It's great to have a place you can call home. In England they say, "An Englishman's house is his castle." It's a place you feel safe and comfortable. It's home.

The home I grew up in was beautiful. We had a creek running through the backyard, a swimming pool, and a nearby forest to explore. I didn't realize how fortunate I was until I got older.

Since Jennifer and I have been married we have lived in several places. The first house we bought was an old pioneer home that was built in 1891. It had thick adobe walls and a lot of character. Eira was born in that house.

Our Elk Ridge house was maybe the most beautiful. But we also loved our house in North Carolina. We had a large magnolia tree and an oak tree in the front yard and beautiful pine trees surrounding the house. We'd see possums on the back porch, rabbits, deer, beautiful fireflies in the evening. One night we heard the hooting of an owl that made its home in one of our pine trees.

I'm thankful for our current home in Salem, Utah. In particular, it's a small thing, but I love that it came with a wood burning stove in the basement. One of our favorite things to do in the winter is to turn off all the heat during the day so the house gets cold, then get a fire going. There's nothing like the cozy heat from a wood burning stove.

I am thankful and blessed to have a good home. I'm attaching a photo of our first home. I still like to drive by it occasionally for all the good memories. And another photo: kids looking for easter eggs in our yard in North Carolina.