Today I was cleaning the house and paused a bit when I picked up these lil’ German figurines. Memories just came flooding back. These belonged to Michael’s great aunt, Emma, who passed way this past year at the age of 100. When we would go to Emma’s house, Lily would go straight to the coffee table and start playing with these figurines. She was just fascinated with this boy and girl as a baby. I would try to get her to stop playing with them as I was afraid she’d break them and I knew that they are quite old. Emma would always tell me that it was OK. If they broke, it wasn’t a big deal. “They’re just material things,” Emma would say with a shrug. Emma was such a wonderful and kind lady and I learned a lot from her.  I’m so thankful that these figurines were passed down to Lily. They may be worn and old, but that’s what makes them so perfect. I don’t know the full story behind these, but they are quite sentimental to my family. Such a beautiful thing!

Every week I make 1-2 loaves of homemade bread. Nothing beats the taste of bread straight out of the oven! Growing up, my mom used to make bread on a regular basis and I carried on the tradition once I moved out on my own. I don’t make a big flour mess like I used to as a little girl (although my daughter does) and I now experiment with different recipes. I guess you could say that my bread making skills have matured along with me. It’s just one of those lil’ things that brings me so much joy and for that…I’m thankful!

Today I’m so thankful for modern medicine! My lil’ girl, Lily, came down with a temperature of 104.3 degrees and so off to the doctor we went. Thankfully she doesn’t have anything major, just a nasty ear infection that was causing her the peak of temps. Like her mommy, Lily’s allergic to some medicine, but at least there we have options and access to meds that brought down her temperature and is helping her ear infection as well. I hate seeing my baby sick. Makes me feel so helpless. Fortunately lots of hugs, kisses, cuddle time, liquids, cool baths and medicine is helping cure my lil’ one.

Shortly after Michael proposed to me, I received a book from some dear friends that I still cherish to this day. “Living Happily Ever After” is a book that sits on our sofa table and I like to read from time-to-time. The book features couples that share their stories of love. Some of the stories make me cry, but they all make me smile and appreciate the relationship that I have with my husband and our own love story. I’m so thankful that these couples have shared their stories and I really look up to them even though we’ve never met and I don’t know them personally. They have all had their ups and downs, but their love is everlasting and real. I find myself studying the pictures in the book  and I see the love in their eyes and body language is the same, if not stronger, now in their older age just as it was when they were younger . It’s so reassuring to know that love really can endure all. Michael and I always say that we can’t wait to grow old together and this book makes me look forward to our journey even more. I know that we’ll change in so many ways and we certainly won’t look the same, but I know that I will always recognize those eyes and I will always hold his hand and enjoy the simple things in life with him. Thank you so much Mark and Theresa for gifting me this book so many years ago. You have no idea how much this book means to me!