5 Things I’m Extra Thankful For This Year

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Happy Thanksgiving Friends! This morning, I’m packing up for a trip to Sedona, AZ to photograph my best friend’s engagement session in the red rock canyons!! Last night we had a nice dinner with Justin’s family and this afternoon we’ll spend time with mine. Then we’re off for a drive and amazing weekend. I’m feeling extra thankful this week as everyone’s posting things that they are grateful for on Facebook, so I had to jump in and share a few of my own.

Here are five things I’m extra thankful for this year…

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1. Tuesday’s Together

These are only a few of the wonderful people that have filled my life this year within the industry! I’m so thankful for #TuesdaysTogether and all of the incredible people that come together each month to learn and just spend time with one another. I’m blown away at the quality of relationships I’ve built and how so many of my professional wedding “friendors” are truly becoming friends I can see in my life for years to come. I can’t wait to see how much we all keep growing together as 2016 brings in so many more blessings!

 

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2. My #JennaJosephBrides

Words can’t even begin to articulate how much I appreciate my brides. It’s each and everyone of these beautiful people who chose me to capture their wedding day that has shaped my career. Each experience I’ve had documenting their weddings have collectively molded me into the photographer I am. It’s the relationships I’ve built during my career that has shown me the kind of people I want to continue working for and how to build my business around that. I’m forever grateful for these women and I look forward to all of the new clients I get to serve next year! The blessings never end.

 

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3. Family

Not only am I grateful for my crazy, huge family I get to call my own, but now I’m extra grateful for my Joseph family, too! I love that Justin added another sister, mother, and father into my life. I’m thankful to call his grannies “Granny” and to have talks with his dad like he is my own. I love all of my little nephews and nieces on my side and I love that the family just keeps growing! Hopefully Justin and I don’t make any additions to the family any time soon!! Hahaha…

 

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4. My Church Community

I’ve always been a small-church girl, as long as I was old enough to decide which church I’d attend. When Justin got hired on staff at Rancho, he was more than excited. I was definitely happy for him and loved the people surrounding us, but I was apprehensive about how I’d feel in a big church. It’s been amazing to really grow and learn about how much of a blessing Rancho Community is in our town, how much they use their abundance of resources to touch lives of those in need, and how many little communities there are within the great big walls on this campus! With Justin being on the worship team, I’m naturally hanging out with all the band people, and that’s become my own little small church. I love our little #tribe as Tim calls it, and I’m blessed they count me as their own, even though I’m just the wife who can’t play anything!

 


5. Marriage with Justin

Judge the pixels of this iPhone selfie all you want. I still love it. I might even go as far as printing it!

This has been our first year of marriage and the best year of my life yet. The second best year of my life was being engaged to him, and the third best year of my life was dating him. Pretty much, since I met this guy, life has been full of things to be thankful for. Too many to count.

Being married, I’ve learned a lot about myself and about Justin. I’ve learned more about my flaws and his, and I’ve learned more about grace and forgiveness (and how much better he is at that than I am). Most importantly, I’ve learned more and more each day that he is truly my best friend and we can still laugh together during the days, even if we’re working through something new that week.

I’m thankful for a lot this year, but most of all, I’m thankful that God gave me this husband. Justin sometimes asks me if I still like being married, and my answer is “To you, yes, because it wouldn’t be this good with anyone else.”

 

…What are you thankful for this year?

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