Vacation Weekend by Megan

It's been about 8 months since I have made a contribution to the blog, but I thought the story of last weekend was worth sharing.   After a long stretch of insane overtime for Stephen, we decided that, since our last vacation was over 7 years ago, we were due for a weekend of luxury at a local resort.  A friend set us up with a beautiful suite at Steele Hill for 1/3 of the normal rate, and we ended an especially full week of school (for us) and stressful analysis deadlines (for Stephen) with a frenzy of packing and wild excitement!  It took us 4 trips to transport our clothes, food, outerwear, sleds, and swimming gear to and from the resort, but Stephen cheerfully made the drives and hauled our belongings in freezing rain - serving his big, rambunctious family with a cheerful grace and sense of humor that melted my heart and reminded me how blessed I am to be married to him.  Our getaway began with a bout of the stomach flu for poor little Tert and ended with a trip to the emergency room for Filia.  Somehow, in between washing mountains of laundry from sick beds, cuddling a teething baby who wouldn't sleep, chopping ice chips, and resetting an elbow, we were able to make some incredible memories.  I was so blessed to see the compassion stirred in the older kids who weren't the least bit resentful of the mishaps along the way and helped us keep things running smoothly.  Filia, who ate up every second of snuggle time and her parents' attention in the ER waiting room, told us that her favorite parts of the weekend were her swim at the hotel pool AND her trip to the hospital.  If I've learned anything from this vacation experience, it is that setting and circumstances don't matter nearly as much as the people you share them with.  I thank God for blessing me with such a precious family (and I'm more than content to wait a few more years for our next vacation! :).

"If any one would tell you the shortest, surest way to all happiness, and all perfection, he must tell you to make it a rule to yourself, to thank and praise God for everything that happens to you.  For it is certain, that whatever seeming calamity happens to you, if you thank and praise God for it, you turn it into a blessing."  William Law