Choosing Happiness

This year has been hard. I'm not going to lie. There have been plenty of money woes, too many fights with the husband, that steep new-mommy-learning-curve, and of course, recent troubles with supposed friends. If I were a glass half empty kinda girl, I'd TOTALLY be up shit creek, you know? Fortunately for me, I believe that you get to CHOOSE your happiness. Sure, sometimes stuff happens that you have no control over, but what you can control is your attitude toward those events.

So this Thanksgiving, instead of whining that I'm overweight, I'm going to be thankful that I'm healthy and actually weigh less than I did when I got pregnant. I don't weigh over 200 lbs, I'm not having to get on antibiotics for one thing or another every month, and I'm not constantly tired. If someone were to post my weight on the Internet (which I totally did last week too, ha ha!) it wouldn't launch me into a complete meltdown. Sure, I'm chubby and would like to be all cute and skinny (like some of the girls who's blogs I read), but I'm also healthy and happy and (very) well fed and very much loved. This is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of complaining about all the fights my husband and I have had this year, I'm going to be thankful that I HAVE a husband - someone to be here and love me and support me, someone for whom I can do the same. Someone who remains faithful to me and the vows we made on our wedding day. We may have our issues, but we've been together for almost ten years now (next March) and married six, and have never broken up once. This is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of wishing that I lived in a big, fancy house, I'm going to be thankful for our apartment. Sure, it's just an apartment, but it's a really nice one as far as apartments go. It's in a good area, the landscaping is taken care of, it's comfortable, and it's affordable. It has a GREAT kitchen too! I mean, I've been in houses that have kitchens the same size or smaller than mine! I also don't have to worry about landscaping, HOAs, or fixing the toilet myself because I have people for that. I mean, it could totally be worse - I could be homeless or living with my mother, and I'm not! I'm an adult and completely independent! This is a blessing.

This Thanksgiving, instead of griping about the high price of gas and expensive service checkups on our car, I'm going to be thankful that we not only HAVE a car, but we have a really nice new one to boot. We spent so many years first without one, and taking the bus, and then with really crappy ones (no ac and windows that don't roll down in summer in Phoenix BLOW) that it's nice to have a vehicle that not only is reliable and safe, but is not embarrassing to be seen in while out! This is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of moaning and groaning about having stretch marks, I'm going to be thankful that I can blame them all on the baby! HA! That little man is one of the best things that ever happened to me. He's sweet, he's funny, he's smart, and he's the cutest thing I've ever seen! There's nothing better than hearing him laugh, and nothing brighter than that sweet baby grin. Some days, I watch him in complete awe because I can't believe that I made this wonderful little person! He's not always sunshine and roses, but the good outweighs the bad a million times over. This child is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of hating my job, I'm going to be thankful because I have the best job in the world now - I'm a mom and I'm LOVING it! I get to stay home and sleep in and stay up late and do crafts and cook from scratch and play with the baby instead of bitching about my boss and being stressed and not having time to do anything I enjoy. I can even take a nap with the boy if I like. I'm not saying it's all been easy, but I love getting to be home with Bubba and getting to see him grow and hit all his milestones. I'd rather do this than anything else. This is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of shedding tears over one person who decided to hurt me again after I forgave her (and dude - I am SO not a forgiver so that shizz was really hard to do), I'm going to be thankful because I have lots of other friends still. I have my son's Godparents, I have friends from our big group that used to work together many, many years ago, I have my mom's group, I have my friends I met online (and yes, some I have actually traveled to meet in person), and I have people who I've encountered through former workplaces and through scrapbooking. (I wish I could list all of them but I do that whole "no names" thing here, and knowing me and my swiss cheese brain, I'd forget someone. Can't be doing that.) Best of all, I have the POTENTIAL to meet more. That kicks butt, y'all. All of these people are blessings!

This Thanksgiving, instead of moping about how dysfunctional my own family is, I'm going to give thanks for the wonderful family into which I married. They're awesome, and I'm so excited for the upcoming events that are going to not only bring us together, but will add a whole new member to the mix! This is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of being sad that we never get to eat out anymore, I'm going to give thanks that I'm an excellent cook and have been able to really flex those cooking muscles in the kitchen this year! I don't necessarily know that we're eating healthier, but anything is better than eating out at almost every meal, right? I'm using my cookbooks, I'm trying new things (oh homemade pasta, how I love thee), I'm revisiting old favorites, I'm feeding the baby real food instead of that smelly stuff from a jar... the eating is just plain GOOD around here lately. Don't even get me started on dessert! I could do one of these bullet points just about my discovery of cake balls, but I think I'll refrain. Home cooking - this is a blessing!

This Thanksgiving, instead of being irritated by my dogs peeing on the floor and scratching all the time, I'm going to give thanks that for the most part, they're actually really well behaved. They tolerate the baby well and he's very fond of them. They clean up his trails of cracker crumbs and don't ever utter a growl or whimper when he chases them around, shouting their names. Sure, they get all barky when people come to the door, but they're dogs! That's what they do! They're smart enough to stop when people actually come into the house because then they know they belong there. They're super cute and pretty dang sweet too. They are blessings!

I also want to say that I am thankful for all the people who read my blog, and who follow it, and especially those who leave comments - this is my journal and my therapy because I am too cheap and/or poor to pay for a real therapist! I'm thankful for your support and opinions that you leave here when I need them. There are days when I'm amazed that anyone would want to read the crap I put out here for the world to see, but I am thankful for those of you who do.

Also, I want to say how thankful I am for the folks who have bought stuff from me on eBay and Etsy. You have gotten us through some really lean months here! Because of you, I was able to make a little bit of money doing something I love - crafting - and still got to stay home and take care of my family in the meantime. I am ever so grateful!

Finally, I'm thankful for the Internet. For REALS. I've learned so many things and met so many people from all over that I would have never had access to otherwise. It's always there for me with something interesting to read, a new recipe to try, updates on my friends, something funny when I need a laugh, random information in a pinch... Thanks, Al Gore. I appreciate it!

So, today I'm choosing happiness and counting my blessings. May you get a chance to do the same and may you all have a fantastic Thanksgiving!