Four Powerful Words

In the theme of the new year and all the blessings we have to look forward to, I have been thinking a lot about my phrase for the year, "live with grace", and wanted to add another piece to that. I have been thinking a lot lately about the power of words and how so many people never hear, "I love you", "you look great today" or other mood inducing kind words. The are 4 words that I love to hear, "I'm proud of you." This is something I want to focus on this year. I want to tell the people in my life how proud I am of them. And not just people who are family or friends. I want to tell the janitor in my building that I am proud of how hard he works. Or the garbage man out working in -5 degrees I think he is doing an awesome job. Weird that a total stranger tells you they are proud of you?! A little. But, I think it could have a serious positive effect on some people. If I could even make one person smile and feel good about themselves then it's pure success! And who knows, maybe someone has had a serious case of the blues and you happen to tell them that day that you are proud of them for a specific thing. Perhaps they have been doubting themselves and thinking they are horrible at their job or a craft they create, and your 4 simple words give them the push and encouragement they need to recognize what they can achieve and that they definitely have something to be proud of!  I know those 4 magic words have a profound effect on me and inspire me. I am lucky because even as a grown woman, my mom always tells me how proud of me she is. And she always has. It has helped me more than she knows.

So I thought I would do this blog entry a bit different. Here is my list (off the top of my head...there are certainly more people in my life I am proud of, but these are fresh on my heart)

• Jason-I am so proud of how hard you work. You are the most loyal person. Loyal to me, your career, and all that know you. I admire that about you. And I am so proud of you for sticking to your workouts. I know it is important to you and just know I am so proud of you.
• Mom-You are the most brave person I know. To see how far you have traveled in your grief journey since loosing dad is so inspiring. I am so proud of your bravery, courage and how you continue to live your life with passion and volunteer to support causes near and dear to your heart. My cup runneth over.
• Doug-I am so proud of you for going back to school. That is not an easy task. You did it and worked hard and what a huge accomplishment. 
• Jeremy-I am so proud of you for serving our country. I am proud to say I am a sister of a soldier. Thank you for protecting us.
• Kim-I am proud of you for putting up with my brother for all of these years. haha but seriously, I am proud of how supportive of a wife you are and how you have sacrificed so much and supported his service to our country. It takes a strong woman to be an Army wife and i am so proud of you for that.
• Rach-I am so proud of you for following your passion and studying to be a personal trainer. That is not an easy task and I am so excited to see what the future holds for your career. 
• Crystal-It is so amazing to have witnessed your journey of becoming a wife and a mother and seeing God's plan for you unfold so beautifully. I am so proud of your strength, love for God and your true love and dedication to your family. I am definitely going to ask you for tips when I become a Momma!
• Lyla Jo-Aunt Cookie is so proud of the sweet, funny, kind, beautiful young lady you are becoming. You are such a gift from God and I am so blessed to know you. 
• Aidan, Malia and Easton-I am beyond proud to be your Aunt! God knew what he was doing when he brought the three of you into my life! Aidan-you are kind, generous and such a blessing. Malia-you are such a unique, creative, beautiful little girl and I am so excited to see you grow and be a part of your life. Easton-you are such a blessing to our family and I cannot wait to see God's plan for your beautiful little life unfold. 
• Jenny (mom)-So proud to see your strength and courage grow. I am excited to see what this year holds for you! 
• Our future birth mother-We are so proud of your strength and selflessness. You are an angel who will make us a family and we are forever grateful and will always celebrate your bravery and courage to make the hardest decision of our lives. We will always tell the child that we all share how proud of you we all are.

In the spirit of this I have been pondering the idea of starting something called the "I'm proud of you project". I am in the beginning thought process with this and would love to hear your thoughts and ideas!

We asked Brason what he was proud of us for and this is what he said:

Have a lovely week!

Love, Brooke