This past Thursday I turned 29 and I couldn’t be more excited! There are some who dread the idea of aging, adding on one more year with possibly several more wrinkles and white hairs. I, on the other hand, am so excited to reach 30… 40… 50 and so on. I have big dreams, you see. And every year allows me to live even more, even better than I lived the year before. I never want to let a year pass that I don’t stop and realize how stinkin’ blessed I am. This world has so many beautiful things, and so many of them I get to witness, fall in love with, and capture. So, here is my list for this year…

29 Things I’m Oh So Thankful For

1. The best individual who I get to live life with every single day and call my husband. Ah! Love you!

2. Two beautiful, crazy, lovely and brilliant kids.

3. Living in a place that has the bluest skies and that I get to see them more than the majority of the world.

4. Being able to capture stories and show others how I see the beauty in this world. (like, seriously. So thankful!)

5. That the sky produces the most beautiful and breathtaking canvases every moment of the day. (I know, I have a thing with the sky)

6. Paint.

7. That airplanes actually are real and I get to fly in them often.

8. That I manage to grown more plants than kill them:)

9. That there are human beings that actually believe in and desire to be documented, allowing me to feed my family.

10. Insurance that helps us not pay over 100K every year in surgeries and medical specialists.

11. That love grows every single day.

12. Hippos.

13. Large bodies of water that help us remember we are but a small itty bitty piece of this world.

14. That you can see God everywhere.

15. Spring flowers.

16. That beauty can be found everywhere.

17. How the light dances throughout the streets of Chicago.

18. That my kids thank God everyday for people they love.

19. My parents who have always supported me in ways to succeed. Oh so thankful.

20. Walls and paint brushes.

21. DIY home improvement projects and that Brian lets me indulge in more than I probably should.

22. Saturday mornings!

23. Numbers.

24. Fresh cut eucalyptus branches on my kitchen table.

25. That my kids enjoy eating really good food as much as Brian and I do.

26. Belgian Beer.

27. Fig Trees!

29. That my world is full of beautiful people that encourage my dreams. Seriously, couldn’t do any of this without you guys.

Here is to being 29! Thank you all for the lovely birthday wishes!!! Cheers + love!