ThAnkFul ThUrSdAy.. Here's to YOU!

Last weeks raw thankful Thursday was very well received and I appreciate all the emails that were sent to me. Sometimes I wonder if I'm sharing too much, but then I get the emails saying thanks & I feel justified :) I'm thankful to have such great friends that are there for me. I'm thankful for the ones who love me for ME & look past all my faults & love me anyway. I'm thankful for true friends that have stepped up to the plate and become my family when family hasn't been there. Living far away from family can be hard, but our friends have become our second family, and Im so thankful for you all.

I'm thankful for all the friends Aaron & I have made living overseas & our military family. I love my military wifey friends, you all know who you are, and I'm so thankful to have such a big support system in all of you. I love the unity we have. A lot of us don't live at the same base anymore, but it's still like we live next door, and I love that! Aaron is putting in his paperwork to cross train from AMMO to a new job in the military, and has been researching jobs like crazy. He recently asked me what I thought about a certain base, and I replied "oh so&so live there and they love it...." this makes me smile to look back on, because we have so many friends all around the world and to me that's amazing. From friends all over the states, to all over Europe, to Asia & Guam, it's comforting to know we have friends everywhere.

I'm thankful for the military and the secure job it gives my husband. The opportunities we have had in the military have been great, and I'm thankful for the knowledge we've learned while being in the military life as well. I'm thankful to how solid it's helped Aaron & I become as a couple. We were pretty close before he joined, but then were pushed to the limits of a long distance marriage living on opposite sides and it brought us so much closer. We've watched so many friends go through divorces, and I'm thankful Aaron & I have withstood that. Weve had our own trials, but living abroad forces you to work it all out and lean on each other because that's all you have... And I'm thankful for that. We know we can move/live anywhere and be okay & make new friends and that's a wonderful knowledge to have. I've said it more than once, but I'll say it again, we love our military family!!

I'm thankful for all the friends I have made while being a Preemie Mama. I love my preemie mama friends, and a lot of them are very dear to my heart. I've loved the support most of them have given me when others seem to not understand, and I will always be grateful for that. I love watching all of their miracle kids grow up, it's amazing to me. When their kids hit developmental milestones, I'm just as proud of them as my own, because I know how hard those miracle babies worked, they amaze me. Facebook can be hard to get on somedays & I'm constantly wanting to bite someone's head off for being so ignorant about pregnancy & wanting their baby to be born long before term/or before the goal of the amazing 39wks.... But my preemie mama friends understand & my newsfeed is now flooded with all the accomplishments these preemies are making, and THATs wonderful to read everyday. I'm loving all the recent term after preemie births, they bring such happiness and smiles to my face and I'm soo thankful for that. It's such a victory for us preemie moms, and even though I didn't get that victory, seeing them get it makes me soo happy. A big fist pump in the air against prematurity & I love that!

I'm thankful for my readers, for the ones I know & the ones I don't. Having a blog to clear my head is great, and I appreciate the support you all give me!

Most of all though, I'm so thankful that I am happier than I can ever remember being. Despite the chaos and imperfections, I truly love my life and am so extremely thankful for everyone in it.