I Am Thankful…

As Thanksgiving nears, I didn't really think I could let it pass without spending at least a few moments reflecting on the things I am thankful for…so here goes!

I am thankful for my family – they are my rock and my everything…without them I just can't imagine what life would be like. I am thankful that they are all individuals that have their own way of doing things, even if I don't always agree with it! I am thankful that my husband took our vows seriously and has stuck with me through thick and thin, sickness and health, better and worse. Lord knows we have seen both sides of ALL of those!! LOL I am also thankful for my extended family – they have contributed to so many of my happy memories all the way from childhood to today…

I am thankful for our military – especially my two boys. It is amazing to me that thousands of young men and women sign up to possibly sacrifice their life for our country. They leave their families and go off to faraway lands sometimes going days, weeks and months without communicating with their loved ones, all while being in a place they don't know and where danger could lurk around any corner. I am sure it is not easy, but they do it anyways. I am thankful for that. With that, I am also thankful for my country – I am so glad I live someplace that I can say what I want, worship how I want, spend my money how I want and more! There are many places where they only dream of being able to do what they want and the USA isn't one of those! I am so thankful I have been blessed enough to be born here and know what freedom is.

I am thankful for my job – for all the drama that goes with it at times…it just isn't all that bad! I get paid a good wage that provides for a lot and I can usually go home at the end of the day feeling like I made a small difference in my little world. I know lots of times it is easier to complain about it, but in the end, I have to accept that it could be a heck of a lot worse!! And I'm thankful that it isn't!

I am thankful for my friends – I could again say, for all the drama that goes with it at times…LOL But I am thankful for them. What would I do if I didn't have my good friend that I trust (you know who you are!) that I can talk about anything with; or what would I do if I didn't have a friend that understands where I've been because they've known me for the past 10 years; or if I couldn't get together (way too seldom might I add) with the goddess girl that pours the wicked wax; or what would I do if I didn't have a terrific group of ladies that I could look forward to sharing lunch with each Wednesday? Life would just suck without those things!! J So I am very thankful for my little circle of friends – and I'm thankful that I have learned who my real friends are…

I am thankful for so much more…like sunsets, smiles, a laugh, football, a good movie, a good cry, a good book, Google, steak, my Saturday morning breakfasts with hubby, my students who always keep life interesting, candles, fires in the fireplace, crunchy leaves, bubble baths, dew on a blade of grass, the smell of baked goods in the oven, mist coming off of water, a beautiful moonlit evening, my bed, my home office that is my favorite place in the house, Black Friday shopping…I could go on and on!! There is just so much to be thankful for and it is something that I have to remind myself sometimes in these bleak times of financial distress…but there are so many simple things in life that it is important to be thankful for them every day and not just on a certain day of the year. So to all of those that contribute in any way, large or small, to my list – THANK YOU FOR BEING PART OF MY LIFE!!! It is you who make it worth living…

Energy Suckers!

I saw an interesting article on Yahoo! this morning and just had to share because it was MIND-BLOWING!!! Check it out - it is all about how much energy gaming consoles use.

http://green.yahoo.com/blog/the_conscious_consumer/21/stop-wasting-money-video-games-and-energy-efficiency.html

Beauty in the Beast...

Okay - so it's no surprise that my life has been just a little hectic lately (hence the "Beast"!) but then there is a moment where you realize that there is also a whole lot of beauty! This week has been a roller-coaster (what week isn't though really...) but last night as I was driving to school heading west I witnessed one of the most spectacular sunsets I have seen in some time. It was absolutely amazing...I could actually SEE sunbeams! I don't recall seeing that before and I don't know if it was just the time of day, or the little bit of clouds laying low over the horizon, but it was like looking at an illustration where these rays of light were shooting out of the ground. Now I've seen rays of sunshine coming from above and they are spectucular as well, but this is the first time I've seen them shooting out from below. This is a picture I found at www.capetownskies.com/sunbeams.htm that pretty much sums up what it looked like

(although not quite as spectacular) just picture that against a background of pastel hues of pale yellow and rosy pink, turning into bright crimson and gold, and finally fading into a deep bruised purple sky...all the while these sunbeams are shooting out almost as far as the eye can see. It was amazing and it made me feel so small! It made me realize that there is so much more to life than just the rush, rush, rush of our daily lives. We just need to take a moment to appreciate it. I've continued thinking about that sunset I saw last night and how much of a message it was for me. I need to still enjoy the sunsets (or sunrises!) and stop to smell the roses so to speak. We are such a small part of this thing called life...it's important we appreciate the beauty in the beast.

Balancing Act...

My life has become a major balancing act lately and I find myself having a hard time not falling off! I'm balancing home, work, teaching, student, mother, wife...and then my problem is I want to be able to relax once in awhile too and that seems to be the foot kicking at the chair leg threatening to topple me over and off the edge in one foul swoop! I know I can do this...but at the same time I am battling major procrastination! I know I need to be a little more rigid and force myself to take care of what I need to, when I need to, instead of rushing around at the last minute. For example, this past Monday was a holiday so I intended to get up early (which I did) and jump right on my reading for school so I could also get some grading done...but instead I screwed around on the computer for about an hour sampling songs on iTunes! I wish that was the end of my procrastination...but alas, it wasn't and even though I completed my chapter reading, I didn't do one stitch of grading this weekend! GRRRRR...

So I'm trying...and trying....and trying...I'll keep trying...that's my mantra anyways!! LOL