First, I am thankful for my sweet hubby. He has to be the first thing I am thankful for because he has to deal with "crappy me" more than anyone else. While I try very hard to paste a smile on my face even when things aren't going great, my hubby just lets me be me... He lets me cry, he lets me be angry, he lets me be fed up, he lets me say whatever I need to say, and then he just lets me snuggle up and cuddle and he loves me anyway. I honestly do not know what I would do without him. I'm sincerely grateful to have him through all the good and the bad, for time and all eternity... I definitely got the better end of that deal.
One of the things that scared me when I started reading about MS was the statistic on how many marriages suffer or end because of this horrible disease. My darling hubby goes out of his way every day to try and make sure I know how much he loves me. He runs the shower for me every morning so it's warm when I get out of bed. He makes me breakfast and lunch while I'm getting ready and writes a cute note on a napkin which he places in the bag of food for me to find when I get to work. He reads the scriptures to me at 5:45am while I'm running a curling iron through my hair and makes sure we have a prayer together before I leave. I could go on and on about the things he does for me every day... how he does all the laundry and helps keep on top of the house. How he calls and tells me he's grabbing dinner when he knows I've had a particularly stressful day. How he gives me my shots so I don't have to do it myself and how he rubs out my legs and massages my back when my body is aching after it. I am a very blessed woman and I know it. He is the most amazing man and I am so thankful for him.
I am also thankful for these two blessings. We often wonder how two kids we raised the same ended up so different, but the more I thought about it today, the more I realized how many things they have in common. They both care deeply for people and take their relationships very seriously. They would both give you the coats off their backs if it came down to it. They both have the most amazing sense of humor and make us laugh. They both have their dad wrapped around their little fingers!! And they both are terrible at keeping their rooms clean and laundry put away. However, I have the most incredible amount of love in my heart for them and I’m so grateful for the joy they bring in to my life each day.
One of my favorite things is when they both happen to get home at the same time, (even if it's late at night), and they come in our bedroom and camp out at the bottom of our bed chatting to us. The puppy usually comes in to and no matter how tired Mike and I are, we can't turn any of them away. I treasure the moments like that. It's when I am most reminded that the most important thing in my life is my family and that I want them to be mine for all eternity. I can get through anything knowing that I have them. I'm so thankful to have that amount of love.
“I, (Petra), having been born of goodly parents...” I am thankful for these two cute characters who are not only the best Mum and Dad, but are also Mike and I’s favorite people to hang out with. Whether it’s dinner or playing cards, the evening is always guaranteed to be filled with smiles, laughter and an Elvis singalong with Alexa.
The beginning of this year I was shocked to learn that my mum and dad were putting their beautiful home in Draper up for sale. I had always thought that it would be their forever home, but they both "felt" it was time to move. I was even more surprised when they started looking close to where we lived. We were absolutely thrilled at the idea of having them closer to us, but as I listened to them talk about it, I honestly wasn't sure why they were making this change because I wasn't convinced they wanted to leave their current home. They purchased an amazing home in Herriman around April of this year and as I watched the outpouring of love from their old ward as they prepared to move, I was still perplexed as to why they were coming to this side of the valley. They seemed to be giving up so much.
Then in June, while their new home was undergoing some renovations in preparation for them to move in, I received my MS diagnosis, and I finally, humbly understood. My mum and dad have always been the kind of people to listen to the Lord and follow his spirit no matter if it is what they actually want to do or not. I firmly believe that their promptings to sell their home and move over closer to us was the Lord blessing me in preparation for the things to come. Having them move just around the corner from us and knowing that that amount of love and support is just 5 minutes away has been the biggest blessing to us this year. They are the best kind of people with the biggest hearts.
This little sweetheart is such a blessing to me. Because of her, I'm never home alone. This may not seem a big deal to a lot of people, but the times I am home alone can be some of my toughest times since they are the times when I have no distraction from my thoughts or my symptoms. This little girl right here is very perceptive... I can't tell you how many times she comes and curls up right next to me on the bed or snuggles up and licks me to death when she can sense I'm struggling. She gives so much unconditional love and always brings me back to a positive reality.
I would be very ungrateful if I did not share how thankful I am for my testimony and my faith in my Savior Jesus Christ. At my most weak times, I have only to open my scriptures or fall to my knees to feel His love for me. Sometimes I feel like I can literally feel His arms around me comforting me. I am a physically and spiritually imperfect person... I make lots of mistakes, but I know He loves me anyway. He loves all of us unconditionally, no matter what our current circumstances and His hand is outstretched always to embrace us. He is the perfect example of pure love, and I am so thankful for the peace I feel through Him.
I am also truly grateful for modern day medicine and health care. If I had been diagnosed 20 years ago, things might be a lot different for me, and the progression of this disease might be quite more substantial. However, the strides they have made with medications and research these past 20 years have been significant. I spoke to my nurse, Brandee, yesterday about my biggest fears, and she reminded me of this simple blessing. I will have hurdles to overcome, but I'm getting amazing care and treatment and I feel very blessed for that. I have a good job with brilliant health benefits too.
This year, despite this pretty major change in my life that I am still trying to figure out, I have a lot of positive things to focus on. There truly are so many beautiful reasons to be...
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