The blessing that I am counting today is my family. Most of you know that we live right next door to my parents.. and my brother Brenden. The thing is that my parents fully believe in the idea that it takes a village. This is really more than something Hillary Clinton touted when she was trying to get Universal Health care passed in the 1990s. It truly truly is a lifestyle that we have found to be extremely rewarding. In our modern culture grandparents have been relegated to a couple of people that you visit on the holidays. They are well loved but they are distant. This is entirely acceptable and even for some families preferable. It is not however, the way that our family works.
My parents see my children every single day of the week with the possible exception of Sunday. They are a vibrant and active part of the lives of our children. Because of this they are extremely important to my children. Ashlynn's favorite thing in the world is going to visit Grampy and Grammy. She is as at home in their house as she is in our own and she is as willing to accept direction from my parents as she is from me ( which at two means when the heck she wants to: ) She spends the night at their house with no fuss, as a matter of fact the last time she had so much fun she fussed when she came HOME. Truly they are an INCREDIBLY special part of her life.
Living so close to my parents they also serve as a support system. My husband works the second shift, so he is gone from 1:00 in the afternoon until 12:00 AM that leaves me to do the dinner and bedtime thing alone. For most stay at home moms there is a little bit of help for those times. But I am alone for them. I don't do alone very well... which is what started the dinners at my parents house. We eat over there Monday through Friday and stay there until almost bedtime. I suppose in some ways it is a cop out on my part, but oddly enough that is the same thing that my dad did with us kids when my mom worked second shift when I was little. So I guess I learned that behavior.
My parents have been an AMAZING help in so many ways. From helping to buy extremely expensive drugs while I was pregnant to helping to get coats and boots for the girls they are there. I have never in my life doubted that my parents love me, and how could I when they are the most supportive people I know. They truly are a blessing in so so many ways. I know beyond a shadow of doubt that without my parents we wouldn't have been able to have our little girls. It was a struggle that took every little bit of our energy and attention and my parents picked up a great deal of slack. From rides to the doc when needed to a little bit of cash to make it to the next paycheck, from moral support to a shoulder to cry on my parents have been there with us. They have cried when we had to let a little one go and they cheered when we brought one into this world. They helped me to reach further and they reminded me that faith is what will get us through anything.
I truly can't say enough about two people who I love so dearly. I have had 32 years with the most incredible people in the world as my parents. I have truly truly been blessed. My entire family has been blessed by them and I thank GOD for them every single day. MOM AND DAD I LOVE YOU! You are the best parents in the world and the best grandparents... and we know it and see it!!!
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