Appreciate.

2010 has been a year of realizing how blessed I really am. There has been much to appreciate and be grateful for this year. I could make you a whole huge long list but wait, I already did that for thanksgiving. So I'll stick with the one big thing that stands out most for this year over and above any others... my home.

Home has always been an unattainable goal for me. My childhood was full of uprooting, moving, new houses, more boxes, and new sets of friends. I dreamed that someday when I moved away from home this would all change and I could pick for myself where I wanted to live and stay there forever. In hindsight, it seems a little silly to think you'd buy your first home right after college and literally never leave it. I will more than likely outgrow 'the batch pad' at some point, like say, when I'm not a 'batch' anymore.

When I bought the batch pad last December and moved in the first week of January I thought, 'this is it! I finally have a real home'. Home base. A place to land. A structure to call home that doesn't have to change til I decide. That was a really exciting time for me. Throughout this year I've continued to fill it with memories, love, and zebra-striped-decor. But for me having a real home, of my own, was a huge dream come true. It was a desire of my heart the Lord granted for me in 2010 and I cherish it.

It was also a pretty serious undertaking for me without my parents help! I shouldn't say without their help, because they gave me a lot of great advice along the way. But Nancy and I did all the looking, all the research, all the decision making, and pulled the trigger without my parents ever coming to see it. You know you're an adult when...

This year truly has been a year full of thanksgiving for me. I could go on and on forever about what I appreciate in 2010. I won't do that again though. I know you have lives to get back too.

Love,
B