Counting Blessings

I've just fed the babies, and all the kids are sleeping, and even though I should be in bed as well, I thought I would take advantage of a few quiet moments to share a few thoughts.
One of our Thanksgiving traditions is to go around the table and share three things we are thankful for. Since Thursday, well even before that actually, I have been thinking about my blessings quite a bit, and have felt like I truly have quite a lot to be thankful for. So, I thought I would share a few of my blessings.

I'm Thankful for....

A sweet little princess. She's my only one, and my saving grace. Just before the babies were born, she got to spend a few days in Disneyland with my parents. She had so much fun and of course had to see all the princesses. She saw so many, she even poses like them now!

2 little "Things". They are hilarious and busy, and like to try my patience, but they keep life fun and interesting. I really don't think we could have found more perfect costumes this year. They wear them all the time, calling each other "Thing 1" and "Thing 2" as they run around the house.

2 little Rock Stars. They were still in the hospital for Halloween, and my friend sent me these two awesome hats that worked perfectly for their costume. (Thank you, Michelle!) All the nurses got a kick out of them. They came home a week later on Nov. 7, six weeks after they were born. It's been 3 weeks since we've had them home and our new life began. They are growing bigger and bigger each day and are now both about 8 pounds - regular baby size! Carter is now off his oxygen, and hopefully within the next week Taylor will be off of his as well. It's amazing how small a house can get, or how noisy, in such a short time. We are finally starting to settle into somewhat of a routine and figuring out how we are going to manage 5. Ok, the 6 year old is easy, a little bit of a drama queen at times, but manageable, the babies still just hang out most of the time, it's the busy 4 year olds I'm worried about.

Family. My mom has been here since I went into the hospital and just left yesterday. It has been so incredible having her here. She has been our taxi, our nanny, our dishwasher, and more! Mike's parents have also been so wonderful. They have come down from Colorado Springs almost once a week, more at times, when we've needed some extra hands. Mike is also taking time off work right now to spend at home with the family. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do once I have to run through the daily routine all on my own. I'm sure I'll forget Sam's lunch a few times, the boys might go to school in interesting outfits they come up with themselves, and the babies will hang out in their jammies all day , but we will survive and figure things out.

My sweet husband. I can't even begin to say how amazing Mike has been! He helps me feed the babies at night so I can get some sleep. He helps clean the house, and gets the other 3 kids where they need to go when I need some help. Having him home has been such a huge blessing. He is such an active, involved father with all of our children. I am especially grateful that he holds the priesthood. Throughout my pregnancy he gave me beautiful blessings of peace and comfort, and blessed our boys with health and strength while they were in the hospital. On Friday, we were able to bless the boys at home. He gave each of them such sweet blessings. Mike's father and brother, and my father were able to participate in the blessings and it was such a sweet moment for our family. My boys are so lucky to have him to look up to as they grow. With his example, I know they will become great men someday.

Holidays. I love this time of year when we take a second to think about the blessings and joys in our lives. I love that we get together with family and friends and share how much they mean to us. My dad drove up from Texas to spend Thanksgiving with us. It was the first time he had seen our new little boys, and the first time he'd seen my mother in 2 months. As we sat down to dinner and I looked around the table, I was so happy to have so many that I loved around me. My parents were there, as well as Mike's parents, my husband, and my children. It was fun to see what my children would say they were thankful for when their turn came. As they expressed their gratitude for others and unselfish things, I had a momentary feeling of success - I guess we are doing something right. Our life has definitely taken a turn we didn't anticipate, and having 5 kids in 6 years was definitely not in our plans. But, we are so thankful for each and every one of them - even at 3 in the morning! They are only little once, and this is such a magical time for them. I'm so blessed to be able to share this with them.