Thankful Thursday: idaho aspen, snail mail and deep, deep love

Happy Thankful Thursday to you!

well it happened

i made the move

and it was as hard as i thought it would be

i'm currently sitting in the room i grew up in

{and let me tell you my taste has significantly changed since i was in high school}

my bags are on the floor still very much packed

and as much as i want my things to be put away

i'm not ready to fully give in

i honestly feel that any day now i'll just hop in my car 

and head back down south

that i'll walk up the stairs to my apartment

open the door and my roommates will be waiting for me in the living room

much like they often were

i miss that

ugh it hurts 

it really hurts

i don't want to sound like a drama queen

but my heart literally aches

but that folks is how i know that these past two years

were blessings from the Lord

{albeit extremely difficult and challenging}

but my God sustained me

he gave me everything i needed on a daily basis

my home and my roommates were a huge part of that 

for the first time moving 

i cried

tears of sadness for sure

but more so tears 

of thankfulness 

of joy

of deep, deep love

i have moved a lot

and all those other times

there weren't really tears or heartache

{there was definitely sadness}

but there was mostly excitement to move out and on

this time though

there was absolutely no desire to go

my home was actually home

and my roommates....

my roommates were more like my sisters

and i learned to truly, deeply love them 

like they were my own flesh and blood

we've been through the ringer together

through loss

disappointments

 hard seasons with the Lord

breakups and dating let downs

singleness

through the ups and downs of working in full time ministry

working through conflict...

we deeply know each other

and because of that we deeply love each other

 they know me well

just ask them

every single little idiosyncrasy and habit

from my love of cleaning the kitchen

to my love for puns

to how and when my introvert comes out

they know it all

and they love me none the less

and i love them even more so because of that

and i love them because of who they are

it is by no mistake we lived together

what are the chances that 4 random women

{who didn't know each other before moving in}

would have the most phenomenal 2 years living together

definitely not chance

all God

he had has a mighty plan

so today i'm choosing to rejoice over these things

to be joyful and thankful

i will push aside my disappointments

the fact that i've already argued with my brother

been frustrated with my mom

and have been experiencing some pretty unfortunate mood swings

i may not want to be where i am now

and may be completely uncertain of my future

but i will praise god

because in every season

he is faithful and his provisions are unending

today I am thankful for 

my new roommates

their names being dad, mom and little brother

home cooked meals

{not made by me}

having access to a washer and dryer in the house

waking up to find our dog curled up next to my bed

spending sweet time with my beautiful, wonderful, encouraging cousin

that her and i are the same age 

that she can speak truth from experience into my life

malls and their air conditioning  

chik-fil-a sweet tea

baking

having a fully stocked kitchen pantry with all my baking needs

that this morning i had 3 chocolate chip cookies for breakfast

{i think that was more of a confession....}

early mornings in coffee shops

driving with the windows down

that my tiny corolla somehow miraculously held all my stuff

my cars fully funtioning air conditioning

snail mail from sweet friends awaiting my arrival home

that i didn't need to rent storage space for all of my stuff

that i can store my things in my rents garage for free

my parents front porch

falling asleep to the sounds of a trickling fountain outside my window

my moleskine plant journal

{one of the sweetest gifts i've received}

containing pressed plants from my favorite places

{most recently idaho:

a place i'm dying to go back to}

the adventures i've had

the adventures to come

the fact that i can go anywhere

and do anything

for my past roommates

and how much they have impacted my life

 all the things they've taught me....

things like how to walk deeply with Jesus 

and how to truly love those around me

{two things i've been praying for and desiring to learn over the past 2 years}

coincidence?

i think not

thanks roomies,

for everything

i'll bet you know what question is coming

what are you thankful for today?....

lets hear it.