AJ. Alone and quiet.

September 30, 2016
Day 21

     Thankful for a relaxing and enjoyable evening at my sister's house tonight. Thankful for AJ. It was his birthday today. AJ is a lot like Patty. Patty and AJ are two of the most amazing and most unselfish people you could ever meet. When I think about the best people I know, Patty and AJ are at the top of the list. Thankful for AJ. It feels foreign and strange to introduce him to people as my brother-in-law. He's my brother, and I am thankful to call him family. Thankful that I was able to spend some time with Patty tonight. It was fun to cook and talk with her. Patty is like a big mug of tea with honey on a cold, rainy night. She is just so warm and friendly and comforting and cozy. Thankful for hugs at lunch time from Adelyn. Thankful for sleeping children, for a sleeping dog, for a sleeping husband. Thankful for time to be alone and to be quiet.

Mint Chocolate Chip.

September 29, 2016
Day 20

     Tonight I am thankful for bowls filled with mint chocolate chip ice cream. It tasted delicious, and it was soothing and cooling to my scratchy throat. I am thankful that tomorrow is Friday. I am thankful for Michael Scott. He always knows how to make me laugh. Even on a very hard day. Thankful that tomorrow, I can go to bed and sleep past 4:50 am on Saturday morning. I am thankful for the rain and the clouds. I am thankful for sweaters and glasses. For some reason, rainy days are sweater and glasses days for me.

     Thankful for the end of long day.

Rain, clouds, cozy, lovely.

September 28, 2016
Day 19

     Tonight, I am thankful that I can hug and kiss and cuddle my daughter whenever I see her in the hallway at school. I am thankful for the many, many notes she leaves on my desk throughout the day. I love coming into my room and finding a note she has left for me. She draws a picture to go along with every note. I don't know what I love more: the words she writes to me or her pictures. I am thankful that Tobin is still young enough for me to sit and rock with him when he needs comforting. I am thankful for the sweetest students. I have a bit of a cold and today at recess they presented me with a "get well" card they made for me. I absolutely love teaching. I'm thankful that I love my job. I am thankful for cozy sweaters, big socks, huge mugs of hot tea with honey, and The Office. Thankful for hugs from my husband and my kids. Thankful for the rain and the cloudy sky. It was a lovely day. And I'm thankful for it.

Cookies, Chicken, Cheese.

September 27, 2016
Day 18

     Tonight I am thankful...

...that I can hug and kiss and cuddle my kids anytime I want to. I am so thankful to be a mother.

...for a very clean house.

...for the crisp blue of the sky today.

...for the breezy air in fall.

...that I saw red leaves on a tree outside my window.

...for my sister.

...for my husband.

...for my mom.

...for my dad.

...that I have everything I need: food, water, shelter, clothing, love.

...that I can provide what my children need: food, water, shelter, clothing, love.

...that I can provide what Higbee needs: food, water, shelter, cookies, chicken, cheese, love.

...for peace that passes all understanding.

...for deep breaths.

...for bedtime.

It was brisk today, and it was truly glorious.

September 26, 2016
Day 17

     Thankful for a brisk morning and a cool, breezy day. It was a sigh of relief from the horrible, hot sun. Thankful for a cloudy day. Thankful for crunchy leaves. Thankful for red leaves. Thankful for a great day at school. Thankful for time to sit and talk with Patty. I thought we'd see each other more often now that we work at the same place. But I hardly ever see her or talk to her for more than five minutes at a time. And that has got to stop. I miss Patty even when I'm with her. It's hard to be away from your person all the time. Thankful for warm showers in a clean bathroom. Thankful for my bed. Thankful for the fact that at any point during the night, I can lean over and kiss my love. Or my furry baby. Thankful for Adelyn and Tobin. It's a powerful thing to be able to call two human beings, "my children." Thankful for a very good Monday.

Villains

September 25, 2016
Day 16

     Thankful for:

-my Kindle. It makes doing hard jobs much easier because I can just watch one of my favorite shows while I work. Even when I'm scrubbing a tub or organizing long lost beauty care products under my sink.

-Higbee. He's Mr. Popular in our neighborhood. He loves going out for walks and visiting with friends.

-Adelyn. She's hilarious. A few days ago, I overheard her telling Casey that villains had stolen her money out of her wallet. I had to confess to her: I was the villain. Tobin really needed a haircut, and the barbershop only takes cash. Since I never have cash, I thought I could use it and replace it without her ever finding out about it. I was wrong. She found out. And boy, was she pissed. She ended up forgiving me in the end, though. After lots of discussion as to how what I did was very wrong.

-Casey. He told Adelyn that as soon as he lost his next tooth, he would give her the money he got from the tooth fairy to replace the money that the villains stole from her.

-Tobin. He is always doing and saying the sweetest things. He picks me flowers when we're out walking. He tells me my hair is so beautiful. He tells me I'm pretty. He tells me I'm the best mama in the world. Everyone in the world needs a Tobin.

-a pizza dinner with my family.

-the end of a long, hard day.

20 years later...

September 24, 2016
Day 15

     Matt and I have been cleaning the house today; going through things, organizing, getting rid of stuff. The best thing about spending the day going through things and organizing is this: it always ends with a trip down memory lane. Tonight, it ended with us looking through an old yearbook of mine from eighth grade in 1996. It was the year that Matt and I had a history class together. During that class, we studied World War II. That meant we talked about Nazis. That meant that Matt's eighth grade mind made a connection between my German last name, my blond hair, and my blue eyes. So he started calling me, "the Nazi." I was horrified. I went home crying and complaining to my parents. They told me he was probably teasing me because he liked me. I didn't believe them.

     Fast forward 20 years later:  We were looking through that yearbook on our couch in our home with our children sleeping upstairs in their beds. He still likes my blond hair and my blue eyes. But he doesn't call me a Nazi. And my parents were right. He liked me. He still does.

     So thankful for my love.

Chocolates and Dessert in Bed.

September 23, 2016
Day 14

     I am thankful for friends who bring you baggies filled with chocolate just because it's Friday. I'm thankful to work with people that I love. I'm thankful for friends who call me when they're at Costco to tell me the price of Zyrtec to ensure I'm getting the best deal possible. I'm thankful for nights when I can make an easy dinner and leave the dishes in the sink for the next morning. I'm thankful that Matt brings me dessert in bed. Dessert in bed is seriously underrated. You only really hear about breakfast in bed or meals brought to someone in bed because they are not well. But dessert in bed? Do yourself a favor and try it tomorrow. You will not be disappointed. Bonus points if you get someone to bring it to you. I'm thankful for shimmery blond hair. And blue eyes. And green eyes. And lovely smiles. Adelyn and Tobin make my heart happy and warm. I'm thankful that if I want to teach Higbee a new trick, he learns it in 5 minutes. He is smart as a whip. Thankful for the feeling of Friday. It has a whole different feel than Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays. You always wake up on Friday morning with a sort of anticipation and excitement. And at the end of the day, you walk out of work with a little spring in your step. Thankful for two whole days to spend at home with my loves. Thankful for a great Friday.

Thankful Thursday.

September 23, 2016
Day 13

     Tonight, I'm thankful for my sister and my husband. I'm especially thankful for them when they help me grade papers. I'm thankful that tomorrow is Friday. I'm thankful that it is officially fall! Just knowing that it's fall makes it a little easier to breathe. I cannot wait for that first day when I walk out onto my front step and feel cold air hit my face. Thankful for my sweet babies. Thankful for Higbee. Thankful for these things that make me feel cozy: my glasses, my bed, my pillows, my blanket, sweaters, sweatpants. Thankful for time to just sit here and be thankful and watch Netflix and be quiet and still.

Princess and Dinosaur Pasta

September 21, 2016
Day 12

     Thankful for garlicky tomato sauce poured over princess and dinosaur pasta. Thankful for impromptu family dinners. Thankful for a hug from a student that has never hugged me before. Thankful that tomorrow is the first official day of fall. Fall. FALL! Can. Not. Wait. My lungs are craving deep breaths of cold, fall air. My feet are aching to go crunching through red, orange, and yellow leaves. Thankful that I feel like I'm finally getting the hang of teaching 3rd grade. It was a huge adjustment for me. Thankful for a great day with my students. Thankful for a lovely evening with my family. Thankful that it's time for sleep.

Dreamland.

September 20, 2016
Day 11

     I am thankful for bathtubs filled with warm water, bubbles, plastic fish, and fishing poles. I'm thankful for bedtime. I think it's a grand thing to have a time devoted to sleeping in a big, warm bed every day. I'm thankful for a sleeping dog in my bed. I honestly feel bad for people who sleep without a dog. It must be terribly lonely. I'm thankful for pillows. I'm thankful for Netflix. I'm thankful for The Office. I love laughing my way to dreamland night after night. Thankful that in literally one minute, I can go to sleep and stay sleeping until the morning.

The power of the dark side.

September 19, 2016
Day 10

     Tobin is obsessed with Star Wars. He loves Darth Vader and Kylo Ren, but his favorite character is Luke Skywalker. I love that Tobin loves the good guy. The last time I was watching The Force Awakens with Tobin, I found myself thinking things like:

How will they ever get out of this?

There is no way the good guys can win. 

The power of the dark side is just too strong. 

They should just give up. 

     As the movie was coming to an end, and it seemed impossible for good to prevail, I was struck by this: the good guys never give up. And even if they doubt or lose faith temporarily, they always end up coming around. The fight for good is too important to abandon just because it seems impossible to win. There is always hope.

     So when I hear about horrendous things going on in the world...
     When I feel like there is just too much evil for good to conquer...
     When I feel like the power of the dark side is just too strong...
     When I feel like giving up...

     I will think on this: good guys never give up. The fight for good is too important to abandon. There is always hope. There is always good. There is always something beautiful. And lovely. And admirable. There is always, always, always something to be thankful for.

     Thankful for good guys. They're out there.
     Thankful for hope. It keeps your heart open.
     Thankful for all things good and beautiful and lovely and admirable. Surround yourself in these.
   
     Thankful for thankfulness. For I know of no other something that can change a heart and a life quite like being thankful can. Thankfulness brings peace like a warm, soft blanket on the coldest winter night. Thankfulness brings perspective like an ocean of revelations; washing over and over and over you. Thankfulness brings joy like the birds that sing in the morning just because it's a new day. Thankfulness brings love; a love for life that you never even knew existed.

     I am thankful.

What a wonderful word.

September 18, 2016
Day 9

I'm thankful for:

-The Office.
-birthday parties.
-birthday cake.
-homemade pho. I'm obsessed with pho right now.
-Ezekial bread with cheese melted on top.
-lotion.
-Higbee.
-the fact that Tobin tells me about 20 times a day that I'm pretty.
-the pictures that Adelyn draws.
-clean laundry.
-fresh cilantro.
-the feeling of fall in the air. It's coming.
-time to lay in bed and write.
-time to lay in bed and sleep.
-the nap I took on the couch. I love naps.
-my babies. I love how much they love me. They always know when I need a hug.
-crickets, frogs, and fireflies.
-the night.
-this time to reflect upon my day. When I think back over my days, I realize just how good and lovely and wonderful they are. It's easy to forget.

Thankful; what a wonderful word.

Anytown, USA.

September 17, 2016
Day 8

-Haymarket Day. I love where we live. We like to call it Anytown, USA. Watch Seinfeld. You'll get it.
-BBQ nachos from a food truck at Haymarket Day.
-Homemade ice cream from a food truck at Haymarket Day.
-Watching a movie in the basement with my family after Haymarket Day.
-Family walks.
-Family bbq.
-Sleepy children.
-Sleepy pup.
-Sleepy parents.
-The Office
-Big glass jars full of ice and water.
-The feeling of, "the weekend isn't over yet."
-The fact that Adelyn and Tobin have been carrying around bags of "swag" they collected from Haymarket Day. They are bags filled with little containers of bubbles and stress balls, and they act like they are bags filled with gold.
-The fact that our bedroom looks like a dinosaur bone excavation site because of how many bones Higbee chews and then stashes in our room for safekeeping.
-Bedtime.

It was a lovely day. I'm thankful that I got to live it.

Here are 16 things that make me thankful:

September 16, 2016
Day 7

     Cool weather.
     Overcast sky.
     Blackbirds.
     Lesson plans done.
     Newsletter done.
     Classroom cleaned and tidied up.
     Dinner at Foster's.
     Hugs and kisses from the kids.
     Tobin's compliments. (He told me I'm pretty.)
     Fuzz all over the floor from Higbee's latest victim. (The new alligator baby didn't make it.)
     Time to lay in bed and watch a movie.
     Parade in the morning.
     Two whole days off.
     Hot shower.
     Bed.
     Extracurricular activities.

     Thankful.

   

fu.

September 15, 2016
Day 6

     Tonight, I'm thankful that in about 3 minutes, I'm going to go crawl into bed with my husband and my puppy. I'm thankful for funny notes left on my desk by my funny daughter. She went into my classroom to get her container of leftover pho for lunch, and I wasn't there. So she left me a note:

     It took me a minute or two to realize that this was not a note from a disgruntled student. All my students are extremely gruntled. (Oh, Michael Scott. You are the best!) 

     

     I am thankful for walks with my loves after dinner. I'm thankful for acorns and falling red leaves. I'm thankful that Higbee likes to go to the playground just as much as my kids do. I've never known a dog that just can't wait to get to the playground to go down the slide 20 times in a row. I'm thankful for BLT's for dinner. Why is bacon paired with ripe tomato on toasted bread the best thing ever? I'm thankful that tomorrow is Friday night. I'm thankful for a great day at school today. I'm thankful for opportunities for expose my 3rd graders to Pavarotti and "Rhapsody in Blue." At first they were making fun, but later in the day, Pavarotti was requested during our "before kiss and ride silent dance party." Thankful for a fine day. 

Surprise Love Notes

September 14, 2016
Day 5

     Tonight, I'm thankful for surprise love notes. Adelyn was writing at my desk this morning before school. When I went to sit down later in the day, I noticed that she had left two little sticky love notes directly in the middle of my desk.

     Those two little sticky notes made my day. I taped them to the wall by my desk so that whenever I'm feeling low, I can look over and remember that a little girl with the bluest eyes, and the prettiest butter blond hair loves me. When I think back to the day of her birth and remember in horror that she almost didn't make it, I'm reminded that things like love notes from my kids are the most important documents I will ever receive in life.

     Thankful for sticky love notes. I'm thankful for my Adelyn. For Tobin. For Casey. For Phia. For Patty. I'm thankful for dinner dates with my sister. I'm thankful that tomorrow is Thursday because that means the next day is Friday. I cannot wait to relax with all the great loves of my life this weekend.

Horny and Pho.

September 13, 2016
Day 4

    

      I'm thankful for a stuffed moose that Tobin has named, "Horny." I'm thankful for the way my children are so happy to see me when I get home from work. I'm thankful for Matt. He loves me even when I'm horrible. Like I was earlier tonight when I yelled at him for leaving the bean sprouts and cilantro for our pho out all day instead of putting it in the fridge when he got home from the store. He still hugs me and loves me and smiles at me when I'm horrible. I'm thankful for the way cilantro tastes in big bowls of delicious broth. I'm thankful that my kids loved the pho. I'm thankful for the smell of freshly washed hair and skin. I'm thankful that Tobin still wants me to sing to him at night. I'm thankful for a productive day at school. I'm thankful for Higbee sleeping by my feet. Sleeping dogs are so peaceful. I'm thankful for that time of day when you can take off your clothes, and crawl into bed and say, "I'm not leaving this place until tomorrow morning."

"Just a reeeeal nice surprise!"

September 12, 2016
Day 3
   
Today, I'm thankful:

-that my husband cleaned our house while I was at work, AND that by the time I got home, he had fed and bathed our kids. In the words of cousin Eddy, "It was a real nice surprise, Clark!"

-for friends that give me clothes for my kids. Thank you, Lorrie and Lora!

-for black olives and pickles.

-for the way my kids still love to snuggle with me.

-for the best bed with the best pillows and the best comforter.

-for weather so pleasant this morning that you can almost hear the promise of fall coming in the sound of the wind blowing through the  leaves.

-for hugs from students that I thought didn't like me at all.

-for the way my students love to read and be read to.

-for hot coffee.

-for iced coffee.

-for early bedtimes.

-for things to be thankful for.

Sunday Morning Bacon

September 11, 2016
Day 2

     This morning, I am thankful for packages of bacon that are actually named, "Sunday Morning Bacon." I am thankful that I still get to hold Tobin. He was crying this morning because his bacon and toast weren't ready fast enough. So I got to hold him and dry his tears and rock him. And while yes, bacon and toast are silly things to cry about, have you ever wanted to cry because you were just so so hungry? The answer is yes. Don't even pretend like it isn't.

     I am thankful for Higbee's eyes. They are gentle and wild at the same time. I am thankful for pictures that Adelyn makes for me. I am thankful for the way Tobin says, "Mama! You look like a princess in that dress!" He always says it at exactly the right time; when I'm feeling old and big and awkward. I am thankful for the way Matt loves me. He just never stops. No matter what. And it's an incredibly comforting feeling to know that I have someone on my side forever and ever no matter what. I am thankful for quiet nights spent in bed watching The Office. I am thankful for phone calls from friends. I am thankful for texts from friends. I am thankful for the way the wind blows the leaves in the trees. I am thankful that with each day that passes, we are that much closer to cold air coming our way. I am thankful for days to hang out in old t-shirts. I am thankful for music. I am thankful for words. I am thankful for time to sit and be thankful. Spending my time being thankful is much more productive than spending my time being fearful.

     It's a good morning. And I'm thankful that I got to enjoy it.

Whatever is good, whatever is lovely; these are the things I will think on.

September 10, 2016
Day 1

     Today, I'm thankful for long conversations with my mom. I'm thankful for the dog fur that covers every surface of my home. It means I have a sweet pup to love. I'm thankful for the two bookbags on my table. I'm thankful for kid cups and kid plates and kid bowls to wash and put away. I'm thankful for my husband. He loves me with all his heart. I never doubt his love for me. I'm thankful for Patty. Every person needs a Patty. I'm thankful for big bowls of popcorn and movies on Netflix. I'm thankful for time today to spend doing whatever we please. I'm thankful for this space on which to write good and lovely things down. And think on them. And ponder about them. And marvel at how beautiful life is when you look at it through the lens of thanksgiving. I'm thankful for work to do this weekend. It means I have a job. It means that for an entire year, I have 13 students to love. I'm thankful for the mess and stuff cluttering up every square inch of my home right now. It means that our home is lived in and well loved and well used. It means that we don't spend every spare minute trying to keep it clean. Especially because it's just going to get messed again anyways. I'm thankful that soon, very soon...fall is coming. And then the air will get cool. And the sunsets will be breathtaking. And the leaves will be on fire with color. And I will no longer feel like a dried out sponge baking in the heat. It will be such a wonderful feeling to step outside and take in a deep breath of cold, fall air. I'm thankful for things like acorns and dandelions. They make our walks with Higbee take much longer than necessary. But sometimes, no, most times, taking longer than necessary when doing something like walking a dog is necessary. Life moves too fast to always be thinking about timelines and schedules and due dates. I'm thankful for Saturdays. I'm thankful for new projects. I'm thankful for clarity. I'm thankful for situations that come up that make you stop and say, "I need to change." I'm thankful that each new day is fresh and full of possibilites.

     Here's to the next 1,000 days. I'm looking forward to them.