Thankful Thursdays

As you all know, one of the blogs I visit on a regular basis is called Katie's Pencil Box.  It's a beautiful blog with incredibly beautiful photography.  On Friday last week, one day too late, I noticed that Katie is doing Thankful Thursdays for the month of November in honor of Thanksgiving.  Needless to say, I love the idea and will be doing it here for the rest of the Thursdays in November.  Sometimes we all just need to pay more attention to the blessing we have in our lives and appreciate them more. 

First off this week,  I am thankful for hot water bottles and baths.  After a long, rough week and a really cold day, sometimes they are the only things that can relax you and warm you up.  Definitely needed them today.  I felt cold and tired and generally really blah.  Then came my bath.   They really do wash all your troubles away. 

Mostly though, today, I am most thankful for my mama.  She's quite amazing and always there for me.  Today, I got a big envelop of all my favorite magazines and catalogs in the mail.  Then she spent all morning listening to me agonize over a piece of writing I was working and helped me edit it.  What would I do without her?  I hope she knows how much she is loved in return for it.  I don't think I could love anyone like I love her.  I hope she always knows how much I appreciate everything she does for my sister and me. 

After thinking about it long and hard today, I realized that I am very thankful I have chosen to follow the path that I am on.   It has been hard at times and I miss my family constantly.  But,  I have followed my heart and done so passionately.   I am glad I took a chance.  And I really am thankful for the opportunities and blessings I have had here so far. 

Finally, I am incredibly thankful for the beautiful fall we had here (which ended sometime between the pictures/run I took on Sunday and yesterday morning).  The leaves have all fallen off the trees and the autumn sunshine has gone, but I have to say, it was arguably the most wonderful, beautiful season I have ever experienced.  It was magical; at times, it was unreal.  I feel so lucky to have experienced it. 

What are you thankful for today?  Spread the gratitude and post a Thankful Thursdays post on your blog.  Or leave me a comment about what you are thankful for!  I'd love to hear about some of the blessings in your life.

P.S. Happy Almost Turkey Day!