Trials are good for us, RIGHT?

So, this has not been an easy month for Matt and I. He's had some frustrations with some things at work. Then the other morning, I went out with Morgan to wait for the bus, and discovered one of my tires was FLAT! Matt had already left for work, and unfortunately, I have yet to change a tire. Thankfully, we have a wonderful HT who lives just around the corner. He came over and in about 5 minutes, had my spare put on, so that I could take the boys to school. Plus, I had several appointments I couldn't miss that day. And finally, we had a loss in the family this weekend. Zoe, our 6 year old black lab/German Short hair mix, died. She has had several strokes during the last month or so. And we've been worried about her. Matt was playing Frisbee with her today, then she was convulsing. To say the least, the kids were devastated. Especially Chandler, who out of all the kids, has a very good understanding of death, and animals. He had a very good relationship with ZOE. She came to our home at a difficult time, when Morgan and I were in Anchorage at the NICU for two months. She was a great help with bringing a sense of normalcy to the kids at a very tough time. This has also been very tough on Matt. This was HIS dog. But we've told the boys, "Zoe's with Heavenly Father" and that has helped. I think the boys will be okay. It was when Morgan climbed up on Matt's lap at dinner and asked "where's Zoe"? that I thought Matt was really going to lose it.

I just keep thinking, there is something I'm supposed to be learning from all of this. I'm sure I needed to be humbled. That has helped me to be teachable. But I've also learned to have a better appreciation and gratitude for the simple joys in life. And the little things that we don't focus on when we're too caught up in the material world, but that are really important things. I'm so grateful for my family. I'm glad I have a husband who would swim through shark infested waters to bring me a lemonade. And we have a lovely home to raise our family in. It's not big, it's not fancy, but it suits our needs. And that's okay.