1000 Thanks

Ok, so here's going to be my list of 1000 things I am thankful for this year. (Please feel free to give me some guidance here - I don't know that I can list 1000 things, although I DO have a lot to be thankful for in my life.)

1. Another day to be a wife, mother, friend, sister, daughter, boss, and all those other words.
2. Ben
3. Jackson
4. Parker
5. Our new house
6. Still having a job when so many don't
7. Healthy children
8. The new laptop Ben got for me yesterday - he must be sucking up for something, right? :)
9. Being so close to my family - both physically and emotionally
10. All my friends, even though I don't see them very often.
11. My online mommy friends
12. My fancy camera to capture all the memories we make.
13. Mr. Clean magic erasers
14. Jackson's preschool - he has learned so much there - both academically and socially.
15. Having a DVR - I thought I didn't need it, I thought wrong!
16. Coffee in the morning
17. Finding old friends on Facebook
18. Liking my job most of the time
19. Warm days in the fall
20. Medical insurance coverage that pays for every need we've had so far.
21. Living close enough to the city to still enjoy the fun stuff (zoo, ball games, museums) but to have the suburbs too
22. Kings Island
23. Growing enough to be able to ride roller coasters this past summer
24. Motrin for the kiddos fevers
25. Portable DVD players, even though I said they were a silly idea
26. Nintendo DS
27. The Wii
28. Cardboard boxes (did you see my Christmas tree post?)
29. The Microcenter
30. Hubby's computer games - they make him happy
31. Chutes and Ladders - Jackson's new fave
32. Elmo - Parker's trusted sidekick
33. An ice maker in the fridge - I eat a lot of ice
34. Left over Halloween candy
35. Target being 5 minutes from my house
36. eBay
37. Hand rolled pretzels from my work
38. The sweet lady at Subway the knows Jackson just wants pepperoni and cheese - no bread - and doesn't make a fuss about it.
39. The servers at Pizza Tower who know our order by heart
40. Moe's - they even have Tofu!!
41. Top of the line car seats for keeping my boys safe
42. The PedEgg
43. Purell hand sanitizer
44. NetFlix
45. Smart phones
46. My BFF, even though we NEED coffee time!
47. Working with people who will make fun of our silly situations with me
48. Always having a place to call home
49. In laws I actually like!
50. Singulair to keep Jackson's asthma under control
51. Xopenex for when it doesn't work so much!
52. Alimentum formula - both boys had to use it - it's hypoallergenic
53. Insurance that covers said pricey formula - it's $30 for a 3 day supply... my insurance covers it thru my prescriptions - so I pay $45 for 90 days
54. Playhouse Disney
55. Nickelodeon
56. House reruns on USA
57. Law and Order SVU
58. Our armed forces
59. The families of the troops who have to sacrifice so much for our safety
60. A president I agree with
61. Popcorn
62. Jackson' knock knock jokes
63. McDonald's playland
64. The new McDonald's they built by us that has 2 drive thru lines
65. Starbucks Mocha Frappaccino lights with whipped cream on very early staff meeting days!
66. Vinegar - I clean with it, it goes in my laundry, it works wonders!
67. iCarly
68. Sausage patties for Jackson's breakfast
69. Mamwich - the new fave dinner at our house
70. Getting paid mileage to go in for said early staff meetings
71. Popsicles
72. Christmas lights
73. Winter decorations - I have a million snow men
74. Parker's jumperoo
75. GeoTrax train sets
76. Video cameras to capture memories
77. Making craft projects with the kiddies
78. New gym shoes
79. A good bargain on holiday picture cards - hopefully the kids will cooperate for a pic soon!
80. Sparklers
81. The vacuum cleaner that sucks dirt from every thing!
82. Candy canes
83. Sunglasses on a sunny day
84. Gloves for my hands when I have to pump gas in the late night.
85. Jammy pants
86. Cuddling on the couch for Family Movie Night
87. The rocking chair
88. Organic, locally grown apples - yum
89. Bananas
90. Grapes
91. Apple Jacks cereal
92. Ziploc baggies
93. Gladware or ziploc reusable containers
94. The 1100+ people who have purchased Twilight New Moon tix in advance - now I know we'll be slammed this weekend - yay!
95. County mandated recycling
96. The big kid knowing that recycling makes the earth happy, and what we do recycle and why
97. Time to scrapbook (I get very little these days)
98. Opportunities for our children to try many new things and decide what they'd like to do
99. A school system that puts the kids first
100.A Wal-Mart being right across the street from my work - I can grocery shop on my way home, at 2 AM.
101. My favorite jeans
102. Successful parent teacher conferences with positive comments!
103. Jackson's emerging counting skills
104. Jackson's counting skills (he's just like his Momma.)
105. Ben's wheeling and dealing skills (or addiction?)
106. Having a husband who can fix my computer every time I break it!
107. Having a husband who talks me off the ledge when I call freaking out
108. Having co-workers I can freak out with and then talk each other of our respective ledges
109. Singing Christmas decorations
110. Christmas lights
111. Hot cocoa, even if the big kid likes his in a sippy cup still!
112. Seeing the leaves change color
113. The way my hardwood floors sparkle when they are freshly waxed
114. Caller ID
115. Call waiting
116. TV Guide info on my tv (channel guide)
117. Info button on my TV - I'd never know what things were about otherwise!
118. Our special ornaments on the tree
119. Bendaroos
120. Aveeno lotion
121. Target brand diapers


Ok, so I suck, big time. The important thing to note - I have an amazing life that I am honored to live. I have a wonderful husband, awesome children, and the most fabulous friends I could wish for. I have a nice house that keeps us warm, a job that I can go to every day and not dread, and most of our needs get met everyday. Do I wish there were more hours in my day? Of course I do. But, I'm thankful to get to spend the hours I DO have the exact way I spend them... being happy in my crazy life!! (PS - thanks for being a part of it!)
(Yep, I know I'm going to 1000. I got bored of typing.)

It's almost Christmas!!

Now, I'm not forgetting Thanksgiving, please see my posts about being thankful!

Since Parker's birthday is the day after Christmas, it is my plan to have all the Christmas stuff packed up at close of business on December 25. I don't want all the clutter when I'm trying to fit 40 people in here for a party, nor do I want Christmas trees in all his birthday pictures!

So, in true "me" fashion, the tree is up! And, we discovered the best thing ever for the boys - cardboard boxes. They've been playing in them for a week!

Jackson also discovered bubble wrap is really cool too - thanks Evan and Aubrey!

And, the boys each have tiny trees in their rooms (hello, Target Dollar spot!), but I'll have to post pictures of them later - never interrupt nap time!

Preschoolers know how to Par--tay!

Jackson's preschool Halloween party this year was so laid back and relaxed - I got there at 9:30 when the kids were getting ready to go upstairs to trick or treat to the school administrators.

(That's Jackson in the black Ninja outfit, and my niece Darby as Sharpay. They walked in a neat, orderly line up the stairs, all calm and quiet!)

Of course, there was snack time. They had chips, juice boxes, rice krispie treats, so exciting!

They made a craft - they painted their hand prints to be bat wings then glued on a bat body and googley eyes, and drew on mouths and noses.



Then, the teachers were so nice - they let the kids wrap them up like mummies!

(That's Mrs. Kane, the teacher's aide - she's so sweet!)

(Jackson is getting ready to wrap up Mrs. Crawford!)

Then, the kids sang their versions of some songs they've learned in class...

And, because it's cute, this is outside Jackson's classroom:

Trick or Treat

I know it's shocking that I am posting Halloween stuff before Christmas, huh?

Halloween was fun, as always. It's one of my favorite holidays ever. This year, Jackson was supposed to be the Incredible Hulk, but changed his mind, then changed it again, then again. In the end, he went with being a ninja. Parker is too young to vocalize his opinions, so I got to choose his costume, he was Dumbo, and he was adorable!!

(Sorry the picture is blurry, you know Jackson, always moving.)

(Parker was looking for the treats, but we hadn't started yet!)

Pray for Baby Stellan

For those of you who spend less time on the internet a day than I do, you may not be familiar with Baby Stellan. Basically, he's a baby about 2 months older than Parker. The majority of his life has been spent in the hospital with something called SVT - supraventricular tachacardia. His mom has kept a blog (and she's far better at keep it updated than I am about this one!) about the entire ordeal - www.mckmama.com

I don't know if it's because he's close to Parker's age or if it's because my oldest nephew PJ also has SVT, but something about this little boy's story just tugs at my heart.

Yesterday, Baby Stellan underwent a cardiac ablation surgery - basically a last ditch effort to save his little life. The doctors told Stellan's mom it had about a 20% chance of working...

While Baby Stellan was in surgery and his mom was wondering all kinds of what-ifs, I was wrangling a 4 1/2 year old who no longer sees the need for a nap. Baby Parker is teething and he has a terrible cold and a fever. I thought I was on the verge of going nuts, then I read MCKmamas blog and realized just how lucky I was.

And, for those of you who can't wait for the update, Baby Stellan's surgery was, according to his surgeons, "A home run." It was a success! There have been some complications after the surgery, but they appear to be manageable in comparison.

I am thankful

Today, on my Facebook page, a friend of mine had this as her status: "Let's see how many people can do this. Every day this month until Thanksgiving, think of one thing that you are thankful for and post it as your status. "Today I am thankful for.". The longer you do it, the harder it gets! Now, if you think you can do it, then repost this message as your status to invite others to take... the challenge, then post what YOU are thankful for today!"

Another friend of mine likes to circulate a list and we all try to compile 1000 things we are thankful for. (We get it, or very close every year.)

So, every day from now until Thanksgiving, I will be posting things I'm thankful for. What are you thankful for?