Blessings

Not too much has happened this week. It's amazing how much you just stay at home when you have 2 little ones who nap at different times. This week I have been feeling very blessed. I have been following the example of Elder Henry B. Erying (a leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). He gave a talk in General Conference almost a year ago now, entitled O Remember, Remember. In that talk he mentions that every day he writes down how he had seen the hand of the God blessing his family. I have been doing that for over 6 months now. I'm amazed at how God helps me with even tiny things. Writing these blessings down everyday has helped me gain a greater testimony of the love our Father in Heaven has for us. He knows us. He watches out for us, and most importantly, He sends help when we need it.
One of the blessings I've received this week is help at the grocery store. I was carting around 2 little girls (11 months and 4 months). Clara was in the cart, while I was carrying Addi in the baby bijorn. I hadn't gone grocery shopping in about 2 weeks, so there was a lot of needed items to get. By the time I was in the check out line, I had Clara crying because it was her nap time. Addi had fallen asleep, but she was getting heavy, and Clara was pulling on her so that I would put Addi down and pick her up. All of this was going on while I was trying to unload the cart. I'm sure those with more than 2 kids are laughing, because I would imagine trips to the grocery store get worse as you add a kid. Anyway, at the end of the line, the bagger asked if I wanted help out. That usually doesn't happen anymore, and I about started crying tears of gratitude right there in the store. I accepted his offer, and I was able to get the girls buckled up while he put in the groceries. I felt so grateful for that bagger.
Another blessing I received this week was the gift of going to the temple. My wonderful friend Aubrey left her busy schedule last Saturday and came to babysit Clara for 3 hours while Jeremy and I went to the temple. I love going to the temple. It gives me the rejuvenation I need when I am feeling worn out. I came home wonderfully happy with life and my little family. Thanks Aubs for being willing to watch our little Clara for us!
Another blessing this week is a wonderful husband. Jeremy is a wonderful husband all the time, but one day this week I was feeling particularly down. I am realizing that I still haven't lost any of the weight I put on during pregnancy and Clara will almost be a year old. I was getting frustrated with myself for not being able to fit into very many of the pants that I own. I was near tears all day. At one point Jeremy, out of the blue, told me I was beautiful. I again broke down in tears of gratitude. I am so grateful for a husband who sees my inner beauty (and my outer beauty) and not the pounds or stretch marks I've gained. I am so lucky to have Jeremy as my husband.
Of course another blessing for today is a wonderful little girl. Every time she smiles at me, she makes me happy. My life would not be fulfilled without her.Something she has learned how to do is undo the Velcro on her shoes. She doesn't know how to take her shoes off yet, but she loves to play with the Velcro on them. However, that means that the shoes fall off as she crawls around. As you notice in the above picture, Clara has one shoe off and one shoe on, but is still loving life. One of her favorite things to do now is push her swing. This is what she was doing when I grabbed the camera. But she loves the camera too much to keep doing what I want to take a picture of. Oh well.