a thankful thursday.

I always talk about doing gratitude lists because I think it is so important to keep yourself in check and to constantly see your life as half-full rather than half-empty. I haven't been very good at keeping up this consistency so I was thinking about dedicating myself to making one gratitude list each week, whether it has one, simple thing on it or a myriad of random things on it. And what is a good day to start devoting yourself to being thankful? Thursday, of course.

Today I am thankful:

• for the delicious green beans we made last Sunday that are still lasting as leftovers for lunch
• for a break from student-teaching next week due to President's Day vacation
• for a certification test on Saturday morning - I am not thankful for the test itself but that I will soon only have one certification test left
• that the Amabiles are coming to town this weekend
• for the morning walks to my teaching internship - it is a commute without crowds, without technology, without stress
• for oranges, oranges, oranges
• that I pushed myself to run 4.5 miles at the gym last night
• that I still get babysitting gigs here and there during this very unemployed semester
• for my student-teaching experience so far
• for the fact that my sign language class is over - I now get home at 6.00 on Tuesdays instead of 8.30. Even that hour or two makes a difference
• for our new jumbo fryer - slowly building our quality cookware makes cooking so much more fun
• for our new bookcase - nothing makes me happier than seeing all our books on display
• for eight hours of sleep most nights
• for black tea
• for longer hours of daylight