Family

We had a good Thanksgiving with Dan's family. We got up early and drove the five hours to Dan's sister's and then spent the night at his parents' house and came back home yesterday. It was a long couple of days, but I'm glad I went.

It made me reflect a bit on family and what it means. Dan's side of the family has many, many differences. There are religious differences, political differences, and personality differences. At times, there are hurt feelings and feelings of anger towards the words of another. Not everyone gets along perfectly, and not everyone wants to get along. There are those who click well together and those who do not. This can probably be said about every family on the planet. I know it is true about my side of the family as well. No family is perfect or perfectly communicates.

But from Dan and my point of view, this is what a family does. As a family we work hard to find the common ground at these get togethers. We overlook slights and insults. We work hard to keep peace and find the enjoyable moments. So when someone says something deliberately insulting or rude we ignore it, or given my personality, I try to good naturedly give them a ribbing right back. 

Family is about being loved and accepted despite the quirks and bad behaviors and sometimes rotten attitudes! I'm thankful for both our families. I'm thankful for the times I feel my nose getting a bit bent out of shape because it causes me to 1) pray for my attitude, 2) pray for them, and 3) be humbled a bit. Because I'm not the perfect wife, mother or person. I've made mistakes and sometimes my mouth causes me to stumble too.

I love our family - each and every one of them. I love that God has placed me in this one and that though it can be a bit stressful at times, I wouldn't trade any of them!

P.S. I've decided to extend my blog give away until Monday. So leave a comment below or on Facebook or via email to be entered into a drawing for some Christmas goodies.