HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

I cannot believe another year has come and gone. Our New Year's Eve was very uneventful. We made a sparkler run, picked up takeout, and went home and played, just the 3 of us. Sadly, when we went outside to light our sparklers, I couldn't get my camera to work. All I wanted was one picture of Kate and Scott with the sparklers. I kept saying, "I don't know why it won't work!" Well, I finally figured out that the battery had gone dead!!!!! (I resolve in 2008 to do a better job of keeping a watchful eye on that battery situation!) We didn't use all of our sparklers, so maybe one night this week, we'll "recreate" the sparkler scene!!

As today marks a new year and new adventure, I am reminded of the many undeserved blessings God has bestowed upon me. Normally, I spend the beginning of the New Year making resolutions, that sometimes fall by the wayside (on January 2nd!!), but this year I am more aware of all of the wonderful things already happening in my life. I am most thankful for my Saviour who is always there when I need him (and even when I don't even know I do) and for the forgiveness he granted to us all by shedding his blood on the cross. To say that I am thankful for the blessings of Scott and Kate and our immediate and extended family would be an understatement to say the least. To my closest friends, Bunko Buddies, teaching partners, and church friends, I am grateful for your continued friendship. To Kate's babysitter, I cannot say how much it means to me to be able to go to work each day and do the job I feel called to do and not worry for a minute, confident that you treat my baby like you would your own.

Now, just because resolutions weren't first and foremost on mind today doesn't mean I don't have some. Instead of having a list, this year I have one simple resolution: to be the absolute best me I can be (doesn't sound hard, but you say it, but I find it a challenge). I find it fitting that the verse of the day was "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17) I look at this year as an opportunity to change those things that are less than desirable and to celebrate those things that were already good. I hope that I will spend more time lifting others up and being a bright spot in someone else's day. My goal is to be the kind of person that my daughter can look at and be proud of. For those of you who know me best, you can appreciate why that is so important to me personally. It is my prayer for each person reading this that you too will have your best year yet and that you will blessed beyond measure. Happy 2008!!!