Thankful

This year has been really a very blessed year. Nothing in particular, just everything has been wonderful. I've been really blessed and I'm very thankful. I've been trying to convey that to my children so that they grow up with an attitude of appreciation as well. It's sometimes hard when you're 3 and 5 though. The boys grabbed a flyer from the BX for holiday toys and they circled ALL the toys when I asked them to find ones they wanted to ask Santa for.

My birthday boy and his brother opening gifts on Thanksgiving

So here's the main things I'm thankful for this year: Drake, Link, my wonderful husband, my supportive and loving family and friends, a loving and forgiving God, my creative outlet in the form of my business, my wonderful customers, food, shelter, and comfort. I have them all in abundance so I'm very blessed indeed.

Our Thanksgiving feast: cranberries, mashed sweet potatoes, stuffed mushrooms, devilled eggs, mac 'n cheese, turkey, and dinner rolls.. Yum!

Hope your thanksgiving (and year) were just as blessed.

Top Ten Tuesday - Things I'm thankful for this week

10. New blog followers! I'm sooo excited that you're here!

9.  My family. I know, this is standard and every night I thank my lucky stars for them. But I've been very blessed and I try not to lose sight of that.

8. Finding a sandbox on a craigslist type website for Germany. Now the boys are allowed to dig!

7. Having two very brave children. They both had to get blood drawn for yearly tests (standard checks for lead, anemia, etc) and Link didn't even flinch and Drake just said ow a couple times. I'm one impressed and thankful mama. I think anything that hurts your kids tends to hurt the parents more.

6. Tons of sales at the grocery store. There were so many deals that we spent $150 on groceries and essentials around here (like diapers, wipes, etc) but we got soo much out of it. Sometimes we hit the grocery store and feel like we spent a ton of money and got very little. Not this week..yay!

5. Having time to myself to craft. I've done a couple crafty projects this week and I think they keep me sane.

4. Having the husband home on vacation. He's only working a few days this week and then he's off for awhile. Partly because he needs to go pick up my step-daughter and fly her over here...which leads me to number 3...

3. My step-daughter is going to be here in less than a week! I can't wait. I've missed her sooo much. And I know she's going to love Germany and Europe in general. We have a ton of fun things planned, like a vacation to Venice and Rome. Yeah, we're spoiled.

2. New playmates, for both the boys and myself. I'm so excited about some friends that we made and it's been a blast having playdates. I know the boys are always happiest when they're playing with other children and I'm always happy to have company as well. (I know this isn't a photo from our playdate, but I am reluctant to post someone else's child to the internet)

1. Warmer weather where I can let the boys play about in their blow-up kiddie pool. It's like an entirely new toy to them and they spent hours amusing themselves, and letting this mama take a break.

Anything you're particularly thankful for this week? Share them in the comments. I'd love to hear from you! Linking up to Oh Amanda

Finer Things Friday

Amy over at amysfinerthings.com moved her Finer Things Friday list to Sundays, which means I've been lax about posting since I don't typically blog on weekends. But I much to be thankful for, so I'm going to continue counting my blessings.

#41. Fluffy dandelions, not in my yard, but at the park where I can photograph them and blow them in the wind!

#42. Spring!
#43. Sweet chubby baby thighs.

#44. Soccer games on-base for my husband's team. It's really fun getting out and walking around and catching whatever glimpses I can of the game in-between baby wranglings.
#45. Feeling like I don't have a set plan for my career, and finally being okay with that.
#46. Thrift store finds, especially cheap choo-choos!

#47. Graphic design! I love creating things, and it's always so much fun to come up with new ideas and themes.
#48. Photography. I've lately delved a little deeper into photography, and -gasp- taken my camera off automatic. I've had a lot of fun finding out what my camera (and I!) can do.
#49. Wild Cherry Pepsi, on sale at the commissary for 60 cents for a two-liter. My guilty pleasure!
#50. A toddler who finally goes to his own bed at night without complaining about it.

What about you? Anything you're particularly thankful for or blessed in this week?

Finer Things Friday

Continuation from a previous post:

Things that I am thankful for this week:
11. Sixty degree weather full of sunshine, parks, and two happy boys
12. Finally having both boys over their illnesses...hopefully...maybe
13. Drake learning all his numbers, well all the way to 10, both recognizing them and saying their names
14. Spring! In particular my daffodils that are a happy spot of yellow in my landscape
15. Turkish rugs brought back by the hubby from his trip
16. Two genuinely sweet boys who sneak up and give you hugs for no good reason at all
17. Constantly being surprised at how intelligent and good at problem solving both of my boys are...even when it's something they're not supposed to be figuring out or getting into
18. Bagels with low-fat strawberry cream cheese
19. Friends, of all varieties
20. The smell of my sweet babies after their baths

What about you? Anything you're thankful for?