Happy first day of May!

And, happy first day of our 31 days of gratitude journaling! I’ve been working on this for a month now. I began working on it when we were somewhere in the first few weeks of our quarantine, and I wanted to get it just right. (Fun fact: I use social media to post things all the time, but I rarely take the time to scroll through. I know, I know…) But, I did notice that when I did take the time to scroll through social media, when I received texts from my loved ones, when I paid attention to the articles I was reading online so many people are unhappy.

I get it. I do. I’m not always happy. Sometimes I’m downright cranky. Sometimes, I’m a raging bitch. But, at the end of the day, I don’t have many reasons not to feel good about my life and where I am, and those are the things that bring me back to my reality when I’m in a cranky mood (didn’t get enough sleep, I’m hangry, my monthly visitor is making me bloated, which automatically makes me cranky…etc.).

This whole life situation we are all living right now is weird, and that’s all right. It just took me a moment to realize that not everyone was happy to be home, and not everyone has spent their entire adult life working from home, and not everyone has spent the past four years sharing a home office with their spouse, so this is an extreme change for many. It just wasn’t for us, so we don’t relate to everyone whose entire lives have changed.

However, I’ve always found that gratitude is the answer. When I make the decision to appreciate life, it appreciates me back so much more so than I ever could have imagined. However, many people forget to be grateful. So, I wanted to take the time to create a challenge for all of us – 31 days of gratitude. I’m beginning with our day one prompt – and I hope you take note, write it down, and join me.

Gratitude Day One: What are you most grateful for in your life? (Choose just one thing)

Health. First and foremost above all else, I am grateful for good health in our lives. Above all else, I am so thankful that when we go to bed at night, it’s with healthy minds, bodies, and hearts. We are both healthy and vibrant, our kids are healthy and vibrant, and that’s all there is to it. I cannot tell you enough how incredibly thankful and grateful I am for this because I know all too well how it feels when good health is not part of your life.

After two miscarriages and a difficult pregnancy with our middle daughter, she was born with a hemangioma on her face that was thought – initially – to be cancerous. A biopsy showed otherwise, thank the Good Lord. She was thought to have Downs Syndrome when I was 20 weeks pregnant because of the echogenic intracardiac focus on her heart. Thankfully, our Good, Good Father had other plans for her. After a week in the NICU with one 3-pound twin who had respiratory issues at birth and her twin brother who ended up failing his hearing tests and being diagnosed as partially deaf in both ears at 6 weeks old, I get it. That same little man suffered a grand mal seizure when he was just shy of his 5^th birthday for no reason at all – we still don’t know what caused it even after every test in the world and four days in the hospital.

I am so, so thankful and grateful each day for good health. It’s the one thing I thank God for each and every single day. Without good health, I wouldn’t have this sweet family to love. I am so grateful for this.