Happy Thanksgiving!

I wonder what I should put as being thankful for this year. Hmmmmmm...

I suppose I could start out by saying that, above all, I'm thankful for my amazing and ever awe inspiring son, Caden, who every single day makes me humble and thankful for the opportunity to learn everything all over again. And this time with a new appreciation.

I'm learning what it really means to stop and smell the roses. How to take time to do things right the first time. And how true it is that if at first you don't succeed, try try try again. What would we be like if the first time we reached to grab a toy and missed we never tried again? We'd never experience the wonder and the thrill of finally grasping a toy for the first time. Of having it in our hands and being able to shake it and make it make noise. And then realizing and we actually have the power, the control, over this other object. We can MAKE it create sound. Maybe it's not a pleasing sound to hear, but it's a sound none-the-less.

I'm also learning that sometimes the books DONT have all the answers. Sometimes you have to create your own answers and trust they're right. It doesnt matter if they didnt come out of a text book or if they weren't the idea of some doctor. Each of us has the ability to create the answers that are right for our lives.

I'm coming to understand that you can learn a lot from watching a child grow. You gain a new respect for your own parents and those who love you once you can finally understand just how deep their love goes.

I'm thankful for my family. I'm thankful that not only do they love me, but they also love my son in spite of my own faults and shortcomings. They don't condemn him for my mistakes. They, too, marvel at his daily accomplishments.

They also have swarmed me with support and offers of help, even to the point where at times it's suffocating. It's wonderful to have such a sturdy security blanket, but it can get heavy and burdensome when there's little room to breathe on my own.


I'm so excited for the opportunity to finish my schooling here in Texas. It'll be hard, and already I'm starting to doubt if I'll be able to do it all, but I know I have the backing to be able to do anything I put my mind too. I'm thankful for that, to have the strength and courage to meet challenges head-on and in spite of the fear.

I am ever so grateful for my new swing we bought for Caden. It has changed him from being a clingy fussy boy, to one who will quietly swing and enjoy the flying fishes for 30 - 45 minutes without complaint and it's the reason I'm able to write this entry today.

The amount of items and objects we received for Caden has been overwhelming and heart warming. It's amazing to see how such a small person can mean so much to so many people even before being born.

I'm thankful that the world is still a place where I want to bring a child into. We have issues and problems and wars and rude and obnoxious people, but as a whole we're still doing OK and there's still a lot of good living left to be done. There's still a lot of good people I want Caden to have the pleasure of meeting, and still so many places I want him to experience and visit for himself.

And when Caden cries, I remind myself that I must be thankful that he has the ability to do so. That he is healthy enough to be home with me, crying, and driving me nuts instead of in a hospital fighting for his life or, god-forbid, in a coffin somewhere.

And so this Thanksgiving day, when Caden and I are home together, alone, while the rest of the family is watching the Dallas Cowboys, I'm proud to, dear boober, that I am thankful for YOU. I'm thankful you've come into my life and shown so many wondrous things to me. I'm thankful for each and every day we have together here on earth, because I know how soon and quickly it can be taken away from us. I treasure every smile, every coo, and every single minute that you sleep. And once day, God willing, I will be at your house as you and your wife welcome your first child into your home, and I will watch you experience what it means to see the world through a child's eyes.

Thank you, my darling Caden, for coming into my life.

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