Gratitude Series: Sometimes, I let the bad in my day get the better of me. Other times, I get so caught up in my own little world that I forget to give thanks for all of the blessings in my life. I find myself taking things for granted over and over again. So, today, I’m choosing to give thanks for all of the things.
- My Nephew: With his cute little voice and those little cheeks. “TIA!!” He calls me. We share a love of chocolate and I will gladly give him some when we see each other. You’re welcome, Kim. He’s constantly asking to see Em and honestly, he makes her feel like a big sister when he’s around - complete with the title. While she does have a half-brother, we don’t get to see him as often. So, her little cousin helps make her feel like she’s living up to that big sister role in some way.
- CHIPS: After years and years of paying for all of the medical and dental expenses for my daughter out of pocket, and taking on these huge ER bills from the few times we had to take her in, I made the decision to seek out assistance. Government assistance. Something I had always told myself that I would never do. Here in Texas when you don’t qualify for Children’s Medicaid then you have the option to try getting CHIPS. And well it’s no secret that my income, while a decent one for my job and this area, it doesn’t leave me with enough money to afford a family health insurance plan. Add school into the mix and well, my budget is pretty tight. The lowest we found at the time was $380/month with a very high deductible, and I'm sure it's gone up since then. So, I finally gave in and applied. And we barely made the cut. Now, this is not long-term assistance for us, and I don’t want it to be. But I am so grateful for it because we really needed it. And I know there's some judgment that gets thrown around about people who use government assistance, but let me just say this, “If you really need it. USE IT. That is what it’s there for and don’t let anyone make you feel less than just because of it.”
- Sweet Tea: My favorite “go-to” drink. One that I had to cut back on, significantly. Which makes me sad, but also, I get it. Texas tends to make their sweet tea - extra sweet. So, it wasn’t helping with my diet or the more recent lifestyle changes I’ve been in the process of making. But man, when I do go in for a full sweet tea rather than a water or half & half. Ooooh, it’s delicious! And if I could drink it forever, I would.
- Snow cones: One of the best things about summer. With the heat that we get and the humidity too. There are some days when it’s almost unbearable. The heat index gets well into the triple digits. And there’s nothing quite like treating yourself to a giant snow cone at the end of a really scorching day. I actually prefer it over ice cream. Personally, blue coconut is my favorite and I tend to stick with that. But occasionally I’ll branch out. Nothing too crazy though. While we’ve also cut back on these, mainly because we don’t have a stand right down the road, it’s definitely one of my favorite treats to get. And trust me when I say that I will definitely make that 15-minute drive back into town on those days when I’m really craving one.
- Trisha: She has been in our lives for over about a year and a half now. We started out with family sessions but at the beginning of summer, we incorporated couples sessions as well. And she’s just been wonderful! Emery really opens up to her, and Trisha has been a huge help when it comes to helping Emery work through her anxiety. As for the couple sessions, those are relatively new, but she does a great job in helping me see things from a different point of view. Sadly, we will only have her for one more session in two weeks. She recently accepted a job offer, one closer to home, and while we are so sad to see her go - we are also very happy for her! Emery shed plenty of tears at our last session, but because they’re just so fond of each other - Trisha offered to do once-a-month virtual check-ins with Emery at no cost to us. I mean, how amazing is that? I'm really thankful to God for putting her in our lives.
And that wraps up my gratitude post for this month. What are you grateful for today? This week? This month? What do you do to help bring some positivity back into your day if it's been a bad one? How do you make sure to stay grounded? And how’s the end of summer going? Any last-minute plans before the kids head back to school? Let me know below. Until the next post, I hope everyone has a really lovely weekend! Adios!
“We are what we believe we are.” // C.S. Lewis
❤
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