This beautiful exchange

Tonight, as I was vacuuming our ugly, multi-stained carpet, I found myself wishing for a lot of things. I starting thinking of how I would love to have hard wood floors, instead of gray carpet that used to be off-white. I would love to have another bedroom in our house so the baby wouldn’t have to share his/her room with future guests. I wish that we had the money to replace the many chipped dishes from our disappointment of a Pier 1 purchase. I wish that we could afford the $500 crib, with the matching changing table for an additional $300, that I saw in the latest Babies R Us catalogue. I wish…I wish…if only.

Thankfully, in those moments, God is faithful to remind me of what I do have, and how I would never give those things up for a spotless carpet. I have a husband who loves me enough to put Christmas lights on the house in the dark. We have a mortgage that we can comfortably afford. We have a baby on the way, of which we could not be more excited. We have wonderful friends and family, who take care of us in so many ways. We really have a pretty simple life that is peaceful and full of love and hope.

When I look at it that way, the stains on my carpet seem to fade and our small house becomes cozy. I love it this way.