Women Are Awesome!

The Bible calls us "the weaker vessels", but when we are united, boy are we STRONG! I've been thinking about all the great women that I know. I am so very thankful for all of the wonderful women in my life, past and present. I have always gravitated toward strong, intelligent, caring, hardworking women. I've tried to surround myself with women who have the qualities which I hope to emulate in myself. I have been blessed with an incredible mom. She is the most loving, caring, patient person I know. I believe she has enjoyed a life of blessings, because she truly appreciates others. My mom was a kindergarten teacher for many, many years and she enjoyed every day of it. I never saw her at work with a negative attitude, ever. As kids, we were there a lot, helping her after school and playing with the kids. Once I was grown, I worked alongside her as an assistant teacher for a couple of years. What a blessing. We loved being together, all day, everyday. And then we'd go out shopping or to dinner after work :) I have also been blessed with an awesome mother-in-law (or mother-in-love, as I like to call her). She has so many gifts and she gives to our entire family generously. I've learned so much just from simply BEING with her. Gleaning while I quietly watched her pour out her love and compassion for others. There are many, many great women who have and still continue to pour into my life. I'm grateful for my sister, my seven sisters-in-law(who are true sisters to me), aunts, grandmothers, cousins, nieces, friends (some new and some who have stuck by me for many moons), teachers, pastors and mentors. You know who you are! I learn so much, even from the littlest woman in my life, my six year old daughter. I have a part of each of you in my heart. I just feel like encouraging all the women out there, to be a woman of EXCELLENCE. You never know who's watching you quietly, wanting to glean from YOU. Let all those special women in your life know that they are SPECIAL and that you are truly thankful for them. To quote one of the special women in my life, "So many people don't share their feelings and we never know they had kind thoughts about us. Why not give that gift of kindness to others." When they hear kind words, it will not only thank them, but it will encourage them to be the best version of themselves every day. The written word is even more valuable because it can be read again, and again. I like to save sweet emails, cards and notes. I call it my "fuzzy file". And when feeling a little down , I'll pull it out for a heart lift. Something in there is bound to make me chuckle or at least smile. Life isn't always easy, girls, but we've got each other and we're in this together!