Good morning world! After Dane’s 5:00 bottle I couldn’t go back to sleep so it’s an early start to this day and its still very quiet in my home with everyone asleep. I suppose if I was a coffee lover you might hear the sounds of a bubbling pot of coffee, but since I’m most definitely NOT a coffee fan the only sounds to hear for now are the chirping birds outside the window and the clicking of the keyboard as I type.

It’s Friday again so that means another week has come and gone. As I laid in bed for a bit  thinking about today’s post and praying on what it should be about the thought that kept coming to my mind is ‘thankful.’ I have SO much to be thankful for….

Thankful for my salvation. I can’t imagine living day to day without the Lord. I don’t know how so many people do it!

Thankful for my church and the truth that is taught and preached there. There’s nothing like a church family. The love of God’s people is wonderful!

Thankful for the Lord’s mercy and that each day is fresh with no mistakes in it. I fail daily at being all that I should be and yet He chooses to love me and use me anyway.

Thankful for my home. Its nothing extravagant or fancy. Its got a few dings in the walls and stains on the carpet. Most of the time there is a mess in every room. It’s not brand new any more and it is most definitely lived in, but it’s ours and I wouldn’t have it any other way because it’s home!

Thankful for all of my family. What more can I say there except that… but for the grace of God it could all be very different.

Thankful for all of you. The love, prayers, encouraging words, and financial support that you have given to help make our desire come true has been one of the greatest blessings in my life! I pray it never goes unsaid just how much it means to us! I’m thankful for the idea for this blog and what it has represented for more than a year and a half. Every time I think back to when we first started with nothing and then I see where we are now I am reminded again of God’s goodness. What once seemed impossible to us has instead become a miracle for us. I hope that every time you read another portion of “Our Story” you will not only see our hearts, but that mostly what you gain from it will be that we want God to get the glory through our home!

I’m thankful for Jonathan! While I don’t say it as often as I should… He is a wonderful husband. He works hard to provide for our home and I’m spoiled and blessed because most of the time he gives whatever I just ‘want’ too. 😉 I’m thankful for how he loves the Lord and wants to keep Him at the center of our home. I don’t have to worry to much about important decisions that have to be made because I know He faithfully seeks God’s will and trust Him for wisdom on how to lead our home. I’m thankful for what I see in him as a father. I know Dane and Kyeli are not our children, but when I see him with them I know that someday he will make an AWESOME Daddy to our own baby! I know he’s not perfect but he almost is 😉 and just in case you haven’t figured it out yet… (outside of the Lord) He is my world and I love him more than I could ever begin to tell!

I’m thankful for Dane and Kyeli! I believe with all my heart that their coming to stay with us has not only been for them, but has been for us as well. They have filled our home with SO much joy and I love the laughter that rings through these walls. Sure… its not always a bed of roses around here. Like Jonathan said last week.. there have been some tears shed, time outs and discipline given, and bumped noggins, but for every ‘owie’ there is a simple kiss that can seem to make it all better! After SO much waiting I’m finally starting to know what all we’ve been missing out on! Sure, I’m slightly sleep deprived, my feet must be getting tougher cause it doesn’t hurt quite as much when I step on match box cars or legos anymore. I learned a while back that making sure there is a bottle ready and waiting in the fridge for Dane before we go to bed is a smart decision because when you are suddenly awoken by screams of a hungry baby in the middle of the night your brain can’t think about the math for making a bottle. I’ve found myself still watching Dora or Barney 15 minutes after the kids are asleep. I know that most of the time ‘no’ means ‘yes’ and mick for Kyeli means chocolate milk. I’ve even figured out that while 9 month old Dane doesn’t care for his baby swing anymore, 2 year old Kyeli LOVES it, and will stay there very happily for the longest time! 😉

I’ve learned that while dishes in the sink, messy floors, piled laundry, dusty furniture and dirty bathrooms drive me NUTS, it will still be there tomorrow if I can’t get to it today, those things will keep, but special moments and memories made with these two precious babies don’t. Potty training, crawling, pulling-up, and teething victories can easily be missed.

Reading books, playing with Ky and her little kitchen, pushing trucks and cars (while making truck sounds is silly, it usually makes him laugh really big) around with Dane, playing  “This Little Piggy” and Singing “The Itsy Bitsy Spider,” just because bear hugs and night time kisses, sitting in 6″ of water in the kiddie pool, going for walks, giving horse back rides, bed time stories, and singing Jesus Loves Me. All these things…. are rare and priceless. If you have it…. Don’t miss out!

I’m SO thankful that the Lord has placed them in our home, and I hope that somehow, even though they are so small they can still know that they are loved so much. In just these few short months we have been given a precious glimpse of what it will be like someday when we have our own baby!

Will you help us reach that goal?