November

I'm sure most (if not all) of you have seen the "30 days of Thankfulness" going around Facebook/Twitter. I participated in this last year, but found that many people got quickly annoyed with their feeds constantly blowing up with everyone's daily status update. For that reason, and because I'm trying to decrease my time on social media, I haven't been doing that this year.

I really enjoyed it last year, however, and have decided to use my blog as an avenue for expressing my gratitude this month. I have very few readers anyway, and only those that are interested can take a peek. I'm obviously behind a few days since it's November 13th (already!), but if I discuss a few items a day, I should get caught up in no time. I'll try to mix it up so it's a little bit of the expected (friends and family) and a little bit of randoms in each post. 

I'm thankful for....

Halloween 2012. Mr. & Mrs.

1.) My husband: 

            Of course, I am thankful for my husband above all else (not that these are in order of importance, but it would just feel wrong to list anything else before him). It might be cliche, but he truly is my best friend. He loves me, flaws and all. He works hard both at work and at home. He does the laundry and cooks -- clearly I've won the husband lottery. And he's kind. Those that know him are fully aware that if they need help with something, he'll be there for them. He's intelligent and (mostly) funny. We have fun together. I'm blessed to have him and I don't ever want to take him for granted. 

2.) My dog:

           Draco is a 3-year old boxer. We got him as a little puppy, but he's not quite so little anymore! He is now 75 pounds of cuteness. I never had dogs growing up. I had friends with large dogs, so I wasn't afraid or anything, but my parents never wanted a dog and so we never had one. As a result, I never truly understood how much a person could love their pets until he came along. He's playful, adorable, and loyal to a fault. He's laying next to me right now, waiting for me to get done writing so we can play. He is definitely spoiled, as can be evidenced in previous entries. He gets his own birthday cake and presents when we go on a vacation, because we're those people.  But we don't have any kids, so he is our baby. My life would definitely be less fun without him. 

This is his serious face. 

3.) Goal-Setting: 

            I know what you're thinking. What? That's such an odd thing to mention. But if you have the time and inclination to set goals, it means that you are in a place in life that allows you to think about the future. Basically, we've surpassed the first few level of Maslow's Hierarchy. If your primary concern is for your own safety, where you're going to sleep tonight, or where you next meal is coming from - you probably aren't setting too many goals. If you have the ability to set goals for yourself, you are comfortable and secure enough that focusing on the future is possible. And I am thankful that I am able to think about my future, set goals, and work on bettering my life. And without goal-setting, I would have never started a blog.

Coffee + my favorite mug. 

4.) Coffee 

           Seriously, who isn't thankful for coffee? Even my husband (who is strange and doesn't like coffee) is probably thankful for the stuff because it turns me into a normal human being each day. Coffee is delicious, and we are lucky that it is so readily available in our society. We have so many different options for how to drink our coffee, it has a fascinating history, has some great health benefits, and.. I really can't stress this enough.. it turns me into a normal human being each morning. Also, coffee mugs. I love them. It's a little (or maybe a lot) silly how much joy I experience when drinking from one of my favorite coffee mugs. I have several. At some point the husband will probably ban me from buying any more coffee mugs. But the one pictured? How can you not purchase a TARDIS mug? It's my favorite of all my favorites.

5.) Health Care:

          Now, I'm not trying to get all political here. I just think it's worth mentioning that having steady, predictable access to health care and medications is something that many of us take for granted. So many people do not have this luxury, both in our country and all over the world. If I'm sick, I have several different options - primary care physician, urgent care, ER, health clinic, etc. And any of those places can write me a prescription and a pharmacy (likely in house or just minutes away) can have that medication ready for me in 10 minutes or less. I'm thankful that I never have to be concerned that I can't visit a doctor or get any medications that I might need. 

Aaanndd that's wrap for today!