Thankful

There is so very much to be thankful this year, and I've finally had a chance to catch my breath from the holiday. Which, of course, only happened because I actually unbuttoned my pants. Ah, dieting...two steps forward, one step back!

My list of things for which I give thanks is a long one. Here's the top 10.

1. My Uncle Lake's health. One week before Thanksgiving we got a terrible scare in our family. The "C" word. Lung cancer to be exact. But on Tuesday the biopsy results came back and, amazingly, it's a fungus. Not cancer. I can't tell you how thankful we all are for this news!
2. My two amazing children. My life is forever better because of those two girls. And, hopefully, we are enriching their lives just as much as they're giving to ours.
   
3. My incredibly understanding and forever patient husband. Since I routinely fall asleep on the couch long before 10 p.m...and when I'm awake I'm often a raging bundle of hormones (I have found that post-partum PMS lasts almost the entire month and is 10 worse than it was before I had kids)...poor Noah is taking one for the team right now. I am VERY grateful for his patience and sense of humor!
4. Family. In my family we claim just about anyone as a "cousin." But that's because we've got so many awesome people in the family that we want to lay claim to them all.
   
5. Friends. Old friends. New friends. Mommy friends. Work friends. Parents of Lily's friends. Our lives are rich with friendship.
   
6. My job. Although I do complain...a lot at times...I am grateful that, in this tough economy, I still have a job. That in my own little way I am able to contribute to society. And that I am setting a good example for my girls.
   
7. Noah's job. Considering he works for a certain GSE company that is routinely mentioned in current Congressional hearings, on C-SPAN and CNN...we are lucky, indeed, that Noah still has a job. And, at least for the time being, it's a secure job.
8. The Nation's Capitol. I LOVE that we live a stone's throw away from the White House, the Capitol, and all the sights and culture that this grand city has to offer. Noah and I sometimes fantasize about "the simple life," trading it all in for a MUCH larger and nicer house at a fraction of our mortgage...in an area that's just a bit slower and, perhaps, even friendlier. But we always come to the same conclusion. Can't do it. This city is far too rich in experiences for us to move away. Free babysitters certainly help to sweeten the deal! Nope...this is the place we want to raise our girls.
9. CHEAP GAS! You can actually buy regular gasoline around us for less than $2 a gallon. I can't remember the last time I saw numbers like that at the pump! You might recall, but during our family vacation to Vermont this past summer, we paid something to the tune of $4.35 a gallon.
10. Pumpkin bread pudding. I'll soon post the recipe that I used for the dessert we brought to both of our Thanksgiving dinners. It was awesome. Totally deserving of its own post. I refuse to weigh myself now, but it was worth gaining an extra pound or two for! IT. WAS. SO. GOOD.