Grateful

The older I get, the more I realize how truly blessed I am. I have SO much to be thankful for and yet I rarely stop and thank God for blessing me. There are so many hurting people/families in my "sphere of influence" and I'm ashamed to admit how little I pray for them. Of all the children I am with every day, I would honestly say that less than half live with both parents. Even worse, many are dealing with divorce, separation, etc. It's so important to be extra patient and forgiving with these kids, but also hard because usually they are the misbehaving children.

With that being said, some mornings I wake up and really don't want to go to work. I'm exhausted even before the day begins just thinking of all the battles I will fight that day. I look around our apartment and wish I could just stay in for the day. I kiss Jesse goodbye and would give anything to crawl back into bed. But, I grab my things and head out the door.

But this morning, as I was unloading the kids out of their cars, I thought to myself, "Why do I complain every morning about this?" I don't have an answer because I truly love my job. I love that the kids are so happy to see me, tell me they love me, give me endless hugs, etc. Does it pay well? Not really. Is it tiring? Extremely. Is it important? Not to most people. Do I want to pull my hair out? Daily. :) But yet I love it. And I know how fortunate I am because not many people love their jobs.

But beyond work, I have the most wonderful families I could ever ask for. I have a loving, thoughtful and sensitive husband whom I love more every day. I have amazing friends, old and new. And most importantly, I have a Savior who loves me unconditionally and died on the cross for me.

Grateful doesn't even scratch the surface.