Zoiks!!! It's been a while!

Wow...almost a whole year has gone by since I last blogged...

Ok, so...I did something I said I would never do....almost 5 weeks ago we got a puppy. Sure, as a child my family had animals...dogs, cats, birds, rodents...lol (NO! Not all at once! We weren't a flippin' zoo!) But I had always determined that having a dog was like having another child, another responsibility, and another mouth to feed. (And I was right!) However...the kids have wanted one for years...and we thought Gabe might like having a furry friend, so I started looking at the Kansas Humane Society website...and there he was, the cutest, make ya wanna snuggle him up, half black lab/half pointer puppy...only 2 months old. I fell in love... Knowing that adopting an animal is a big decision, as well as a costly one...it was going to take a couple weeks before we were able to actually go and bring one home. So...I watched that site daily...sometimes several times a day. Luckily "Stanley" (we renamed him Socks) was still there, just waiting for us the day we arrived...so, on April 5th, 2010...we added the newest member to the McWithey/Harris household...Socks ~ The Wonder Puppy (and by wonder...I mean I WONDER if he'll ever go pee-pee OUTside! lol)

Today is Mother's Day...and I thankful for the Mother, Grandmother, Aunts and Cousins that I have shared my life with...all of whom are mothers now. The longer I live, the more I see that all Motherss are not created equal. Each of the mother's in my life are all human, they all make mistakes, not a single one has done it ALL just right...but they ALL have done the one, most important thing exactly right. They showed us Christ. No matter what else we get right or get wrong...none are as important as that one. I'm thankful today that God gave me a Mother who was strong enough to persevere, to take one more step when the weight of being both mother and father was threatening to crush her...I have been there, 7+ years ago I was unknowingly about to take a 5 year walk "in her shoes"...and let me tell you, I became perfect...at failing. But a wonderful family, and a very merciful God always picked it all up, dusted it off, super glued the cracks, and kept me going.

On Mother's day also, I cant help but be thankful for what you may consider to be quite an odd blessing...I mean who thinks of a MAN on Mother's day? lol...

When I met Kenny...I was broken. All the Kings horses and all the Kings men...couldn't put me back together again. I wasn't living, I was just surviving. At that time, I didn't want or need a man...I just wanted a distraction, someone or something to pass the time. Being alone was the worst possible thing in the world. I remember driving an hour each way, just to be with a friend for a few hours...I remember going to my mom's house and laying in her bed, tears streaming down my face, but needing to be where people were, just to get an hour of rest. Most of you know who Kenny is today, and most of you know who I am today...but I wonder if many of you realize who I was then. This man who is so good to me now, a blessing I certainly didn't deserve, and never thought I would have...he saw all those pieces of my "life" lying all over the floor...and even still, right from the very start he began lovingly picking those pieces up, and carefully putting them back together what glue couldn't fix, his love did. Has he been perfect? No. Has he made mistakes? Yes. Have I been perfect? No. Have I made mistakes? Yes. And this life we have didn't come without cost, it didn't just happen...we had to fight for it...sometimes alone, sometimes together. We have caused one another some heartaches, and we still have to work, everyday isn't always easy...but we make it...together, and it is all possible because we serve a God who loves us, and desires to bless us, even as undeserving as we are...

So on that note...

Kenny...Thank You for not running scared from the "wreck" that I was...I'm so thankful that you saw past that. I'm thankful that you saw something of value, even through all the rubble! I love you!