This last year has been full of challenges and some unpleasantness, but it hasn't been without joy and plenty of things to be grateful for in this season of thanksgiving.
When things aren't going as planned, or feel like they're falling apart, it's so easy to focus on everything that's gone wrong. I've certainly been guilty of that, especially during a few particularly trying situations this year.
But included in those moments of woe is usually opportunity to be reminded of how much we have.
This year I give thanks for:
M. He's basically the best. This week we hit nine months of marriage, and it's pretty great. Sure, we disagree on things and fight sometimes, but at the end of every bad day, I want to be in his arms for a big hug. We've started an adventure together, complete with farm animals and other assorted disasters, but I can't imagine a better partner in crime.
Family. Ours has grown again this year. M and I got married, and my sister had another daughter. They're always the people that no matter how far apart we are and how long it's been since we've seen each other that know me best and are always there when you need them. More importantly, they always remind you where you came from, who you are and who want to me.
Home. Our house has been in a perpetual state of construction and it can be overwhelming, but having a stable home is something to be incredibly grateful for. I spent a lot of time over the last few years writing about the importance of affordable housing and the impact housing has on so many aspects of a person's life. This house will take up so much our time, money and energy over the next few decades, but building a home is entirely worth it.
Pups. I have to admit, Grover is still my favorite, but we've been through a lot together and he's almost seven now. But the other two are pretty great too and even though Gidget eats the furniture and Grover ate yet another pair of my pajama pants last night and Moxie keeps hiding in the bushes and not coming when called, the dogs are always happy to see us come home and quick to show love.
When things aren't going as planned, or feel like they're falling apart, it's so easy to focus on everything that's gone wrong. I've certainly been guilty of that, especially during a few particularly trying situations this year.
But included in those moments of woe is usually opportunity to be reminded of how much we have.
This year I give thanks for:
M. He's basically the best. This week we hit nine months of marriage, and it's pretty great. Sure, we disagree on things and fight sometimes, but at the end of every bad day, I want to be in his arms for a big hug. We've started an adventure together, complete with farm animals and other assorted disasters, but I can't imagine a better partner in crime.
Family. Ours has grown again this year. M and I got married, and my sister had another daughter. They're always the people that no matter how far apart we are and how long it's been since we've seen each other that know me best and are always there when you need them. More importantly, they always remind you where you came from, who you are and who want to me.
Home. Our house has been in a perpetual state of construction and it can be overwhelming, but having a stable home is something to be incredibly grateful for. I spent a lot of time over the last few years writing about the importance of affordable housing and the impact housing has on so many aspects of a person's life. This house will take up so much our time, money and energy over the next few decades, but building a home is entirely worth it.
Pups. I have to admit, Grover is still my favorite, but we've been through a lot together and he's almost seven now. But the other two are pretty great too and even though Gidget eats the furniture and Grover ate yet another pair of my pajama pants last night and Moxie keeps hiding in the bushes and not coming when called, the dogs are always happy to see us come home and quick to show love.
Minifarm + animals. We're a small operation and just learning the ropes, but we're becoming a regular egg supplier to our friends and I have high hopes for the wool from my Leicester Longwool sheep. The chickens are kind of nuts, but I have a deep appreciation for those birds that demand so little of us, but keep us supplied with more than enough eggs for us and our friends. And my sheep, I just love those four fuzzy weirdos. It's a kind of satisfaction I never expected, to be building a life with the potential to provide for ourselves and live a simpler life in conjunction with the 26 acres we live on.
Progress. It seems like these past four years have flown by with little to show for it. Our renovation is no where near complete, we're still designing heating and plumbing systems. Our minifarm still has an incomplete, though fully functional, sheep shelter; the chicken barn isn't quite done; there's huge patches of dirt that we haven't figured out what we want to do with; more than a half ton of hay is still sitting in the sheep trailer. I'm still not en expert baker and not entirely at ease in the kitchen. I still can't do some of the jumps and spins I used to be able to do in figure skates. Honestly, I'm still not entirely sure what I want to do with my life.
But, we've made designs and are inching closer to what we want this house to look like. We've got a fence around seven acres that has room for more sheep and maybe other livestock. I've learned to bake more complicated things and am still learning. I've added more complicated recipes to my routine and can make more of them by memory now. I'm still jumping and spinning and coaching after years off the ice and haven't broken a leg yet (hopefully I didn't just jinx myself).
Nothing is complete and the to-do list is ever growing, but when I feel like we haven't accomplished anything, I remind myself of how much progress we've made. And really, the progress is everything.
What are you thankful for this year?
But, we've made designs and are inching closer to what we want this house to look like. We've got a fence around seven acres that has room for more sheep and maybe other livestock. I've learned to bake more complicated things and am still learning. I've added more complicated recipes to my routine and can make more of them by memory now. I'm still jumping and spinning and coaching after years off the ice and haven't broken a leg yet (hopefully I didn't just jinx myself).
Nothing is complete and the to-do list is ever growing, but when I feel like we haven't accomplished anything, I remind myself of how much progress we've made. And really, the progress is everything.
What are you thankful for this year?
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