Becoming Crunchy

Happy Thanksgiving Americans!

We’ve already done Thanksgiving here in Canada (way back in October! Weird, I know ), but being a born and raised American, I always feel justified in celebrating two Thanksgivings…we just move our November turkey day to the weekend.

This year I’m adding meaning to my celebration by joining the lovely Amanda Metro of Let’s Take the Metro in her Gratitude Challenge – basically, making a list (together with lots of other bloggers) of 100 things that make me feel thankful.

I’ll start with the warm fuzzies I know I’m going to get from writing this post and reading the others…and without further ado (in no particular order beyond the first two):

1. Baby Bean always tops the list! I am more grateful than I can ever say for this little girl who’s been so much more to me than I ever could have imagined…every day I love her more…every day she surprises me – if I had nothing else to be grateful for, she would make it all worth it.

2. The husband comes in at a close second. He is awesome and handsome and funny and loves me – I am thankful to have been married to him for 5 years now.

3. Sushi. What’s not to be thankful for?

4. Llamas. Same ? as above.

5. Pinterest. It’s awesome.

6. Good friends. You know who you are. I always wish we could live closer, but you are often in my thoughts and I couldn’t do it without you…

7. Bubbles.

8. Sunflower Seeds.

9. Music. Whether it’s driving home in traffic and having a favorite song come on (Foster the People, anyone?) or singing to Bean or listening to her sing – it always makes me feel better in so many different ways.

10. Cloudy days.

11. A chance to sleep in.

12. A night out with the girls.

13. Luther the dog (as much as he also frequently annoys me, I am very thankful for him).

14. Sage the cat (same aside as above).

15. A trip to the pumpkin farm (and the apple farm, and the berry farm, and the Christmas tree farm…)

16. Water. I love water. I love drinking it, swimming in it, walking in the rain, soaking in a bath, starting at a lake or the ocean, standing under a hot shower and letting it soothe me. I cannot emphasize enough how very, very thankful I am for water.

17. Skyrim. It’s a video game. I’m a nerd.

18. Doula certification – it’s been a blast learning so much about supporting moms in childbirth, and getting to meet so many awesome and inspiring ladies along the way.

19. My job. I have been so blessed to get this job – the perfect location, hours, and lovely people who work there make me constantly amazed at how well it’s all turned out – something I worried about for almost a year!

20. My home.

21. My in-laws, who provide us with childcare.

22. My mom.

23. My grandma – the best grandma in the whole world – seriously! I wish I could hang out with her more often…

24. My brother and sister (and brother-in-law and nieces).

25. Sharks.

26. Books! I love, love, love reading, and am always grateful to come across a good book. Books totally rejuvenate me and open up my thoughts to things I would never come up with on my own…they really do give me access to a whole world of possibilities and understanding.

27. The Natural Parents Network volunteers – I am so thankful to be among their numbers! This is an amazing, amazing group of people and I feel very fortunate to have their wisdom and support.

28. Attachment Parenting and all that it’s entailed for me (acknowledging that it is different for many).

29. All the learning I’ve been experiencing lately around real food. So many eye openers…and I am grateful for the many who provide such awesome information and education on a subject in which I’ve been highly lacking for many years.

30. Farmers. They are awesome!

31. The Becoming Crunchy community – I am so incredibly thankful to have you here! I never imagined what a blessing you would be and always hope to give you good value in return – you truly are the best!

32. Proofreading. Another way in which I am weird, but it’s something I enjoy doing very much, and I’ve had quite a few opportunities to do it lately. (Disclaimer: there may well be proofreading errors to be found in this blog. I don’t claim to be as great with it in my own work )

33. The chance to get to come up with a lesson plan for my mom’s high school students around real food and food freedom.

34. Did I mention we celebrate two Thanksgivings? Two turkeys = awesome!

35. I am very, very, very thankful to be living in Canada.

36. My crock pot.

37. The fact that I know know how to make butter.

38. Our experiences thus far in ‘Becoming Crunchy’ – so many good for us changes we’ve made as a family.

39. Autumn leaves.

40. Walks through our neighborhood.

41. I am thankful that I have so many natural parents who support me with no judgement though I didn’t breastfeed. If you are among them, you have no idea how much it has meant to me – I thank you from the bottom of my heart!

42. Thunder.

43. Sandals.

44. My laptop.

45. The chance to see Ina May Gaskin speak in person – something I look forward to telling my grandchildren about!

46. My mom is coming to visit me this summer.

47. Campfires.

48. Chocolate.

49. Stars. One of the worst things about living in a city is being so separated from the stars, but I’ve had the opportunity to see some amazing night skies in my lifetime. I remember them well and always look forward to getting the chance to observe the stars whenever I can.

50. All the traveling I’ve been able to do.

51. Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. Coffee.

52. Sex. Hey – I’m thankful for it!

53. The success of my straw bale garden (which even now has herbs growing in it!).

54. Beer. I love beer.

55. Tattoos.

56. Facebook. I know it sounds cliche and having to deal with the frequent change-ups is annoying, but it really is an awesome way to keep in touch with everyone…

57. Comfy pants.

58. Family traditions – and getting to introduce them to Bean (and make new ones with her!).

59. Coconut oil.

60. Vinegar.

61. Baking Soda.

62. Castile Soap.

63. The internets. I don’t know what I would do without it lol (how did our parents live?? )

64. My food processor!

65. Dancing with Bean and the Husband.

66. Watching daddy and Bean asleep next to each other in our family bed. It just melts m heart every. single. time.

67. The opportunities we have to choose what we buy and consume, together with the resources to do so.

68. Pizza. Pizza rocks.

69. The telephone that lets me keep in touch with so many friends and family around the world.

70. Weekends.

71. The rare occurrences of my house actually being clean.

72. My faith, and new understanding, and growing, and awe.

73. Finding my purpose in life.

74. Our most recent anniversary. It was awesome – our first date night out since Bean was born, a really good restaurant, a great time together.

75. Waking up to hear Bean saying, “Good mownin”.

76. Having her fall back asleep in my arms when I feed her after she wakes in the night.

77. Dulce de Leche’s posts on Discipline and Vaccines.

78. This post from Christie Haskell – my first exposure to the idea of Baby Led Weaning (which totally freaked me out at first, by the way!).

79. This post about circumcision as it relates to Christianity, and this post from Woman Uncensored that led me to it. I’d also like to link to the Mothering Magazine post, The Case Against Circumcision, that originally changed my own views around the subject, but my bookmark link doesn’t work anymore…

80. The plethora of bloggers who have not only provided amazing community, but amazing wisdom – I can’t count how many ways I’ve totally changed my views about certain issues after being first exposed to new ideas on a blog and being led to further research because of it.

81. My bed.

82. Mexican food. There is nothing better – especially when you want something cheap, fast and amazingly good!

83. My dishwasher (can’t believe I didn’t think of that one sooner!).

84. Michael Schmidt.

85. Cozy sweaters.

86. We’re getting our carpets cleaned this weekend. I am very thankful for that!

87. My Boba baby carrier (and my Moby, and my Peanut Shell…husband, can I get another carrier? ).

88. Cooking. Another love (though I must admit I’m not so hot with the cleaning up!).

89. My breadmaker.

90. Bean’s laugh.

91. That the husband always pulls his share  and often more when it comes to Bean.

92. Good conversation.

93. Big weekend breakfasts.

94. An amazing gift we received recently from one of my sister’s-in-law – basically an entire library of kids books for Bean. As a former literature consultant she had all these books taking up space in her basement and was totally willing to just let us have them – SO awesome!

95. Artichokes. They are tasty.

96. Avocados. They are magical.

97. The green space behind our house and the sunsets I get to see there.

98. Art.

99. Being loved by so many.

100. Whew! I’m thankful I’ve completed this list! (I bet you are too lol).

I’m sure some of these things sound a little strange, but I really, truly am grateful for each and every one of them!

I’m definitely looking forward to reading the other posters who have accepted Amanda’s challenge, and am thankful to Miss Metro for putting it out there.

And now – what’s something you’re thankful for?

Be sure to check out some of the others who have joined the Gratitude Challenge:

• Let’s Take the Metro
• Working To Be Worthy
• True Confessions of a Real Mommy
• Momma Jorje
• Hobo Mama
• The Variegated Life
• TouchstoneZ
• African Babies Don’t Cry
• Hybrid Rasta Mama
• Adventures in Mommyhood: Mommy Outnumbered
• Anktangle
• Living Peacefully With Children
• Peace4Parents
• Fine and Fair
• Just Another Day
• Love Notes Mama
• Vibrant Wanderings
• And you won’t want to miss this one from Code Name: Mama!

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