Counting My Blessings

It's been a while since I wrote a simple "I am so grateful" blog post, but I feel like I need to take a moment this week to count the many blessings that Heavenly Father has given to me.

1. I am so grateful for this new medicine - the "miracle cure" that has targeted exactly the right systems to give me many pain-free moments for the first time in years.

2. I am so grateful for amazing friends who are there for me whenever I need a listening ear, and who support and encourage me in my wild, random flights of fancy.

Most notably, this week, I am extremely grateful for Brenda, who called me to ask for help with a scene she was stuck on, and then let me tag along on her shopping trip where I proceeded to yammer on about the difficulties I was having in pinpointing the voice of my new main character... And she was as excited as I was when I finally managed to nail down that elusive voice and figure out exactly who this character is! (Thank you, Brenda!!)

I'm grateful for Ashley, who provided a listening ear and overwhelming enthusiasm for my new project when I emailed her with the details on my newly-fleshed-out characters, and who is helping me through the torture of writing a synopsis for my established manuscript. (Thanks, Ash!)

I'm grateful for Susie, who knows me better than most people, and who sent me a package this week with the best "I'm thinking of you" presents ever: A new pencil for my story pencils collection and a sign to go on the wall in my writing corner. (Thanks, Susie!!!)

And I am grateful for Summer, who encouraged me to push past my fears and gain the courage needed to share my recipe experiments with the world. Which means that I now know exactly how to write this new main character, who is a closet gourmet who desperately wants to be noticed for her fabulous recipes, and dreams of a day when she has the courage to share with someone other than her best friend. (Thanks, Summer!! - And thank you to Jessica Sinsheimer, who was also a part of that initial twitter conversation that got me started in the recipe-sharing game, and to all of you who have responded so well to my recipe blog posts, keeping me going.)

3. I am so grateful for my AMAZING husband, Phil, who totally and fully supports me in my writing. I'm so blessed to have a man who doesn't complain if he comes home to a sink full of dirty dishes and a disorganized house, who will head straight for the kitchen to figure out something for dinner, so I don't have to stop writing. A man who agrees that a trip across the country for a writer's conference is a necessity, not a luxury. A man who spent his entire Saturday morning going to three different stores with me to track down copies of the movies I needed to re-watch so that the film-obsessed best friend of my new main character could refer to a scene here and a line there in random conversations throughout my manuscript. (Thanks, Phil! You're the best!!)

4. I am so grateful for all of you! Your support and encouragement keeps me going when I feel like I'm just spinning my wheels. <3 p="" thank="" you="">