It's October and officially fall, which in Texas means absolutely nothing. We just have pumpkins wilting in the humidity. I have always loved Fall. I miss the Fall of New England. I miss opening my windows and feeling the breeze air out my house. I miss home, which got me really sad. So, I was thinking about how to get out of this spiral and the word "celebration" came to mind.

Celebration is a good word. There are a lot of reasons to celebrate and a lot of different ways to celebrate. So my thought process went like this (buckle up it's usually a windy, bumpy trip): Fall means Thanksgiving, which is a celebration with family and food. Thanksgiving leads to Christmas or Hanukkah or whatever you celebrate, which means family, presents and food. Holiday breaks mean road trips to see family and friends, road trips mean food and good music. Then New Year's Eve, food is usually involved. So celebration = food, which made me hungry. Where's a good gluten-free cake when you need one?

So, now I was hungry and sad. Honestly, looking at things differently, from another angle helps our perspective. Flip the script. Change the narrative.

We celebrate a million things and there are a million things to celebrate every day. There is magic in a child's laugh, the wonderful smell of babies hair, the pure joy your fur-baby greets you with every time you come home, when you hit all the green lights, the best food you've ever tasted, the hug that made your week, the compliment from a total stranger, the sigh of contentment, the spastic anticipation for something fantastic.

Every culture, faith and family has celebrations complete with traditions and food. I love that every Thanksgiving we use my gram's candied sweet potato recipe and every Christmas we make my mom's fudge. Also, in our family on your birthday you pick your dinner and cake.

God is big on celebrations, just read through Leviticus 23. He knows the importance of stopping the every day tasks and taking a moment to remember, to pass on, to make new memories. The biggest thing, I think, God celebrates is us.

God looks at us and celebrates. He sees us and says: "________________ is good." Isaiah 62:5 says that God rejoices over us. He can see past the stuff that has us all twisted, thinking we've failed too many times...or whatever we think. His love for us goes beyond what we do or don't do.

One of the biggest problems I have with celebrations is the expectation I put on it. I usually come away disappointed. I have had to learn to scale that back, for my sanity but also my husbands, who got all the tears and yelling and sadness. Sorry Babe, you'll get a jewel in your crown for that.

So whether you love a good party or would rather dress to match the wallpaper, I just wanted you to know that today, YOU. ARE. CELEBRATED! Imagine confetti and balloons here with your favorite treat being rolled out to you. God celebrates you. I celebrate you. And if you haven't heard it yet, you are doing a great job and we need you in our world.

I would love to hear about your favorite celebration, tradition or food you always have to have.

All My love ~

xo Jodi