My Sister in Law, Amy, invited all of us Sisters (on Josh's side) to go to Washinton DC while she worked on some schooling out there. To say it was a blast is an understatement!! Lately I get really bad travel anxiety- not when I'm with Josh and the kids but when I'm away from them. I get too far in my own head and imagine everything awful that could happen while we are apart.

But being with all of my Sisters was truly something I needed on a level I didn't even know. It was amazing to re-acquaintance myself with them. To remind myself why I love each of them so much. To remember all the brilliant qualities they each have, that have all separately worked together to get me through the hard trials. So here are just a few pictures from this trip that I'll never forget. (Don't even get Josh started on how many pics I took... it's kinda a source of disbelief in his mind) :)

The buildings were amazing...

The memorials were humbling and beautiful...

The food was delish!

But the company was the best part...

 

I even found my name sign...

 

 



Uh, Hinckleys... Where are we going next?!

The day I "met" Nicole...

I follow a sweet gal, Hailey, on instagram and she posted this blog post about the scary side of social media. It scared the daylights out of me. I had multiple people send me the link and warn me that this could happen to me, as I have a few followers that I do not know. I had originally chosen to keep my instagram and blog open to the public because I thought if I could just touch one person, I would feel complete.

Then I worried that I was being selfish and not protecting my family. My kids especially. It pulled me back into the scary part of my head and I prayed for days about making everything social media private. Then I "met" Nicole. I actually met her best friend, Brittany. She posted on one of my pictures, "Please pray for my friend Nicole who is in critical condition of having an AFE on Saturday. I'm so happy to hear you survived.... I'm reading your blog now...Thank you for sharing. Your story gives me more hope."



It stopped me in my tracks. I knew that I had to keep social media up and going because my prayers had been answered, and my story just gave someone hope in the most fearful time of their life. But I was grateful for Hailey. For her sharing her experiences and warnings about what can come from not being careful on social media. I knew that I needed to change some things and always put my family first. It was exactly what I needed.

Nicole was originally in a coma. Neurologists were worried that her long term prognosis was not good. Brittany tried so hard to keep her faith but couldn't imagine not hearing her laugh anymore. Or Nicole's daughter not having her around. We talked about miracles but how hopeless we both felt. But as our Heavenly Father would have it, she just passed her hearing and vision test! Which are huge accomplishments after what her brain has been through. She communicates well for the most part and her cognitive skills are healing. She'll be in intense physical therapy for a while... but WOW! She is amazing. Strong and is not going to let anything get in her way. She is truly amazing in my eyes and I am so astonished and thankful that social media could bring us together. It can be used for such good....