22 Days - and 40 Years - of Gratitude

November 1: I'm grateful for my father-in-law, who made the trek from Nebraska to spend the weekend with my boys, help out with projects around the house, and lend a hand on a crazy Thursday evening full of work and extracurricular activities.

November 2: I'm grateful for free champagne at Terminal C.

November 3: I'm grateful that, for five minutes, the stars aligned. Watching 23 little girls dance as one. Watching them nail every leap, every turn, every lift. Watching them seize their moment and leave everything they had on that stage. What a glorious five minutes to be a dance mom...to be her mom.

November 4: I'm grateful for safe travels home from Dallas after the Dance Revolution Convention.

November 5: I'm grateful for Hallie's Mini Company Director for many reasons, but tonight I'm grateful for her because she sent her dance mamas home from Mini Company rehearsal with bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cakes.

November 6: I'm grateful for the right and privilege to vote, and for what I see as small but positive changes after a contentious election.

November 7: I'm grateful for birthday month coupons, which allowed me to purchase two shirts for Hallie and two pairs of Christmas socks for a Secret Santa gift exchange for a grand total of...$0.02. Yep, two cents.

November 8: I'm grateful to have a particularly hard decision behind us, for the peace I - and I believe Tom as well - felt after we made this decision, and for Will and Hallie's efforts to see the positives on both sides our choice.

November 9: I'm grateful I have the recipe for chocolate chip cookies memorized.

November 10: I'm grateful Will's soccer club's management team is willing to stand up for its players and their parents, even when the result of doing so is less than ideal.

November 11: I'm grateful for crisp nighttime, chilly morning, and cool daytime temperatures that are perfect for sleeping with the windows open, walks through the neighborhood, and keeping the fireplace roaring all day long.

November 12: I'm grateful I walked away from Day One of our dance studio's Parent Participation Week without injury!

November 13: I'm grateful for Hallie's teachers, who every day fuel her love of learning and who at every turn show her love and grace.

November 14: I'm grateful to have witnessed a friend and her family officially add one more - the sweetest two-year-old boy, who they have fostered since he was just a few weeks old - to their brood. What a privilege and an honor it has been to watch them welcome Carson into their home, into their lives, and into their hearts.

Is this not the cutest picture EVER?!

November 15: I'm grateful for my crockpot, without which we might never eat during this busy season of life.

November 16: I'm grateful for a night spent together, the four of us, first at sweet Carson's adoption party and then wandering the newly-lit-with-Christmas-lights streets of downtown Bryan.

November 17: I'm grateful that for the first time in months (due to weather-related cancellations and travel) I got to drive Will to/from and watch his soccer game. I've missed talking and laughing and singing and just sitting in silence with him in the car - 90 minutes there and 90 minutes back - and while Tom does an amazing job of providing me with play-by-play texts when he is the parent sitting on the sideline, there is nothing like watching my boy live on the field.

November 18: I'm grateful for the nine day Thanksgiving break (weekend, five weekdays off, weekend) our school district blessed us with this year. This break won't look exactly like what Tom and I had originally planned, but as we wrap up its first weekend, I hope I can make the week ahead relaxing, meaningful, and memorable for all of us.

November 19: I'm grateful for a healthy body that allows me to lift weights, a safe trip to Nebraska for Tom, and that as of 7:30pm this evening, we have wrapped up all of our official Thanksgiving Break obligations and commitments.

November 20: I'm grateful for flow (a yoga/pilates/tai chi fitness class), which every week makes me feel physically and mentally stronger, and for the time to visit our other local(ish) library and stock up on books - new books make everyone happy!

November 21: I'm grateful for the opportunity and ability to easily shop my community's small businesses. (Disclaimer: I LOVE Amazon and Target, but I try to support my favorite local shops, makers, and creators whenever possible.)

November 22: I am grateful for the opportunity to spend special days like this one - which happens to be both Thanksgiving and my birthday - with my babies and for each and every one of the 40 years I have spent on this earth.

I'm grateful to have had this platform on which I could share for as long as I have. I hope I can find a way to extend its life.