30 Days of Thankfulness: 2013

1. I'm thankful for my home, because that's where my family lives. Together.

2. I'm thankful for my dirty dishes, because we are well fed. I'm thankful for my messy house, because I have a house to clean and I'm thankful for my pile of laundry because we have so many clothes to wear.

3. I'm thankful for everything Alex and I share. Our lives for the last 20 years, our children, our tough times and our easier times...and like tonight, our ice cream!

4. I am so thankful for Greyson. He tries so hard to be helpful and I have depended on that at times! He is so much more patient than I am and makes friends wherever he goes. He is always thinking up a plan or scheme and I can't wait to see how all of these play out in his life. <3 that kid! 

5. I'm thankful for Grant! My physical kid gives the best hugs! His comedic timing is usually perfect. I love how he has my hair and Alex's eyes. He notices things that others miss. <3 this kid too! 

6. I'm thankful I've gotten to work part-time this past year and I've been able to be there for the kids like I hadn't been in a while. SO thankful not to be a single parent any more! Even though those 3 years showed me what great friends I had!
  
7. I'm thankful for 3-day weekends spent with my kids and Alex - Feel free to ask me Sunday if I still feel the same ;)

8. Tonight I'm thankful for pee on the bathroom floor. Yep, the same pee I complained about earlier. Because this means I got to spend another day with my kids. There are far too many parents missing a child, and too many children missing a parent. So, if the trade-off for midnight messes is hearing my kids laugh hysterically at 80's movies, I'll take that deal every time.

9. I'm thankful that for the first time in 6 years I have a sibling closer than 4 hours away!

10. I'm thankful my kids LOVE Sunday school! They also love the other extras like camping and volunteering...but not so much the services :)   I'm thankful that they think of church as a place of possibilities rather than limitations. I am also thankful that they know they have a whole community of people who care about them.   

11. I'm thankful for all the Veterans in my family. My Grandpa Laskos, my dad Stanley J Laskos Jr, and my brother Stanley Michael Laskos. And the MANY cousins on both sides of my family. Thanks! 

12. I was so busy last night communicating with my friends, that I forgot to say how thankful I am for them! You truly are a great group of people. I am thankful to have lived in the midwest where people are so nice and friendly and caring, because it does not come as naturally to other locales! I am especially thankful for those that have supported me through the recent stress of single parenting and relocating. I feel very thankful when I think about my friends! 

13. I'm thankful for all the things I took for granted today. As I dropped my kids off at school, I took for granted our public education system and that my kids would be safe. As we went shopping for dinner and dessert items, I took for granted that the shelves of the store would be completely stocked and that I could afford to buy what was there. As I cooked dinner I took for granted the the electricity and gas would work. And as we stepped out the door after dinner, I took for granted that I could take a breath outside without thinking of the air quality. I am so very thankful for all the things I take for granted. 

14. I feel like I rocked today and I am THANKFUL for that! You can only take so many days where you know life doesn't suck, but you're feeling like you suck at life.

15. As we get ready to go camping tomorrow, I am so thankful for the role United Methodist Camps have had in my life. I'm thankful for the lessons I've learned, the jobs I've had, the people I've met and the connections I've made. 

16. I'm thankful for family days! My heart always swells two sizes whenever my kids say they want to do something with me because I can't believe they want to do something with their mom! Loved canoeing with them today and watching them fish. So glad Alex is with us.

17. I'm thankful for my own bed! Its always so much more appreciated after being gone!

18. I am thankful for a night out, because it was needed!

19. I am thankful for hope. Hope that tells us things can be different and hope that inspires change.

20. I am thankful that for the first time ever both my kids' teachers recognize that they get bored, or start disturbing others, when they aren't challenged enough! And we are on the same pages as to where they need to improve (handwriting and explaining). Thankful that they will be pushed to improve and to go beyond their current strengths. 

21. I'm thankful the kids & I still read stories together every night, its usually my favorite part of the day.

22. Today was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. And yet, I'm thankful for everything that made it terrible, horrible and no good: I had to work Fridays and I don't usually work Fridays, but I'm thankful for my job and that its been so flexible for me to work around the kids schedule. I had to go grocery shopping and got soaked putting the groceries in the car during a downpour, but I can't stay wet long when I have heat and air conditioning on demand at my house. No one in my family wanted to hear me read at B&N, but I am thankful that I could leave the kids with Alex, instead of having to drag them along. So I am thankful that even bad days show me how much I have to be thankful for.

23. I'm really thankful for today. I normally don't like Saturdays, not enough structure...yep, I know I'm weird, but I had such a great time taking Grant to the movies, shopping and just hanging out. Love that little guy and our time today!

24. I'm thankful for my parents - they just took the kids for the night! Seriously, I'm thankful for the foundation they gave me and the support that still continues. They are now on their 3rd 1,000 mile trip to see us in the last year & a half. They helped me out so much when Alex was down here before us. And I'm so thankful they helped me get through college with no loans! Looking forward to Thanksgiving & the week with them.


25. Today I'm thankful for our utilities. Today our electricity went out for a little while and I'm thankful that I usually don't have to worry about that!

26. I'm thankful for my life experiences. Even the hard ones which have taught me just as much about other people as they have about myself.

27. I'm thankful for opposites. I'm thankful that spring follows winter, that day follows night and that light follows darkness.

28. To steal a line from the childrens book This is the Turkey, "This is the thanks for all that's good: home and family and friends and food."



29. I'm thankful my husband is willing to spend so much time with my family 

30.  am most thankful for the last day of November, when both of my best friends were born! Happy Birthday Marie Laskos and Alex Jimenez! I hope your day is filled with love & laughter...and maybe a few other gifts