lovely

Jess has a desktop screensaver set up on our computer that shuffles through some of the best of his photos. This morning, I looked over and saw this:

And I was just a little bit overwhelmed with how beautiful this lovely earth is. With how lovely everything is. This Christmas season has been wonderful for me. Last year was hard. I was in my first trimester of Lydia, and I wasn't well - in body or spirit. So this year has been so refreshing and quite honestly, a little bit amazing. Every little thing means so much more this year, the lights, the sugar cookies, the Christmas tree, the tiny baby Jesus and his brave mommy, Mary (oh, my heart). I've been sort of absent from my blog because I've been busy Christmasing. And enjoying my little girls. They are maybe the sweetest things on earth, and sharing Christmas with babies is some kind of magic. Annabelle is starting to understand some concepts, and having a new baby around during the holiday season...well, there really isn't anything better.

So. All of this to say, I'm simply grateful. Life really is beautiful. Amid the shuffling and even amid the heartache that we all experience in one way or another, it's quite lovely. And I'm simply grateful.

PHOTO: The Great Smokies, sunrise. I don't believe any post processing occurred either. (We don't even own Photoshop.)