come, ye thankful people, come

well, this year i have a lot to be thankful for, and most of the things i am most thankful for are things i took for granted prior.

the big and obvious ones are my family. i am so grateful for their love, their support, and just for them. i am grateful for sila boy, who constantly is in a great mood and is the perfect baby. i am grateful for the princess, who  always says her mind and loves her brothers fiercely. i am grateful for masey boy, who is fighting cancer and a great example to all of us of how to be in a horrible situation but not lose your manners or your humanity. i am grateful for mo, who loves everyone so much he doesn't even know what to do with it. i am grateful for my angel niece, lile and the motivation to be good she provides me with her quiet presence.

i am grateful for baby darl, who worries about everything and everyone and is never anything but caring and thoughtful; he does what he feels he should no matter what. i am grateful for pene, the best mommy to a sick little boy and example of strength to me. i am grateful for vili and his unwavering testimony, example of the savior's love, and for his undying friendship. i am grateful for sila, the brother who has few words for me but i always know is my #1 defender. i am grateful for tevita and the provider and worthy priesthood holder/father he is to my sister and their children. i am grateful for talia and her friendship, guidance and even-keeled advice. i am grateful for edgar, the brother i have never met and do not know, but have been mindful of lately.

i am grateful for my mother, who is a great example of hard work, determination and sacrifice. i am grateful for my father who is my favorite critic and an example of strength mixed with love. i am grateful for my dear, departed grandmother jenna lee and the shoulder to cry on and advice i still hear her giving me. i am grateful for my grandfather darl, for always being there to support, offer advice and counsel and be an example of gospel living.

i am grateful for my many aunts and uncles. they have a bigger impact on my life than they know, whether it is sheltering a lost little girl; being a friend and confidante; or thoughtfully noticing a problem and striving to fix it. they are examples of pure love and family. i am grateful for the cousins i can confidently call friends, who lend their support and love from miles and miles away.

i am grateful that i am an american citizen. it is a huge blessing to be able to walk into any place of business and qualify for a job. i am grateful that i have a car to drive me to the places i need to be, and places i need to be.

i am grateful for friendship. i have never truly cherished friends until this year.

i am grateful to have the gospel in my life. i am truly grateful for agency, the atonement and the miracle of forgiveness. i have partaken of it more than i would like, but it is a blessing and i am grateful it is there for the taking. i am grateful for the power of the priesthood and the miracles i have witnessed through it.

i am grateful for the gift of working ears. i experienced total silence the other day, and it was unnerving. i had no point of reference for the things i was seeing and knew should be hearing.

i am grateful for chairs that do not rock. i realized at the hospital that if i am in a rocking chair, i will subconsciously rock it and make myself nauseous.

i am grateful that snow-pocalypse was not nearly as bad as predicted, at least here in orem. i was repenting like crazy on the drive home last night!

i am grateful for blogging and the ability it gives me to keep a semi-faithful record of my life. i am grateful that it is an outlet i enjoy, and i can type as much or little as i like (obviously, today i like a lot :)

i am grateful for facebook (no, this will not be like the girl i heard bear her testimony of myspace, as she met her fiancee there) and the ability it gives me to keep in contact not only with random people i have not seen, or cared to see for years, but my family that is scattered throughout the world. when i wanted people to fast and/or pray for masey's brain surgeries, facebook was there. when i did not want to update the entire world one-by-one on his status, facebook was there.

i am grateful for primary childrens medical center, a place where miracles happen. i am particularly grateful for a neurosurgeon named dr. jay riva-cambrin. i joke that he is over-confident or cocky, but the reality is that without him, my masey would not be here. he truly performed a miracle in masey, and i am eternally grateful for him and his meticulousness and thoroughness, as well as his willingness to accept the challenge of masey's surgery in the first place. i really can't say enough good about this man, but if i ever find myself in need of a pediatric neurosurgeon again, you bet i'll be tracking down dr. riva-cambrin.

i am grateful for letters. there is nothing quite as nice as getting mail that is not a bill or junk.

well, i could obviously go on forever (letters? seriously!  that made the list??) but i'll stop now. suffice it to say that i am really looking forward to thanksgiving, and i am a grateful, happy girl!

the first family picture we've had in years. i know, ridiculous that it takes that long to get 9 adults and 4 kids together...especially cause i just remembered that one of us is shopped in. :)

Clarity

(Disclaimer: This is a pretty disjointed, jumbled, post... Read at your own risk!)

Well, this past week has been an awesome one!! It's been a week since I've worked, and I absolutely LOVE it! Tomorrow, I am headed in to work to sub... (have I mentioned that I have been substitute teaching for PE at my work?) so I figure I will play the catch-up game on my blog because this week has been kind of awesome.

Thanksgiving day was a special day for my Grandma, Jenna Lee. It's a day that should be full of family, but more importantly, the day that marks the treaty. What treaty? You may ask. The treaty that regulates the playing of Christmas Music. If allowed, my Grandma would have listened to Christmas music all year round, but Grandpa installed the limits of Thanksgiving to New Years.

Those are the blessed weeks, where Christmas music would be blasting from every available speaker, and Grandma's house would transform into a winter-wonderland. She enjoyed so much decorating her house and knew where every item should go and which way it should face. She was full of Christmas spirit, and helped us to love the Christmas season too. It offended her when Christmas cards would say Season's Greetings or Happy Holidays, because Christmas should be the focus.

This week, I've thought a lot. Some about my Grandma, some about my life, some about nothing at all, and a lot about me. I took an impulsive trip to Vegas with my cousin, Dara. It was wonderful. There's a lot to be said for a long drive and space... Sometimes, I need both. I am easily irritated, and have a strong need for personal space. So, I take drives.

Sometimes, the drives are just to the store and back with my music blasting. Sometimes, they are up through Provo Canyon and out further up or down the Wasatch front. Sometimes, they are to Vegas. Wherever the destination, they are cleansing for me. It is a time where I am able to gain some clarity. To get away from the clouds and fog of my every-day life and just be alone with nothing but my thoughts for company. I love it. I live for my drives.

My Grandma took drives, too. It's just another reminder, in this Christmas season that does nothing but remind me of her, that we are kindred spirits.

Thanksgiving

Wow, Thanksgiving really creeped up on me this year. I will get extremely emotional about EVERYTHING thanksgiving-related if I allow myself. It is really one of my favorite holidays (I guess there are not that many to choose from, but you know what I mean!) and it reminds me the most of my dear Grandma Jenna Lee.

For today, my short list of THANKS:

LDSJournal. My Grandma Nellie faithfully kept a thorough Life Story for herself and husband all of her years. It is a blessing to us, her posterity, to be able to read and learn more about the amazing woman that was our Great Grandmother. LDSJournal helps me be more like my Grandma Nellie and gives me a good and easy way to journal with a purpose.

Google Profiles. (Mine is here) I had second thoughts about doing it, but after I Googled myself and saw all sorts of weird stuff, including things I tweeted, I figured I at least wanted to be a little in charge of how much info people could find.

My Family. Not only the ones here with me now, but the countless generations of ancestors I have. People who lived their lives and went about their business just like myself. They had thoughts, emotions, lives of their own. They were passionate about things, had religious convictions, loved, felt heartache and were basically the same as me.It's easy to read or hear about stories and let it die there. It's amazing to me that my ancestors were so REAL. Without knowing it, they were paving the way for me to become the person I am today. Choices they made in their lives affected not only them and their immediate families, but me any MY family. I get super overwhelmed when I think too much about it, but I am infinitely grateful for my Family, and for the ancestors that paved the way for me to become me.

Music. For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads D&C 25:12. There is just something about music that speaks to my soul. It's nice to know that the Lord feels the same way.

Heaters. I am not sure I need to expound, but they're really useful (to take a line from Thomas the Tank Engine)

My Car. It's nice to have reliable transportation and to be able to get places I need to go.

My nephews and the Princess. I am so grateful for these kids' presence in my life. They are a blessing beyond anything I can describe. They are a grounding force in my life and my calming influence. Without even knowing it, they brighten any day they are in. They are a handful a lot, but I cannot even express how much joy they bring into my life. They are the perfect balance for work (which leaves me not ever wanting children) They remind me of the joys and countless blessings that come from motherhood.