A.R.E we there yet?: paying it forward.

I've had a few life altering moments in the past few years that I would have thought would have made me step up. Really live life to the fullest. Not take a single day for granted.
First off there was that day when Bill, his dad, grandma and I were flying over the fireworks on Coeur d'Alene Lake when we lost power in the plane. In an instant I thought we would die, until I realized that instead of my life flashing before my eyes, all the things I had not yet done flashed before me. The wedding we were going to have. Our kids. Retirement. The instant faded and by the grace of God we landed safely on I-90 in a stretch that could have only been cleared by someone who has a little pull from above. My father in law instantly became my hero. I instantly became a wreck. I thought in that moment "I will never take another day for granted." I did.
And then there was that time back in March, when we were in Maui on our honeymoon. We went to bed that night watching the devastating coverage of the tsunami in Japan. We watched as the ticker across the bottom of the screen suggested evacuation from the Hawaiian islands and Bill asked if we should go ask the front desk if we were ok in our ground floor, ocean side bungalow. I told him they would let us know if we weren't ok. In the middle of the night the fierce, loud knock on our door let us know. We needed to evacuate immediately. A tsunami was coming. The images from the TV screen were still fresh in my head and I was sick to my stomach. I threw a few thing in to a bag; our coats, toothbrushes, and a few bottle of water and off we marched up a hill to "safety." It turned out when it was all was said and done that the aftermath that hit Maui was insignificant compared to what they expected. It could have been worse. I told myself I would never take another day for granted. I have.
When the doctors told us at our 22 week ultrasound that there was a significant chance that Avery would not make it, that she would be stillborn, I couldn't believe it. I remember very little from the conversation with the perinatologist from that day but I do remember having only one question after he said his part-was there ANY chance our baby would survive? Hadn't we had enough chance encounters in our life and walked away ok? What were the chances that for a 3rd time we would be lucky enough to have everything work out in our favor. I let my mind wander to places that I am embarrassed and ashamed to even admit. Can't admit. But I did know one thing. That if we were lucky enough to come out of this with a health baby I would NOT take another day for granted.
So here we are today. At home with Avery. Living the daily life. And I am still reminded of how much people have given to us over the past 3+ months. This time has been blessed not just by the birth and health of our baby but by the people-friends, family, strangers-who have touched our lives. We have been given both tangible and intangible things. I wish I could thank each and every person individually who has prayed, sent their love, given our family gifts, donated their time, etc. but since there are more people than I will ever know one thing I can do is pay this kindness forward. This is my mission. This is how I will live to not take any day for granted. I promise to do for others what they have so selflessly done for us.
So while Bill and I have been through some interesting times and experiences, I hope that I have personally found something from it all that I can share with others.