Who'da Thunk?

Wednesday afternoon,  around 3:30 or so, I hit the PUBLISH POST button on this blog post.  I closed my lap top & I headed off to take a shower {Yes, it's true, sometimes us stay at home moms don't get out of our jammies until 3:30 in the afternoon}.

I dragged the high chair into my bedroom, like I often times do-- it's my little makeshift way of keeping Meatball constrained while Momma gets a shower.  A tasty snack of goldfish, a sippy cup of milk, & a Nick Jr. show usually buys me a about a ten minute shower.  A win-win for the both of us!

After my shower, I threw my wet hair up into a towel, wheeled the high chair back into it's little nook in the kitchen, & tossed a dinner of pork chops & sweet potatoes into the oven.  Jett played with his new grill set in the living room, & I sat down to take a quick peek at my facebook while I waited for a pan of water to boil on the stove.

And what happened next, I gotta say, I wasn't prepared for.  Right then & there, sitting at my kitchen table with my facebook page open in front of me, I received one of the biggest hugs I've ever gotten in my life. I felt arms wrap around me & squeeze me tight,  & in that very moment, I got slammed with an outpouring of love that I totally was NOT expecting.

Tears flowed.  They filled up my eyes, blurred my vision, slid down my cheeks, & fell into my lap as I read... & read... & read.

Wanna see what that hug looked like?

Here ya go:

Michelle Kirkpatrick:  2 Timothy 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. In anyone you deal with or anything that's been set in your path....I've learned a lot from this verse, we just have to worry about what the Lord will think of us, nothing else! Love you.

Korie Johnson:  I hate when people make you feel less of a person or question things in your life. I truly think those people are jealous of you and wish to be like you in one way or another.

Vanessa Hazelton Poyner:  Holly, I realize that I haven't seen u since HS, but I stalk your blog every time u post something! You are an amazing writer and I get inspiration from you every time I read it. You seem to be an amazing mother, wife, daughter and friend! Don't ever let anybody "change" you! Thank you for the inspirational reads! :)

Courtney Vaughan Dec:  All I have to say IS - I love you. I admire you. I am proud of you. You are an amazing woman and mother. I am lucky to call you my friend.  I loved this blog and everything it stands for. You are an excellent writer. Don't ever stop being yourself! =)

Linda Wolfe Adams: I love you Holly! Don't ever change!

Rachel Cunningham Fields:  Amen to what each person has wrote. And now for the "crazy" Rachel side, I wanna kick whom ever it was in the teeth. I love love love your blog and your words and all your exclamation points. AND lil ♥ s. I just had to clean house on FB the other day, sometimes getting rid of the uglyness helps. XOXO

Stacy Couzens: !!!!!!!!!!!! And that's a wrap.....=) Take that mean girl!!!!! Holly isn't gonna chage for you!!!!! =)=)=)

Jamie Hackler:  You go girl...love the blog and u!!!

Kelly Wolfe Hill:  So sorry to hear that someone tried to tear you down....I totally eat up your blogging and think you are an amazing person....dont change a thing, just be yourself and keep building those memories for years to come...love ya ;)

Daphna Jolles McGilchrist:  I ♥ you! (the way you are)

Cindy Briles:  So sorry honey. Some people just have to say things to make themselves feel better. Why, I do not know. Just remember who you are in the Lord and don't forget either what it took to make you that person. Christ didn't die on that cross for nothing. We all live and learn if we are truly seeking to please our Lord and do His will. We all make mistakes too, and we can learn from them also. Your blog is such a great outlet for you and you do an amazing job! I read them all and sometimes twice. I love your photos and your outlook on being yourself as a daughter, sister,wife, daughter in law, sister in law, mom and a student of Christ's teachings. God will use what you have written. Your words may bring someone to Him. Yes to thine own self be true and let others deal with it as the have to. I LOVE YOU!

Courtney Smith Jeffries:Yep, I have to agree with all the others above! Holly, you are talented, funny, intelligent and beautiful (among many other things) and there will always be people who - out of jealousy and insecurity - will try to insult you or cut you down. Next time just re-read all these posts and realize you have way more people rooting for you than against you. And keep your main focus on your three J's - Jesus, Jared and Jett. :) ( I have three J's, too...)

Abby Cosens Salazar:  You are awesome, your blog is awesome, your little family is awesome!! I love your blog! Such a joy to read.

Heather Nelson Deyerle:  AMEN, AMEN, AMEN...Everyone has said what I wanted to say!!! DITTO to ALL the above comments!!! Sweet Holly, I too am realizing this at almost 34yrs old! Life throws us curve balls at times, and the Good Lord just wants us to rely on HIM more when we get hit!!! I am so HAPPY for you and I LOVE who you are!!! NEVER CHANGE...people are people and we can never change people...but we can PRAY for the Lord to change them!!! Hang in there girlie and blog away...I LOVE ALL OF YOUR STORIES & FUNNINESS!!! LOVE YA SWEET HOLLY!!! xoxoxox

Brooke Davies Riffel:  I am in the same boat as everyone else who has posted a comment about you. You are such a beautiful, strong, and talented person...I admire you, your sweet family, your blog, and I am so thankful that you and I have become friends once again!!

Jared Briles: I love your blog Pippa! You are an amazing person and I am glad you're back and keeping it REAL. You are such a strong, caring, and creative woman, I am so lucky to be married to you! And yes, I finally used the word woman in the right context, LOL!

Jennifer Szymanski:  You are such a beautiful person, and I'm not just talking outside lady...I'm talking inside too! You are amazing and I'm so proud to call you my friend. Love you!!! :) {!!!!!!!!!!!} ;)

****

And all of these comments made in regards to that blog post...they weren't even the half of it.  I received private messages, text messages, even phone calls, all of the same nature as the above precious comments.

In a matter of moments a whole slew of people in my life had come swooping in to my defense, throwin' dukes, ready to build me up & take ol' mean girl down.  As I read through each & every comment, message, & text, I laughed through my tears thinking, "Geez, forget blogging about my issues.  Next time I'll just sic all of my loved ones on em'."  Ha!  {Totally kidding...my friends are lovers, not fighters.  But I wouldn't go testing that theory out.  Just sayin'.}

Here I had gotten all worked up about sharing my heart & showing my raw hurt feelings.   I had worried about what people would think of me if they knew that I question myself from time to time, that I'm not always the confident & secure person that I often times let on to be.  I was petrified of  putting myself out there & showing my human side.  But then, once I did, THIS was the response I received?  

Who'da thunk? 

Certainly not me. 

That's the thing about being vulnerable...it puts you out there alright, but it also shows the world that you're real....that you're just like everybody else.  It shows others that when it comes right down to it, we all face the same struggles, we all have the same emotions, & in the end we all just want to be loved & accepted for who we are.  Slowly but surely, I am learning that the more I put myself on the line, humble myself, & show who I really am in my heart of hearts,  the more others let their guards down & show me their true hearts & selves.  Want to know what makes someone's heart beat? Want to know what they're passionate about? Want to know what their fears are?  Put yourself out there first.  It's a process that has been amazing & powerful & eye opening, to say the least.  Sure, I'm gonna get knocked down again.  My feelings are going to get hurt in the future, no doubt.  I'm going to put my heart out there & it's going to get rejected.  And all of that's going to sting for a bit.  But I can't let that sting turn into something that stands in my way of being true to myself.  

Something that I re-learned through this little situation I went through is this:  Good trumps bad.  Plain & simple.  At the end of the day--being the good, showing the good, & doing the good is going to have a lot more power than being the nasty, saying the hateful, & showing the ugly.  Good will always prevail & squish the nasty, ugly, bad, & evil into oblivion.  And all those sweet comments up there? Well, they're just proof that good whoops bad's butt! And one of these days down the road when I forget that little lesson, I'm going to come back & re-read through every one of these good, kind, uplifting, positive, loving, supportive & powerful comments that were made on my behalf & I'm going to remember that there is WAY too much good in my life to let the tiny bit of bad reign.  

Thank you a million times to my dear sweet friends & family.  I am enamored by the amount of love you have so graciously poured out to me & I love every single one of you so very, very much. 

As for our weekend...we're off to celebrate some more good in our lives-- a weekend crammed full of family!  

Hope you have an awesome,  good trumpin' bad kind of weekend planned as well!

Happy Friday, my sweet, sweet friends!