Gratitude #30

30. Today I am grateful for communities. I belong to virtual communities of foreign service folks or moms of children born in October 2007 and real life communities of parents and children who go to the playground after school pickup or people who went to law school with me.  It is instantly rewarding and validating to know that someone will just "get it" if I tell them a particular story, rant, or situation I need advice to solve. They say it takes a village and I don't think it's just about childcare.

Gratitude #29

29. Today I am thankful for my children. Often frustrating, occasionally precious (in the good way). Last night in the car home from my brother's house Alex suggested that we all go around and talk about what we're thankful for. I so love that she thought of doing that.

Gratitude #28

28. In honor of Thanksgiving I am thankful for good food. I am sure my mother never would have guessed, in my only-a-piece-of-Kraft-singles-on-a-piece-of-Wonder-bread stage that this would happen, but I have become picky about my food. I don't care what it looks like as long as it's high quality and tastes good. The cooking team responsible for our Thanksgivukkah certainly pulled out the stops!

Wordless Wednesday

Gratitude #27

27. Today I am grateful for the daily gratitude project. Every study on happiness shows that expressing gratitude is an important part of a well-lived life. Yesterday I received news that, while not catastrophic, derails plans that had been in place for a good year or so. But after a little cry and some self pity, I pulled up my big girl panties and put everything into perspective. Going through my past 26 expressions of gratitude helped with that exercise.

And a quote from Alex, that just randomly and serendipitously happened to occur last night:
"I like the word "happy" because it is a way that we feel good."

Well, I guess I won't start working in January ...

I learned today that the invites for the January A-100 class have gone out.  People lower than me on the register got invites. I did not, because I am not technically on the register. After 2 years my clearance needed to be "re-upped" so I am currently under investigation yet again. This time it feels slower than any previous time. We had really been planning on me starting work in January, so this is an enormous blow. Please, if anyone's reading this, think good thoughts for this to be done in time for the March class (assuming there is a March class).

Gratitude #26

26. Today I am grateful for family. Since we've been back in the USA we have spent more time with family - immediate, extended, biological and not - from both sides than we had in at least 7 years. I am excited to see my one big brother I haven't seen in more than 3 years when he comes for Thanksgiving, and my mother might just faint when all her children and all her grandchildren are under one roof.

The first lost tooth!!!

Extra, extra, read all about it! After two teeth have already come in - behind the baby teeth, oy can we say orthodonture? - Alex has FINALLY wiggled and waggled that one very loose tooth to its very end. It happened about 10 minutes past bedtime so there are no photos as yet. Now we need to find the tooth fairy's special present (a light-up toothbrush) and figure out her going rate ($1.00, I think).

And now we can start wiggling and waggling the one not-very-loose tooth, because I think these adult teeth will eventually need to more forward.

Gratitude #25

25. Today I am grateful for the kitchen cart my mom got us for Hanukkah (yes, it was given early. I'm Ok with that.)  It has seriously transformed my kitchen experience, and given that I make dinner 9 nights out of 10, cook something for breakfast several days a week, make bread, yogurt, applesauce etc etc I spend a LOT of time in that very small space. Not having to take out half a cabinet to get to the one thing I need that got pushed to the back not because it's less used but because everything is often used is a joy. Not having to wash every single dish or pan before starting the new project because there is zero counter space is another joy.

Thanks again, mom!

Gratitude #24

24. Today I am grateful for good fortune and good habits. A short while back, Terry went to the doctor and during the course of the exam the doc performed a test on him. As it turns out, the test isn't covered by insurance and doesn't even come out of the deductible or out-of-pocket expenses (that is the part that truly blows my mind). So it's just cash we're out. Hundreds of dollars.

I'm annoyed, and frustrated, and angry. But I am NOT: scared; worried; anxious. This extra unforeseen cost doesn't change our Thanksgiving, Hanukkah/Christmas, shopping habits or family activities. The number of Americans for whom a situation like this might just push them right over the brink they have been teetering on ... it's more than I want to think about.

It's also a two part blessing, as I see it. Yes we have and have had jobs that allowed a better than hand-to-mouth existence. But we've also always saved no matter what we've earned. And for those things, and the heat in my house turned down because Terry is freakishly hot all the time and not because we can't afford to turn it up, I am grateful.