So here's a few things I find myself reflecting on today.
1. You can't put a price tag on family. Ok, so I already knew this prior to this year, but the role our entire family has played in our life this year has been huge! From prayers, to encouragement, to countless babysitting - they have picked up our falling pieces several times this year. I am certain this year would have been disastrous without all of them. Our big dysfunctional family has been quite functional!
2. Things change and only you can decide how you deal with those "things". As most of you know, we were blessed to have a year and a half of no seizures with Maddie. That year and a half was absolutely wonderful! Well that changed. And seizures came back. Along with those seizures came heartbreak. Once we knew they were back we had to either decide to sit in the darkness of our pain, or stand up and continue our journey. It's never easy to do, but with prayers and the promise God gives us, it is possible. (Matthew 19:26)
3. Being a SAHM isn't as glamorous as I once believed. I keep telling myself tomorrow my house will be clean. By next week the laundry will be caught up. After Maddie's birthday I will declutter. At nap time I will find that "pin" and workout. One day I will look presentable for more than just the days we have appointments. The list goes on. Well you guessed it... I'm still not there. Truth is this job is hard! My house and body may carry more clutter and junk than ever before, but my heart is full of nothing but love, joy and lots of coffee. Being a SAHM is a blessing that I cherish, even on the days of full blown tantrums.
4. Dream bigger than big. I am NOT a "real writer". I am sure many of you cringe at my grammar and style, or lack thereof. I simply write down what's going through my heart and mind. Maddie's diagnosis brought this on. So one day I was talking to Chris and told him it was a dream of mine to one day be published, specifically on The Huffington Post. I realized I would need to take some writing classes and it would take years of working towards that goal. I would definitely need to work on my poor excuse of a blog. Wouldn't you know 2 weeks later I was contacted by Huffington Post?? Yes, big big shock! I still often think they got it all wrong! How and why did they pick me? I still don't know. But I am thankful and I hope God will use me to bring hope and encouragement to others. I also pray that somehow the awareness brought to TSC will make a difference. I think sometimes we set our goals lower than we should just so we don't get disappointed. I have definitely learned that setting BIG goals is imperative to our growth.
Those are just a few... I could go on, but I don't want to bore you :)
I can't wait for the new year! There are so many things I am looking forward to! I am so excited to see the new TS Alliance of Oklahoma in action. I have high hopes for our group and I'm so thankful to see this come to fruition. I am also very hopeful that Maddie will find seizure freedom in 2015. I am praying that God will continue to give us guidance in her medical care. We will also be moving into our new home pretty soon after the new year. Big things happening in 2015!
Happy New Year friends! Thanks for following our family in our journey. Cheers and see you in 2015!
Love always,
Heather
