"Blessings" Part I - Family

I know the word "blessings" has become a word that is cliched, overused, or just a typical everyday word, but I feel that it is THE WORD to describe my feelings right now. I am going through a "pondering," or self evaluation process right now where different situations or words spoken by others really make me think. So as a step in journaling (since typing is faster than writing for me) and a way to express gratitude to others I felt inclined to blog. Read it if you wish.

First off, I went to breakfast with a FABULOUS friend on Saturday. We always have a great time talking, sometimes I feel like I talk her ears off, other times she says the same. . . all in all I am grateful to have her in my life (see next post)! We got talking about families and she said something like, "it seems from what you have said that your family is a cute, Mormon family who loves each other and gets along really well." This sparked many emotions and thoughts within me.

I was able to express to her that, yes, we are close and, yes, it is hard to be away. But I feel as though being away from it all has made me appreciate them even more. I started to go into detail about my family members and their qualities. I have never been good at describing people, especially those I am close to. I wish I could. I think people are so much deeper than a couple words could describe. I also talked about my Mom and Dad and how they raised us to support one another like to go sporting events and dance recitals (I give kudos to my Dad I think he has been to more dance recitals and cheer events, with 4 girls than any Dad out there. And he is always the proud father in the aisle filming it!) and we love taking time to be together such as Sunday evenings and vacations.

Growing up I didn't realize the closeness we had, it was just what is was and all that I ever knew. Now being older, I am seeing different family lives', relationships, and characteristics and it has made me look back and see my family through a different lens. Later Saturday, I was able to take a walk in the rain and ponder some of these thoughts. It was then when I felt so many emotions and so much gratitude that I felt I needed to express.

I love my family!! (Really all my family, Dave and Anna, my biological family and my in laws, I am VERY "blessed.)"

MY BIOLOGICAL FAMILY...We truly have a great time together. We are a family that loves to laugh, we sit around the dinner table for hours after a meal just talking, laughing or what not. We love to vacation together. This is something I truly appreciate. It isn't so much where we go (though we have been able to explore many cool places), but it is a time for us to escape the real world and just have fun together or be "stuck" together to make memories. I am grateful my parents made this a big focus and choose to spend money on experiences rather than things. I hope Dave and I can continue on that path.

I also love that we can all be ourselves. We can be honest, dumb (yes that category fits well with a few of us... can I say Heidisms?), serious, faithful, and loving. We ache for one another during hard times, we cheer one another on, and pray for one another.

I am thankful we grew up with the gospel of Jesus Christ (http://www.lds.org/) in our home. I am grateful we had prayer with one another and that my father has always been a worthy Priesthood holder. I heard recently from a colleague that she has never heard a man pray in her home. It made me realize how lucky I am and how I have taken it for granted. The knowledge of my Savior and the other aspects of the gospel have made me who I am today and kept me a happier, healthier, and more loving person. I am thankful to my family for their constant examples and faith. I am especially grateful to my Mom who went to church on her own her whole childhood and stuck to her faith and beliefs despite the home life she had. And I am grateful for my Dad's humility, quiet example, and dedication he truly is a Christ like example on earth.

I am grateful that I am realizing more and more how amazing each person is and thankful for the relationship I have with them. Though I am not able to be with them physically I am grateful I know that we will always be close.

Another family I am grateful for is my IN LAWS. The Miners AND the Storheims. I married into a unique and amazing family. Each side has been through many struggles, but have come together so well. To summarize: Dave's mother died when he was 14 of heart problems and his Dad married his step mother, JoAnn, a few years later. JoAnn divorced her husband when her boys were young and raised the four of them. Dave is the youngest and was one of three or four that were home when JoAnn and Paul married. So blending the family at a time when hearts were still healing and teenagers were growing up and other sibs were married and out of the home was probably difficult. However the family has come together thanks to the amazing efforts of everyone, but I accredit much of it to JoAnn. It is a huge family: 8 kids and their spouses with 20 grandchildren, that gets to be a lot to plan for and get together. We all love it though. We try to do dinner once a month and get away on a vacation ALL TOGETHER every other year. It is the BEST circus ever. The Miners also do their own things like going to the cabin together, out to dinner, have new years eve parties, etc. and the Storheims have their own traditions as well. It works out.

I am thankful I have the relationships I have with each of them. I can be myself, have lots to talk about, we laugh... alot! (Especially at the cabin and/or when we share kid stories), we support one another and just enjoy being together. Though I know it was a bumpy road for a while and most of the family members grieved privately, It is amazing to see how the family can heal from tragedies and come together.

Last but not least, I am grateful for my OWN family. Dave and I hit it off in high school. We instantly became best friends. We never argued and still to this day don't have a lot of disagreements. We would finish each other's sentences and thoughts. We shared a lot of personal experiences within months of dating, we had fun and loved to explore together, we were kind to one another's needs, we have the same humor (though Dave is a lot quicker), we enjoy a lot of the same things, and we root for the same color (and in our homes that was important! (: )

Writing during Dave's LDS Mission to Veracruz, Mexico brought us close on a different level. We shared thoughts and testimony, prayed for one another, and had our own personal experiences that shaped who we are. And we realized we didn't like living without one another.

To this day we have such a great time together and whole- heartedly support one another. We love to talk and there never seems to be a dull moment. (Especially when you are married to a man like Dave. (: ) We talk about everything and share our daily thoughts and activities. It is wonderful to have a relationship like we have and I am VERY thankful for it.

Being parents has brought a different dimension to our lives. We still have our talks and moments, but also share the immense amount of JOY that we feel for Anna. We laugh together, bounce ideas off one another and try to take turns with responsibility. I love being a mom and feel so blessed to have the family life I have.

Family blessings are incredible and I feel "blessed" to have what I do!

Now I want to post on friends....