I suppose this is akin to my Best Moments of the Week lists, but a blogger at Bless Her Heart posted about here 30 days of a grateful heart and it sounded like a good idea.
I’ve been posting one thing a day over on Facebook, but I figured I’d collect them here for posterity and expounding.
I am grateful for:
1. Good friends that want to learn and grow together, ones that can pick up right where we left off, ones that call me on my crap, ones that lend an ear, ones that teach me things, ones that want to share my life.
2. Tasty leftovers. Stuffing, mashed taters, sweet potatoes, tetrazzini, cranberry sauce, sausage, bacon…it’s a never-ending bounty.
3. Rain. Slow, driving, moistening, life-sustaining rain.
4. Music that is perfect to listen to while it’s raining.
5. Socks. Warm, wooly ones in the winter to keep my feetsies toasty. Little short ones in the summer to keep the dirt off my toes. Ones that go up to my thighs, ones that prevent my feet from getting blisters, boot socks, ankle socks, thick chunky hand-knitted socks, socks with toes, socks I knitted myself.
6. Tea. It is what warms me up on cold winter days, lifts my spirits and gets me moving. I’ve never been a coffee person, but I can appreciate all different kinds of teas from Earl Grey every morning before school, to matcha genmaicha in the mid morning, English Breakfast in the afternoon (with cream and honey), Rooibos at dinner, Chamomile and Lavender at bedtime. Lemon Lift with honey when I’m sick, a strong green tea when I need a kick, and iced orange pekoe in midsummer.
7. My momma, who is many things to this farm, a surrogate mother to many of my friends, and a best friend, mother, wise-woman, healer, fixer-of-pants and general, all-around magician to me. I am SO glad that she moved down here to live with me on my farm and share my crazy adventures.
8. This farm. I never realized how much I needed cows, chickens and donkeys until I got here. I’m grateful for our bounty that allows us the luxury of living out here and tending to this land. Doing the work here has been more fulfilling and life-giving than anything I could have imagined.
9. Small town Texas, where the people are sweet and friendly, where there are kitschy little shops, mom-and-pop BBQ and fried chicken places, and the community comes all together for fundraisers and chili cook-offs. Where the feed store manager tips his hat to you at the grocery store, the dogs greet you at the post office and the volunteer fire department knows just about everyone by name.
10. My partner, my companion, my hubsand. We put up with each other’s crap, brought this farm together, and share this crazy dream. I never pictured my life like this, but now I can’t imagine it without him and all this in it.
11. Baths. When I’m cold in the winter it is the sure-fire way to warm up. I have an almost never-ending supply of Lush bath bombs in which to soak all my cares away a tub big enough for two with jets, chinese lanterns, candles and a huge shelf on which to put my giant glass of wine. It’s no wonder that thing gets used like three to five times a week!
12. Cows. I love to watch them mosey and play, I love it when they come galloping up full speed to the hay crib like little kids kicking and prancing. I love their soft ears, the way they smell, the way their soft mouths move when they eat. I love huddling up next to Grace when I milk her on cold mornings, and brushing her and scratching behind Henri’s poll. They’ve taught me patience beyond imagination and so much more. I hope that there will always be cows in my life from now on.
13. My job. To have one in the first place and to have a really good one that allows me to work from home and gives me the flexibility of time. I lucked into this and I couldn’t be more happy for it.
14. Air conditioning and heat (whichever is required). I have always appreciated heat, having lived in snow-filled states but I had never realized the need for air conditioning as much as I did this past summer when it got up to 112 degrees.
15. My health. While it’s not perfect, I am able to do just about anything I might want to do. I can run (!!), jump, hike, walk for long periods, ride, twirl, sing, dance. I’m very grateful that the issues that I do have are able to be kept under control. I am also taking steps to improve my health in order to guarantee that I am able to continue to physically do the things that I like for the future.
16. Community. I have become part of this community in this little corner of this little out-of-the-way county. Being part of the fire department, I am getting to meet all sorts of people and get to be part of the crazy family that it all brings. And it feels nice to *belong* to something. I like that.
17. Breakfast. I love breakfast. For dinner. For lunch. Anytime. That eggs are the most perfect and versatile food makes me so full of happy. French toast makes my heart sing. Omelets make me dance. Sausage. Bacon. Benedict. Breakfast buffets are the best thing ever in my mind. No better way to start the day. Or end it.
18. Photographs. A picture certainly can say a thousand words as well as inspire, explain and bring together. I love that I can document the little things in my life, the things I see that bring me happiness and share with my friends and family far away. The ability to share my life like this gives me connections that I wouldn’t otherwise have.
19. Wine, specifically red wine. I love the mouth-feel, the tannins, the flavors. I used to only like sweet white wines, but now I’m down for the driest, most-comb-your-tongue red wines there are. I love them in giant wine glasses that sing and especially while soaking in the tub.
20. Sunrises (and sunsets). I’ve seen many but it never ceases to amaze me how stunning they all are and how they always make me smile. It’s like a fresh start. The light changing by the second, then bursting over the horizon and bathing everything in it’s soft golden glow.
21. Planning. I’ve gotten to the point in my life where the act of planning something is as exciting as the actual going and doing. Things are so open to possibility when you are planning that it just seems like you’ve got the world as your oyster. It gives me the ability to check out possibilities and have an idea of what I want, even if the plan changes.
22. Sleep that refreshes, renews and makes everything seem ok. Heavy blankets to tuck me in, adjustable beds with a magic fingers feature (but without the need for quarters), and white noise generators that double as air filters.
23. Friends that come rescue us and our trailer (and those that offered) when we blew a coolant line and took the extra patient step of taking us to get our much needed fencing supplies and driving us home. Beer and the finest pizza in three counties can’t repay the favor, but hopefully it’s a good start!
24. Patience and not feeling rushed, both of which I’m getting better at and utilizing. As I look at things, there really is no rush, I just don’t often take the time to see that.
25. Starbucks that are open on Christmas day, especially when one has to drive 3 hours (one way) to family. Caffeine and sugar has at least made me a little more human.
26. Long-standing family traditions (like making cookies every holiday season) and silly, self-made traditions (like crab legs on boxing day.) There is something very comforting about rituals.
27. New places, new sites to see, new places to stay, new experiences and good music. Road-tripping is my favorite past time!
28. Big giant Texas skies, especially in West Texas where there is less light to get in the way. The dark is astounding out there.
29. My own bed, especially after being away from it.
30. Getting things done. I love the feeling of accomplishment that comes when I get things crossed off that to-do list, when I don’t feel the pressure of it weighing on me.
31. Just about everything. I am blessed with so much bounty and overflowing awesomeness.