The Daily Hailey

Some may find this post shallow. But I want to thank God for everything, even the things I don’t need. I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Yesterday, I spent several hours grinding up beef with my friend, Melissa. I hate touching raw meat, but I was sooo brave (haha) and took on the job of cutting off the nasty hard chunks of fat before we put it through the grinder. I really enjoyed it! Some good time hanging out over coffee and…raw beef, and on top of that, ended up with 3 lbs of beautiful stewing beef and 26 individually wrapped pounds of ground beef. As I brought them to our big chest freezer downstairs, I caught myself being momentarily annoyed with how little space I had in my freezer for the meat. Who do I think I am?!?! I’m am so blessed to have a freezer full of soups, bread, desserts, juice, ice cream, freezies, cream cheese, sauces, and who knows what else! Shame on me.

For some reason, I became very overwhelmed later that afternoon. I called Brady in tears at 4:00pm, asking when he’d be home. He surprised me by saying he was actually all packed up and on his way. When he got home, he wrapped me in a blanket on the couch in front of the tv, and proceeded to clean the kitchen up from our beefagrindza (extravaganza?). He also made supper, and then took care of our sore, fevering baby for the rest of the evening. When sick baby was in bed, Brady ran a bubble bath and we had a nice soak before bed, like always. As in, always! Ladies, I get candles and a bubble bath every night. Very blessed.

This morning, I woke up feeling much more refreshed. I was going to take my dad to the Greyhound at 10:30 so I had set my alarm so I’d have time to get washed up myself, then get Dekker’s stuff for a day away from home, and then get Dekker up, dressed, and fed. I also had no idea how fevered he would still be, so that was a wild card. However, I woke up 15 minutes before my alarm went off, which was perfect. I hate waking up to an alarm and am totally out of practice with it. I woke up when my body was rested enough, which was refreshing. I took my time getting ready, then packed Dekker’s stuff. Pretty sure I actually remembered everything! When I got him up, his fever was completely gone. Thanks Lord! His teeth are really doing a number on him but he was in good high spirits and ate his breakfast without fussing. We picked up my dad, grabbed a coffee, and dropped him off. I decided to make a quick Walmart run for a few things we finished up, like his yogurt and cottage cheese cups. Did anyone know Walmart is having a HUGE anniversary sale?! Ya. They are. I went for two things and came out with a cart full of groceries, snacks, things I needed, and things I didn’t need. I’ve known since I was a child that God would take care of me, and I would always have what I needed, according to His plan. Sometimes I’m still floored that He’ll also give me things that I want, even if they’re not necessary. Like two nail polishes for $3. Yes!

I finished putting the groceries into my car and went to start it so there would be some air for when I put Dekker inside, when I saw a couple of men walking past. They looked at Dekker, and then at me, and one of them said “I think you forgot something in your cart.” I had a good laugh and mentioned something witty about him being the most important purchase of the day. They stood next to the cart and chatted with him for a few seconds. “Hello buddy! Are you having a nice day? Its so beautiful outside in the sun!” I was very touched by that. I talk to Dekker like that a lot, but sometimes I feel like people think its strange. I loved seeing other people engaging him in conversation. He loves it, and responded well. Thank you Lord, for a social baby.

I left Walmart with a strange feeling of “wow.” I didn’t have to worry for a moment that I couldn’t afford my purchases. I could walk in, pick up awesome deals with the most beautiful baby boy in my cart, go back out to my bright sporty-ish car, and fill my trunk with food, while my son made friends.

So. Next time your fridge or freezer is too full, or you have too much change in your wallet, or you need to put gas in your car, be thankful instead. You have extra food! You have extra money! You have a car! None of these things are needs!  They’re gifts. So say ‘thank you’ and enjoy them while you have them!

Thank you Lord, for everything I have.