Thankful Me

I was going to spend the evening thoughtfully composing this post, but had a last-minute change of plans. I'll be headed to CA tomorrow bright and early to spend some time with my daughter and her children, so this post is going to be quick (at least in theory). I'm thankful: 1. That we spotted the rattlesnake in our backyard. (Of course, it would have been better if he hadn't been there, but if he was going to show up, I'm glad we noticed him.) Photo: A rattlesnake curls up in the green grass 2. That John was able to successfully dispose of the snake.  3. For cute baby quail (which are a whole lot more enjoyable to see than a rattlesnake--and a whole lot harder to photograph!) 4. That at least one room in our new house is completely unpacked and decorated.  Photo: A bathroom with a Mickey Mouse theme. A Mickey Mouse poster is on the wall, Mickey Mouse towels hang on the rack, and Mickey Mouse shower curtain hooks hold a white ruffled shower curtain...

As Josie Two Shoes announced on the Ten Things of Thankful blog this week, she is going to be stepping down from hosting the blog hop. She has done a great job, and though I cannot fill her shoes, I did agree to do my best to keep our blog hop hoppin'.  I recognize the power of gratitude. I named my blog, Thankful Me, to brand myself as a thankful person. Then Lizzi started the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop, and soon had gathered a vibrant community of others who expressed gratitude--even during challenging times. The internet brought together a diverse group of people from all over the world who found common ground through the power of gratitude. The simple act of expressing what we were thankful for brought strength to us individually, and connected us as a community. I believe strongly in the benefit of this blog hop, and knew I had to volunteer when Josie Two Shoes announced she needed to step down.  This week, as I've thought about the importance of this blog hop...

Back in the old days, before some of you were born, people used film in their cameras; digital photography hadn't been invented yet. Sometimes that film was developed into slides rather than photos, and friends and family would gather together to watch a slideshow of their vacation.  I thought I'd take the slideshow approach to this week's Ten Things of Thankful post, but while I get the slides loaded into the projector, let me set the stage. Feel free to pop some popcorn and find a comfy spot on the sofa while I give the background.  On May 25, my oldest daughter carried a suitcase with her to her final exam of law school. As soon as she finished her test, she flew from Seattle to Salt Lake City. We met her at the airport, slept for a few hours in the house we are moving into, then returned to the airport and flew to Orlando. We spent the next week at Disney World, then hopped back on a plane bound for Seattle. The next day, John and I (along with some other family memb...

Today I feel like a young child, eager for Show and Tell to start, bursting with impatience for my turn to display my item and tell you all about it. I missed participating in the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop last week, and anticipate missing a few in the upcoming weeks, which means, if we were actually in an elementary school classroom, I would now be the child sitting on the edge of my seat, furiously waving my arm in the air and shouting, "Pick me! Pick me!" You see, even on weeks when I am absent, I'm still thankful. Even when I don't blog frequently, I still think about what I would share if I did sit down and write. I have posts percolating in my brain, and one of these days, I will once again be a more productive writer and reader of blogs. In the meantime, I'm thankful for my turn to reflect on recent weeks and share with you the beauty I've observed. 1. I'm thankful that decades ago, the previous owners of the house we are renting planted ...

With a rare exception here and there, every week I join with other bloggers to participate in an exercise in thankfulness. By reflecting on what we are grateful for, we don't ignore challenges we might be facing, but the difficulties of life are put in their proper perspective. We welcome new participants! Feel free to visit the Ten Things of Thankful blog  and join us.  Remember my last post, when I said that John and I are empty-nesters now? Well, that doesn't mean we are actually lonely! This past week, we had the good fortune to spend time with our youngest son, as well as my sister and some of her family. Join me for a re-cap, and look for the implied gratitude:  Youngest son came and stayed with us for most of last week. He drove from Washington state for the wedding of a friend, but he had time for us, too. We visited Moon's Rare Books  and actually got to hold a little book that belonged to George Washington! We went to BYU's Museum of Art to see the M...

I've always been fascinated by time and perspective. As a child, I was awed that adults could remember what year a particular event happened. As an adult, I've realized that it wasn't just matching a numerical year to an event; it was remembering all the peripheral situations (Which house was I living in at the time? Which children were born then? What music was playing?) and triangulating all the data to come up with the year.  This past week has provided one reminder after another that time is passing. In writing that, I realize that my sentence will be read through the experiences of my readers. For those with more years than me, it might be internalized with a imagined pat on my head and a "just wait until you reach my age." For those younger, it might just seem the ramblings of an old woman. No matter how you interpret it, though, the fact is that another week has gone, and I am thankful: not just for the week, but for the months and years, as well.  I...

I missed writing a Ten Things of Thankful post last week, not due to lack of gratitude, but rather because I was spending time with my grandchildren and didn't pack my computer. This post will span the last two weeks, and I'm going to skip the numbering system this time. I promise there are at least 10 things! :-) • I'm thankful that the snowy conditions only lasted for a small portion of the drive to California. The day before I left was a beautiful, sunny, warm day. The morning I headed out, however, was a different story. The flowers outside my front door wore a blanket of snow. The roads initially were clear, then started to accumulate snow. Fortunately, the storm was short-lived. Photo: One lone red tulip amid a bed of yellow tulips pokes its head out from under a blanket of snow. Photo: (Taken by my daughter from the passenger side of the car) Snow falls from a white sky to a snow-covered ground, as cars drive slowly on the freeway. • I'm thankful t...