I am truly blessed with a privileged life even if I bitch and complain about it a lot. Maybe if I counted my blessings more often I wouldn't bitch and complain so much? Nah, I doubt it...sometimes you just need to vent, even if you know in the back of your mind that it could be worse. I mean, can't it always be worse?
Anyways, I digress...
Onto the list, in no particular order. And yes, we have to get the obligatory things out of the way like....
1. FAMILY. I am very blessed with a supportive, close, wonderful family. I am also very lucky to have most of my family live near by (I miss you. Ames!)
2. My Husband. Yes, my husband is part of my family but he deserves his own spot on my list. If I had my way he could take up all 50 spots. He works his butt off to provide for us and take care of us. It's stressful enough with a wife and baby but add the special needs part and medical bills and we're in over our heads. He keeps us afloat though.
3. Having the choice to stay home. Yes, we're barely getting by...but again, my husband is all wonderful and wouldn't have it any other way than me staying home to take care of our daughter. I am very thankful that I have a husband that supports my decision so fully.
4. The Internet. Seriously, how did we live without it? How else would I find out a cure-all for baby hiccups, the best meatloaf recipe (Bobby Flay's, btw), how to do anything and what other movie that actor was in. Plus, the biggest and best part of it? Keeping in touch with everyone you've ever known.
5. Which brings me to Numero Cinco. Internet Friends. Kind of a nerdy way to say that...but honestly, I don't know what I would do without some of the friends I have met through the internet. Ones that I have met because of Lillian's diagnosis, others just through my December '09 board. They are so special to me and it's so comforting to know we're going through some of the same things (sleep loss or medicines or MRI's or milestones!) And I am so blessed to have found them all.
6. Modern Medicine. Every now and then it hits us (and yes, this is weird...) that Lily wouldn't have survived the first four months of her life if we lived in a different country or if she was born back in the 1900's. Modern medicine keeps her alive every single day. Ugh, I just got the chills thinking about that, so let's move on.
7. Hot bubble baths and good books. I take a hot bubble bath with a good book every other night. Yes, I do. I need that me time. I need to soak, look at my pretty purple toes peeking out of the bubbles and I need that escape into a fantasy world also known as a book. I would go crazy without it!
8. Food. Really good food. Dad's spaghetti and homemade meatballs, Mom's chicken and dumplings, Bobby Flay's meatloaf made my way, etc. etc. I could go on all day. I love food. I am so thankful that I am able to put the bulk of my money towards eating mostly healthy, but always delicious food!
9. Girls nights IN. Scenario: You finally get all the girls together for the first time in months. You all decide on the same day, time and restaurant and when you get there you realize that you can't hear a damn thing the other one is saying from across the table. Sound familiar? Not to me anymore! We used to do girls nights out at a bar which basically meant getting dressed up and going out to get smashed and then of course, doing some awful dancing. Fun, yes. But face it, we're older and we're wiser. I realize now that these girlfriends I have now? They're it. They are with me for the long haul and I care about what they have to say and I want them to hear what I have to say. There is nothing better than a full glass of wine, sitting on the floor in comfortable clothes, and talking about everything under the sun with your girlfriends.
10. A night out. Contradictory? Nah. Every now and again a girl needs to get dolled up, put on the old high heels and get OUT. Every now and then a girl needs to order a girly martini, dance badly and laugh too loud. These nights are definitely fewer and farther between but that just makes them that much better.
11. Clean anything. I was going to post clean sheets. Then I thought bigger: clean clothes. Ah, but a clean bathroom is awesome too and so is a clean floor. So, anything clean makes me happy and so I should say I am thankful that I have clean, running water to make it so. (We're not talking about obsessive clean, by the way, just clean.)
12. When a recipe turns out exactly as it should. A lot of my recipes are not written down. If they are, I don't know where to find them. If I do, it's probably not the same recipe that I followed last time I made it. I change things. I add a bit more of this, take out something nasty and add in something tasty. And then there's times when I just don't follow a recipe but every time I make it, no matter how I make it, it comes out great. Example: Homemade Caesar salad dressing. I never make it the same way twice. The recipe is not written down. I'm feeling tangy? Add extra vinegar. Need some salty cheese? Add more parmesan. And most every time it comes out fabulous! I love it! (Same of homemade mac n' cheese!)
13. New Music. Music in general is a big thing to be thankful for so let's break it down. First off, let's start with new music. I am one of those people that hears a song, downloads it (on itunes, not illegally!) and then listens to it all day, and the next day, and the next. I have to get it out of my system if I really like it. Then it goes on my top rated and we're good to go.
14. Baby Music. This is also into two parts. One being any music that has to do with mom and babies. Lord, "Baby mine" anybody? Breaks my heart and mends it all in one song. And the second part has to do with music for baby. Any song that babies hear and start wiggling and giggling, clapping and rocking, bouncing and swaying. I love it!
15. Nap time. Blessed nap time. How do you think I am writing this list!? Nap time is a time for mommy to put her feet up, drink a cup of coffee/tea/coke/etc and relax. Or to catch up on cleaning or to catch up on sleep. This is a sacred time. A time to be thankful that babies need naps!
16. Smell memories. Weird, huh? But you know when you put your face in a clean set of towels fresh out of the dryer (If you don't, do it next time) and it just brings back these wonderful memories of being wrapped in a warm towel by your mom? That's a smell memory.
17. Thanksgiving. Even if this wasn't a thankful-thanksgiving day list, this holiday would be on there. I LOVE THANKSGIVING. I love the food, the wine, the football, the family. I love the chaos of having everyone in the kitchen preparing a meal. I love that it's in the fall and it's crisp out and the leaves are orange and red. I love it all. It's a Huffman Holiday.
18. Books that can be reread. I have a library. It started with a couple of books and over the years it's moved to 4 book cases. I could go to almost any book in that library and even though I've read the book, and probably have read it 3+ times, I could read it again - and do, often. I love books that I can go back to and revisit. Books that have great characters that feel like friends and family. Books that have romance and adventure and even when you've read it, you're flipping through the pages so fast just to see what will happen again.
19. All the different cultures I have been exposed to. Living in Japan and being able to visit parts of the world some people don't even know about is a blessing. My dads wife is from the Philippines and we are constantly, wonderfully surprised by the culture and foods she introduces us to daily.
20. Being pregnant. Period. No explanation needed right? Well, maybe - there is nothing more wonderful, more magical, more powerful than creating life and being a mother.
21. Being a mother! It is the hardest, most unacknowledged, sometimes thankless job in the world. Whether you stay at home, work part time, full time, whatever - being a mother is a job. But every laugh, every smile, every sigh of contentment is our payment. You cannot explain to someone that is not a mother how it feels. How exciting, thrilling, scary, painful and well, unexplainable it is to be a mother. It is wonderful.
22. Chapstick. Specifically Vanilla-Mint chapstick. I buy it in bulk when I find it!
23. Beating Dennis. In Anything, but especially Mario Kart.
24. Coffee. I have just stepped into the wonderful world of coffee. I would drink a cup every now and again, especially in the winter time but now it's an every morning thing. There is something about the ritual of preparing a cup of coffee the night before. It's like waking up to a new present every morning. And then it's just nice to wrap cold hands around a warm cup and sipping wakefulness at 6am (It makes 6am tolerable.)
25. The pride of watching your child. Every milestone. Every smile. Every laugh. Every step. Every first. There is nothing better than watching your child figure things out. Every little first that she does, every little milestone that she reaches is just phenomenal and the pride that I feel when I look at her and all that she has beaten, is still beating and the road ahead that I know she can handle, is just overwhelming. Wait, is that pride or is that love? I think it's a healthy dose of both.
Well. That's 25! Maybe I should add one thing, big or small, in each post. That's something to think of. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Even if you don't make a list - think about what it is that makes your life happy. I'm sure you'll be able to come up with at least 25 :)
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