I thought I would track 30 days of what I am thankful for the month of November and share on the last day. They are not in any particular order.
I am thankful for...
1. MY FAMILY: I love being a wife and a mom more than anything. I love Wade and Brax with all of my heart. I love that we are a family, and no one else really knows what life is like between us. Being a family is what makes everything else in life bearable. It's so fun to watch Brax grow up, and I can't wait for what is in store for our family in the future.
2. GOD: I am not sure where I would be without having faith in God. I know there is a certain path for me and always being able to pray to God has helped me get through tough times. He has provided so much in my life, and I will be eternally grateful.
3. MY PARENTS: They have loved me unconditionally and always supported me. They instilled the importance of religion, education, and work ethic in me. They are examples of how to be a good parent and a good person. They would do anything for me. They are wonderful grandparents. I would not be who I am today if I didn't have my parents. I am so glad they are such an important part of my life.
4. MY FRIENDS: I don't have very many really close friends, but I cherish the few close friends I do have. I don't see my friends as often now with a baby especially during the school year, but it is so nice to know other people care about you even if I stay mainly in contact by text. I cherish the times I do get to see them.
5. MY EDUCATION: I am so glad my parents emphasized the value of education. Earning my degrees at such a young age and sticking with my teaching career has provided a good solid job that I enjoy. Education can change situations in many positive ways, and I got to experience that firsthand when my dad went back to school when I was in junior high.
6. MY SIBLINGS: Even though we all live so far apart, my siblings are the only people that know what it was like to grow up in our family. We will always have a connection that no one else can share. I always look forward to seeing them. They love Brax, and I am so glad he has cousins for fun play time.
7. THE MEDICAL WORLD: After going through infertility and Brax's heart surgery, I am so so thankful for medical advances. More importantly, I am so very grateful to the people that dedicate their life and time toward making these advances. Without current medicine, we would not have had the opportunity to have Brax nor would we have had the opportunity to fix Brax's heart so he could grow and be a healthy child.
8. SPORTS: Playing sports has really affected the person I am today. Growing up I was involved in sports at a very young age. I was able to develop my athletic ability and felt very successful at something besides academics. It gave me the opportunity to make friends and form a bond on a team. Also, playing sports helped me understand sports so I know what is going on when I watch them. Wade is very interested in sports, and it gave us a common bond when first started dating. It really helped that we are both Husker fans. Today, I still enjoy shooting around and playing horse, and more than anything, I enjoy golfing. Wade taught me how to golf, and I know all the time I spent playing sports made it easier for me to learn. It is one of our favorite things to do together. I can't wait to teach our children how to play sports.
9. OUR HOME: I always said I was not going to buy a house until I was married. My parents especially my mom made our home such a warm and comfortable place. I still love being able to go home to the same place I grew up as a child and share that place with Brax. I was so proud and happy when Wade and I bought a home together a few months before we were married. I love decorating and organizing our home and still have so many ideas for it. It is so nice to have neighbors near us with young children that we have become friends with. Even though I am sure we will outgrow our home eventually and move to a new one, I really enjoy making this a safe and loving place for Brax that he enjoys. This home has such special memories. It is where Wade proposed and where we our raising our child who fills this home with more joy and laughter and sleepless nights than I could ever have imagined.
10. MY IN-LAWS: I am very fortunate to have married into such a wonderful and caring family. Everyone has welcomed me with open arms and were very excited to make me a part of the family. They are always excited to visit us and to have us come visit. They love Brax more than anything!
11. U.S.A.: I am extremely grateful I live in a country where we have so many freedoms especially as a woman. Thank you to all the service men and women who make this a possibility for all of us! They make such a sacrifice along with their family members.
12. TARGET: We live so close to a Target, and it happens to be where we go almost every Friday night after dinner. It is so nice to be able to stop at one place to do grocery shopping, baby shopping, me shopping, and everything else. I have a feeling "Target" will be in the top ten of Brax's first words.
13. BASIC NEEDS: Every time I pray, I always pray for the people who are without the basic needs of water, food, shelter, and love. I can't imagine growing up or even being an adult who has to really worry about these basic needs. I am thankful that I didn't have to grow up worrying about basic needs and that Wade and I are able to provide for Brax. Most importantly, I am so happy that Brax feels safe and is loved by so many people in his life.
14. TECHNOLOGY: It is so nice to have such great amenities thanks to technology. I am able to update our family through this blog. It is nice to be able to be able to take pictures of every day things in life and have them available right away. Emailing and texting is an easy and fast way to stay in touch with family and friends. We found our nanny through Facebook. I am anxious to start skyping with Brax and the grandparents soon, too.
15. CHOCOLATE: I enjoy anything chocolate flavored as my favorite dessert. I love chocolate candy, brownies, chocolate cake, chocolate cookies, etc. The list could go on and on. I really try to limit the amount of sweets I eat so it is such a treat when the holidays come around, and there are so many sweet things to choose from.
16. AIRPLANES: I love to travel, and I am so glad it is easy to go places in a short amount of time. It is especially nice to be able to fly back to Nebraska instead of driving now that we have a child. I have airport security down to a science with Brax.
17. BEACHES: My favorite place to visit is a beach. I love laying by the water with a fruity drink and listening to the waves. I'm not sure how I ended up living by the mountains compared to a beach. I am excited that Wade and I are going on a beach vacation for spring break and that we get to go on another with my family in June.
18. NEIGHBORS: Before we had Brax, we generally would just spend time doing things by ourselves or with our friends. We didn't take much time to develop relationships with our neighbors. I am so glad we have become closer to our neighbors over the past year. It is nice and very convenient to do things with our neighbors especially when you have a child. Also, most of our neighbors have young children that will grow up with Brax.
19. MARGARITAS: It is my absolute favorite drink- a frozen margarita. It is very hard to find a frozen margarita that is well done. My friend, Kirsten, and I use to go to happy hour almost every Friday in Kansas City at a place called Rudy's. We would have two baskets of chips with queso. I would order a chicken taco salad, and she would order a chicken burrito. Of course, we would have frozen margaritas. We always had such a good time.
20. RUNNING: After college, I needed to find a challenging exercise for me. Team sports weren't readily available anymore. I tried Jazzercise, but it was a little too light for me so I decided to start running. I never had run long distances. I started by running a 5K. Then, I decided to run a half-marathon. This was a big decision for me. After my friend, Kirsten, started running, we ran a half-marathon together. Then, we decided to run the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco. It is still one of my greatest accomplishments. Again, this was all pre-children. I still enjoy running even though I don't get to run as often, or I am now running with a jogging stroller. One day, I hope to run another marathon. In the meantime, I will try to do a few half-marathons a year. Running is challenging, but I enjoy it, and it gives me time to just relax, think, and clear my head. Also, it's nice the only expense for running is shoes.
21. OUR NANNY: It is such a good feeling to go to work and know that Brax is happy and safe all day. Our nanny takes good care of him, and he gets one on one attention. Every penny we spend on her is so worth it.
22. MUSIC: I love listening to music and singing. If I could do anything, I wish I was able to sing really well. It gives me such a good feeling. I mainly only sing in the car. Sometimes, I will put on music while I give Brax dinner. He thinks it is pretty funny to watch me sing and dance.
23. EXTENDED FAMILY: I have such a wonderful extended family. It's so nice to have aunts, uncles, and cousins who really care about us and Brax. Even though we don't see them very often, it is always such a good time when we do. It's nice getting updates from my mom about everyone, too.
24. SUMMER DRESSES: I love summer, and I love wearing summer dresses and sandals. I have way more summer dresses than I will probably ever need, but I love buying and wearing them so much! Hopefully, one day, I will live somewhere that I can wear a summer dress every day.
25. NEBRASKA FOOTBALL: I will always have fond memories of my dad watching and listening to Nebraska football along with discussing the game after church every Sunday. It is nice to have a game to look forward to watching every week. It has been especially nice being married to someone who cares as much about Nebraska football as everyone else in my life. We are brainwashing Brax at an early age. Go Big Red!
26. SLEEP: I really never knew what true exhaustion was like until I had Brax. I had never been so tired in my entire life. Now, that he sleeps 12 hours at night, I am getting 7-8 hours of straight sleep. I feel like a new person! I still miss the days of being able to sleep in and take naps when I want. I figure those will come back during retirement.
27. MY JOB: I would rather not have to work, but I am glad that I enjoy my job and all the people at my job. I really enjoy being around kids all day. After experiencing unemployment with Wade, I am so thankful that we both have jobs now. Work is a good thing.
28. HEALTH: Besides infertility, I am thankful I have not had any major medical issues. It is sad to see people that have to endure such hard health issues like cancer especially children. I am thankful that Brax is now a healthy baby.
29. BRAX'S SMILE AND LAUGHTER: This is the best sound in the world to me, and it always warms my heart that Brax is so happy, and I can make him feel this way.
30. HOLIDAYS: The best part of holidays is having time off of work and being able to travel and see family. They are the people that will always be there for us and love us unconditionally, and it is always nice to spend time together.
I finished the list! That took a lot of work and thought. Happy almost December!
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