Thankfulness

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Happy Thanksgiving!

It is our first real holiday without Mom. Thanksgiving was never a very big deal in our house. One year, in a effort to avoid all of the cooking and clean up, we had lasagna...that we made the night before. Even though this holiday isn't my favorite, and it honestly isn't very meaningful to me, it will still be so hard to sit at a table and know that for my family, someone is missing. 

I am glad that we will be spending the day with Branden's family and that they invited not just me, but my Dad and brother as well. While it won't be the easiest day for us, I know it will be filled with good food, laughter, and plenty to be thankful for.

Speaking of thankfulness, I didn't fully participate in the "30 Days of Thankfulness" trend on Facebook, so I decided to list some things I am thankful for, here on the blog.

I am thankful for...

1. My wonderful boyfriend, Branden. He has been so good to me for the past five years, and even more so in the last several months. Our relationship has never been through so much, and every day I am thankful for how patient, understanding, and supportive he is. 

2. My Dad. Through everything, he is always there to make me laugh and ask how my day was. I have spent more time with him in the last months, than I've been able to in a very long time, and every time we get to hang out we are always laughing. I am so grateful to have him.

3. My best friend, Erika. You can go back here and read about why I love this girl so much, and why I am so thankful for her. She is one of the best people I know, and I am so glad that I have her in my life. I honestly feel like I would be very lost, and a lot less happy, if she wasn't around.

4. My family and Branden's family. I am so lucky to be surrounded by wonderful people in my life.

6. Our oldest dog, Sadie. She helped my Mom through a very difficult time in her life, and for that I will always love her in a special way.

7. Our little pup, Jack. He always knows when I need to see his cute face way too close to mine.

8. Our crazy dog, Lady Bug. She has brought so much joy to our family. If nothing else makes me laugh or smile all day, I know she will. 

9. My degree and certification. I have wonderful parents who saved and put me through college, and while I don't have the job I worked so hard for quite yet, I know I will one of these days and I am grateful I have the education that will land me that job.

10. All of the blogs I read. It seems like a silly thing to be so thankful for, but I love keeping up with my favorite blogs and getting inspired by them. Blog reading is one of my favorite things to do in my spare time. 

11. The fact that the jobs I have right now allow me to see Branden a little more during the day when we get lunch together. 

12. Books, books, books. I am reading something about 90% of the day, whether is is blogs, books, stories online, etc. I am in love with reading, and so thankful that I am fortunate enough to know how. My heart hurts for people who cannot read, and do not get to enjoy the magic of written words (cheesy much?). 

13. My camera. I have a new love for photography and learning about my camera. I don't get to use it as much as I want, but when I do, boy, am I happy.

14. My house. Most days I am ready to move out and have my own place, but this will always be home. I have never lived anywhere else, I've never even switched bedrooms. Being home, surrounded by memories of mom and all of the joy we have here is irreplaceable.

15. The fact that I don't have to work weekends. Working weekends all of last year definitely made it hard to have time with my family and Branden. I am so glad that I get to spend my weekends at home now!

16. My brother, Clay. I am proud of him for putting in the effort to make changes in his life to get where he needs to be. 

17. Movies. If anyone knows me, they know I love the movies. On Mondays at work, people ask me what movies I saw over the weekend. Movies are almost as good as books.

18. My friends. I don't have a ton of them, but the ones I have, I love so much. I am thankful to a have a few close friends, ones that I enjoy talking to and being around, rather than a ton of friends I don't know very well. 

19. The small things. I've learned that I need the small things to keep me going. Things like my favorite leopard print flats, my one friend blanket, reruns of my favorite shows, etc. 

20. I am SO thankful for the amazing people that donated to our team for Light the Night. We raised over $3,000 dollars! I went in thinking that $1,000 was a huge goal, and we tripled it. I am so thankful for those who walked, got people to donate, and those who donated to us. I am still amazed by the generosity of people.

21. Most of all, I am thankful for the mother that I had. I miss her more than I can explain to anyone, and every day there is something I want to tell her. She taught me to be thankful, and showed me the importance of taking time to appreciate what I have, even the small things. 

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.