Thankful

Thankful 

So, it has been a few days written and I’ve had several ideas for different blog entries come to mind since my last entry. (We’ve been so busy I haven’t had a chance to write anything down.) Well the idea for this entry came to me tonight on my way home from campus. I want to take a moment to write about being thankful for my change of heart.

Three years ago this past Thursday, Andy and I were married. When we were first married we felt that we would be in Rome for the next two years tops. So in the first two years we got somewhat involved but still kept our sights on moving away. However, in the last year things have changed in more ways than one. We’ve become involved with different ministries at our church and the people there. We decided to start a family and welcomed AG in January. Andy was given the chance to coach two teams this past fall. We’ve put countless hours of work in to our house. We decided that I could stay home full time. We got involved with our local elections this past fall. And as we’ve done each of these things over this last year I would stop and wonder why we wanted to leave Rome? Why were we so set on leaving town? The longer we stay the more I never want to leave.

These are some of the things that I love about our life. I love the fact that we live so close to Berry. I love the fact that when I’ve had a long day I can retreat to the campus that I’ve loved since I was a little girl because somewhere in those 28,000 acres my soul finds rest. I love the fact that we are involved with college students and that we have the opportunity to watch them grow and change over their four years here. I love the fact that these students are now involved with my child’s life. I can’t wait to explore campus all over again through the eyes of my child. I love the fact that we know who AG’s kindergarten teacher will be. The teacher in me eagerly waits for AG’s first day of kindergarten because I know that it will be one of the best days of his life! (And it will be one of his best years of school.) I love the fact that each of the women in my bible study have some tie to Berry and our stories over lap in more ways than one. I love the fact that AG will have so many wonderful friends to grow up with. I love the fact that living in this small town has given Andy the opportunity to be a head soccer coach for three years now. I love the fact that we didn’t just vote for our elected officials this past fall…we know them. We worked and campaigned for them. I love that we’ve built incredible relationships with people. I love the fact that Samson gets groomed just down the street and that his groomer really cares about him. She appreciates Samson and loves to laugh with us when we tell her about his latest adventure.  I love the fact that through my horrible sciatica, during my pregnancy, my physical therapist became one of my close friends. I love that we can get from one side of town to the other in less than 20 minutes. I love that with each day that passes I’m so glad we stayed in Rome. I’m so grateful that my heart is happy and content with the life our family has here.