will's life, being able to stay home has changed me.  I'm happier and more at peace with my self and I love spending everyday with my Little Man, no matter how many times he makes me watch Cars with him.
• Being a writer.  I love to create new worlds and characters to populate them and then write fun stories about them.  The act of writing is exciting and frustrating at the same time, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 
• All my friends, both in real life and those I've met on the internet *coughAWcough*.  My life just wouldn't be complete without y'all.  You teach me, keep me grounded and make me laugh.
• And finally, I'm grateful for all those little things that we take for granted everyday.  Like having a car or electricity, the internet or food on our table.  There are a lot of people either in this country or around the world that don't have these comforts and we must never forget that it is a privilege to have these things, not a right, and we must strive to be worthy of them.

And that's all folks!  Well I guess I could go on and on, but I'm sure you have better things to do right now.  So thank you soooo much for reading and I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and continue to have Happy Holidays this year. :D

Jennifer

On November 19, 2010 an old, dear friend friend of mine passed away. It's been hard to swallow. And it's taken me time to talk about it without breaking down with the overwhelming sadness. I was unable to go to the funeral because it was in Georgia and I just wasn't able to get the time off and what not.

Anyway, I wrote a poem for her on the day that I found out and I thought I should share it.

We Are Changed

(For Jennifer)

There is a quite place

In a forgotten patch of woods

Where an abandoned deer stand

Remembers two young girls.

One is light haired,

The other dark,

One is tall,

The other short.

They used to come nearly everyday,

The magic drew them

Down leaf strewn paths

And over tiny brooks

To this place

Where they could share their secrets.

Nearby there is a tiny island

Nestled between two streams.

Here they spoke of God,

Of Nature, and those things most sacred to them.

They imagined other worlds

Full of magic and happiness

Where they could escape to.

They spoke of their dreams.

As they grew older,

The two became young women

And they came less

To their Holy Ground.

They became consumed by the Present

And began to forget.

Little things tore at them

And time went swiftly by.

They drifted apart

The bond growing thin

Until it broke.

But always

There is something there,

An invisible, silken thread

Anchored deep within the heart.

For they were changed

For having known each other.

A piece of each resides in

The other's soul.

No matter where we go,

No matter the distance or the time

That separates us,

We are bound

Because we have known each other

And we are forever changed.

And one day

We will meet again

In that quite place

In the forgotten patch of woods

Where the abandoned deer stand

Remembers us

And all our secrets.

This poem can not even begin to encompass all that is and was Jennifer. She was quite but passionate. She loved deeply and was loved in return, whether she knew it or not. She inspired me and helped me to realize my dreams. I wish I had been able to tell her that.

Road Trips!

The past two weekends, Daniel, Will and I have been doing a lot of traveling. The weekend before last we drove to Denver, Colorado to visit my sister Michelle and her husband Josh; and then over Labor Day weekend we drove to Idaho with Daniel’s brother, Jared, to visit our friends Josh and Calli. I have found that road trips are very educational. And here follows a list of things that I have learned.

1. Cruise control is the best invention since the car itself. When we drove to Colorado, I started the 8 hour drive. After weaving our way through the mountains to get out of Utah I felt my right leg start to cramp up from my ankle to my knee. Holding the same position for that long, pushing down on the gas pedal, my leg was in rebellion. I was looking for a good place to pull over when Daniel asked, “Are you using the cruise control?” “This car has cruise control?” For some reason it never crossed my mind to check, maybe because I thought my car was too old for that sort of thing. So after spending about 10 minutes trying to figure out how the darn thing worked I was set! I could have driven the whole way like that if it wasn’t past 5 pm when we started. I drove a little more than half way though.

2. Short cuts are not always short. So someone in Daniel’s family told us about this short cut from I-80 to I-25 in Wyoming so we decided to take it. It starts in Laramie, WY and takes you to around Fort Collins, CO. Basically keeping you from having to go to Cheyenne, WY. So at first everything was going good, the road we were on was a little slower than the interstate, but it was late at night with no traffic. But at the end of the road we ended up having to weave our way through a bunch of little neighborhoods to get on to I-25. When you’re driving 20mph for 10-15 minutes, it totally negates any time you just saved. Needless to say, we didn’t take the same way going home.

3. Wendy’s doesn’t believe in changing tables, apparently. We stopped at a few Wendy’s on both trips and none of them had a changing table, 0! It was a little bit ridiculous. But, in retrospect, the front seat of my car is probably the cleaner of the two.

4. Formula To-Go is ingenious. Gas stations would make a killing if they sold them.

5. Will loves dogs and dogs love him. I’m sure one of the first things he’s going to ask for as a birthday/Christmas present will be a dog. Michelle and Josh have two dogs and they were very well behaved.

6. There are a lot of cows in northern Utah and Idaho, and where there are cows, there will be flies. Always make sure you have lots of washer fluid and good wind shield wipers, it’s very hard to see through bug guts.

7. Wyoming is quite possibly the most boring state to drive through. There is nothing out there. Just a lot of wind, and scatterings of windmills (which are kind of fun to watch for some odd reason).

8. DON’T FORGET THE STROLLER! Babies are heavy. You should only carry one while walking around a park if you’re trying to get a workout.

9. DON’T FORGET THE DIAPERS! Yes, you can go to the store and buy more, but it’s still a hassle.

10. Tacos are a favorite when you have guest coming over, apparently. That was dinner in both Colorado and Idaho, and both on Sunday night, strange…

11. Be nice to semi’s and they’ll be nice to you. I’ve always had this rule when driving, but it’s always very important to remember while on long road trips. I believe that every time you are nice to a semi you get a couple more points in the Car Karma department and that comes in real handy when you’re milliseconds away from getting in a wreck. Trust me, it works!

And there you have it, the things I’ve learned on our recent road trips.

On a side note, I’m writing this post at work right now, and it’s my birthday. L I hate having to work on my birthday. But I’m 24 today! Yay, I’m old!