a friend of mine has inspired me to keep track of gifts that i am blessed with. she has read 1,000 Gifts - from the book by Ann Voskamp of the same name.
"Not of the gifts I want but of the gifts I already have."
i am blessed :)
254. finishing up grad school (again)
253. an amazing roof over our head
252. good jobs
251. finances so we can take a few days away
250. a dog who gives unconditional love
249. time away with my hubby
248. two moms who care about me
247. a raise
246. family of all boyer pictures
245. a baby nephew on the way
244. family of four pictures
243. a new niece
242. did i mention MY THESIS is DONE!!!???!!!??? :)
241. buying my cap and gown!!!
240. legos to build with :)
239. a great therapist
238. a deer to provide jerky (good job love)
237. challenges at work
236. a double date with lynda and john....and then catching up with ellen and tim after
235. a lovely babysitter who enjoys spending time with our boys
234. a weekend to spend time with my parents
233. a peaceful visit to the cemetery to visit my brother
232. time with my boys to just lay low and relax :)
231. bones...great tv show
230. a thesis DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
229. cheap white wine
228. Christmas shopping in NOVEMBER with great deals!
227. Queso dip
226. Friends--far and near
225. fun homecoming
224. tailgate with my colleagues
223. mike's hard cranberry lemonade
222. getting rid of writer's block
221. normalcy of a weekend at home
220. little "i love you mom" notes from jack
219. chapter 1 and 2 DONE and submitted.
218. hockey in cedar springs!
217. ugly yet tasty cake pops
216. keeping in contact with a great friend who moved away
215. kara faith and her growth!
214. productive mornings
213. sunshine on a beautiful end of october day
212. a fabulous soccer season for both boys
211. new baby neighbor emma :)
210. wine.
209. the hot air balloon fest in new mexico!!!
208. loving my best friend's fiance
207. finding a bridesmaid dress that is practical, cute, sassy and comfy!
206. a trip to new mexico to see one of my dearest friends. fun. love. laughter. hugs.
205. 2 paragraphs written for chapter 2 of my thesis project
204. scrabble on fb to keep my brain fresh
203. pod mates who are fabulous!
202. a great neighborhood bbq....even if we had no power!
201. spicy steak stew that was accidental awesomeness with a huge can of crushed tomatoes
200. a bucket for luke to puke in during the car ride home from grandmas house
199. blogs to write for alg 1 and alg 2 rr
198. team teaching with a new partner
197. the start of a new school year with students with bright smiles
196. the super wash to occupy a few minutes of our day--the boys LOVE to go to the super wash
195. black angus beef filling our freezer--oh man is it tasty and we are so fortunate!
194. chris bringing HOME kara from china
192. watching project runway
191. getting jack's class information {finally} so we could start preparing for the beginning of the school year
190. a fabulous open house visit for luke at preschool! he even played without me near him:)
189. cool sleeping weather
188. a sassy hair cut
187. hot coffee with peppermint mocha creamer
186. pictures of chris' beautiful daughter kara
185. boys playing together
184. anderson and girls with my parents and a visit to the cheese house
183. "late night" talks with the boys--so happy that we have open communication. much time has been spent talking about upcoming preschool and first grade
182. flavored pretzles (a favorite of mine and lukie's)
181. a box to create into a house!!!! soooo much fun! memories created!
180. puppy preschool. so helpful for ME :)
179. a visit from vickie and her adorable two year old son carter! and the fun that we partook in!!!
178. josh loves his job at red hat! yay!
177. the fella and gal from new leaf nursery--they are fabulous!
176. a garden to dig in.
175. a slow dance with the love of my life
174. dancing the night away with lynda at heather and andrew's wedding reception
173. adorable puppy pictures of my sister's new baby gunnar
172. seeing our little five year old friend amber do amazing after her invasive surgery
171. memories created while the boys rode k.mckinley's horses with the sonuga kiddos
170. "i love you mom"
169. a weekend away with my love--traverse city was so much fun
168. hot. decaf. tea.
167. a lovely mexican meal at our home to say goodbye to the sonuga family
166. all sorts of "baby" tomatoes from my garden--like four varieties!
165. supportive friends as i struggle with luke starting prechool
164. lots of laughter and fun playing cards with my in laws
163. danish festival lego table--jack had a blast!
162. my friend chris' baby shower--she is in china as i type, getting her baby girl :)
163. my big boy turning 6! 6 wonderful years of watching him grow!
162. the simple pleasure of watching the end of a parade with luke
161. beautiful on CLEARANCE deck furniture
160. a fun round white table with colorful desk chairs....where to put her? not sure yet.
159. arguing with my hubby--yes this is a gift. some couples do not communicate their needs, wants, and things that they want to see changed. we do and for that, i am grateful!
158. a & w root beer to drink
157. the simple pleasure of sitting outside at panera bread and listening to my boys giggle as we watch a bird move around a piece of bread
156. a truck to haul wood around in
155. yummy pork with cous cous
154. an evening of reading
153. fudge
152. a successful evening of puppy preschool
151. a friend who got her date to travel to china to get her baby girl! :)
150. my project paper submitted so 22 days of NON grad class thoughts!!!! :)
149. the ability to be grumpy, have some sleep and wake up happy again. some people are just grumpy all the time! so glad i am happy most of the time :)
148. a friend who reminds me to help others--backpacks of hope, her shoe project, etc.
147. boys who have been playing nicely together
146. josh always encouraging me to get time in for a run
145. date night with josh (see below) :)
144. harry potter 7 part 2--fabulous
143. catching up with my hs friend tiffany and her family at anderson and girls
142. coffee brewing
141. max having NO potty accidents in cadillac!
140. a husband who talks to us OFTEN while away on business
139. neighbors who let me barge into their house to visit, complain and whine :)
138. a sleepover at our house with kaden
137. walking the nature trail and seeing my boys grow before my eyes as they walked {almost} the entire trail (hour long walk)
136. kenwood park--such simple things make the boys happy
135. burgers on the grill
134. reading time with grandma cathy
133. a late night with the herringa family :) great conversation, a few bottles of wine and a bon fire
132. a canoe ride with grandpa and grandma
131. the warm sand of the sleeping bear dunes
130. lake michigan's warm water and beautiful views
129. scrabble with old and new friends via facebook
128. a contractor who shared his building plans with josh for our deck--even though he is NOT building it and we are
127. neighbors to hang out with in the front yard at 9 pm
126. slip and slides on a hot day
125. 175/175 on my project proposal part 1 (i am bragging! so proud of me.... :))
124. flights to bookto new mexico to wedding dress shop!
123. printers that print (finally)
122. t-bones (can you tell what we had for dinner)
121. blue cheese butter
120. red hat
119. my friend stef who takes turns with me at treating for lunch
118. a laptop to take notes in class
117. a child (luke) who loves LOVES love to vacuum :)
116. brenda--a beloved daycare provider and fabulous friend
115. fresh popped popcorn from the stove
114. movies to watch
113. my hubby who mows our lawn and makes it beautiful
112. childhood imaginations
111. hazelnut creamer
110. a steam vac!
109. soft scrub
108. a toilet to throw up in (several times :( )
107. insurance.
106. colleagues to hang out with
105. a phone call from my mom inviteing me to spend a week with her and dad while josh travels
104. a movie and dinner date with josh (and yes transformers is great on the big screen)
103. pee and poop OUTSIDE of my house (and not INSIDE)
102. a snuggle from max
101. the sound of my children playing
100. neighbor kiddos who play with my boys so i can get grad class reading done
99. ice cream before dinner
98. hot weather to soak up sunshine and cool air conditioning after
97. a boat to ride on--thanks lynda :)
96. my sister and her hubby
95. warm lake michigan water to swim in
94. toenail polish to hide my dirty garden-dirt covered toes :)
93. yummy food
92. games to play--boys now love to play spoons!
91. good health to ride bikes--the boys made it 2.8 miles with us on 7/3/11
90. beautiful sunshine
89. cousins
88. opportunities for josh (more later)
87. bleach to clean up poo water that gushes from the toilet
86. tickle fights in the morning
85. baby fireworks with our boys and the giggles it brings
84. wine on the front porch with shannon
83. italian herb risotto
82. star wars books
81. adoption--after waiting 4 years, 11 months, 3 weeks and a few days, my friend chris has gotten confirmation that there is a baby girl waiting for her in china!
80. my friend jude who is there for me long distance!
79. neighbors--we miss ours this week as they are in tn. it is a good reminder of how much they mean to us
78. linux
77. a grad class friend (stef) who is always there to give feedback for our classes we are in
76. perennials 2 for $5!!!! what a steal!
75. puppy kisses and "snuggles" with teeth
74. sunshine beating down on us at the flea market
73. frederick meijer gardens on a gorgeous day with our wednesday POMS playgroup
72. grand rapids popcorn company. nuff said.
71. a mom who calls four times in one day, to ask questions and to catch up :)
70. a honey who works hard, very hard, for our family
69. wedding reception invitation in the mail for my cousin's big day!
68. reconnecting with LOVELY college roommates as they have new life adventures--babies and weddings
67. watching max find herself in the mirror--so darn cute and worth a great chuckle!
66. digging in the dirt to plant new plants and veggies
65. popsicles
64. a fresh start the next day when you go to bed burnt out
63. light bulbs going off in my head
62. new possibilities
61. hot caramel hand dipped coffee dream lovers ice cream sundae
60. sprinklers to run through
59. deep thoughts from luke boyer
58. weather channel--online and on tv
57. homemade chex mix
56. sweet giggles from owen as we played peak a boo
55. dinner with my sis in law, bro in law and sweet baby nephew o :)
54. dinner and coffee with my friend audra
53. jake and the neverland pirates--bring laughter and fun for the boys
52. technology to connect with friends and family far away
51. fresh flowers from my garden
50. air conditioning on a super humid day
49. coconut shrimp
48. fire truck sounds coming from my boys--and the joy it brings to hear them play nicely together
47. being asked to be a matron of honor--what an honor!
46. weddings! my lovely friend melissa got engaged and will be getting married next june :)
45. two stable vehicles to drive and see my family
44. my dad--thanks for guidance and inspiration
43. health and strength that allowed me to walk for five hours at relay for life as well as run (even a mile at 2:00 am)
42. relay for life to raise money for cancer research
41. food
40. water--as both boys have had fevers this week, it is such a blessing to have water for them to drink as much as they want, water to cool them down with cloths, water to give them luke warm baths. clean, clear, running water.
39. a quick kiss snuck from my hubby
38. the ability to laugh at myself
37. hot steaming coffee to wake me up in the morning
36. michigan summer--gorgeous 75 degree day today with a nice cool breeze coming through the window this evening
35. food to fill our tummies
34. connections in the educational world--i was able to help a friend today make a few connections for job shadows etc.
33. friends to carpool with
32. 9 years of marriage--beautiful, unconditional, amazing friendship of a marriage
31. a quick look from my hubby to let me know he LOVES me :)
30. friends who pray
29. $10 any size pizza at pizza hut
28. handwriting without tears program for jack-o
27. ib profin/tylenol
26. angry birds game
25. boys who are well behaved at the doctors
24. a mom in law who always follows up
23. good friends who give puppy advice and support
22. max the puppy to bring home and love on
21. shoes for our feet
20. medical insurance
19. urgent care centers to visit
18. an intelligent husband
17. melted butter
16. air conditioning.....93 degrees out today--need i say more?
15. an excellent therapist who helps me figure out who i am
14. A JOB--being recalled to a district i love teaching for
13. hair that is curly and loves summer humidity
12. parents who show up to IEPS i hold for their children
11. colleagues who support me
10. allergy eye drops
9. watching the boys play with great grandma hudson on a hot day
8. guacomole
7. having a hard, yet truthful conversation, with a loved one and having the ability to maintain our relationship
6. not saying "i'm sorry" for things that i am not sorry for, nor should i be sorry for. instead, i say thank you for sharing or okay.
5. having a natural response to luke as he threw up--ew, that is nasty, but temporary, here's a bucket now let's go back to bed
4. a neighbor who calls to ask us to help with his kiddos (see he trusts me :))
3. a blog to record my thoughts
2. a roof over my head as the sun beat down today with 83 degree heat
1. giggles over legos with my two boys
