The Grateful Posts

I, like my sister, get tired of reading what people are grateful for on Facebook. Really, no offense meant, but I prefer to have them listed where people purposefully go to read my stuff. That said, I am going to try to do short posts for the entire month of November. Today will consist of 4 things (which is going to get LONG, but I added pictures!!), since we are now (shockingly!) into the 4th of November. These aren't listed in any particular order, just as things pop into my head....

1) My home. Levi and I bought this house when he was first accepted into law school. We knew that if we were going to do it, it had to be done before we had all the school loan debt accumulated. We have LOVED this house. We like fixing things up, and so far we have pulled up carpet and refinished the gorgeous hardwood, laid some new carpet, added a bedroom in the basement for Katelyn, gutted and remodeled the main bathroom, and added new shelves in the basement for all of my crap decorations. There are some more things in the works, like redoing our master bathroom and tiling the kitchen, but all in due time. This is of the outside of our house this past June when we finished laying sod. Next year we will finish all the little outside projects! It is such a blessing to have a stable, lovely living arrangement.

2) My sister. Katelyn, Kater bug, George, Vern. I call her many a name, some not appropriate for the public. It has been so great having her live with us for the past year+. She is a girl who has been through a lot in her relatively short life, and I look up to her so much. Kater keeps me (and Levi) laughing. I have had many "mom" moments with her living with us, from her not cleaning her room, me telling her what she needed to do to have a cat in the house (Levi told me I was going a BIT overboard on this one!), cooking dinner, etc. It's so awesome to have my best friend living under the same roof as me. I'm very protective of her, especially when it comes to dating. She just means the world to me. I feel like I am rambling a bit now, but she is just so awesome.  Here she is in all her beautiful, pageant-y glory. Just ignore me in the picture. I happened to be emcee-ing with her that night.

3) Levi. My husband is a pretty cool person. We met when I first got to college at SUU and started working with the debate team, and that was the beginning of something AWESOME. He helps me look at things in new ways, challenge my own thoughts and the thoughts of others, loves me unconditionally. Our marriage isn't perfect--we have very different views on some important aspects of life, which lead to disagreements, but because of our love for each other.... we make it work. He never fails to tuck me in at night. He will run to Sonic in the wee hours of the night to purchase me an emergency vanilla coke. He helps me with chores, and listens to my complaints. He encourages me to be positive when I'm feeling homicidal. If his encouragement doesn't work, then he plots murderous schemes with me. We have made it through a lot of difficult situations and made some fanTAStic memories. I love him so much. Here he is after rescuing our basement from a near-disasterous flood when building Katelyn's room. It was a scene from Poltergeist. Isn't he adorable, even covered in mud?!

4) Me. It might be an odd thing to put down on my list, but I am grateful to be me. I have had experiences that no one else has had. I have made mistakes that are classic Lynley. I've had breakdowns and epic highs. I am a drama queen. I am talented. I am loving. I have a sharp tongue. There are days where I literally have no filter and wonder why people still talk to me. Then I remember it's because I'm kinda funny. I'm a motivated person who knows my own limits, but still challenges those limits daily. I'm a strange mix between a conservative 1950's house wife who cooks and cleans in dresses and heels, and a liberal bra-burning feminist who doesn't listen to anyone. I am what I am. I believe I will have an impact on the world, or at least one person in a positive way.I thought random pictures best described me, so here I am deliriously happy for my wedding, doing the "Ed" with my fabulous ol' roommate Chelsea, and looking ridiculous on a snowmobiling trip with the fam. 


Thanks for reading this long post. More to come!!     -Lynley