Grateful

I've been feeling a bit whiny lately. Jason had to leave a few days early on a business trip, which has him gone for 10 days in a row. And it's been mostly grey and rainy out here. And a couple of gigs for our band haven't panned out. And the good-idea fairy has been visiting everyone else but me recently. And whine, whine, whine.

It's easy for me to be negative. It's easy for me to get up on a soap-box. It's easy for me to embrace cynicism.

On Tuesday, my friend Larry Hehn posted a piece about celebrating things we like instead of simply ranting about things that we don't. I thought about waiting until next month to do this because it might be redundant to have to thanksgiving posts, but you know? I think it'll be okay if I'm thankful for things more than once a year. So here we go.

I'm grateful for:

• that moment in the mornings when I'm alone in the house and the only sounds are a cat purring on my lap and the coffee brewing in the kitchen.
• the smell of clean laundry.
• that perfect spot in my husband's arms where I feel totally comfortable and protected and cherished.
• the feeling of accomplishment after absolutely nailing a song.
• Skype Bible study with my mom and sisters.
• the times I get to watch my oldest daughter march with a perfect roll step.
• silly Twitter memes that make me laugh for a solid minute.
• the sound of my sons' combined laughter.
• a perfectly cooked, deliciously seasoned medium-rare steak.
• a chord in a piece of music that makes me catch my breath.
• friends who think that the grocery store is a perfectly sane place to hang out and laugh.
• feeling the air in my lungs when I'm cooling down after a run.
• my youngest daughter's stories about the adventures that she and her stuffed animals are having.
• conversations that weren't planned and interfere with what a I have to do and are completely worth it.

What are you grateful for today?