A new day. A beautiful new day.

I laid in bed with my door open and inhaled that wonderful rain smell last night.  I'm grateful for the downpour Heaven sent, in so many ways.  I'm grateful for the impurities it washed away and the clean possibilities it left behind.  I appreciate the cloud cover this morning and the little bits of pink hope that hit the sky from the east.

I'm grateful for new days and deep breaths.  Today my gratitude list is long.  It includes healthy children, modern technology and medical professionals that take their jobs seriously.  It includes Seneca singing at the top of her lungs in the bathroom when she should be brushing her teeth.  And Cooper going through his morning routine with his nose in a book the entire time.  And the sleepy hug that Beckham delivered as he wandered out of his room this morning.

I'm grateful to sleep next to Denten at night and to have a sweet, healthy baby girl across the hall.  I'm grateful for phone conversations with Lindsay and to know that she is feeling all the emotions that run through my heart in a day.

The world-wide support that has been thrown at Katelyn and Wade the past 48 hours is impressive and a testament to the kind of people they are.  They give in whatever capacity they happen to be in and can't help but leave people better than they found them.  Support is flowing in from many states and countries all across the earth and it is comforting that little Whitt has the whole wide world praying for him.  I am incredibly grateful for our enormous family and network of dear friends and the love they give so freely.

I know that Heaven knows Whitt and loves him dearly and he is prepared to fight this fight.  I am guessing that he's in for a marathon rather than a sprint but I wouldn't expect anything less considering who his parents are.  He will overcome odds and conquer doubts and remind me often that my faith does much more good than my fear.  He has also taught me a lesson that I have learned again and again... that Heaven has a plan and it doesn't always line up with our own.  But we adapt and once we decide to roll with it rather than fight it, we discover that His plan was much better than whatever we had in mind.  I'm grateful for that knowledge and for Heaven's patience as I learn it again and again.

Whitt, I have cheered alongside many a race.  You gotta dig in, put your head down and just go.  At whatever pace you have left.  Baby steps forward are still steps forward and we will celebrate them with great fanfare.  We have pulled out the cow bells, buddy- we've got the signs and the pom-poms and we are cheering at the top of our lungs for you.  You got this.