As I begin to brainstorm this week, I found myself drowning in an array of thoughts that didn't really lead my anywhere towards one cohesive idea. However no matter what way I thought about or begin to write, there's one thing that was at the root or somehow related to each. My family. So I thought this week, I'd love on and give them a little praise, because boy do they deserve it.

Honestly, whether we are all together or just two of us, they are my favorite people. Whether we are just riding in the car down the road to church or road tripping to visit family out of state, we find a way to make it enjoyable. We are constantly laughing at something (or someone) to the point that I feel like I just finished an ab workout. Just the other day we were all together shopping and a couple of employees of the store begin to sort of linger around us. At first, I was slightly confused, but we just went along with it, it didn't bother really bother us and the boys probably didn't even notice.My youngest brother was modeling suits he was trying on for his upcoming dance and my dad picked the ugliest things he could find on the clearance rack and tried them on for us (sorry Dad, those shorts were not your style). One employee came up to me and asked if it was always like this. "Like what?" I asked back. "So entertaining and enjoyable?" I thought about it and then responded ""Ehh yeah mostly," without really thinking much of it. "Well God Bless you guys. This is the most fun I've ever seen a family have shopping and you guys have only been here five minutes" I told her she should stick around. Chances were it was only gonna get more entertaining, whether or not it was good or bad I wasn't quite sure. And oh boy was I right.

I'm sorry if you just read through that story and were bored or felt like it was pointless, but it's going somewhere I promise. As we left the store and I left my family and went back to school at the end of the day that employee's words kind of stuck with me. I mean, I had never really thought anything of the time and the way we act together, because that's just us. But this kind of made me take a step back and really think about our family and how great I truly do have it. Not only do I have happily married and in love parents after 29 years, but two brothers who love, care and protect me like they are my father. (Ask me another day I may not be so grateful for that last part.) But since that day, it's just been on my mind and I've become so much more aware of how much love is present and evident in our family each and every day, even when we live two and half hours away. From our family group chat *if you don't have one of these I highly recommend you make one* that makes it feel like we are sitting at dinner making fun of each other to the unexpected packages that show up in my mailbox just when I've had the longest day. It's the little things they do and they know that will help me or make me laugh or smile (or want to smack them) that they do just when I need it. And it makes all the difference in my days, weeks, months years and obviously this amazing life I was blessed with.

In the crazy world we live in, full of inevitable hate struggle, heartbreak and hard times, I am so beyond grateful that I have the four best friends that I call my family to get through it with. No matter where or what our lives take us through I know that because I have them, everything will be quite all right. So because I don't say it enough: Thank you and I love all of you...dorks. You make me and my life what it is and I couldn't ask for any more.