Giving Thanks.....

I have been thinking about making a gratitude list all month, so here it goes........

1. My testimony of The Gospel of Jesus Christ - My testimony has really undergone some remodeling this past year, but I am so thankful to have it! It is the most important thing that I will ever have. It gives me the strength to find the silver lining of even the darkest cloud. I feel so lucky to know that I am a daughter of God and that he loves me no matter what.
2. My Ava - I can't believe that I have been a Mom for 5 years. It has gone by so fast and I had no idea what I was getting myself into. BUT, even though it has been the most challenging thing I have ever done, it has brought me more JOY than I ever could have imagined. She is my compass and I love her more than I could ever express.
3. My family -I have been so blessed with two of the most amazing parents who have taught me some very valuable lesson, and two beautiful sisters who make my life fun.
4. My niece and nephews. They are special gifts in my life and I love them oh so very much. They are all so different and some of my biggest blessings.
5. Sharon and Brad - I don't know how I would make it with out them as part of my family. They have truly been gifts from God to me and have contributed greatly to the person I am today. They have made what could have been some very lonely times in my life some of the happiest memories I will have.
6. A warm safe place to live. Food to eat and clothes to wear.
7. Good Friends

My life is so blessed I could never make a sufficient list. Happy Thanksgiving!!

Mr Luka.....

Luka has always held such a special place in my heart. I just love this little guy so much. At one of Savannah's soccer games he found a diet coke in my purse. Of course I opened it right up and shared. I feel exactly this way when I drink a diet cherry coke! Happy Birthday Buddy!!!

She's 5!!!!!

Can you believe my "baby" is 5? I can't..... in some ways it feels like she was just born and other days it really does feel like another life time ago. But I guess you could say it was a whole different life 5 years ago than it is today. My big sis Katie took these adorable pictures of Ava for me this morning. I LOVE them.....






Ava is a vibrant 5 year old. She is always bursting with energy and excitement. Right now she is really into playing with her dolls and insists on taking them practically everywhere with us. She is also really into Tinker Bell and want everything to be like "Tinker". She loves the movie Marley and Me and watched it several times a week. I don't think I have seen the movie from start to finish but I have the whole thing basically memorized. Maybe one of these days I will sit down and actually watch it with her. She has developed quite the sassy mouth in the last few weeks. I am hoping she overcomes this VERY soon! I am thankful for Ava and for the joy she has brought into my life. I had no idea what I was getting into, but I could never have imagined our life would unfold in the way that it has in the past five years. I love you Ava!

My faith has been increased...... yet again.

I had a scary moment tonight. The kind that made my heart stop beating for a minute. In my house I have a a fairly large shelf that hangs on the wall and then below it is the table I have with my TV on it. It is a good sized table and in the last few weeks Ava has developed the obsession with climbing on top of it and turning on the spot lights inside the shelf. I have told her time and time again NOT TO CLIMB UP THERE! Well this evening I was sitting in the kitchen working on an assignment for school and heard several large crashes in the next room. I ran in there to find Ava buried under the shelf and my TV. She had climbed up to turn on those stupid lights again and some how managed to pull all of it down on top of her. I was expecting the worst as I started pulling it off of her, but to my complete amazement she didn't have a scratch on her. Not a single injury. She was shaken up to say the least. Even more to my amazement nothing was broken. The table my TV lives on took a few bumps and scratches and my DVD player has a big dent in the top of it, but that's all. I am so thankful nothing worse happened. We truly have angels watching over us!
To give you an idea of the size of the shelf here is a picture of it, it doesn't quite have the whole thing in it, but you can get the idea.

Loving

This song. The video isn't much, but just listen. I am loving it right now!

Funny Story!

So, I have rejoined LDS singles online.... that is a whole different saga of my life. I guess if anything it provides me with entertaining stories to tell. So today I was online and this guy initiated a conversation with me. I checked out his profile and decided I wasn't really that into him so I replied a simple "thanks but no thanks". I have come to use this phrase often. It just gets to the point in a polite way. After I said that I just closed the chat window. He then responded "Nice, just close out the window. You weren't that cute anyway, fatty!" I seriously busted up!!!!! I guess I found it so funny because he must not have thought I was too fat to say hello to. I guess I gained a few instant pounds when I decided not to be interested in him. Oh the joys of dating! Especially online where people can be extra bold with out any real accountability for the words.