Heidi Rae Christensen

Heidi "Rae" Christensen.

You are 39 years old. Remember, your birthday was a few weeks ago and your birthday is like a national holiday around these parts. You have very gray hair, but you color it so it's nothing but a thing.

You have four beautiful baby boys. All but one of them is taller than you, but they will always be your babies. You are a mom, a daughter, a sister, a granddaughter, a niece, an auntie to some pretty cute puppers and two boys and a girl, a co-worker, a friend, and a neighbor. You have a few nicknames: "Rae," "Rae Rae," "Mama," "Sassy Pants," "Feisty Pants," "Spunk," "Sis," "Tweetheart," and "Dear." Grandma calls you Dear. It's cute. You also have a few different jobs: Mama, Ogden City, Kohl's, and eBay seller.

You are a survivor, a fighter, a lover, a truster, a giver, a worker, a talker, a laugher, a bosser arounder, a Diet Coke drinker, a snow cone eater, a cleaner, an organizer, a bad singer, an even worse dancer, a baseball watcher, a yard work doer, a multi-tasker, a crier (duh), a stick-shift getting better atter, a got have music onner, a faith inner, a daughter of God.

You have been through it. We all have! You have come out the other side of it. You are still in it.

You have THE most amazing group of friends, who never ever give up on you. You have THE most amazing co-workers, who won't ever let you fall. You have THE most incredibly unconditionally loving family who will never stop loving you. You have THE most amazing stories to tell because of the experiences you have had. You have learned compassion and empathy. You have learned to walk by faith. You have seen only one set of footprints when looking back on most of your life. You pray because you know you're heard. You read your scriptures because you know they will answer you. You go to the Temple because you are WORTHY and because you feel peace and comfort there. You try and try because you know you'll eventually make it.

You laugh at the dumbest things. You cry at everything. You love hugs. You REALLY love hugs. You love to be loved. You crave it, in fact. You are doing better than you think you are.