good morning happiness

1. I am grateful that I decided to just say no to non-essential activities today. I needed to relieve some of my stress and give myself a few more hours, and staying home instead of going out to playgroup was just what I needed to stay sane today.

2. I am grateful that I receive inspiration to guide me in accomplishing the things I have stewardship over. I feel every day that the Lord is helping me be the best mom for Oliver, the best (usually) wife for Sungti, and really steering the things I do to fulfil my church callings. I feel very blessed and watched over and know that I don't have to do any of the hard (or easy) things alone.

3. I am grateful that my cold has eased up enough that I am able to go down to Texas with my dad for my cousin's wedding. Also, I'm grateful that I braved Priceline today and scored a night at the Hyatt for $45.

“Think to thank. In these three words is the finest capsule course for a happy marriage, a formula for enduring friendship, and a pattern for personal happiness.” -Thomas S. Monson, Pathways to Perfection [1973], 254

and that stands for pool

1. I am grateful that there are women who have gone before me and learned all the tricks to being a mom. Well, you know, as much as you can learn "tricks" to being a good, competent parent. It is so comforting to have women I love who are there to give me advice when I encounter something new and confusing.

2. I am grateful that Oliver is back to his seven-hour-each-night sleeping. The last two months of his frequent awakenings, and then last week when he reverted to getting up every two hours, just about put me over the edge. I'm sure he needs the sleep, too, but mostly I'm thankful that I am finally getting more sleep.

3. I am grateful that Heidi sent me home from her house with a baby-proofing starter kit. Heidi, how did you know? Oh, that's right, you have gone before me and know some tricks. On a related note, Oliver can climb all the stairs now. It is trouble here in River City.

"The grateful man sees so much in the world to be thankful for, and with him the good outweighs the evil. Love overpowers jealousy, and light drives darkness out of his life. Pride destroys our gratitude and sets up selfishness in its place. How much happier we are in the presence of a grateful and loving soul, and how careful we should be to cultivate, through the medium of a prayerful life, a thankful attitude toward God and man!"-President Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, 5th ed. [1939]

trying to drown out the crying

1. I am grateful that we didn't have anywhere we needed to be when we had our first snowflakes of the season today. Not that it was any substantial amount of snow--if you didn't see it falling you would not have known it snowed--but we were able to go outside several times today and watch it fall. I love the quietness of snow falling.

2. I am grateful that Somebody wanted to put a wall of bookshelves in our office/guest bedroom. While I wasn't ever opposed to the idea, it was certainly something that he wanted a lot more than I did. Now that the bookshelves are up and filled with books and framed photographs, I love them and couldn't imagine this room without them.

3. I am grateful that I have someone else to share parenting responsibilities with. Man, I wouldn't want to be doing this alone.

"Thanksgiving comes to us out of the prehistoric dimness, universal to all ages and all faiths. At whatever straws we must grasp, there is always a time for gratitude and new beginnings."
-J. Robert Moskin

for health and strength and daily food

1. I am grateful for the ability to control my climate. In the summer I am thankful every day that my house and my car (and, previously, my office) were air conditioned. Now that the weather is turning decidedly colder, I'm so thankful that I can turn the heat on and stay warm.

2. I am grateful for weekends when we can spend most of each day as a family. Between his job (and his 60 minute each way commute) and his evening classes, I feel like I hardly see Somebody during the week. I always look forward to Saturday and Sunday because all the projects and errands that we need to do we can do together. Also, I think that Oliver enjoys those days the best--probably every Saturday morning I say, "Wow, Oliver is SO happy to have both his parents home today." And he really is a much more smiley, happy baby on the weekends.

3. I am grateful for really soft Kleenex tissues. Both for myself and for the poor, tiny baby nose that I have to constantly keep wiping these days.

"We need to be more grateful. I think there's no true character without gratitude. It's one of the marks of a real strong character, to have a feeling of thanksgiving and gratitude for blessings that are ours. We need more of that spirit in our homes, in our daily associations, in church, everywhere. It doesn't cost anything. It's so easy to cultivate the spirit of appreciation and gratitude."
-Ezra Taft Benson, "Receive All Things with Thankfulness," New Era, Nov 1976

mike wazowski

1. I am grateful for cold medicine that can kind of make me feel better.

2. I am grateful for fresh oranges that are peeled for me.

3. I am grateful for Disney classic movies and cartoons that are fun to watch over and over again.

"Saying thank you is more than good manners. It is good spirituality."
-Alfred Painter

home again

1. I am grateful for a well-maintained highway that makes traveling long distances safe and comfortable.

2. I am grateful for the comforts of home.

3. I am grateful for yummy smells coming from the oven.

"Life without thankfulness is devoid of love and passion. Hope without thankfulness is lacking in fine perception. Faith without thankfulness lacks strength and fortitude. Every virtue divorced from thankfulness is maimed and limps along the spiritual road."
-John Henry Jowett

dust go to sleep

1. I am grateful for bonus naps.

2. I am grateful for eternal families. I would be sad if the only time I was going to know and interact with my family members was our time on this earth.

3. I am grateful that finally, after being here for three days, I was able to do something helpful for my sister. Good thing, too, because I was almost out of time and would have felt very guilty leaving here without being useful in some way.

"Gratitude is of the very essence of worship. … When you walk with gratitude, you do not walk with arrogance and conceit and egotism, you walk with a spirit of thanksgiving that is becoming to you and will bless your lives"
--President Gordon B. Hinckley