Eleven lessons I learned in 2011...
1) Angry words do not only affect you and the person you speak them to. They have a rippling effect that damage other people who are not involved and complicate situations you would never consider. My anger never gives me the green light to chew someone out. Ug.
2) I will never laugh again when someone discusses how to manage pain during labor. It is for real and I should have listened the first time. If we ever have another child I am all about Hypno-babies, visualization, "Hee-Hee-Hoo", or whatever else you got.
3) Life is made up of seasons. Even if it feels like it, the hard ones do not last forever and they are purposeful. We can praise God in the difficult seasons. The good ones are made up of sweet memories and rest.
4) I need to listen when Missy Huss gives me advice on children. When eight months pregnant and complaining that I was ready to have this baby, she told me to be grateful that while the baby was inside he was warm and fed and had all he needed and I had two free hands. She was right. I also should have listened to Kelly Edwards when she told me to take a nap!
5) Little sleep strips away my false "nice" exterior revealing an angry, selfish inside. I am a lot more selfish than I could have ever thought. See number 6.
6) My husband is a kind, kind man. He often treats me with much more kindness than I show him, showing me Jesus when he responds to ugliness with gentleness. He is a much better husband to me than I am a wife to him.
7) The older I get the more I realize how immature I really am.
8) God does not change according to how we feel about Him.
9) Failing is a hard but very good lesson. Failing publicly is even better as it strips away my self-righteousness and encourages me to be more gracious to others in the future.
10) A little kid's laughter is most likely the best sound in the entire world.
11) Never underestimate the power of a good pair of stretchy pants, a hot shower, and a nap.
