@Swimmy's Christmas thread is great (I bought my first new Christmas decoration yesterday from Pier 1)... but we are getting ahead of ourselves since it's Thanksgiving next week and many folks' favorite holiday of the year.
Aside from obvious big things i am thankful for, like good health, which i never take for granted (for both me and my family and friends), i like to tune out the political discourse and of the latest shooting and focus on the little things that make me happy and thankful.
Here are my little things that I am thankful for. I hope you come and add your own.
1. Mornings. They are my very favorite part of the day, especially when it's still dark outside. The sound of the furnace kicking in is so comforting. I put all the low lights on in the living room and YouTube my favorite TV fireplace with real sounding cracking noise. It runs for ten solid hours straight with no commercial.
2. Coffee. This kind of goes with #1. I drink only one cup of coffee a day but it's VERY strong. I buy my french roast beans from a local roaster and grind them myself, using an Oomph plunger pot or my Aeropress. It tastes better than any drip that Starbucks makes.
3. Kids. I never had kids (by choice) but i do love being around them. And they often surprise me. Our condo community is adjacent to an elementary school with a chain link surrounding their playground. Yesterday when i got back from a run the kids were outside for recess and I could see their soccer ball was on our side of the fence with many of the little boys pressed up against it looking forlornly at the ball ...until they saw me. When I threw it back to one of the little boys they were all so happy and smiling and shouting out THANK YOU! (The one little boy saying "Thank you Ma'am" especially made me smile.)
I babysit my 5 year old little great nephew and his 2 year old sister , (the children of my favorite nephew) often and my nephew is old enough this year to be so excited about Christmas that he already decorated his bedroom with lights and put up the little Christmas tree i bought him last year. (He is a Swimmy in the making!) I am babysitting them tomorrow and i bought more Christmas ornaments from Michaels for them. We have a little project to make paper chains with construction paper for their tree and for an advent calendar. I call them "The Cheetos", for obvious reasons.
4. My newspaper guy. We still get the newspaper. It's another favorite part of my morning. We have had terrible times with carriers in the past not getting our paper to us until after 9 am. But our new one has been working for nearly two years now and he tells me he loves his job. I love his enthusiasm. Because i tip him well, especially around Xmas, he is getting our paper to us early - always before 7 am. And he always puts it in our box.
5. Besides coffee, i am thankful for books, wine, and music. I often look around for new music on YouTube - Tiny Desk concerts, Jam in the Van and just stream for hours. (It's how i found the funk of Pimps of Joytime).
I love finding a new wine that i can't wait to try again, price be damned. And there is nothing better than having an unencumbered rainy day with a really great book.
I have more i could add but this is too long already. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Aside from obvious big things i am thankful for, like good health, which i never take for granted (for both me and my family and friends), i like to tune out the political discourse and of the latest shooting and focus on the little things that make me happy and thankful.
Here are my little things that I am thankful for. I hope you come and add your own.
1. Mornings. They are my very favorite part of the day, especially when it's still dark outside. The sound of the furnace kicking in is so comforting. I put all the low lights on in the living room and YouTube my favorite TV fireplace with real sounding cracking noise. It runs for ten solid hours straight with no commercial.
2. Coffee. This kind of goes with #1. I drink only one cup of coffee a day but it's VERY strong. I buy my french roast beans from a local roaster and grind them myself, using an Oomph plunger pot or my Aeropress. It tastes better than any drip that Starbucks makes.
3. Kids. I never had kids (by choice) but i do love being around them. And they often surprise me. Our condo community is adjacent to an elementary school with a chain link surrounding their playground. Yesterday when i got back from a run the kids were outside for recess and I could see their soccer ball was on our side of the fence with many of the little boys pressed up against it looking forlornly at the ball ...until they saw me. When I threw it back to one of the little boys they were all so happy and smiling and shouting out THANK YOU! (The one little boy saying "Thank you Ma'am" especially made me smile.)
I babysit my 5 year old little great nephew and his 2 year old sister , (the children of my favorite nephew) often and my nephew is old enough this year to be so excited about Christmas that he already decorated his bedroom with lights and put up the little Christmas tree i bought him last year. (He is a Swimmy in the making!) I am babysitting them tomorrow and i bought more Christmas ornaments from Michaels for them. We have a little project to make paper chains with construction paper for their tree and for an advent calendar. I call them "The Cheetos", for obvious reasons.
4. My newspaper guy. We still get the newspaper. It's another favorite part of my morning. We have had terrible times with carriers in the past not getting our paper to us until after 9 am. But our new one has been working for nearly two years now and he tells me he loves his job. I love his enthusiasm. Because i tip him well, especially around Xmas, he is getting our paper to us early - always before 7 am. And he always puts it in our box.
5. Besides coffee, i am thankful for books, wine, and music. I often look around for new music on YouTube - Tiny Desk concerts, Jam in the Van and just stream for hours. (It's how i found the funk of Pimps of Joytime).
I love finding a new wine that i can't wait to try again, price be damned. And there is nothing better than having an unencumbered rainy day with a really great book.
I have more i could add but this is too long already. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!