Oh, give thanks.

I woke up this morning and as I shook the cobwebs from my mind, a dull ache set in between my temples.

I stumbled to the bathroom and saw puffy eyes peering back at me as I glanced in my mirror.

I got dressed in a fog, out the door in a haze and despite the cup of liquid crack coffee coursing through my veins, I still felt as though my brain was swaddled in cotton.

Life, as of late, has been busy.

My laundry is oozing out of my closet. My cupboard shelves are bare (sans a tub of frosting, a few packets of oatmeal and a sleeve of Thin Mints DO NOT JUDGE ME). An empty can of Diet Dr. Pepper rattles in my car console. And my office desk is covered in scribbled Post-Its.

And yet, through my bleariness and weariness and oh-my-gosh-I-need-a-weekend-immediately state, I am overcome with thankfulness--

For where I've been. For new beginnings. For the in-between right now...

For a brother who is way cooler than me (except for that time he scribbled all over my Freddie Prinze, Jr. poster but WHATEVER, I AM SO OVER IT). For a mom who would tear up if she knew how much she means to me. For a daddy that will soon get to walk me down the aisle...

For the ring on my finger. For the promise that it holds. For the chance to spend my life with my best friend...

For those who walk with me. Laugh with me. For those that remember me way back when...

For the voices that tell me to keep going, yes, it's worth it and it's okay to cry...

For a big world. For a bigger God. For a hope that though sometimes I am cut down, I will sprout again.