Gratitude

I totally skipped over Thanksgiving without posting and now it's nearly Christmas. I wanted to make sure I posted at least once more before the year ended.

Do you read this magazine?

A couple years ago I decided I would try to read this magazine every month. I also started reading the Friend magazine every month because I used to be in the Primary Presidency, now I read it because I have a baby boy. Anyway, reading the Ensign every month has been a real blessing for me. I came to find that no matter what I was struggling with, there was an article in there that helped me, gave me direction, or gave me peace. It is a wonderful thing that our church provides and I recommend getting a subscription, and then actually reading it when it comes - and not just the Presidency or Visiting Teaching message. I make it a point to read this magazine first, before I browse other magazines I receive.

In this month's issue the Presidency Message was about choosing to be grateful and was written by Henry B. Eyring. One quote I liked:

"It is a challenge to count our blessings because we have a tendency to take good things for granted. When we lose a roof over our heads, food to eat, or the warmth of friends and family, we realize how grateful we should have been when we had them."

I am so guilty of this. I am not grateful enough for the things I have. I am constantly looking for something else to make me happy instead of being happy with the things I have now. I tell myself things like, "I'll be happy when I lose the baby weight." or "I'll be happy when Jonathan finds a better job." or "I'll be happy when Junior starts sleeping for ten hours straight" (does that ever happen?!)

I am never saying to myself "I'm happy right now." This means that I am rarely truly happy and satisfied. That's not to say that I sit around being grumpy all the time, but I just find myself constantly thinking about things I want instead of just being happy with what I have. I remember times when I have felt that kind of happiness, but for some reason the older I get the less satisfied I am with my life. Why is that? I'm working on figuring that out and I'm working on being more grateful for the things I have. So, as part of the battle I'm going to talk about a couple of things that make me truly happy and that I am grateful for.

1. My Savior - Jesus Christ

I couldn't do a post about gratitude without including Jesus Christ. I love this time of year because I'm reminded of Christ in almost everything. I love listening to music that talks about his birth. I love hearing stories of Christ and reflecting on his life and his atonement. I am truly thankful for his miraculous birth and his perfect example. I would be nothing without his atonement. I am thankful for his love for me, for his willingness to give his life to save mine.

2. My husband - Jonathan.

He is wonderful. I'm so thankful to be his eternal companion. I'm thankful that, even though I have to go to work four days a week, he is home with our son taking care of him and being a great dad. It makes me so happy to hear him talk to our son in the morning. And to see Junior smiling huge for his daddy. It makes me so happy to see how happy Jonathan is to be a dad, he really loves our son and he's just wonderful with him. And I'm thankful that he can cook and clean and be a great support for me.

3. My son - Junior

He's such a good baby. He's super happy and smiley. He sleeps pretty good, about 6-7 hours a night at a time, then another 2-3 after being fed. He makes me so happy and it's hard to leave him and go to work, but it's wonderful to come home to such a sweet boy. After waiting so long to have a baby I feel like I hit the jackpot with him and I feel so lucky to be his mom. It's fun to watch him grow and develop and I can't wait to see what kind of a person he turns out to be.

There are many, many more things I am grateful for, but I know that as I focus on these three things I will have no want for anything else.

Since I'm not that great at posting, I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Loves!
Karen