a little snappy "happy ever after"

1. I am grateful for good friends. I have many acquaintances, but I have just a handful of really good friends--the kind I can count on in any situation. The kind that I know will be there for me and will always be on my side. Today is the birthday of one of the best of my friends, and the last few years when we haven't lived close have been hard. Previous to Somebody, she knew me better than anyone ever has. She was there during the hardest parts of my young adult life and her influence and guidance made me a better person. Happy Birthday, Heidi. I love you and miss you, and hope you have a wonderful birthday.

"Truth and tears clear the way to a deep and lasting friendship."
"No lapse of time or distance of place can lessen the friendship of those who are truly persuaded of each other's worth."
"How lucky I am to have known someone who was so hard to say goodbye to."
2. I am grateful for a good name. I'm grateful for a family heritage that I can be proud of, and for the expectation that I do something good with my life to honor my family.

3. I am grateful for this challenge that has forced me to see blessings where sometimes I don't look for them, to look on the bright side of things every morning when I'm still tired and a little grouchy, and, most especially, for being able to read the things that my family and friends are grateful for. It's amazing how much good we have in our lives, and how the small exercise of naming just three each day can open up our eyes to all that we have.


"My plea is that we stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight. I am suggesting that as we go through life, we ‘accentuate the positive.’ I am asking that we look a little deeper for the good, that we still our voices of insult and sarcasm, that we more generously compliment and endorse virtue and effort"
--President Gordon B. Hinckley

we need a little music; need a little laughter

1. I am grateful for good neighbors, like Bill, who live upstairs from us. He has lived such a full life and listening to his stories and experiences makes me hope that when I am his age I will have also made so many wise choices, given so much to my family and church, and have such interesting stories to tell.

2. I am grateful for gifts that I wouldn't have thought to purchase for myself--like this cool purple bracelet that I love, but that I never would have found on my own.

3. I am grateful for a background of good morals and judgment that helps to guide where I am going in life.

"We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude."
--Cynthia Ozick

i need a little angel sitting on my shoulder

1. I am grateful for good books.

2. I am grateful for a working car and a valid driver license.

3. I am grateful for snow that quietly falls overnight, a husband who goes out and shovels the driveway and sidewalks while I'm getting ready for work, and warm gloves.


"If gratitude is due from children to their earthly parents, how much more is the gratitude of the great family of man due to our Father in heaven!"
--Hosea Ballou

it hasn't snowed a single flurry

1. I am grateful for a timer on my Christmas tree lights so that they stay on until after we have gone to sleep, and are back on right before the alarm goes off in the morning.

2. I am grateful for the snow that's falling and that should continue to fall for the next several days. Which also makes me very, very grateful for a garage so that I don't have to scrape the snow off in the mornings.

3. I am grateful for comfortable shoes.


"Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart."
--Seneca

"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

haul out the holly

1. I am grateful for having the Christmas tree up and decorated. The house smells so wonderful!

2. I am grateful for football games that keep you on the edge of your seat until the final seconds. And especially for football games like that when BYU ends up winning.









3. I am grateful for yummy homemade pancakes and waffles, both of which I had this weekend.


"Thank God every day when you get up that you have something to do that day which must be done whether you like it or not. Being forced to work and forced to do your best will breed in you temperance and self-control, diligence and strength of will, cheerfulness and content, and a hundred virtues which the idle will never know."
--Basil Carpenter

because. just because.

1. I am grateful for my church calling. I always thought it would be kind of fun/challenging to be a Sunday school teacher, but I never imagined that my class would consist of half a dozen 15-18 year olds. I have no idea how to talk to those kids (even though my Amiga Tags says to use my normal adult words with them. What the? Adult words with kids? Just talk to them like I would my friends? That's crazy talk!) and I'm flustered by their lack of attention and hesitancy to speak up in class. I am grateful that at least I feel useful and that it is getting easier.

2. I am grateful for pony-tail days.

3. I am grateful for art that speaks to me; that draws me in so that I don't want to look away; that inspires me and touches me; that makes my world more beautiful.

4. I am grateful for Oral-B Essential-floss dental floss. It is the best dental floss ever, and I miss it terribly when I am away from home and don't have it.

5. I am grateful for two more days of this weekend.


“In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.”--Dietrich Bonhoeffer

because it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

1. I am grateful for days spent outdoors. We went with Karla's family up to hunt a Christmas tree today and not only came back with a great tree and smoky clothes, but a camera full of fun pictures and memories of a very fun day. 2. I am grateful for a Thanksgiving that included two 20+ pound turkeys, one 15+ pound ham, nine dozen rolls, 15 pies, one migraine (not mine), five paramedics, four police cars, one ambulance (also not mine), one broken toe (mine), 21 friends, and 9 family members. It was memorable (especially that violent game of hide-and-seek) and wonderful. And the food was fantastic.

3. I am grateful for filtered water and flushing toilets.

4. I am grateful for the internet, which is pretty much my source for all knowledge even though I know that I can't believe everything I read, or every cautionary tale my mom forwards me. I love being able to find recipes, pictures, poems, articles, lesson aids, medical advice, games, and news with just the click of a few buttons. I'm addicted.

5. I am grateful for my education.

“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

because my cup runneth over

1. I am grateful for Somebody, who is celebrating his 30th birthday today. He makes me happier than I ever knew I could be. I love you, Somebody. Happy Birthday.
2. I am grateful for SweetTart jelly beans, and the fact that I bought several bags last Easter so I can still enjoy them on Thanksgiving.

3. I am grateful for traditions.

4. I am grateful for a living room that still looks like a party hit it.

5. I am grateful for baking skills.


“Forever on Thanksgiving Day, The heart will find the pathway home.”--Wilbur D. Nesbit

“Stand up, on this Thanksgiving Day, stand upon your feet. Believe in man. Soberly and with clear eyes, believe in your own time and place. There is not, and there never has been a better time, or a better place to live in.” --Phillips Brooks

how do i love thee? let me count the ways

"If ever two were one, then surely we. If ever man were loved by wife, then thee." Anne Bradstreet

1. I love how your hands are always warmer than mine.
2. I love that you will just walk in to the kitchen and start washing the dishes, like it's no big deal and like it's something you are happy to do.
3. I love that you want to snuggle when we get into bed.
4. I love listening to you pray.
5. I love your ease with children, especially my nieces and nephews.
6. I love knowing that you are looking forward to being a father, and knowing that you'll be a great one.
7. I love the way my heart still sometimes jumps when I turn and look at you, or see you from across the room.
8. I love the way you sometimes follow me around from room to room, not for any particular reason but just because you can't think of anything else to do.
9. I love how childlike and innocent you are—especially when you watch cartoons and sit up close to the TV like children do.
10. I love knowing that you will never yell at me. 11. I love how you can raise just one eyebrow.
12. I love the way you say “yada yada yada” and “matter.”
13. I love that you work hard to build your resume.
14. I love the way you see the world through those red-colored sunglasses.
15. I love that you are an excellent cook, are comfortable in the kitchen, and appreciate good food.
16. I love lunch breaks with you.
17. I love that you have good taste in clothing, shoes, and earrings.
18. I love the way you said, that one night on our honeymoon, “You are my family.”
19. I love the way your smile lights up my life. I think you are gorgeous.
20. I love how you only have one ticklish spot on your body, but how it is VERY ticklish. 21. I love how patiently you teach me to speak Chinese, but how you always say you don’t want to teach me because you don’t want it to become a sore spot in our relationship.
22. I love that you won’t let me sulk around and how you always want to talk things through.
23. I love that you got your hair cut to impress my parents.
24. I love your energy and enthusiasm for getting out and doing things.
25. I love that you are a safe driver.
26. I love how you are trying to be a good son, even when I roll my eyes and call your traditions crazy.
27. I love hearing your voice on the phone.
28. I love that you can understand what I’m saying when I talk in gibberish.
29. I love how you always put my needs and wants in front of your own.
30. I love being married to you, and am looking forward to eternity with you.

Happy Birthday, Love. I so happy you are my Somebody.

Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation

"The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle, or the ship; the axe had enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

"No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

"It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union."

Abraham Lincoln

because life is too short

1. I am grateful for new recipes that end up being as yummy as I had imagined. Last night I tried a recipe that Kathleen had posted on her website. She had called it a "fast and yummy recipe for dinner" and that pretty much sums it up. The prep time was very short and the dinner was tasty. http://kateinkansas.blogspot.com/2006/11/fast-and-yummy-recipe-for-dinner.html

2. I am grateful for warm showers and soft towels.

3. I am grateful for a house-husband who does all the laundry, and remembers my random laundry preferences about what goes in the drier and what doesn't, and who is the best shirt folder I've ever seen.

4. I am grateful for last night when we were just getting ready for bed when Somebody suggested that instead of getting in bed we go to Wendy's and get mini-frostys. So, we did. And then we sat in bed and ate frostys and chatted, and it was a great end to a wonderful day.

5. I am grateful for so many clothing options that picking out what to wear is often a chore.

"The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving."
--H. U. Westermayer



Italian Baked Chicken and Pastina
1 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain pasta into a large mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. Add the canned tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.

Place the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish. In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

because the red lanterns cancel out the curse of the white lanterns

1. I am grateful for fulfilled expectations.

2. I am grateful for the fact that "my" friends and "his" friends are becoming "our" friends.

3. I am grateful for the picture that is my wallpaper on my computer--the photo that Heidi took of me and Somebody with all my nieces and nephews in their wedding outfits. It is the cutest picture ever and makes me smile every time I look at it.

4. I am grateful for lip gloss that isn't sticky.

5. I am grateful for the times (few though they may be) when people see my wedding ring for the first time and think that it is both unique and beautiful (and sparkly.)


"Most of us miss out on life's big prizes. The Pulitzer. The Nobel. Oscars. Tonys. Emmys. But we're all eligible for life's small pleasures. A pat on the back. A kiss behind the ear. A four-pound bass. A full moon. An empty parking space. A crackling fire. A great meal. A glorious sunset. Hot soup. Cold beer. Don't fret about copping life's grand awards. Enjoy its tiny delights. There are plenty for all of us."
...United Technologies Corporation advertisement

because they remember where i've been

1. I am grateful for my brother, Russell, who always makes me laugh. He is spontaneous and fun-loving, but also almost as smart as me. I am grateful that I feel like we are friends as well as siblings, and that we have so much in common. I am glad we had those summers together, and that he likes me enough to introduce me to his friends and crash in my living room. I wish that he still lived close because I miss him and don't feel like we see each other nearly often enough.

2. I am grateful for my sister, Heidi, who always wins the white rose award. She is patient and kind, but also able to stand up for herself and what she thinks is right. She is creative and loving with her children, and she somehow finds time to send me the sweetest cards that make me feel loved and remembered. I am grateful that we have been close our whole lives, and for the years we shared at BYU.

3. I am grateful for my sister, Karla, who is an example of goodness and ingenuity. She is setting a great example of how to let your children discover their own personality and talents, but also gives them a structured learning environment. She often seems to operate on a higher spiritual plane than I do, and yet she never judges or criticizes the things I do. She is smart and thoughtful and is firm in her resolve to live her life in the best way she knows how. I am grateful that we became friends after we both grew up a little bit, and I have loved living so close to her all these years. If I ever leave Utah, she is the absolute number one thing I would miss. And I already know I would miss her so much that sometimes it is painful for me to even think about leaving.

4. I am grateful for my brother, Joe, who is always willing to help me. He is smart and funny and always makes me feel like my questions and needs are important. He is a very giving person who will rearrange his schedule and his plans to fit me and the things that I want to do with our time together. He is a good dad, and I love to see his children hanging all over him because they love to be close to him. He is one of the highlights of "going home" and I'm looking forward to spending the Christmas holiday with him.

5. I am grateful for fond memories of a happy childhood. I am sure that everyone can remember sad or hard times about growing up, but I am grateful every day that my childhood was particularly blessed. I had a family who loved me, and we lived and traveled together to memorable places. We didn't often live by our extended family (or sometimes even by other English speakers) so we had to learn how to stick together and entertain ourselves. I never felt like we had less than others, and my parents did a good job of teaching us to think for ourselves and to act according to what we know to be right.


"Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love, and to work, and to play and to look up at the stars."
--Henry Van Dyke

because i have been given much

1. I am grateful for a mother who loves me. Who always wants to laugh and make people happy. Who is creative and hard-working. Who sees the good in her children and compliments them. Who is musical and artistic. Who supports everything I do, and never openly criticizes my life choices. I love you, mom. Happy Birthday.

2. I am grateful for friendly ladies in relief society who sit by me even when I'm wearing my grouchy face.

3. I am grateful for a clean bathroom.

4. I am grateful for good movie recommendations.

5. I am grateful for the comfortable feeling of coming home.


"Find the good -- and praise it."
--Alex Haley

"How wonderful it would be if we could help our children and grandchildren to learn thanksgiving at an early age. Thanksgiving opens the doors. It changes a child's personality. A child is resentful, negative—or thankful. Thankful children want to give, they radiate happiness, they draw people."
--Sir John Templeton

memories light the corner of my mind

1. I am grateful for old family pictures. My dad scanned in a bunch of pictures from my mom's childhood, and it was so fun to look through them and chuckle at the hairdos and dresses.

2. I am grateful for my extended family and how fun it is to reconnect with them and feel a part of something so much bigger than myself.

3. I am grateful for cute nieces and nephews who, for some reason, think that the thing that Somebody and I most want/need for our birthdays is a can of peas & carrots, and a can of jellied cranberries.

"There is not a more pleasing exercise of the mind than gratitude. It is accompanied with such an inward satisfaction that the duty is sufficiently rewarded by the performance."
--Joseph Addison

get up ev'rybody and sing

1. I am grateful for paid vacation days.

2. I am grateful for a vcr so that I don't have to plan my life around TV. Because, like, who does that? (cough, cough)

3. I am grateful for the fact that after I had spent four hours trying out new recipes for birthday cakes last night, and had used, literally, every bowl and spoon in our kitchen, that Somebody was willing to come in and wash all those dishes. And he didn't complain at all.


"God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say ‘thank you?’" ---William A. Ward

"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures."
--Thornton Wilder

chosen e'er to witness

1. I am grateful for the excitement that surrounds someone receiving a mission call. One of the secretaries in my office (Whitney) just received her call to Illinois, Peoria, and no missionary has been more excited or eager to serve. It is thrilling to see that sharing the gospel is more important than the location or the language, and I know she will be an excellent missionary.

2. I am grateful for green plants--especially healthy looking ones at my home or in my office.

3. I am grateful for a great friendship with some of my co-workers. It makes coming to work that much easier to feel like I am part of a team, and that no matter how frustrating some people can be, that I always have a support system and a confidant. I never feel like I'm fighting the battle alone.


"Both abundance and lack exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend... when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present -- love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature and personal pursuits that bring us pleasure -- the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience Heaven on earth."
--Sarah Ban Breathnach

what are you doing the rest of your life?

1. I am grateful for Somebody's new, very short haircut. Even though he wishes I would love his long hair, I have to admit that it's the short hair I love. I also am grateful for the days he wears his "I'm a Keeper" shirt. Because, yes, he is.

2. I am grateful for enough food in the cupboard that we think we can go the rest of this month without going to the grocery store. Which is good because after establishing the "Family Financial Plan" earlier this week, we discovered that we have $4 left to spend this month. Bring on the canned goods.

3. I am grateful for pictures of my nieces and nephews. Just looking at their happy (and sometimes hilariously pouty) faces brightens my day.

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude."
--Denis Waitley

"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

hey, good lookin', whatcha got cookin'

1. I am grateful for wise counsel that encouraged me to wear two coats today. All of a sudden, it's COLD.

2. I am grateful for a needed extension on an important deadline.

3. I am grateful for fun emails from Janssen. Even though she harasses me about not updating my blog, I think we all know that I update three times more than she does. But not only is Janssen a terrific and enjoyable writer, she is a superb cook who is not afraid to try new recipes and is nothing but fun on games night. I am also grateful to have plans with Janssen and Bart for during the Christmas holiday because it's fun to have guaranteed good times to look forward to. Happy Tuesday, Jansseb. May all my other friends be jealous that they aren't you.

"The deepest craving of human nature is the need to be appreciated."
--William James

"When you are grateful fear disappears and abundance appears."
--Anthony Robbines

oh, the weather outside is frightful

1. I am grateful for a sister-in-law who somehow manages to do it all. She makes, in all her free-time, the most beautiful quilts. Happy Birthday, Miriam!
2. I am grateful for the family calendar I have that has a picture and story every day of the year. It cheers my up every day.

3. I am grateful for the anticipation of spending time with family during the holidays, and at any other time of the year.


"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."
--Melody Beattie