Looking for joy

For the last 3 years I have been creating a DVD picture slide show in January, to recap the previous years' events. This is truly a labor of love since I have hundreds of pictures to sort through and edit each year. This year I started the DVD with over 1200 pictures -- 3 hours in length. Wow ! That is a lot of memories. After much editing the final version was 42 minutes long and jam packed with joy. We had a birth, birthdays, holidays, vacations, and random fun spent with family. So why do I do this? I have all of these pictures in scrapbooks. These DVDs are wonderful reminders of just how blessed my family is. I may have struggles - my children may have struggles - but we have a very full life surrounded by family that truly loves and supports us.

It is so easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day obstacles and stresses and lose sight of the big picture. Joy isn't always so "in your face." Sometimes we really have to look for it or make it ourselves. On really tough days I pop in one of these DVDs and I thank God for the amazing family that he gave me. I am not alone in my struggles or triumphs - in my darkest and brightest times, they are there with me.

So, I wanted to share a little of my joy with you. I have taken a very small snip-it of the video I just finished and uploaded it to youtube for all of you to see. Stop and think about your 2009 - I bet if you look hard enough you'll see that it was filled with more joy than you realized.