Thankful Thoughts 30

:November 30:

I am thankful for this awesome thanksgiving challenge. I am glad I participated, and got back into the habit of blogging. Hopefully that means I will be blogging more often. :) Thank you for joining me on this fun adventure of gratitude. I can't believe the month is over, but I can't wait to see what December brings!

Thankful Thoughts 29

:November 29:

I am thankful for chocolate. I like chocolate. A lot. I love that my family makes chocolates at Christmas time. I am glad we have added chocolate covered cinnamon bears to our list. Yum!

Thankful Thoughts 28

:November 28:

I am thankful for my oven. It is a marvelous thing. (and it's full sized!!) A few weeks ago, the heating element on our oven broke and had to be replaced. The few days that we were oven-less were quite difficult. Because I LOVE to cook. I love to use my oven. I loved making bread today, although I don't think putting the crock pot lid in the oven was my smartest move... I now have a very melted handle... :) But I sure do love my Full Sized oven. :)

Thankful Thoughts 27

:November 27:

I am thankful for my Savior. I have relied on Him a lot in the past few months, and I have felt His love. I am grateful for the knowledge I have of the atonement. I know that my sins can be forgiven because of my Savior. I also know that He felt all the pain I ever have or ever will feel. He knows. He always knows.

Thankful Thoughts 26

:November 26:

I am thankful for the lights at Temple Square. And good friends to enjoy them with. What a fabulous night with Jeff, Hillaree, and Briley. Thanks for spending the evening with us and helping us get in the Holiday spirit!!

Also, I am thankful for our cars. While I'm not exactly looking forward to the drive home tomorrow, I sure am glad that the nearly 400 miles will take under 6 hours. Cars are great things.

Thankful Thoughts 25

:November 25:

I am thankful for leftovers. Sometimes that yummy feast tastes much better when you don't work all day to prepare it. :)

Thankful Thoughts 24

:November 24:

I am thankful for Thanksgiving. There are so many things in life to be grateful for, and I am glad we have a day dedicated to remembering and celebrating them. How awesome is it that we have a day all about being grateful. Sometimes it can be easy to forget all that we should give thanks for, and I'm always glad of the reminder. I hope we can all take a little time every day to share our thankfulness.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Thankful Thoughts 23

:November 23:

I am thankful that my mom taught me to cook. I've been helping my mom in the kitchen ever since I can remember, and I've learned some great lessons along the way. I was blessed with a mom who is a fabulous cook. I aspire to be like her, and I like to think that every meal I get a little closer. :) I love cooking, and I am very grateful that I have the ability to make yummy food for my family.

Thankful Thoughts 22

:November 22:

I am thankful for the I-80 rest stop in Wyoming at exit 144. I had to use the restroom, and I was convinced I would have to wait the 40 miles to get to Rock Springs. To be honest, I even said a little prayer informing Heavenly Father that I didn't remember if there were any other stops before then, so he was welcome to just throw in a rest stop anywhere for me. :) Lo and behold, one mile later we stumbled on exit 144. It was grand. I very much appreciated this break on our trek from Wyoming to Utah. And now I'm thankful to be home. Yay!

Thankful Thoughts 21

:November 21:

I am thankful for the cooperation of the weather. I-80 has already closed several times due to snow and wind this year, and I am glad that it looks like the weather will let us drive home to Salt Lake tomorrow without incident. Huzzah!!

Thankful Thoughts 20

:November 20:

I am thankful for this next week. It is a 2 day work week. Hooray!! There has been some crazy stuff going on at work this past week, and I've been using lots of my prep time to help out. So this past week feels like it has gone on forever. And ever. I am very grateful that this week I only have 2 days, and then a nice, relaxing break in Utah. Yay!!

Thankful Thoughts 19

:November 19:

I am thankful for our Halloween pumpkin. We never got around to carving our pumpkin this year. So when we decided to pull out the Christmas decorations today, I decided the pumpkin had to go. Steve chopped it up and we made a bunch of pumpkin puree. Yum! I've made bread and muffins today, plus I had tons left over to freeze. I sure do love pumpkin.

Thankful Thoughts 18

:November 18:

I am thankful for prayer. I have had a lot of prayers on my behalf the past few months, and I felt their power. I am grateful for the opportunity to commune with a loving Heavenly Father. He is there. He listens. And he blesses.

Thankful Thoughts 17

:November 17:

I am thankful for sunlight. Steve and I went on a run after work today. We got home around 5:30, and it looked like it was the dead of night. I'm not used to being on the far East end of the time zone. It starts getting dark at 4:30. And it's weird. So I am incredibly thankful for sunlight during the rest of the day!!

Thankful Thoughts 16

:November 16:

I am thankful for YOU! Yep. If you are reading my blog, then I am super thankful for you. It means a lot to me that you would pop over here from your busy life to check in on me. I think you are absolutely splendid!! Go ahead. Give yourself a high five. Because you're awesome.

By the way- since when is November more than halfway over!! Craziness!

Thankful Thoughts 15

:November 15:

I am thankful for yummy food. I have had to work late the past few days, and we had our ward Thanksgiving dinner tonight. It was very nice not to have to worry much about dinner prep/clean up. I just had to make a small side dish. And then enjoy a marvelous feast. I was very thankful for that tonight.

Thankful Thoughts 14

:November 14:

I am thankful for my coat. Yes. My big poofy winter coat. It has been very cold the past few weeks, and I have loved snuggling up in my coat at recess. Plus today was Super duper windy, so I was grateful to have my coat on my body. Steve and I went to choir tonight, and on the way back to the car (a whole 100 feet...) we commented on how hard it would be for the pioneers to cross Wyoming. I never really thought about it until now, since I live here and all. But weather here can be brutal! Snow, freezing temperatures, and insane wind! The highways close on a regular basis due to the combination of snow and wind. We drove through a white out just the other night getting home from Wal Mart. I can't imagine walking through that. For days on end. With no coat. Yes. Today I am thankful for my coat.

Thankful Thoughts 13

:November 13:

I am thankful for my primary class. I teach the Valiant 8 class. (8-9 year olds) They are absolutely fabulous. I enjoy seeing them each Sunday and spending 2 hours of the block with them. I am also thankful that Steve's calling doesn't require Sunday time, so he is able to come to class with me. It has been great having him there as well. I love primary!

Thankful Thoughts 12

:November 12:

I am thankful for running.

I love to run. I haven't been cleared to run for a while, but I got the okay last week and I went out for a beautiful run this morning. It was cold, windy, and perfect. Running is very therapeutic for me. I love pushing my body as far as I possibly can, and then a little more. I also love how accomplished I feel after a nice run. Yep. I sure do love running.

Thankful Thoughts 11

:November 11:

I am thankful for the temple.

(Denver, Colorado Temple)

I love the covenants from the temple. I love eternal families. I love knowing that my family is eternal. Not just this life, but forever to come. I love the peace that comes from those thoughts.

Thankful Thoughts 10

:November 10:

I am thankful for my cell phone. And Skype. And Facebook. And blogs. And email. And old fashioned letters. I love being able to keep in touch with the people I care about, even when we're far away.

Thankful Thoughts 9

:November 9:

I am thankful for my whistle.

Yep. Recess sure has been more enjoyable since I started bringing this little guy along.

Thankful Thoughts 8

:November 8:

I am thankful for my job. Although it was not at all what I expected to find when I sought out a teaching position in Laramie, I am learning a lot from my job this year. And really, who wouldn't love to speak Spanish with the kiddos, sing fun songs and learn basic music with the kiddos, do awesome art projects like such with the kiddos,

and have awesome PE experiences with the kiddos! (Gymnastics for the past 5 weeks, Ice Skating 5 weeks after Thanksgiving, Rock Climbing to follow...)

We love to play in the pit at the end of gymnastics. :)

Thankful Thoughts 7

:November 7:

I am thankful for music. I love all kinds of music. I love playing my violin. I love teaching my new little violin student. I love teaching all kinds of music at school. I love singing with the civic chorus. I love listening to music while I clean the house. My favorites are Mindy Gledhill, Meaghan Smith, and Priscilla Ahn. Yep. Music makes me happy. Music helps me when I feel sad. Music heals me. I love music.

Thankful Thoughts 6

:November 6:

Today's a bonus. 2 thoughts. :)

I am thankful for awesome friends. I have many of them. All over the country. And I think they are spectacular. I love that we can meet up with friends that we haven't seen in years, and still have a blast. Thanks for letting us know you were in town Greg and Caitlin! We had such fun getting hot chocolate and pie with you last night! -Anyone else ever in Laramie... let us know!! :)

I am thankful for electricity. Although it was kind of fun use candles for a few hours last night, it sure was nice when the heat kicked back on in the middle of the night. :)

Thankful Thoughts 1-5

Okay. I'm back. The past few months have been long and hard, but I'll write more about them later. Right now, I'm going to join in the fun! Charlotte and Leslie have both inspired me to start my own list of Thanks on my blog. I know I have a few days catching up to do, but here we go!!

:November 1:

I am thankful for Steve.

He is amazingly good to me. He is patient, kind, hardworking, and makes awesome birthday cakes! I can't imagine my life without having him at my side.

:November 2:

I am thankful for my family.

Spring 2010 family picture.

I have amazing parents and sisters. I love them so much. Plus, our family just keeps expanding! I got a new bro-in-law in September, and when I married Steve, I got a whole new family to be thankful for! Here we are as of June 2011.

:November 3:

I am thankful for my home. I love having a nice place to come to after work. I love decorating my home and making it a peaceful place to relax and spend time with Steve.

:November 4:

I am thankful for my body. I love to experience new things, and push myself. My body lets me do that. And it always reminds me that I give myself credit for.

:November 5:

I am thankful for our new water filter.

Who knew Laramie water could taste so good!! :)

Well, thanks for humoring me for my first 5 days... I'll be back with more Thankful Thoughts!!