Thankful Thursday

Wow!  That week went by so fast.

And to be honest I'm glad it is over.

 December 25th through February 13th is always such a roller coaster for me.  So many memories, so much happiness, and so much sadness fill those weeks.  

I am filled with relief and thanksgiving when I make it past February 13.  I feel like I can be normal again.  I'm sure Andrew is thankful for that too.  LOL.

The first chapter of my research paper was due Friday.  This semester has actually felt like I am in grad school.  That stinkin' research paper is kinda stressin' me out.  I'm thankful to have that first chapter behind me.  I feel like it has helped me start to figure out what I'm doing.

And I'm presenting for the first time ever at a conference next week.  I'm starting to feel a little better about that.  I am so thankful for all the people who have told me I'm going to do awesome.  That encouragement has been a huge blessing.

So yeah...I feel like everything hit all at once and I'm thankful to be coming out on the other side of this past week.

Speaking of presenting next week...

I have to bring my own projector and all the technology things.  This has me a bit nervous and I'm terrified that I will blank out and forget how to hook something up.

I borrowed a projector from school and Tuesday night Andrew gave me projector lessons.

I am so thankful he knows all about this stuff and is willing to help me.

He has been a huge encouragement when it comes to this presenting thing.

You can translate that as he hasn't let me cancel my plans to present.

Because there has been more than one occasion where I wanted to chicken out.

And on a totally different note...

The thing I'm most thankful for this week is a better than expected surgery outcome for my Daddy.

He had surgery on his left shoulder Monday.  

His shoulder was not as bad as they originally thought.  Surgery was pretty quick and recovery should be less painful than originally anticipated.

He is doing well and for that I praise God.

Be sure to hope over to Miranda's blog and read her post as well. :)

Thankful Thursday - Jayden's Birthday

Would you just look at that logo picture?

Isn't it beautiful!

I can say that because I had nothing to do with it other than saying, "Hey Miranda, will you make us a logo?"  

A few months ago I began sharing a picture each day on my Instagram with something I was thankful for from the day.  I have really enjoyed doing that and can see how it has helped shift my mindset more toward one of gratitude.

But I've recently been thinking about giving my Instagram a makeover, so to speak.  I'm not sure what that means yet, but I haven't really been posting much there until I figure it out. 

I didn't want to give up my thankful post, so I decided to move them over here to the blog with a weekly post.  And of course, I wanted to recruit my dear friend, Miranda, to join the fun.

I am so thankful for her friendship.  It is still crazy to me that she and I met right here in the blog world and have only met twice in real life.  She is such a sweet friend and prayer warrior.  And insanely talent.  My blog has only ever looked cute because of her.

We had every intention of starting this new series last week.

But it just didn't happen.

So we are starting today.

And that feels perfect.

Because today is Jayden's birthday.

Today is a day of celebration.

A day to be thankful.

I have cried every day this week as I've remembered the different moments from two years ago that led to this day.  I've sat at my computer with tears streaming down my face as I read the prayers and words of encouragement from our friends and family during those darkest days.

My tears this week have been cleansing.  They have been tears of thanksgiving and praise.

Those prayers two years ago are no doubt what carried Andrew and me through the darkest days of our lives.

I praise God for our friends and family, for their prayers and tears, for their encouragement.

I don't know that I have ever felt more loved by my husband than I did during the week we lost Jayden.  He found the perfect balance of allowing me to grieve and encouraging me to keep moving forward with life.

I am so thankful God gave him the strength to do that for me when his heart was breaking too.

And I'm thankful God continues to show him how to love me on those hard days when I just miss my baby.

Last year we were able to honor Jayden's birthday by donating to a ministry that hopefully gave women experiencing a miscarriage a tiny bit of comfort.

I am thankful we had that opportunity and that Jayden's life could be a blessing to others.

I have received messages from women who have lost their little one too early thanking me for sharing my story because it has encouraged them.

Those messages are always humbling and I am thankful God has used our pain to bring a bit of beauty to someone's story.

I am thankful for my family and my friends who have reached out this week to let me know they are thinking of us.  I am thankful for my sweet coworkers who just want to love on me even when they are unsure of how to do that.  I'm thankful for their honesty about being unsure.

But most of all I am thankful that I know without a doubt that someday Andrew and I will hold Jayden again and we will celebrate today together.