I have always been a Thank You kind of girl. I was raised to be one, actually, but even now that I’m grown and on my own, I still believe in writing Thank Yous. For gifts, mostly, but thanks to reading 365 Thank Yous with my book club, I am hoping to write more in 2014 for the less tangible but still amazing “gifts” I have received from those around me. Even though it is not quite the new year yet, I come to you now with my first official post-holiday Thank You and I’m making it public because I have to.

We just got home this afternoon from a week of travel for Christmas celebrations with both the Welschs and the Moores. HD & RL have actually been gone for 9 days, so needless to say, we are one worn out little family. We had a great time seeing everyone and sharing gifts and meals and laughs and games and all those fun holiday things. Life with Littles makes the holidays extra special and, I’ll be honest, extra exhausting. Think about it. You tell a 4-yr-old that some jolly old dude is going to come in the night and leave him presents and you really think that 4-yr-old is going to wait for a decent hour to start coming to your room to ask if you can all go downstairs to see if Santa came yet?!?! 4:13 a.m. my friends. That is when HD started asking for Santa on Christmas morning. Did the joy of watching him open his gifts make up for the bleary eyes later in the day? Absolutely – just a little note to self for Santa next year, though. She *ahem* he shouldn’t get noisy toys via Amazon that she *ahem* he can’t volume test before leaving for the children. Just saying.

When you take the general excitement of Christmas and holiday travel and you add in sharing a room with a very noisy 5 1/2 month old sleeper, you are really asking for it. I would have loved to stay longer at my parents’ house but we absolutely had to come home today because I am so sleep deprived after the last week (Hello! Did you see the fb post about taking RL to the ER last Sat. night for what ended up being croup that has fortunately gotten better but still, what a way to start things off!). I don’t think my body or my brain or my emotions could handle one more night of being away from home. We need our own beds and most importantly, our own bedrooms! Lincoln is my No.1 Little Dude, but man, he is a terrible roommate. Thank goodness that Ben has the next week off from school so we can just unpack and unwind and take it nice and easy as we roll into 2014.

Naturally, while we were gone, we had our mail held and came back to a nice little bundle of Christmas cards this afternoon. I started going through the stack while Ben put RL & LT down for naps which brings me back to the public nature of the Thank You that I’m in a roundabout way trying to write right here. The very first envelope I chose to open was addressed just to me and had no return address on it. I honestly thought it was a bill or junk mail of some sort which is why I opened it first, saving the obvious Christmas cards for later. Imagine my surprise when I found a typed, unsigned letter expressing someone’s care and concern and appreciation for me and my family and my writing, saying that they wanted to do something to continue my growth and were including a way for me to do that with a punch card to my beloved local yoga studio. TEARS, my friends. Lots and lots of tears as I first read it, when I showed it to Ben and as I write this now.

Since you didn’t sign your name but did say that you read this blog, this blog is how I know best to say Thank You. I am so blessed with an amazing support system and you are obviously part of that. Yoga is keeping me whole these days so you picked very well and I am touched to be on the receiving end of such kindness and generosity. Of course my curious mind wants to guess and to know who you are but I respect that you wanted to send some anonymous good out into the world. Know it is being received with heartfelt thanks and immense gratitude. And I will find ways in the immediate and long-term future to repay this, if not to you since you are unnamed, to others.

Believe there is good in the world. Be the good. When we show up for each other, we are the good. Thank you, thank you, thank you.