Sixteen years ago...

I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, all the days of our lives.   When we spoke those words sixteen years ago, we were young and naive and madly in love; I was sure there was no way I could love my new husband any more. 

Sixteen years later I know this to be false.   Prior to this past year, we have definitely had our share of difficult times, but this past year  has certainly put what we spoke into hard reality. 

It hasn't been easy, but we did it and we're still doing it and we're stronger now because of it. I can honestly say I love my husband more today than I did yesterday and I'm sure I will love him more tomorrow than I do today.  There is no one I would rather have by my side as I go through the good, bad and ugly of this wild and precious life. Thank you Vic for being you, I love you. Happy anniversary! Xo

Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle, love is a war; love is a growing up. 
James A. Baldwin 

Grateful...

Whatever we are waiting for - peace of mind, contentment, grace, the inner awareness of simple abundance - it will surely come to us, but only when we are ready to receive it with an open and grateful heart.

Sarah Ban Breathnach 

I think it goes without saying that these days, I am VERY grateful.  It would be nearly impossible for me to list all the things I am grateful for in one post, so I'm going to refrain from doing that.   Life can be hard, life can be sweet, life can be good, and sometimes very ugly.  But, right now, in this moment, I am grateful for all of it.  Grateful for the cancer that reared it's ugly head almost one year ago?  NO!  But, grateful for what it has taught me and how it has helped to mold who I am in the present moment.  Grateful for what it has helped to uncover about myself and the people that walk along side me in this "wild and precious life."  

And really, looking at these two faces, how can I be anything but GRATEFUL?

May you all have a Thanksgiving filled with many blessings and grateful hearts.  Happy Turkey Day or Tofurky Day for all you vegetarians. xo

Manic...

I know I'm starting to feel more like myself again because I have been a bit manic around here, doing various projects and cleaning, much like my typical personality and behavior.  I'm baaaaaacck!

One of my most recent projects was a canvas with our family rules posted on it.  I've been wanting to make one for a while, but haven't had the energy.  There are many ready made family rules signs available online and in stores, but there always seemed to be something that didn't quite fit our family.  When you make your own, you can customize it to fit perfectly.  I compiled a list of rules from signs I saw and then got to work. 

Place stickers 

Paint

and Peel 

Super Easy.  I'm not one for making things perfectly straight.  I'm too impatient for that.  My letters are a little wonky....perfect for us...wonky and imperfect. 

I added antiquing medium to to make it look a little old and warn. 

You could modify this project and make fun Christmas Canvases for gifts using holiday words....JOY, BLESSINGS, FAITH, WINTER, SNOW, ANGEL, etc...the possibilities are endless. 

I hung our rules and then added other things from around my house.  

This frame from Michael's seemed like the perfect finishing touch after it was painted in a shade of red.

Our new wall makes me happy when I look at it.  

The manic end of is a lot of fun. Carrie Fisher 

Family Photos...

I wrote about our family photos in my Great Debate post here.  Here are some of our favorite pictures by the talented Tyler of Blue Lily Photo.

Thank you Tyler for capturing us in this moment of our lives.  You're the best!

2010 Photos

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. 
Buddha 

Insta Friday and a birthday...

It's Friday people and today I'm linking up for Insta-Friday and looking back to see what we did during the past couple of weeks.

We had our first snow.

 The kids couldn't wait to get off the bus and take advantage, even if there was only 1 inch on the ground.

 And Little Miss had her last soccer match.

 We packed our boxes for Samaritan's Purse.

 This past weekend, we (meaning Vic mostly) tried to conquer the enormous task of picking up all the leaves, while Little Miss conquered her fear of wearing mismatched outfits...(oh, wait a minute, that's my fear)

 I've been doing some wall makeovers (still a work in progress...)

 A behind the scenes look at the Family Rules canvas (shown above)

 My comic relief...

 My inspirational tea bag at 10:00 at night.

And now, onto more important things.... 

Today is Little Miss B's 5th Birthday.  Look at how little you were.  I'm pretty sure that in this picture you might already be making it known that you needed to say something. :)

You certainly brighten up so many people's lives.

 And we are blessed to have you in ours.  

 We hope you have a very Happy 5th Birthday and may the year ahead be filled with fun and happiness.

We love you!

When you focus on being a blessing, God makes sure that you are always blessed in abundance. 
Joel Osteen 

Embracing with hair...

So, I pretty much have my buzz cut back.  Yay for that.  I know it's still super short and it seems like it's taking forever.  But, I'm happy with the length right and now, and honestly, I wouldn't mind keeping it this short.  It's sooooo darn easy.  

Just to give you some idea of how much it's grown during the past month, here are some pics.

Yowzers....now that's a close up...

Today is embrace the camera day at The Anderson Crew....because of course there needs to be a reason to post 3 pictures of myself monitoring my hair growth.  ;/

There is one thing about baldness:  it's neat.  ~Don Herold

Something to celebrate....

I finished my treatments 2 weeks ago today, my hair is growing back (so much so that I now suffer from bed head once again), and my doctor's visits are fewer.  Life is good.  Life is beautiful.  I am so very grateful.  

At the same time, I have been somewhat surprised at how emotionally difficult it's been on some days now that I've finished my treatments.  I expected to have some time where I was going to have to adjust, but, I have been surprised at how much I have to work at it.   

Anyone who knows me is well aware of the fact that I like to have it all figured out and although I've been learning to take life with the one day at a time approach, my natural instinct goes against that.  I do, however, continue to move forward and it turns out that 

 having these various emotions following cancer treatments is quite common.  Here is one article that summed it up well.  

"So take time to acknowledge the fear, grief and loneliness 

you're feeling right now. Then take steps to understand why 

you feel these emotions and what you can do about them."

No, I'm not sitting home curled up on the couch with a box of 

tissues all day everyday.   I don't sit home all the time and feel bad for myself, but sometimes I have had to consciously choose how the day is going to go.  Part of that choice comes with acknowledging the feelings that I am having and moving on from there.  I'm a work in a progress, sorting through the various emotions that come with making a full recovery.  

I thought that by the end of treatments, I'd have emerged from my cocoon, but it turns out that the metamorphosis is taking slightly longer than expected.  

Last week I received this card in the mail from a friend....

  

Perfect timing....

And on the inside it says,

"And that's really something to celebrate."

"there is something to celebrate every single day of our lives.The next time you find yourself feeling down and grumbling, 'I’m having such a bad day!'think of one thing about that day to celebrate."