Thursday, November 28, 2013

2013 Gratitude Challenge!

I have done this in the past. And Momma Jorje is right, it is time to do it again. Without further ado:





  1. My husband. Who is cleaning puke right now.
  2. L1~ his stories and creations are so fun.
  3. L2~ he is becoming an amazing little sous chef.
  4. L3~ she is a firecracker, with such a kind heart.
  5. Food, and good food at that.
  6. A roof over our heads.
  7. Clothes on our backs.
  8. Shoes on our feet. Really. Mine are sparkly turquoise. 
  9. Books. The ultimate distractor, educator, and source of inspiration.
  10. My brothers, for how amazing they are with my children.
  11. My sister, for doing her best to always be there for us.
  12. My mom, keeping up being an amazing grandma, through crazy snowmobile accidents and all.
  13. My dad, for still always knowing what we like. (Who else could know the best gifts are a sword cane and a case of apples?)
  14. My mom's husband, because there is no way I could manage my garden without help.
  15. My garden. Giving me satisfaction for hard work, turned to wonderful food for our family.
  16. Great friends. I am still so thankful for how so many came together for my birthday this year.
  17. Body modification. I love tattoos, piercing, and rainbow hair. Expressing myself just by showing up!
  18. Sleep. When I get it, I am EXTREEMLY grateful.
  19. Naps for me, for when I don't get great sleep at night, but get a chance to catch up a bit.
  20. Naps for L3, the only one who still naps, for the little bit of time to focus on my older two.
  21. Special Time, creating an opportunity to reconnect with each child in their own way.
  22. Photography, I am glad to have so many memories to keep tack of things that go too fast.
  23. Homeschool. To have the chance to create individual learning experience for my children.
  24. For homeschool groups, expanding and augmenting our learning.
  25. The sun, because cold dark days are not my favorite.
  26. Movies, oh, I love movies.
  27. Joss Whedon.
  28. Steven Moffat, all things considered.
  29. J.K. Rowling. Always.
  30. Tolkien. With all the joy brought to our family.
  31. Community support. I haven't been able to be very active recently, but I am still grateful for them.
  32. The library. No where else can we reach beyond our means to enhance our lives.
  33. MegaBloks and LEGOS. Encouraging quiet play for hours at a time.
  34. Music. Nothing changes our attitudes quicker.
  35. The holidays, for bringing family together and reminding us to take time to be grateful.
  36. My husband's job. Steady, reliable work doing something he enjoys.
  37. Cooking skills. Delicious food doesn't just feed your body, it feeds your soul.
  38. Cute hats. 
  39. Comfy clothes.
  40. Fireball.
  41. Local farms, providing wholesome food for my family.
  42. New pressure canner! Another way to provide good food for my family.
  43. Art supplies, driving creativity.
  44. Sewing skills.
  45. Cloth diapers, saving us money and saving the environment.
  46. Hot showers!
  47. Long baths.
  48. Clean sheets.
  49. Adorable clothes (at a great price is best!)
  50. Internet, access to everything.
  51. Natural Parents Network, a world community of the greatest friends.
  52. How much my children love each other. Even if they forget sometimes.
  53. My marriage. I don't think I could ask for anything better.
  54. Improved health insurance that expanded our options.
  55. A fully stocked pantry. Plenty to eat, no matter what.
  56. Quality toilet paper.
  57. A bathroom far from general company. (Sorry, we've had a stomach bug this week.)
  58. Our continued improvement with gluten free baking.
  59. My netti pot.
  60. Homemade Elderberry syrup.
  61. Gluten free hard cider options.
  62. Working heater. I love being warm.
  63. Fuzzy sweaters, for when the heater isn't enough.
  64. Wool blankets, see above.
  65. Rubber sole slippers. Keep my feet safe from legos, clean from random spills, and warm.
  66. Watching the first Christmas movie of the season snuggled with my babies.
  67. Superheroes. Imagination fodder for days.
  68. Comic books. Slowly encouraging a love of reading.
  69. L3's budding vocabulary. Never was there a cuter "Uh-oh!"
  70. Medicinal use of hard alcohol. Mmm.
  71. Having a chef for a husband.
  72. Having a short shopping list this gift giving season.
  73. Online shopping.
  74. Video games
  75. Cheese
  76. Bedtime
  77. When Daddy does bedtimes.
  78. "Baby" carriers. Even though my "babies" are two and four, they still love a good "up-up" sometimes.
  79. Smartphones. Though they can be annoying, I really enjoy having the whole world in my pocket. No longer are we left wondering about the million questions that come up during the day.
  80. Co-sleeping. I'm pretty sure it helped save my sanity.
  81. Breastfeeding. I've been doing it for more than 6 years, and it gets annoying, but I wouldn't do it if it wasn't what was best for my children.
  82. Companies who believe their customers are worth responsible practices and honest reporting on their methods and ingredients
  83. The "geek" world going mainstream. Not always great, but it is kind of nice not always be on the fringe.
  84. Jules gluten free all-purpose flour. Without it, gluten free food just isn't awesome.
  85. Our bikes. Harder to get about on in the winter, but so great when the weather is at least decent. 
  86. Black Friday. I love the general excitement, the joy of ticking off holiday wishes, playfully standing aside to laugh at the over zealous.
  87. Being invited to be part of the Healthy Child Summit. 
  88. Having the connections to get product reviews, and neat things for my home and family.
  89. Babysitters. Because mama needs a break.
  90. Moms night out. A few drinks, a few laughs, and ready to face another day.
  91. Moms night in. A little more comfortable, usually a little more connection. And chatting late in to the night. Like childhood sleepovers, but we each get a comfy bed at the end.
  92. Cheesy movies with friends and family. The best lines are the ones we spit out ourselves.
  93. Crafty friends. Because if I can't/don't have time for making it myself, I am glad I can support families before mass produce companies.
  94. Etsy, because if I can't find a friend to make it, then I can still find another small buisiness to buy from.
  95. Blogger, for the space to put all of my random thoughts out to whomever feels like partaking.
  96. Doctor Who. Bringing generations of fans together.
  97. Faith in our parenting choices, and learning to stand for them.
  98. Each new day to try to be a better person than I was yesterday.
  99. Birds, inspiring my children to explore just by being.
  100. Museums: for supporting interests, introducing new ones, and providing us with connections to people with a passion for their subject.

2 comments:

  1. Great list! We have so much for which to be thankful! Thank you for participating. :) I still can't believe I didn't think to include hot showers.

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  2. I love your list, JW! I felt my own gratitude for many of the things on your list as I read them. Thank you for sharing!

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