Happy Thanksgiving!

It's taken me a few days to actually get up the courage to write this post and then it took me another two days to actually get the words out.  I've always loved Thanksgiving; I mean, what's not to love about eating tons of yummy food, not having to work or go to school for a few days, watching the parade and football to your hearts content, maybe doing some shopping, and spending time with family and friends?!  It's a fantastic holiday!  But I've never spent as much time as I have in the past week thinking about what Thanksgiving truly means: giving thanks, gratitude, and appreciation to God for the relationships and everything we have been blessed with over the past year.  Had this been a "normal" Thanksgiving for us, I would have been singing God's praises for blessing Bill and I with the ability to conceive a baby and for giving us a strong, healthy baby boy.  But Thanksgiving takes on a whole new meaning when your life has been turned upside and it's hard to find anything to be thankful for.

But....in the spirit of trying to be positive for my little guy and looking on the bright side, I've put together a little list of all the things I am thankful for this year:

1. My little angel, Stephen.
2. My amazing husband.  Without him, I wouldn't make it through the day.
3. My parent's and my in-laws and everything they have done for us.
4. My sister, who faithfully calls and checks on me every day and her husband, Kevin who came to visit for a weekend.
5. That everyone is healthy this year!!!!!!
6. For our amazing friends (old and new) who have been praying for us every day, giving us tons of support, and who have connected us with some fantastic doctors across the country.
7. Each and every single move Stephen makes in my belly that lets me know he's still alive.
8. My job
9. Good health insurance
10. My little girl Mabel.  She knows just when to cuddle up next to me on the couch when I'm feeling down.
11. Living in an area with excellent health care resources
12. My little niece Chloe and her one kidney.  Because of her one kidney, we had another sonogram at 27 weeks an found out about Stephen's kidneys.
13. All of the compassionate doctors and nurses we've met
14. The patience that everyone has had with me over the past couple of weeks. 
15. Being able to spend Thanksgiving with those that I love the most in this world and thinking about those who with their families and friends

I know this is a day early, but since I probably won't get a chance to post tomorrow, I just want to wish everyone a happy and healthy Thanksgiving and I hope that you're able to spend the day surrounded by family or friends celebrating all the things you're also thankful for this year.  And of course stuffing yourself with tons of turkey and sweet treats!!!

Much love,
Linds