Oh, life. How you continue to speed ahead while I desperately try to slow you down. How in the world is it almost December already? Well yes, I do know the answer to that question. Ha. I cannot believe in about a month we begin a new year. A few months closer to turning 26. 26 people! Woah. In a little over a month, Steven and I will have been married for 3 years. Together for 9. Craziness. I cannot believe it's been almost 9 years since I began this amazing journey with my favorite person. Time really does fly when you're having fun! Sometimes, I sit back and try to reflect on my life. Is this where I saw us being? No.  Am I where I'm suppose to be? I suppose so. It's interesting how you try and plan your life. You write down every goal and a "deadline" that it has to be accomplished by. The quote, "When you plan, God laughs" is so true. So, so true.  If you would've asked me where I saw myself being in 5 years when I was 20 years old, the answer would have been much different than what the reality is. I most likely would have responded, "Married by 21, house by 24, and children by 25." Reality? Not even close. Let's try this again. Now that I am 25 I can confidently say that none of that happened on time ;-). I never thought I'd spend almost a year in Germany. I never thought that Steven would still be pursuing his dream of being an automotive designer.

But.

I wouldn't change my life for anything. Nothing. I have so much happiness in my life.  I have an amazing husband. We have an awesome marriage and a cute pup.  I am so thankful for everything we have. God has us here for a reason. There's a reason why Steven hasn't been offered an automotive design job yet. There's a reason why I haven't had a baby yet or we don't have our "dream" house with the white picket fence. God will bless us with all of those things in His timing. Not ours. And, that's okay.

In lieu of Thanksgiving (yes, this post is late, haha), I am SO thankful for the following:

- Forgiveness and grace. By a wonderful God who forgives me and grants me grace even when I don't think I deserve it.

- My sweet husband. He treats me like a princess and loves me unconditionally. The past almost 9 years have been wonderful, a dream really. I can't wait for the next many years to come!

- My amazing family. I have a dad who loves fully, forgives easily, and is an amazing example of Christ. My mom is silly, loving, and is a great example of selflessness. My siblings are awesome, fun, and full of life!

- My in-laws.  It's hard at first to get use to having "another family." But, my in-laws are awesome. They are God-fearing, giving, hardworking, and sweet people. This past year has been a trial for them to say the least, but they have come out of it unscathed!

- Our health. Steven and I are pretty healthy people. Watch us get sick now that I've wrote that, haha. We have been blessed with not having to experience any serious illness and are thankful for that.

- Sammy. Oh, Sammy. My sweet, adorable, crazy, goofy dog. I love this dog like no other. So thankful for the laughs he gives us. For teaching us how to have the ultimate patience. For stealing our hearts :-)

- Jobs. We are both so lucky to have jobs especially in this economy.  I have a job that is exhausting at times but so, so rewarding. So thankful for the precious children in my class who teach me daily to forgive easily, to love fully, and to take time to stop and smell the flowers. Getting to see life through a child's eyes is so sweet.

I have much more to be thankful for. But, the reality is, I have a cute husband and adorable puppy watching the State game in the family room that I'm going to spend some time with.

Hope you all had an awesome Thanksgiving!