thanksgiving.

(this was scheduled to post last thursday. use your imagination and pretend it's thanksgiving ;)

happy thanksgiving!

as you are reading this i am wondering around somewhere in the mountains. my guess, probably either stuffing my face with some cracker barrell thanksgiving, or strolling around taking in the the christmas lights. either way, i'm in total and complete happiness simply because i am surrounded by God's serene creation in the great outdoors of the smokies.

and today...that's what i'm most of all thankful for. a week away from the chaos of life, surrounded by all of those who i love and cherish most in the world. i couldn't ask for more.

leading up to the glorious day, i took some time to reflect on my life, and all that God has given me. i decided against the one a day thanksgivnig facebook post leading up to thanksgiving, and decided to combined it all on this post.

so here ya go. the things i am most of all thankful for.

my salvation

thankful for God's selfless sacrifice of giving His one and only Son for my eternal life.

thankful God called me to be His child eleven years ago.

i cannot imagine going through life without a Savior to call on.

my family

the term family means more to me than those who are blood related.

God most definitely blessed me with the most loving family out there. we have been together through thick and then, and although the road has not always been easy, we still have love and faith in an even brighter tomorrow.

i could never thank God enough for giving me the most loving parents and sister in the world. my world would not be the same without them, and i pray every day to never take them for granted.

...and my furbabies. they truly are a gal's best friend. i've never met anyone or any furbabies any more loyal than our Daisy and Hank. one thing is always guaranteed....they will be waiting, and waggin g at the door when i get home just waiting on their treat.

now if that ain't love, i don't kno what is ;)

happy fourteenth, sis :)

thankful for brice.
he celebrated gracie's birthday with us.
he's the brother we've always wanted!

friends who are family

i seriously do not know how you could possibly have any better friends than i have.

i can truly say that my friends are more than just friends. they are family.

i'm thankful to have most of my friends within a 20 minute drive; however, i do have a few close friends than live a good day's drive away. we hold onto the fact that we will definitely be neighbors in heaven :)



lacey and me at lacy & justin's wedding
thankful for her friendship & wisdom.
such a beautiful woman of God.



yep. i caught the bouquet.
for the third time.
doesn't work, gals.
the beautiful bride, lacy
so very thankful for her and her friendship...& our shared love of days of our lives.
don't judge.



my bestie.
so thankful God brought her & her family into my life.



tab's sweet brady boy
auntie em loves him much

so thankful for this lady & her family.
she's definitely just like a sister.

family across the world

i am beyond words thankful for Filipino family. one of the biggest blessings in my life is God sending me to the Philippines. each visit over has changed my life in some way.

i'm thankful for the new brothers and sisters at each school i have ever shared the gospel at.

i'm thankful for my 42 brothers and sisters at uncle dicks home.

my six weeks there was the best time of my life. i learned more about myself, about life, and mostly about God's selfless love there in six weeks, than i had learned in my whole lifetime.

if i could do it all again, i would in a heartbeat. snakes, mosquittos, hand washing, and all.

i'm thankful for my eleven brothers and sisters at rosemary's home of hope.

i never imagined the summer of 2011 would change all of our lives in such an incredible way.

when the idea of rosemary's come about, i imagined it being such a far away thought. however, here we are just 16 months later, and we already have a home built, with eleven beautiful orphans running aruond, surrounded by a village who has also come to know the Lord through our efforts and God's faithfulness.  

me & suzanne last year at a hospital in the philippines
thankful also for suzanne and our shared love for the Filipino people.
we actually got the opportunity to name the baby she is holding.
sweet moments.
so thankful for each one.

church

when God moved myself and my family to east marietta baptist church a few years back, it was one of the biggest blessings. we immediately fell right into place, and those who were once strangers become like family. our church has such a huge heart for missions in the community and abroad, and i'm so thankful to be a part of that.

so thankful for baby Dylan
my good friend tracy and her husband sonny tried for ten years to have a child
a few weeks ago, a little miracle was born.
he's perfect.

random things that don't really deserve their own paragraph...

over the past couple of weeks, i have been exceptionally aware of the different things around me that i never really stop to thank God for, but that i don't really want take away from me.

"what if you woke up today with only what you thanked god for yesterday."

after living at uncle dick's home for a short time, i realized there are so, so many things that we as americans take for granted that so many others don't have teh priveledge of having.

those are the things i'm going to wrap up this post with.

the things we take for granted, but don't want to consider life without.

*Reese's (specifically the ones shaped like pumpkins and christmas trees..yummy)--when i lived in the philippines, there was no such thing as american candy bars. Until one day we found the limited supply of american foods when we went "into town." they were $6 each! talk about a shocker! read about that shopping experience here

yep. they're amazing.

*good television (more specifically: Law & Order: SVU, Bachelor(ette)(Pad), Duck Dynasty, The Voice)

*scarves, sweaters, boots...it's freezing, people!



thank God for her every. single. day.


*facebook, twitter, insta...I couldn't keep up with what's going on with my friends living all over the place otherwise

* my glasses & contacts. whew...i would be blind without

i need new ones.
any suggestions for cute, affordable?

*washing machine-- i never would have realized how thankful i am for a washing machine had i not have gone to Uncle Dick's Home. it was quite the experience. see more details about that here

*my job

*laughs with sophie claire

sadly, i did not get to see this in person
candi said they were decorating for christmas when soph picked up this ornament and asked if it were a bow
needless to say, the child has worn some pretty big ones before



she told her mom she was going to meme's house
made my day.
so thankful for these two, and for the opportunity to have gotten to be such a big part of their lives



*my planner

**as i was going through some of my old Uncle Dick's Home posts, i came across my post "Be Thankful." It reminded me once again of how i felt there being surrounded by those who have known nothing, but still have everything they could ever need--a new family & most of all, Jesus Christ.

*SAMS...mostly just because they are the only place in Mississippi that i have found has PeaceTea



i got so excited i found these i HAD to take a picture and send it to my friend in florida

 let's not only thank God for the blessings he has given us only on this day.

every day is a gift.

remember to thank Him.

365 days. not just one.