Happy Thanksgiving

So it's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada! Ari and Little Tyke headed to California to celebrate his grandmother's 90th birthday, so Little J and I spent the weekend with my mom and my grandparents, before coming back to Ottawa yesterday (as a youth pastor ... oh yeah, I work Sundays!). The other boys should be home tonight. So it hasn't been a great big family celebration. But I did one to list off some things I'm thankful for:

1. Starting close to home, the people I live with. Ari is my best possible co-parent, a wonderful help and support, and my best friend. Together we are creating two wonderful little men, LT and Little J, and for that, no matter how tired we might get, or busy, we will always have a reason to connect with one another, and I could not be more proud of the job we're doing with those boys. The boys themselves - LT's energy and smiles and eternal good mood, and Little J's sense of wonder and waking up to the world, to me, are what the Bible speaks of when it speaks of approaching the Kingdom like a little child. It is so inspiring to me. I suppose I am also thankful for my cats too, useless mousers that they are.
   
2. My parents - all four of them, in their ways, are good people from whom I have learned a lot. They have all shaped me in some way, big or small, and while of course there have been disagreements and disappointments along the way (I mean, I was a teenager once after all, heehee), I can honestly say they've never let me fall, and they've always been there when it matters. I have never felt alone in any struggle, and that is because of these people. My mom's selfless and unconditional love and support, my dad's intelligence and generosity, my step-dad's no-nonsense, hard working, but good-hearted approach to life, and my step-mom's grace and good humour in the face of almost anything are all things I aspire to.
3. My brother - this little person (yes whose diapers I used to help change lol) has grown into an incredibly mature, strong young man who has handled a tough year with more grace than I think I would have. This kid is my hero and even more than ever his protective big sister wants nothing but the very best of everything for him.
4. My in-laws - they have raised a great kid, welcomed me into their family, and love my children. Good food and good wine flows whenever we visit, and we have grown into a relationship now that I don't know if I could have foreseen when Ari and I were just dating. For all of these things, I am eternally thankful.
5. My friends, past and present - I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. I have had friends who have mistreated me, and who I have mistreated; I have friends who have been wonderful to me, and who I have been wonderful to. I have friends everywhere in between on that scale. But they all have meant something, and again, they have all shaped where I am now in my life. And I am appreciative of all of them.
6. The tangible stuff - a roof over my head, three incredibly flexible yet fulfilling and enjoyable jobs, food in my belly, a car to drive, the lovely neighbourhood and city we live in, the opportunity to travel and go out a bit ... these aren't things I take for granted, and they are things I am so thankful we have.
7. The less tangible stuff - I am thankful for my God, for the peace and happiness I feel today despite coming off a rough week, I am thankful for nature, and the world's increasing awareness of it. I am thankful for music, for the sun and rain, for all the things that make our world more than just a space rock suitable for living on, to a place we would WANT to live. :)

What's your list? XO