The Thankful Post

The past year has been filled with equal measure of joy and tribulation for my family.  I got married to the love of my life this year. I got pregnant when I wasn't supposed to be medically able to have children.  I gave birth to the most beautiful, perfect little girl I've ever laid eyes on.  Those are all amazingly wonderful events that I am incredibly grateful for.

I also got put on bed rest. I had a horribly difficult pregnancy. I had to quit my job to stay home and keep my feet elevated We had (still have) financial problems. I had doctors recommend a medically necessary abortion.  I had to be hospitalized to prevent preterm labor. Something awful happened in my personal life.  I nearly died giving birth to my baby.  It was a rough year, even as it was an amazing year.

All of the difficulties I went through this year reiterated a lesson I learned long ago:  give thanks for the little things for those are the things that matter most when you think you've lost everything else.

So here's a list of 30 things I'm thankful for:

1. I am incredibly thankful that I'm still here.  I'm breathing. I'm alive.  I get more time with the people I love more than my own life, including that baby I nearly died giving life to.  That's a blessing.  It's a miracle. I'm alive.

2. I am thankful for my husband.  I wouldn't have wanted to weather this storm with anybody else.  He is the best man I know.  He was my rock when I needed a rock. He gave me support when I needed support. He held me and made me feel safe.  Most of all, though, he loved me. He just loved me. I am thankful for that.

3. I am grateful for my Ninja Baby.  She is worth every single trial I went through to get her here.   Her little sleepy smiles bring joy to my heart.

4. My (step) daughters.  They're pretty awesome too!

5. Our family.  They all pulled together to help when help was needed. 

6. My friends.  We have the best friends, and our friends have done so much for us. 

7. Help from unexpected places. 

Someone I haven't seen since college sent us $100.00 in the mail while I was pregnant.  The week we got that money in the mail we had been trying to decide between paying the copay for my high risk pregnancy assessment and eating something other than Ramen Noodles for the entire week.  We couldn't do both.  The money she sent us enabled me to go to a critical medical appointment and still be able to feed my family.  I'm not sure if she even knows just how much that money was needed or how grateful we are for her generosity. 

Three other people brought us baby formula when our state's WIC program shut down thanks to the government shutdown.  We wouldn't have been able to feed our baby without their help.

8. Books.  I love books.

9. Social Media--it kept me sane during all the long months of sitting alone at home on bed rest waiting for my husband to get off work.

10. The nurses who took care of me all three times I was hospitalized for the birth and following the birth of my child.  These ladies were simply amazing, and I couldn't have asked for better nurses.

11. Rockabye Baby CDs.  Ninja Baby loves them and they don't drive us crazy either.

12. Hot chocolate.  It soothes me.

13. The amazing people I get to work with at Twisted Core Press.  I've made some lifelong friends there.

14. Pacifiers.  I could kiss whoever invited pacifiers.

15. Christmas carols.  I love Christmas carols.

16. The roof over my head.  So many people all over the world are cold this winter.  I know how lucky I am to have a place to call home.

17. Dreams. Big dreams. Ridiculous dreams.  Dreams that may never come true. Oh, but they just might....so I'll keep dreaming.

18. Hope. I lost it there for a while, but it's nice to have hope.

19. Tears.  Crying can wash away your pain.

20. Hot showers that I can finally take without assistance.

21. Pictures.  They really are worth a thousand words.

22. Knowledge.  No one can take it away from you.

23. Fires in fireplaces.

24. Good memories.

25. Chocolate.

26. Laughter.

27. Imagination and creativity. How boring the world would be without imagination and creativity!

28.Experiences, because even the bad ones teach you something about yourself.

29. The color blue.  It's a peaceful color.

30. You, whoever you are, for reading this.

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world." --J.R.R. Tolkien

And those are the things I am thankful for most:  food and cheer and song, and family and friends and love...beautiful, beautiful love.