Thankful

I don't know if it is just this time of year, or this year in particular, but I have been so thankful and grateful for everything in our lives the last few weeks. Brooklyn has remained healthy this whole month! Yay!! I kept telling her that we didn't want her to get sick because we didn't want to be in the hospital for Christmas. I know that the nurses and doctors would've made it special for us, but we reeeeaaally didn't want to be there for the holiday. It was a bit hard to get stuff done because I didn't want to take her to any stores and expose her to more germs than normal and potentially have her get sick, so I would go out after Mike got home or he would pick stuff up for me when we needed something. It was definitely less chaotic than it normally is for us during this busy season, but it was so good. I told Mike that I felt so much less stressed than I normally do, and I don't know if we were just more on top of things with decorating and buying presents, or if we just realized that we need to slow down this year to keep Brooklyn (as well as the rest of us) healthy and so that helped us feel less pressure. It has been a great break from school too. The kids have gotten to play with some of their friends, and have had more than one day where they stayed in pj's all day - which they loooved! It was hysterical one day when we went to the park because we have been trying to keep Brooklyn away from germs as much as possible and right before we left to go home (because it was getting really cold outside and starting to get dark) I turn to look at Brooklyn and she has gotten her entire head wet from the drinking fountain. Ugh!! I'm thinking- she is going to make herself sick!! She got dried off once we got home and stayed healthy so we were thankful for that. We even got to go to church on Christmas Eve. I sat in the cry room with Brooklyn and Kelsey and my mom because we didn't want Brookie to be in the church with so many people. She wanted to go out with everyone else, but we managed to stay in the room and it was a wonderful service. We always do a lot of fun things with my family at my aunt and uncle's house so we all headed up there for a fun Christmas Eve and got home pretty late, but it was a really great night. Christmas day was magical. Brooklyn was the most excited that Santa had come during the night. All of the kids were thrilled, but her big blue eyes lit up when she came down the stairs and saw the presents all under the tree. She said, "Tanta came, Tanta came!" We don't keep any presents under the tree before Christmas because she is pretty sure that she should open anything that she sees as soon as she sees it, whether it's for her or not! We had a wonderful day after opening all the gifts and got to just relax, go on a walk, even watch a movie. It was great to just get to enjoy the day all together and rest. Tuesday we left and drove down to Mike's parents' house in southern California. It was a long drive, and we got stuck in traffic a few times, and Braden got carsick, so that wasn't fun, but other than that, pretty uneventful. :) It is so good to be here and visit with the Frank family. Mike's mom is done with her chemo but is still going through other treatments and isn't feeling great, so we brought 4 bundles of fun to keep her on her toes! We have spent time with Mike's brothers and cousins and aunt and uncle too so it has really been great. We haven't been able to come down here for quite some time because of all of Brooklyn's treatments and school and sports for the kids, so it is fun to be here. This weekend we are going to spend with friends from college that we always get together with for New Year's. It will be super fun and super crazy, 5 couples and 14 kids all in one house together. But we rented a big house, so there is room for everybody! Mike was really nervous about coming down because he was worried about what we would do if Brooklyn gets sick when we are away from home. This is the farthest we have traveled with her since January. We know that we will figure it all out though and continue to pray that she stays healthy throughout the trip. 2011 has definitely not been our favorite year. However, throughout all we have experienced, we have learned to be thankful for just everyday things that you normally don't think about. I am thankful every day for our four amazing kids. I am thankful for our wonderfully supportive parents. I am thankful every night when I go in to check on the kids and Brooklyn doesn't have a fever. I am thankful for Mike's job. I am thankful that we have a strong marriage. I am thankful for the support we have received from all of our amazing friends. I am thankful for all the research that has been done to find a cure for this disease. I am thankful for Jesus coming to earth for all of us. There is so much we have learned this year, but more than anything, we have learned how important it is to enjoy every day and to be thankful for all that God has blessed us with in this life.