I don’t know about you, but I’m so ready for this year to be over. Before it’s over though, I need to remember the things God has blessed our family with. When I sent our family Christmas video this year, my childhood best friend texted back something that struck me- “So happy for all the blessings you’ve been shown this year.” She’s right. Although I’m having difficulty seeing them at this moment while struggling with a bout of depression, we have been shown many blessings. I’m hoping a little reflection on our year will help remind me of the positives and small joys God provided us with. Here are a few things we’ve been fortunate to experience this year:

His Presence-Always there for us no matter what we’re going through, God has been our rock through it all. He never fails us and we’re learning to trust Him more each day.

Family-Living through a pandemic can be a very lonely season, but we have each other to lean on during this difficult time. My husband is always doing so much for our family and our girls are forever trying to put a smile on my face.

Fresh Alaskan caught salmon-In September, right after arriving in Alaska, we caught and froze twenty-two meals of fresh salmon within a few weeks time, right in our back yard.

Safe Travels through Canada to Alaska-During a big move across the country we made it over the Canadian border to Alaska safe and sound without getting Covid.

Tubing in Bend, Oregon-We had a blast visiting Mt. Bachelor for the first time and getting some tubing in at the beginning of the year.

Seeing relatives-We got to visit my parents before our big move.

Finding a new favorite beach-After moving to Alaska and exploring new sites, we found our new favorite beach on the Kenai Peninsula.

A Summer on the river-For the second year in a row, we got to spend the summer off-grid camp hosting in beautiful Central Washington.

Seeing wildlife-On our drive through Canada, we spotted five bear and a couple of moose. Then, shortly after arriving in Alaska, a mama moose and her two calves strolled down our driveway and peeked right in our front window. We have also seen several bald eagles and one golden eagle fly overhead.

Halloween party fun-Instead of trick-or-treating this year, we surprised our girls with a Halloween party that included a fear-factor style game, a caramel apple bar, and a candy scavenger hunt.

New Recipes-With more time stuck indoors, I’ve had the chance to create several tasty new soup recipes. I also tried Shepherd’s Pie for the first time ever (I know, crazy!) and created my own yummy recipe that we can’t get enough of.

Technology-While still difficult, having the technology to Facetime relatives during Covid has helped to make these lock downs not quite so tough.

Craft time-Slowing down and creating upcycled crafts with our girls has brought me joy.

Vitamin B injections and other new supplements-I found some new treatments to really help lessen the fatigue caused by the persistent Lyme disease and chronic fatigue syndrome that I struggle with. This has made a world of difference.

My Yeti mug-For my birthday this summer, my parents bought me a “Duck, Duck, Moose” Yeti Mug that I just love. It brightens my day to drink my daily cold brew from it.

My husband’s job-Having already had a work-from home job before the pandemic, this has been a Godsend.

A new Christmas tradition-I mentioned in a previous post, that we started a new Christmas tradition writing Christmas Kindness Notes to each other beginning in December and throughout the month. We opened our stockings full of notes on Christmas Eve and it was so sweet to hear all the loving words written to each of us.

Doggie snuggles-I can always count on my pups for some afternoon snuggles.

Health-God has protected us and kept our family healthy.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. -Psalm 136:1

While I’m thankful that the year is coming to an end, I’m even more grateful for the adventures and memories He’s allowed us to make. So long 2020! Bring on the new year!