100 Things I am Grateful For

As the weekly gratitude project comes to a close and especially during the holidays, I’ve been thinking a lot about gratitude and how very very much I have to be grateful for in my life. So much of the basic stuff I take for granted like clothes, health, a home, a car, a loving husband, wonderful kids. These seem obvious and yet it’s the most obvious we often take for granted.

So it occurred to me to make a long list of things that I am grateful for. Things that make me happy. So many of these are obvious or simple or small. And yet they are miracles. They make me so grateful. And the even more amazing part is that I could probably easily come up with another 100. I hope that you take the time to make a long list of your own. It’s a really wonderful exercise.

So here we are:

1. Music
2. Having a warm home that’s just the right size for us
3. David’s kindness and generosity towards Nathaniel
4. The way Nathaniel’s neck smells
5. Jake’s hugs.
6. Nike+
7. Good fiction
8. Coffee – specifically Cafe Francais instant coffee
9. Scrapbooking – specifically telling our stories
10. TV
11. My family all of whom love me unequivocally
12. Paint – especially high quality paint with lots of pigment
13. Butterflies
14. Tulips
15. The laughter of my children
16. Packages
17. Working from home
18. Comfortable clothes
19. iPad, Kindle and Sony readers
20. My treadmill which allows me to work out every day
21. Phone call from a good friend
22. Quiet time
23. Journals – especially hand made ones
24. My new phone (especially for GPS!)
25. Punches – borders and butterflies and hearts
26. White cardstock
27. My camera and lenses
28. Email
29. Working with people I like and on a project I love
30. Skype
31. Getting to design for amazing companies like The Girls’ Paperie and Pink Paislee
32. My sister
33. Graham Crackers
34. Tim Holtz Scissors
35. Beautiful pieces of art by Kelly Rae Roberts, Donna Downey, Rebecca Sower and others that adorn my walls
36. Etsy
37. Online classes
38. Kind and genuine comments left on my blog
39. Bananas
40. Colorful fabric
41. Inspiration – tumblr, blogs, interest, twitter, Facebook, youtube and all other places where inspiration is overflowing
42. My kids’ hugging
43. Bubbles – blowing them, taking bubble baths
44. Streets lined with trees – especially in the spring and fall
45. Watching the sun set and rise
46. The sea and the ocean
47. Car trips
48. New York City
49. the Internet
50. Big Picture Classes – especially getting to teach there and all the students I have and how much I grow
51. Reading to David
52. Watching people paint and draw
53. Being around people who are comfortable in their skin
54. Yogurt
55. Legos
56. The splint I have to wear for my TMJ (cause it does make me feel better)
57. Full moons
58. Watching David write in his gratitude journal
59. Coming home from the hairdresser
60. Good movies
61. External hard drives (to back up!)
62. Warm coats and socks
63. My fitbit
64. The remote that releases the shutter on my camera
65. Doing crafts with David
66. Nathaniel saying Mama (and Daddy I love the way he says Daddy)
67. My sewing machine
68. A nice warm shower on a cold day
69. My blog
70. Photoshop
71. Chocolate
72. My MacBook Pro
73. Sneakers that fit my feet properly
74. TiVo
75. My bed, covers, and mattress
76. The video baby monitor
77. Sunshine
78. Drinking water
79. My husband and kids playing together or hugging
80. My curiosity and thirst for learning
81. Watching my kids’ sleep
82. Volunteering at David’s school
83. People who follow their dreams (especially unconventional ones)
84. People who are not afraid to show emotion (especially men)
85. moments of peace and contentedness
86. Instant Messaging
87. unexpected mail
88. being published in a magazine
89. losing weight
90. the Wii
91. my husband’s love, generosity, kindness and endless friendship
92. Penguins
93. Good health, that none of us have a chronic or serious illness
94. Twinkling lights
95. Instructional videos
96. Color – especially bright colors
97. seeing my layouts on TV
98. watching Nathaniel learn to speak and express his opinions
99. Snuggling up with my kids and husband
100. Love. I am so grateful for love.

If you do make a list, please share with me, I’d love to see it!