Today begins my 38th year on this earth, and so today I pause to evaluate a few things. Here I stand, on year 13 of a career in education. I have 3 degrees and a number of certificates, and I am proud of them. I work hard every day. I spent 9 years in the classroom, and I treasure those years and the relationships I developed with students and teachers. But I am thankful for the things I have learned since leaving the classroom and the opportunities I have had to hone my skills in other areas.

I have an amazing husband, and we are blessed with a ridiculous number of children. My husband and I made the decision a few years ago for him to leave his job and return to school to finish his degree. This spring, he will finish his Bachelors in Public History, and I could not be more proud of him. He is one of the smartest men I know. He consistently surprises me with his unique perspective on history. I am blessed to know him and have him in my life… more than that, I am supremely blessed to call him my mate.

When I was 18 years old, a doctor told me I would never have children. At the time, I was devastated. As it turns out, he was wrong… incredibly wrong. Today, I am the #MomOfMany and I am so thankful. Not only do I have daughters I am fortunate to have been able to adopt, but I was also able to give birth to 2 boys, and I have another older son I am thankful to call my own. When God blesses, He does so in abundance.

Today, I pause to count my blessings, and I encourage you to count yours as well. Although this is not truly a post about #EdTech, I will be at #GaETC18 in November, and I hope to see all of you there. Life is good, and even when it does not seem to be, there is always a silver lining somewhere. 😊