2009 Top 100 Things I'm Thankful For

Yes, it's true...as with this blog in general, I haven't been kept up with the "Thankful Thursday" series I used to do. But, I do still want to take the time to do my annual Top 100 list.

Here goes. This year I'm thankful for:

1. My father's visit to Denver earlier this year
2. Getting to show him my life, my friends and my church while he was here
3. All the amazing house/maintenance projects he helped me with - including installing a new microwave!
4. Spending a weekend away with two of my sisters (Nikki and Jessica) - and starting an annual Labor Day tradition
5. Seeing one of those sisters (Nikki) for the first time in THREE years and determining to never let three years pass without seeing her again
6. Spending time with my amazing nieces (Kristin and Natalie) - they're delightful...wow...do I wish we lived closer to be a regular part of their lives
7. My job - with only a slight pay cut - when so many people have lost theirs this year
8. My home - and that I'm still somehow able to sustain the mortgage on my own
9. My 13-yr old car - still in great shape and no car payment!!!!
10. An amazing, week-long trip to Galveston with some of my most favorite people in the entire world
11. Going to the beach while in Galveston - maybe not the prettiest beach...but a beach just the same
12. Seeing my cousin Joseph get married
13. Seeing nearly every member of my father's side of the family (it's been a long time...)
14. Singing in my cousin Mariel's wedding
15. Seeing nearly every member of my mother's side of the family (it's been even longer....)
16. Getting a better picture of the amazing woman my mother was before she became ill
17. Spending time with my step sister Natasha and her husband Mike
18. Spending time with my littlest sister, Rebecca and her two absolutely adorable boys, Damien and Kaleb
19. The bond I have with my seven of my siblings - even though I've not lived near any of them in more than 12 years
20. Facebook - allowing me to keep in better touch with those siblings and friends around the world
21. Reconnecting with high school friends (some, after 12 years) - thank you, Facebook
22. Reconnecting with some friends from past mission trips after 13 years - again, thank you, Facebook
23. My phenomenol church - the Mile High Vineyard
24. The humbling ministry opportunities I've had this year
25. The new Wholeness (counseling) Ministry we've started/I have the priviledge of leading
26. The awesome team of folks I get to work with in the Wholeness Ministry
27. The lives that are already being healed, changed and freed through the Wholeness Ministry
28. Getting to oversee our Prayer and Intercession Ministry
29. Leading worship again...not not having to oversee the entire ministry anymore
30. Getting better and better on the guitar
31. Healing and reconciliation
32. Ministry transitions
33. God's kind prepration of my heart and mind for those transitions
34. The girls in my new small group
35. My friends/pastors Jay and Danielle and their tender, gracious love and care for me
36. The space they both help to create in my heart to believe that I'm loved, known, safe, appreciated, capable... (really, the list could go on and on)
37. My amazing friends - who show me every day (that I'll let them) that they can handle all of me - not just when I'm strong and have it all together - and who don't have any expectations of me
38. New friendships that are emerging
39. The ways the Lord tenderly speaks to my heart and loves me
40. Proof that the Lord knows the deepest wounds of my heart and longs to bring freedom to those places.
41. Proof that He also knows the deepest hopes and dreams of my heart and promises to bring them to pass
42. Reviving dreams I've had for many years at a time when they seem more possible than ever before
43. The Blind Side - an awesome movie that helped prove that some of my dreams really are possible....
44. My adopted child with Compassion Int'l - Letu
45. The fact that friends on their way to her country can bring her a hand-delivered gift from me
46. My "little sister" from BigBrothersBigSisters
47. The ways she brings so much joy to my life
48. The hope of one day having children of my own
49. The hope of one day being a foster parent
50. The hope of one day adopting children
51. Being in a church where so many families are adopting so that when it's my turn, I'll have tons of resources around me
52. Hope
53. Beauty
54. Love
55. Joy
56. Pain
57. Tears
58. Transition
59. Boundaries
60. Prayer
61. Safety
62. Holidays
63. Great ethnic food
64. A love for cooking
65. Friends willing to be my guinea pig for new recipes (sometimes without knowing it!)
66. Space heaters for cold days at work
67. Digital cameras
68. Bookstores
69. Great books like Men and Women in the Church
70. Coffee
71. Gelato
72. Pedicures
73. Sleeping in late
74. Lazy mornings
75. Journals
76. Guilty-pleasure TV shows
77. Redbox
78. A great glass of wine
79. Happy Hour
80. Chocolate
81. Road trips
82. Clinique's Happy Heart
83. Candles
84. Gerbera Daisies
85. Rec Centers that make working out easy and affordable
86. Working out
87. White-water rafting
88. Snow Shoeing
89. Autumns on the East Coast...and my increasing appreciation for autumn in Colorado - though so different from back East
90. Four seasons
91. Having all five senses intact
92. Singing
93. The NFL
94. Travel
95. Freedom to go wherever I want whenever I want
96. The possibility of starting my own business - and the freedom it will bring (time, energy, resources)
97. The nerdy skill I have that translates into a great small business opportunity
98. Living in Colorado - with it's beauty, amazing climate and fantastic people
99. Living in Denver - which satisfies my love for urban environments with nature in close proximity
100. The Savior's love and sacrifice for me and you