Thankful x 3

So Thanksgiving is tomorrow and like the rest of the country is doing (or should be doing :), I've been thinking a lot about thankfulness...

...Especially in light of the new addition coming to our family Spring 2011.


Many of you probably don't know that there were several years that Jason and I wondered if we'd ever have children. Growing up, it's one of those things you assume....You know, you get married and have kids (though sometimes not in that order) - but none-the-less, it's something I assumed...blindly assumed.

Three years after throwing out the pill with no baby to show for it, we decided to see a specialist who gave us hope and a very calculated plan -but three months and several painful procedures later - nothing.

They gave us the option of me having surgery (which insurance covered, but required 6 weeks of down time) or starting a "shot" regimen (which was $1,000+ a month that insurance didn't cover).

We decided to take a month off to pray - believing God had a purpose and plan for our lives, but truly having no idea what it was!

It was that month off that Julia, our sweet miracle, came to be.

The years before she came into our lives, I felt tested like I've never been tested before. I knew God knew our heart's desire, but His silence to it was confusing. Yet it was in that silence I found myself desparate to know Him more. If He was going to be quiet, I wasn't. I grew more as a Believer and a person more in those years than I had ever before.

During this time, I had to learn how to be thankful despite not getting my way - something I had never really had to do and a lesson I have tried to apply in every dark circumstance I've encountered since...."Give thanks in everything" took on a whole new meaning and was not something that came easily to me, but I knew it was a place I needed to be and I got there....after a lot of kicking and screaming and reflection and truth-searching.

So here I am sitting 6 years since seeing those beautiful pink lines telling me God finally said "yes!" and I am overwhelmed to the point of it almost being unthinkable that we will be a family of 5. I am grateful beyond measure for the gifts in my life. Even on the hardest days, I go to bed smiling amazed at God's goodness to me and my family.

I share this story to share my belief in God's faithfulness, not to broadcast how blessed I think I am...I know many people still waiting for their "Yes!" - and I hope my story brings you hope and confidence in what God is doing in your life....

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving and I trust this season you, too, find yourself thankful for everything He sends your way....