Thankful Thursday...

So thankful for this woman...

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite places on Earth was Maryland.  I loved spending the summer with Aunt Sue, Uncle Paul, Mick, Jenny, and Sara.  Sara and I always had a lot in common, we spoke our minds about things, we shared a passion for dance, and above all else, our family was always number one.  As we grew up, our dance lives intersected more and more.  She taught me solos throughout high school, she choreographed our group routines, and as I opened my studio, she helped me with the transition from dancing to teaching.  Still to this day I look forward to the week (or two) Diablo (as the girls lovingly call her) spends here in Iowa doing choreography for my girls. 

The day I got married she stood by my side and I couldn't imagine her not being there.  As I had my first child, she was there through it all, even though she was in Maryland, she called every week to see how I was and when "pop tart" was born she couldn't wait to visit.  We've never really figured out why she called him pop tart, but that was always his name to her.  We also have not figured out why Sam has always just called Sara "cousin"... but hey, whatever works :)  When my second child was born I had no question in my mind that Cousin would be her God Mother (or G-mama as we call her now)... I hope that Maicey grows up to be the strong and smart woman that Cousin always has been.  I was there as Sara married her best friend Dan, through his deployments, the births of her two beautiful girls, and beginning a foundation together... we honestly couldn't be farther apart in distance but I feel as though we're connected on a very different level.  She's my cousin, my professional partner in many ways, and more then anything one of my closest friends on this Earth. 

So today and always I'm thankful for Sara/diablo/Cousin/G-mama, there's no telling where I'd be without her belief in me...