Things I'm Thankful For

With Thanksgiving around the corner, I might as well make a list of things I'm thankful for.  It's so cliche, but that's okay.

1.  Eric, and the fact that he's healthy.  He's my very best friend in the world and nothing could be as devastating to me as losing him (other than losing our children).  I'm so blessed to have him by my side every day and I desperately hope that both of us remain strong and healthy for MANY years to come so we can be together as long as possible.

2.  Ricky.  He's the sweetest, most beautiful little boy I've ever met.  I wish I could spend all my time hugging him, rocking him, and inhaling his scent.  I know I won't have the luxury of doing that for my whole life- adult men don't want their mommies to hug/cuddle/smell them and I guess it's also true that I might not want to do that anymore when he is an adult.  But for now, those are some of the most beautiful moments of my life.

3.  Owen.  I know I haven't met him yet, but I will soon!  I already love him, and it's wonderful knowing that even if he were born today he would most likely survive.  I'm blessed to have the opportunity to call another little boy "son" and I hope I can give him the life he deserves.

4.  The rest of our family and friends, of course.  How could I forget them?  I will always love them and feel blessed to have them in my life.

5.  Food.  Food is fantastic.  It's something we all need to survive, but it's also so enjoyable.  Even if I didn't have to eat, I would do it because it brings happiness to my life.  How can I not smile when I take a bite of something delicious?  Not only that, but with the hard times we've gone through the past few months, I've also come to appreciate food more than ever before.  It's not always easy to afford food.

6.  Hot water.  Seriously, cold showers are miserable.  Spending half an hour boiling pots of water to fill up the tub so you can get a warm bath will do the job, but it's such a hassle in my experience.  When we didn't have hot water my fantastic husband took the time almost every day to boil water for my baths.  He's so sweet.  But now I have access to hot water and I am thankful for every second of every warm bath I take.

7.  Heat (and A/C when it's hot).  Mommies out there, I promise you, there is hardly anything in the world as devastating  as the feeling you get when you put your baby/toddler to bed in their crib in the winter when you don't have heat.  Even with layers on and blankets, that's not good enough to keep your baby warm.  And we all know babies and toddlers don't really stay under their blankets.  We were without heat for a few months and I felt like the worst mother, the biggest failure in the world, when I put my son to sleep in a cold room.  I couldn't put him in bed with me for extra heat because he is a very sensitive sleeper and won't sleep if anyone is in the same room with him.  It's probably one of the hardest things I've gone through with this whole experience.  I'm so relieved that my son can be warm when he sleeps now.

8.  Shelter.  I can't say home- I don't have one.  But I am temporarily living in someone else's home where my family and I are warm, dry, and healthy.  Despite the fact that I wish we had our own place (hopefully we will soon) I am thankful that I'm here instead of on the streets.

9.  Electricity.  Because without electricity you can't put on the heat or cook food as easily.  I could live without light, but so many other things depend on electricity that it's sort of a necessity to the average person.  (Yes, I know, some people live without electricity and they are happy to do so.)

10.  Eric's Job.  He's making money now, how can I NOT be thankful for that?  For a while he wasn't making any money because he had a hard time finding a job.  Not only are we lucky that Eric has a job, but we are especially lucky that he's so good at it.  He's already been promoted (he's in training now, but has already received a substantial raise) and in a year or so he may have another promotion which would more than double his salary.

11.  My blankie.  Yes, I have a blankie.  I made it for me and I always have it with me when I sleep.  Here is a picture of part of my blankie.  The picture was taken before it was done and I don't have a copy on my computer of the whole thing.  It's one very large granny square.  Unfortunately I was stupid enough to use a wool yarn in the very center section.  It didn't react well to washing/drying (I was a beginner when I started the blanket and didn't know better.)  The blanket still looks alright but the center section is "felted" now and it shrunk a little.  Thankfully it didn't stretch more or my blanket probably wouldn't lay flat.  It might not be perfect but I still love it.













12.  My Build-A-Bear named Pawesome (he's a puppy!)  Eric started the routine a year ago of giving me a new ring and a new Build-A-Bear each year as a wedding anniversary present.  September 30th was our second wedding anniversary and Eric just finally had a few dollars to spare this past week and bought me those presents a few months later than he had originally planned to.  Neither cost very much money but they are both very special.  I love the ring of course but I love Pawesome even more because I can cuddle him when I sleep along with my blankie.

Speaking of blankie and Pawesome, it's 1 AM here.  I better head to bed!