Happy New Year! 2017, Show Me What You've Got!

I had one of the sweetest afternoons that I've had in a while. It wasn't full of something out of the ordinary, exactly. It was just a moment of re-realization. I was sitting in the sunlight, reading in funny positions, trying to avoid getting a migraine from the amount of light coming in the windows combined with this virus that is holding on with a tight grip (yet losing). Occasionally, I'd close my eyes and just enjoy the warmth of the sun, something that doesn't often happen in the winter for me. The combination of less sunlight in the winter and busyness of my life often lead to very few moments of slowing down enough to just enjoy the simple things in life, like a sunbeam. As I sat there, listening to my children play in the snow outside (don't worry, I made them bundle up really well since they are still coughing), I thought about coffee. Coffee mugs, coffee spoons, lattes... you know, coffee. I enjoy coffee and I've missed it this week while I haven't drank any. Maybe in the place we spend eternity, maybe there is no coffee. Maybe there isn't coffee, mountains, rain on a metal rooftop, crashes of thunder following the awesome strikes of lighting, birthday celebrations, snow... sledding, snowball fights, snow angels. Maybe there won't be hiccups to laugh at, books to curl up and read, family gathering around a hamper to fold clothes and bicker about socks, vases to fill with wildflowers, dancing a dance you've never stepped foot in before. All these things can happen so quickly and almost become overwhelming along with all the noise of life... but if we do just stop, close our eyes, maybe block out the noise for a moment, we can remember to love, to smile, to embrace each moment. What if this is our only chance? Make a list of things you love and would miss if you couldn't ever enjoy, taste, feel, touch, hear, see, or smell again. It's fun! Do I expect eternity to be wonderful? Yes! Without a doubt, I have faith and believe, but I don't see any promises that my above list of things I love will be there. So, it's not exactly a resolution, but that is what I'm going to work on! I'm going to make an effort to slow down and "smell the roses" more this year. I'm going to continue to homeschool my kids the best to my ability, be there for my friends, renovate my house while living in it, and much more. But I also want to stop and close my eyes when the rain hits my metal roof, enjoy the sunbeams, laugh more, take more pictures, crack more nuts while thinking about my awesome grandma (she passed last month... she used to always have a bowl of nuts to crack and I'm taking up the tradition), play more board games with my kids before they leave home, write down memories, and slow my thoughts down while drinking my coffee and remember... I am blessed. No matter what comes and goes, I am blessed and at least I have this cup of coffee/tea, sunbeam, book in my hands, clean glass of water, or whatever the blessing is that I'm stopping to remember. We are all blessed! Cheers! Happy New Year!!! And just check out that last sunset of 2016!