I Am Grateful For a Messy Kitchen

It has been a fast but fun week around here. How has yours been? These are the five things I am grateful for these past couple weeks.

1. Christmas

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. Though I love receiving gifts that is not the reason it is my favorite. I love Christmas because it reminds me of all Jesus did to save us all. He left the glory of heaven to come as a baby. When Jesus was born, the hope of eternal life was made real. I love celebrating the day of His birth! One of our traditions is having a birthday cake for Jesus to remind us that Jesus is the reason for the season.

2. Trip to Pennsylvania

The Tuesday after Christmas we headed out to Pennsylvania to visit with family. Jonathan’s parents and two sisters live in PA. The travels out and back were great. The kids did amazing! (It gets easier as they get older.) We enjoyed 3 full days with family and friends. It was so great to catch up and create lots of fun memories. On our way home, we stopped to see my Mom. It was great to see her and my stepsister Katie.

3. New Year’s Day Traditions

The New Year has begun! I love the fresh start and possibilities the New Year holds. One of our New Year’s Day traditions is to go out to dinner. This year we enjoyed going out to Texas Road House. The kids loved the peanuts and rolls. We did an earlier dinner and I am so glad we did. It was packed in there when we left with lots of families waiting to get in.

Another tradition for New Year’s Day is to trace the kid’s hands. Jonathan and I choose verses to pray over them each day of the year. We ask God to direct us to verses that help shape their individual character. I shared about the process in this post called “Praying Scripture Over Your Children.” Here is a picture of the kid’s verses for 2017.

4. My Messy Kitchen

You are probably wondering why I am thankful for my messy kitchen. I am thankful for it because it helped me to have a perspective shift. When I walked into the kitchen on Monday morning, I instantly felt defeated. I was also already tired and the thought of tackling the kitchen made me feel more tired. I prayed and asked the Holy Spirit for help. He showed me that I don’t have to let the messy kitchen define my day. I could instead decide to choose Jesus and His peace. It was refreshing to change my perspective. The day went so much better because of choosing peace.

5. MOPS Group Breakfast

Yesterday, my MOPS mentor Mom hosted a breakfast for our table. We came in our PJs or comfy clothes. It was great to see everyone and hear about their Christmas break. It was also great to just hang out and let our kids play together. I loved observing each Mom interact with their own kids. They are all amazing Moms who are doing an incredible job. My prayer is that they will continue to press on even when the days get long and realize what an impact they are making. It was a blessing to connect with Jan, our mentor Mom. The stories she shared about her grown kids and their families were inspiring as they are all thriving. Jan has poured so much into her kids. There is so much I can learn from Jan. I am so grateful and honored to be at her table this year!

I hope you enjoyed reading about the five things I am grateful for this past couple of weeks. It was fun writing about it all. How about you? What are you grateful for this week? I would love to hear about your week. Please share in the comments below. Have a great weekend!