20 Days of Gratitude: Day 4

DAY #4 - We are Family

The family.  We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together.  ~Erma Bombeck

Looking at this picture nearly brought tears to my eyes because it captures most of the people that make up our family and it made me remember some awesome stories.  

And, oh, the stories I could tell!  Mom's famous mashed potato fight, the awesome daddy-daughter dates, my brother, David, and I trying to ride our bikes down a snow-covered hill, making up our own language as kids, the annual, magical Thanksgiving dinners at Dennis & Marianne's house, the pair of roller skates that my sister, Kali, and I shared (we each wore one) so that we could skate down the long hallway in our house, sharing Saturday night dinner at Crossroads, hanging out with all of the fun nieces and nephews, the weekly Sunday dinners with Dave's family... and all of the times that we laughed ourselves silly.  With all of the quirks, personality traits and funny times we have shared, I love these people like crazy.

Obviously, our little Benjamin isn't in the picture and my little (6'5") brother, Brent, had just left to serve a mission in Halifax.  But, as I look across at all of the faces that were there with us on our wedding day, I smile because these are the people that I absolutely adore.  Each of the people in this picture has left an indelible mark on my life, and for that I'm so grateful.

As I mentioned with the Friends post, I am not always so good about expressing my love and gratitude, but I know these folks know it.