Gratitude - Day 30 (aka I DID IT!)

I made it! I blogged every day for a month and I'm fairly certain I came up with 90 different things to be thankful for (I think the daily blogging is a bigger accomplishment, to be honest.) I should have saved the most special or meaningful thankful things for today but that's not how I roll. The final list will be 100% me -- very random.

1. I'm thankful for See's dark chocolate buttercreams (the ones with the vanilla centers.) I love that you can eat two and be pleasantly satisfied. I also love that See's sells them individually so you can get your chocolate fix without the guilt associated with buying an entire box.

2. I'm thankful for the movie "Elf." You seriously cannot watch that movie and remain in a bad mood. It's physically impossible. If you don't believe me, just try it the next time you're sad or angry. And then quote it along with me:

• The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear
• You stink. You smell like beef and cheese
• I'm in love, I'm in love and I don't care who knows it!
• Son of a nutcracker!
• This place looks like Santa's workshop. Except it smells like mushrooms and everyone looks like they want to hurt me.
• I love you. I'll call you back in five minutes.
• Smiling's my favorite (Kim's favorite)
• You sit on a throne of lies (my favorite)

3. I'm thankful for people who read and comment on my blog. Yes I blog first and foremost for myself but it's nice to get feedback from you, my friends (both real life and internet.) Pretty much everyone who reads my blog has had some sort of positive influence on my own life and for that, I'm so very grateful. I am some kind of blessed girl. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Gratitude - Day 29 (the penultimate!**)

** Great word, I know. I impressed even myself with that one.

1. I'm thankful for my membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I feel peace every day of my life because I know I'm a daughter of a loving Heavenly Father. I love that I'm a member of a ward that feels like a family. I love serving in my callings. Most of all, I love knowing that there is a plan for all of us.

2. I'm thankful for music. I love that music makes you feel, think, and remember.

3. I'm thankful for hoop earrings. Really, if you are undecided about jewelry, a pair of hoops is always an excellent choice and they are pretty much the earring du jour for me.

Gratitude - Day 28

1. I'm thankful for days where I have nothing scheduled. Today I did a couple of loads of laundry and, well, that's pretty much it. Totally lazy day. Which brings me to my next item...

2. I'm really thankful for warm and comfy sweats.

3. I'm thankful for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. I just find him extremely yummy and appealing.**

** Okay, can you tell I'm getting to the end of this never-ending month and I'm running out of things to say??? I could also be brain dead because I was so lazy today. I'll try to do better tomorrow.

Gratitude - Day 27

1. I'm thankful for holiday traditions. For the last three or four years, I've woken up early and gone shopping with my friend Tricia. We have the best time finding deals, listening to Christmas music, laughing at people in their horrible Christmas sweaters, and finishing up our morning, exhausted with lunch at California Pizza Kitchen.

2. I'm thankful for a working heater in my car and that I can drive with the heat on full blast for as long as I want. I'd be even more thankful if my car had heated seats but I'll take what I can get.

3. I'm thankful I can read. Even though I love it, I don't read nearly enough these days. I start books and never finish them. I still haven't finished Breaking Dawn, in fact. Anyway, I think I might set a goal to read a certain number of books next year. Last night, I started reading a new book, The Cinderella Pact that my friend Shannon recommended. I'll post a review when I finish...if I finish. ;)

Gratitude - Day 26

1. I'm thankful for a great Thanksgiving day. Everything turned out perfectly, even the overflowing trifle. My mom has sort of retired from cooking Thanksgiving dinners, although she still does the turkey & stuffing. So she lets us do a lot of the work and I love it (well, cooking a big meal a few times a year is nice, anyway!) My darling niece McKenzie wanted to help a lot too, which was great (although, I think one reason behind wanting to help is all of the tasting and licking of spoons she was able to do...but I could be wrong...maybe. ;)

2. I'm thankful my brother found a nice woman to spend his time with (it feels funny calling her his girlfriend when they are both 50ish.) He had a rough divorce a few years ago and it's just nice seeing him happy.

3. I'm thankful for family. I'm grateful I was able to spend today with my mom, four of my siblings, and ten nieces and nephews. We aren't perfect. In fact, we are often kind of a mess of a family but we love each other and I also know they always, always, always have my back. That's a pretty great feeling.

Gratitude - Day 25

1. I'm thankful for the Friends Thanksgiving episodes. The One Where Ross Got High is a personal favorite followed closely by The One with the Rumor (aka the Brad Pitt episode.) Both still make me laugh. Here's a fun list and you can also watch the Brad episode here.

2. I'm thankful that I made two desserts for tomorrow because one of them is not looking promising. The pumpkin/gingerbread trifle that I found on Paula Deen's website is overflowing in my fridge. It made so much that I couldn't even get the last layer of whipped cream on top. Hopefully it'll squish down as it settles tonight in the fridge. I have a normal sized trifle dish so I'm not sure what went wrong...it just seems like too much gingerbread, possibly? I should have made Gabi's recipe.

3. I'm thankful to have four days off. I'm so in need of a break from work.

Gratitude - Day 24

1. I'm thankful for days where I feel efficient. Today I put in a full day of work, shopped at three different stores, had dinner with friends and then went to two other friends' homes to drop stuff off. Busy! And yes, I'm exhausted.

2. I'm thankful for pre-lit Christmas trees. I bought a new one at Sam's Club today so that I won't have to deal with my old "I don't want to light up every day" tree from last year (too tired to link - just read my last December posts if you forgot what I dealt with last Christmas.) Anyway, the new one looks perfect and was a great price too. I'm excited to put it up this weekend.

3. I'm thankful for a family sighting when I least expect it. Today I ran into Jaylene, Rylee & Carsen over at Sam's Club and it was such a fun treat and surprise to see them. It just made me happy the rest of the day.