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A thankful list, on delay

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Every year so far in my blogging life, I’ve listed 50 things I’m thankful for.   But I was pretty sick on Thanksgiving, so I didn’t end up getting to make my list.

I thought about maybe just skipping it altogether, but several of you said you look forward to it each year and were bummed not to see it.

So, I thought I’d write up a list now, because it’s not like thankfulness has an expiration date.

And as always, these are not in order of importance, because that requires way too much thinking on my part.

(reusable plastic bag from Grove.)

I am thankful:

1. that my nose is in good shape this year. Last year at this time, I was recovering from my nose surgery, and my nose feels much better this year!

2. that my breathing is so good. I breathe through my nose ALL THE TIME now, which is miraculous compared to pre-surgery, when I breathed through my nose almost 0% of the time.

3. for my new counters and backsplash. We’ve had the original counters and tile since we bought the house 12 years ago, and this summer, we took the plunge and replaced them.   Now my kitchen looks so spiffy!

4. for Mr. FG’s job. Because a paycheck is a fabulous thing.

5. Mr. FG’s flex hours. Longtime readers will remember that he’s had some kinda nutso work shifts, and now, he gets to pick his own hours as long as he’s there for core hours.   So fabulous.

6. for health. My family has minor, everyday sorts of health problems, but nothing serious.

7. for my house. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to say that I adore my house (the design is, like, my least favorite ever), but we’ve made it a lot nicer since we moved in, and I am content with it, even if I’m not in love.

8. for Hungry Harvest. I love the work that they are doing (feeding hungry people and saving food from being wasted).   So often, it seems like cool programs such as this only exist in hip areas such as the Northeast or the Pacific Northwest and I’m super happy to have it in my neck of the woods.

9. for our king-sized bed. Mr. FG wanted one forever, and my frugal self was resistant. But we sized up when we replaced our mattress last year, and I must say, a king-size is quite luxurious.

10. for our cars. Even during our leanest times of life, Mr. FG and I have always had reliable, safe, and relatively up-to-date vehicles.

11. for my van. I have to add a separate line-item for this one, because I do still really love my van. It’s a 2012, so it’s not exactly brand-spanking new.   But I still kind of think of it as my new van, despite the scratches and wear and tear.   And I think it still has LOTS more years of life in it, so, relatively speaking it is still sort of new. 😉

12. for my trip to South Dakota in March. It was bittersweet, to be sure, but I am SO SO SO glad I went.

13. for 20 years with Mr. FG. Not everyone gets to have that long with their spouse, and I’m grateful.

‘scuse the grainy selfie

15. for the stage of independent kids. There are very lovely things about the more dependent stage too, of course.   But since I’m in the more independent stage, I’m going to revel in that. 😉 And if you’re in the dependent stage, you can revel in all the upsides of that.

16. for the friendships that I’ve had in the last few years. By the end of this year, two of my besties will be living multiple states away, so I’m sad about that.   But I am grateful for the time that they did live here.

17. for Lisey’s sweet heart. I love to see her compassion for others.

18. for Call the Midwife on Netflix. It’s gotten me thru several rounds of sickness this year!

19. for my book club. I’ve never been in one before, but a friend from church invited me to hers, and it’s so much fun. Also, it’s making me read books I’d probably never pick up otherwise.

dip dyed bookmark

(Tutorial for making the dip-dyed bookmark is here.)

20. for a 3-year gap between Lisey and Sonia. Because that means I soon get a break from teaching a kid to drive! Joshua and Lisey are 19 months apart, so I barely finished with Joshua when Lisey got her learner’s permit.   But once Lisey gets her license, Sonia won’t be eligible for another two years.   Woohoo!

21. for driving times in the car. I am indeed looking forward to a break, but the upside of a learning driver is that you get lots of one-on-one time in the car.   Maybe not always the most high-quality one-on-one time, but it does get better the more hours the kid drives.

(The first 10 hours are a little….whoa.)

22. for hugs from Mr. FG. Pretty much my favorite thing in the world.

23. that the shortest day of the year is almost here. I really hate the dark days of winter, so I’m comforting myself with the knowledge that the days will start inching toward summer-length in just a few weeks.

sunlight through curtains

24. for the joy of having nearly-adult kids. Joshua and Lisey and Mr. FG and I have some fun times late at night these days. 😉

25. for the love of God, which isn’t dependent on my behavior. I’d be in trouble if it was!

26. for my therapist. She’s helped me through some tough stuff and I am grateful for that.

27. for lovely blog readers. I’m really lucky to have you all reading here. And commenting! Supposedly people don’t comment on blogs anymore, but you guys do, and I love it.

28. for my height. I’m 5’8″ and I love it!

29. for how capable Joshua is. He’s driving, holding down a job, (and learning new skills at the job), handling a full load of college classes, playing in the band at his church, saving most of his paycheck…just being quite an all-around responsible person. Which is such a lovely thing to see as a parent.   Yay!

30. for our fire pit. My dad helped* us build it a year and a half ago and we’ve used it a lot since then. Super fun.

*by which I mean that we helped him, really. He brought all the brains and skills. 😉

31. for kids who want to work. Sonia and Zoe aren’t old enough for formal jobs yet, but they happily accept babysitting and pet sitting jobs when they come along. And Joshua and Lisey both were motivated to get jobs without any shoving from Mr. FG and me.   Yay for motivated kids!

32. for Sonia’s creativity. She’s always knitting, baking, or otherwise coming up with something to make.

33. for Zoe’s sincerity. What you see is what you get with Zoe, and as a people-pleaser/chameleon myself, I respect that about her.   Also, I love that she thinks about things seriously and asks honest questions.

34. for the sun in my climate. We do get more gray days than I’d like in the winter, but there are a number of sunny ones mixed in there. And overall, we get a fair amount of sunshine.   I really, really do not think I’d do well in a predominately cloudy climate…I’d be crabby all the time!

sunshine

35. that Joshua’s coffee creation won a contest. His coffee shop carries seasonal created-by-employees beverages, and he’s created a drink every single season since he started working there a year ago.   None of his attempts won in the first year, and even though it wasn’t fun to be rejected, he kept picking himself up and trying again. Super proud of him for that! This season, his submission finally won and it’s on the menu.

(Making it especially fun: his drink is based on my grandma’s pfeffernusse recipe. She would be pleased, and probably somewhat bemused!)

36. for vision correction. Sonia and I both have bad eyes, and I’m so happy that we have contacts.

37. for Aldi. I love that we can eat fancy foods (prosciutto! dill Havarti!) and just everyday normal food at super great prices. My grocery budget would be in deep trouble without Aldi.

38. for ATK/Cook’s Country/Cook’s Illustrated. My cooking would be 7000% worse without the guidance of the smart and thorough people over there.

39. that women are currently speaking up about the wrongs that have been done to them. And that, at least to a large degree, they are being believed.

40. for good teeth. Aside from a few cavities, my teeth have been very boring for these last 39 years. And our kids also have had pretty low-maintenance teeth so far.

(Though don’t worry…we do have a savings account in place for orthodontia, just in case. If we squeak by with none necessary, well, then, we’ll just have some money to spend on something else more fun!)

41. for Ting.   Even with four smartphones on our plan, our bill is astoundingly low. All the heart eyes.

(Honorable mention to Ooma for keeping our home phone bill so low too.)

how to fix wet iphone with oatmeal

42. for my kitchen gear. Slowly, I’ve amassed a small collection of really good stuff (using Cook’s Illustrated reviews for guidance!), and I love it.

43. for my travels. This year I’ve been to Florida (twice), South Dakota, California, Texas, and North Carolina. That’s a lot for me!

44. that Sonia and Zoe have each other. They don’t always appreciate each other, of course (!), but this year I’ve been thinking about how lonely Sonia would be now without Zoe. Joshua and Lisey are gone a lot of the time now, and she’d be here all by herself if we didn’t have Zoe.   So, I’m glad we have a pair of younger kids after the pair of older kids.

45. for the way technology bridges geographical gaps. For instance, Sonia and Zoe video chat with their friend in Florida all the time, I can text my friend who moved to Texas, and I can chat with my uncle in South Dakota.

46. my Vitamix. I use this at least 5/7 days of the week, and can puree even things like kale. And raw beets.   Totally worth the money I paid for it.

47. for friends and family with babies to share.

48. Dark chocolate. And cheese. And tea. And heavy cream. There are a lot of foods that are my faves.

49. for Milton Vincent’s book, A Gospel Primer. Aside from the Bible, this is the book that has affected my spiritual life the most.

(The cover is boring and off-putting, so you just have to ignore that and press on. 😉 It’s worth it. )

50. for another year to do a thankful list.  Every year is a gift and not a guarantee.

That wraps it up! I like making a list this long because boy, it really gets you thinking.

If you’d like to join me, you can share a short thankful list in the comments (but maybe 5-10 things, because 50 makes a long comment!)

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KS

Friday 12th of January 2018

11. That my son has gotten into a lot of good colleges, with scholarships. 12. That my son is able to play tennis--and is looking forward to college tennis (something we weren't sure would be possible due to injuries and surgery). 13. For my husband's good network of friends from childhood and adulthood--and the fact that they get together often. 14. For gourmet coffee that I recently discovered near one of the college campuses we visited with my son--and the fact that I have enough money to mail order it! 15. That my almost 15 year old dog (who most likely has cancer) is still hanging in there...and can still take long walks with me. 16. For having 2 Aldi locations within 20 minutes of my house. 17. For lots of cousins that I'm very close with. 18. My screened in porch--I live out there in the spring, summer, and fall. 19. Far gardening! One of my favorite hobbies. 20. That we don't have any credit card debt, and a decent cushion that allowed us to weather my husband's unemployment.

KS

Friday 12th of January 2018

I am grateful for: 1. My husband's job since he was unemployed for a good chunk of 2017. 2. My husband's new job allowed him to use up a huge transportation surplus from his old job (to the tune of $1,500). 3. My husband's job has much better health insurance than my company does--so we moved over to his plan...which is a million times better (and it's cheaper)! 5. My company went through some recent, and very good, changes--so the uncertainty is done and good things are happening. 6. My parents who live nearby and are doing well and we see them often. 7. My brother and his family--who we are very close with. 8. My good friend across the street who is like a sister to me. 9. My husband, and good friend, of 20 plus years. 10. My son who is a very good kid--and doing very well in school.

Rachel

Thursday 30th of November 2017

Love #15 & #25!

This year I'm grateful for:

1) being a 2 car family, for the first time in our 8 year marriage. Being able to drive my kindergartner to school, get to parks/grocery stores/play dates w/o lots of planning & patience is so freeing! praise God for this gift! Also my husband drives the more boring car, so I can drive the roomier, nicer one with the kids.

2) our washing machine has been on the fritz--after praying about it it has been running smoothly. praise God for his help!

3) praise makes us thankful. How good it is to honor Him.

4) both my girls have adorable Christmas dresses, 1 gifted & 1 garage sale found. Not a need, but a fun want met!

5) verses that come to mind in times of need. I'm thankful for scripture, esp. in challenges.

Stephanie

Thursday 30th of November 2017

1.I'm grateful that, after almost a year of cancer treatment, my father is still with us and seems to be healing more every day. 2. I'm grateful for my job and the flexibility it allows when I need to be home with a sick kid, etc. 3. I'm grateful for my family. They bring joy to my heart each and every day and I can't imagine life without them. 4. I'm grateful to be blessed with so much more than I had while growing up, but more importantly, I'm grateful for my mom and grandma, who taught me how to be frugal and make the best with what we had. 5. I'm grateful for my son's giving and generous spirit. It makes my heart swell with pride when I see what a lovely young man he is becoming.

Reese

Thursday 30th of November 2017

I love the idea of a quick thankful list that another commenter put. (Also...I, too, am thankful for dark chocolate and heavy cream. I'd probably have to add peanut butter and avocados to that list though ;) ).

1) For a new job. I had been looking for a while, as I felt I was being bullied by management at my last job. I looked for 4-5 months, and applied to 30-40 jobs. I finally found what I can only describe as a dream job. Less stress and less hours. 2) I have a very sick cat at home. I already spent what I could on him (Roughly $2,000) and was about to sign over adoption papers so the vet could get him the care he needs, and then adopt him out after. But friends stepped up... they've raised nearly $800 for me. And it's enough to make me cry... 3) I have all of my Christmas gifts completed. And I'm going much smaller this year. I'm grateful everyone understands. 4) After a rough year of hail storms, we found out the roof was leaking. My deductible is $4,000+ (I live in a high hail and wind area...), SO. We stumbled upon discounted shingles at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, just bought a Black Friday-deal nail gun... and will do it ourselves this weekend. Thank GOODNESS for calling around to private companies for dumpsters. I saved a little over $75 to make this happen ($1,350 total for everything on a 1100sqft house) 5) Grateful for easy access to spices, water, heat, and coffee.

Kristen

Thursday 30th of November 2017

I am SO IMPRESSED that you are all done with Christmas gifts.

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