Things I'm Thankful For...

After a month of reading what others were thankful for almost daily via Facebook, I decided to wait until the end of the month to share what I am thankful for. So here it goes:

Most importantly I am thankful for:

My pride & joy, my #1 sidekick, my mini me, my miracle, heart and soul, my son Austin!

My family…God gave me a wonderful mom & dad, a second dad who amazingly stepped up and took care of 3 girls even during the hardest time of our lives when our dad passed away, I have two fabulous sisters and best friends, a great brother, and nieces & nephews I love beyond measure. 

My faithful, true, like-minded friends…as I get older, I find that I have fewer and fewer of them. It’s not like I don’t have friends, it’s more like I am surrounding myself with these real ones more now than ever before.

Thankful for what I’ve been able to do & accomplish:

     

See a miracle….the birth of my son Austin was the day I saw the miracle of life be born. Realizing I played a part in making him and able to deliver him safely & hold him in my arms is my greatest accomplishment.

Form a relationship with my dad before he passed away. I was 11 when he died and for a few years while being very young I never wanted to go and spend time with him when it was our weekend over there. I can remember the nights I cried and wanted to go back to my moms & when I think back about those times I wish I had realized how wonderful he was sooner. Thankful that before he passed, I did finally realize just how much he loved his girls and would do anything for us and that it wasn’t too late.

Go on multiple mission trips: 2 trips to Arizona to help build a new school for the Navajo Indians and a trip to Honduras to help build onto a clinic, school, and church located on a mountain top. Experiencing these trips changed me from within. They made me more thankful for the things I have more than anything or anybody has ever done or will do.

Live life outside of Indiana: while my stay wasn’t as long as I had hoped for, living in another state & on water made me realize how much I missed Indiana. Indiana is full of beauty year round and you don’t see that kind of change & beauty down south.

Do crazy stuff: I’ve been white water rafting, bungee jumping, rode tons of roller coasters, experienced tons of concerts, traveled to places such as the Bahamas, Maine, and Niagra Falls on day trips by myself when I worked for ATA, had my share of piercings and experienced my share of raves.

I’m thankful for things about me:

For being a loving, loyal, trusting friend, sister and daughter…I’m hardly perfect but it’s good to know in my heart that I’m a kind person. I’d never intentionally hurt anyone, I don’t believe in being mean, I hate to see anyone cry, and love to see people smile. I may be a bit shy sometimes and not the best at socializing, but I genuinely appreciate and care about people and always wanting to help those I can. 

Having the talent to create art…it may not be the next Picasso or Van Gogh but its art that I love. Love that I can create it through paint, ceramics, wood burning, ink, chalk, lead, film, video, words, ect… There is no limit and when I find the need to express myself I tend to create a painting, write a poem, make a video to a favorite song, or pick up a camera. 

Being a go-to-girl…thankful that people are able to come to me for advice even if it is for the simplest things of how to do or find something on Facebook. People trust me with some of their innermost thoughts and feelings and I’m glad they know they can trust me and come to me for advice or a shoulder to cry on.

I’m thankful for the past:

For my past relationships….they have made me a stronger person and made me learn more about who I am and how worthy I am of having true love one day. I've had my share of good times & bad times and they all played a role in shaping me into the person I am today. 

Having a teacher who gave me an F on a poem I wrote for an assignment one day in class. He told me it was awful and that I should not be writing poetry. I wanted to prove him wrong so I entered it into a contest where it was chosen, published in a book of poems, chosen to be one of 35 poems to be read aloud& recorded to an audible poetry cd, as well as received Editors choice that year. I ended up having 4 more poems published, the opportunity to publish my own book one day, and I still to this day write poetry thinking about how I was once told how bad at it I was. 

Not always chosen first and sometimes picked last….in some way that shaped me into being a better person. I learned that not everybody is going to like me or want me and that’s okay. I learned to give everybody a chance & not judge them based on things such as appearance. I graduated school feeling as though I was never part of any particular group of friends but rather a friend to everyone. If you were nice to me, I was nice to you and those who didn't like me, well didn’t like me—their loss!

Miscellaneous things I’m thankful for:

Being an American, coffee, chocolate, fresh fruit, a warm bed to sleep in, listening to my child’s laughter and seeing his smiles, flowers, a good novel, another chance at college, air conditioning on a hot day and a warm fire on a cold night, dishwashers, true friends, a good book, nights staring up at the stars, ice cream, red wine, good conversations and silent conversations, swinging on a swing and sliding down a slide, hugs and kisses, hearing someone tell me they love me, being told I’m missed by someone, a hot shower or bath, live music, rainbows following a storm, lazy days, sunrises and sunsets, pizza and a movie nights, family & friends who accept me despite my flaws, a nice long stretch after waking up, music, the sound of the rain on the roof or outside my bedroom window, camping outside, s’mores, seeing wildlife while driving or out on a walk, invitations even if I can’t accept and make it to the event, teachers, digital cameras, great neighbors, the kindness of strangers, aquariums and zoos, farmer markets, pumpkin patches and orchards, growing up out in the country, memories, photographs, keeping old notes, my first love even if I was only in 8^th grade and it was only a few months long, struggles I face, getting my dad’s eyes, being smart, knowing it’s okay to be wrong, the beauty of fresh fallen snow, the little things in life, wildflowers and the beauty of their innocence,  campfire chats, drunken nights, being sensitive, Facebook and how it has brought family and friends back into my life, movies that make me laugh until I cry, cuddling with my son, laughing at inside jokes, my favorite tv shows, sleeping in, tumblr, songs that bring back memories, sushi, having the heart to give the homeless a dollar or a cup of coffee, knowing that I am not better than anybody else—I’m simply just me, having all 5 senses and somewhat good health, knowing sadness, happiness, fear, doubt, and pain, having a roof over my head, my enemies, my faith, God’s grace, reunions, picnics, choosing to forgive, being able to post notes for Operation Beautiful,  my freedom, the troops that serve for the Country I live in, the choices I've made and the mistakes as well, the joy and peace in my heart, knowing I’m on the right path and will make it to my destination one day, blogs, the moments where you realize you’re glad you chose to avoid responsibility one day and make memories instead, random text messages, not giving up on the ones I love, knowing what it’s like to struggle with my weight so I don’t judge others who are in the same boat, days where I act like a kid again, all-nighters, memories of fishing with my dad, not caring if my house isn't perfectly clean bc I know it’s perfectly lived in, and rambling on and on about things I’m thankful for while thinking nobody is actually going to read this so if you still are then know I'm thankful for you!