Day 193: Daylilies and Tulips growing!!!

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for spotting Tulips and Daylilies growing!!! The first new life that isn't a weed or grass that I have spotted growing. lol I am also thankful for tulips and daylilies because they come up so soon after the snow leaves and provide flowers before the other perennials are able to. They get hit with freezing temperatures and spring snow and still keep growing-they are pretty tough. It isn't just Tulips and Daylilies that are tough though-many bulbs are. I am thankful they are so tough or we would have to wait that much longer before the first flowers would come. I can't wait for the Daffodils and the muscari to start popping up as well. :) They give hope that winter is ending and spring and summer are coming. I know I say that alot about a bunch of different things but they are all each little signs of spring coming and I am thankful for each one! Spring is a great season because it is an end to winter and the start of something new and beautiful so spring also means hope to me. It is a great analogy that many people use to describe our lives and how winter never lasts and spring always comes... and spring is so beautiful and full of new life like the tulips and daylilies that are coming up. So with each new sign of spring it is a reminder that winter doesn't last with the weather and our lives. So this is why I am thankful for Daylilies and Tulips growing. :)

Day 192: It didn't snow!!!

Hello again,
I had to keep the title short so I should explain. I am thankful because the weather was forcasting snow and we were expecting it and it didn't come!!! We didn't get snow!!! Other places did and they got hit pretty good it looks like but we didn't! We woke up this morning expecting to see snow on the ground again and it wasn't there!!! I am soooo thankful for that because we had to go in to town today for different appointments and I really didn't want to drive in snow. I guess I am thankful also for things happening differently that I expect and it works out better than I thought it would. Alot of times things happen worse than I expect/bad things happen I didn't expect and it is so nice when things go better than I expected. :) I am thankful for each time that circumstances work out better than I expected. The fact that it didn't snow when it was supposed to and would have been a real pain is one of those times! So that is what I am thankful for today. :)

Day 191: Productive days

Hello again,
This post is for yesterday because I was unable to post. For this post I am thankful for productive days-the days where I feel I have accomplished a fair bit and I am proud of myself. I am not sure that I really felt I had a productive day but it wasn't too bad. I got more done that I have been getting done lately. By last night I was exhausted and felt I did get a fair bit done based on what I normally get done in a day. To some it may seem like I did very little but for me and how much my body allows me to do, it was a fair bit. It can be very frustrating sometimes having a body that doesn't work quite properly but I think I am actually not fighting it as much anymore and starting to accept it. I am not comparing my life and what I can do with others and what they can do as much as I used to which is good because we all have different circumstances and we shouldn't compare ourselves to others. So I am beginning to base a productive day on what is productive for me and not what is productive for another person. This way I can feel good about what I get done and not push myself past my limits. I am then able to be thankful for what I accomplish instead of always thinking that everyone else around me did so much more than me and I am useless. Because some days it is difficult to just get through the day, let alone get much done and I have to accept that I guess and not beat myself up over it. Those days make me so thankful for days where I can get a fair bit done and I feel good and proud of myself. Then I can say "I did good today!" and feel good. I am slowly getting stronger and I am able to do more and it feels good. :) So for this post I am thankful for productive days!

Day 190: First Thunder Shower this year!!!

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for the first thunder shower this year even though it was a weak one. We heard a few thunders and a sprinkle of rain but it was enough to get excited about for me! I always look forward to the first thunder shower or the first thunderstorm of the year-it is exciting for me. It makes it more real that the seasons are changing and that winter is coming to an end. I am so thankful for signs of winter coming to an end! I know winter still hasn't completely left (does it ever really leave completely? lol) but I enjoy seeing it slowly losing it's grip and seeing signs that spring is coming. I hope this makes sense-I am half asleep here. lol So I will leave it at this (short and sweet) and head to bed. :)

Day 189: Spotting the first green grass!!

Hello again,
Well today as I was walking outside at home, I noticed a patch of grass starting to turn green and I almost fell over in excitement. lol It is on the lawn that got flooded from the snow melting and I guess the conditions were right for that area to start turning green! I am so thankful to see some green grass!!! It isn't very high yet but it is totally visible and so amazing to see! Finally something other than brown dead grass or white snow. I also noticed the buds on the trees are starting to get bigger so that is also exciting! It's weird how a little bit of green grass affects me in the spring. lol After all the months without it though, it is a sight I have really missed. I can't wait to be able to look outside and see all green grass and green leaves on the trees and flowers on the veranda.... it will be here before we know it!

Day 188: Wildlife coming back!

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for Wildlife coming back and outside springing to life again! Winter is seemingly devoid of life and then spring comes and everything comes alive again! Today I saw the grouse are back and got photos, heard and saw the robins, heard the frogs start going again, saw 5 ducks (accidentally scared two of them. oops), saw the geese, spiders, ants (sadly they are back), flies, starlings, and I am probably forgetting other ones but you get the point. All of these animals or insects are not around during the winter and so it is interesting going outside and seeing all of them. It would not hurt my feelings though if the spiders and ants would stay away though(or at least be less visible). lol The geese and robins have been back for awhile but they are still something that isn't here over the winter so I included them still. It seems now that every day I see something else come back. This makes me so excited because everything is coming back to life and that means summer will come!!! I heard another bird today that I couldn't quite place and I hope to find out what it is soon. It sure is neat hearing the frogs again! I know in a few weeks I will be tired of them but for now it is neat. lol So today I am thankful for the wildlife slowly coming back! I can't wait to see butterflies again!

Day 187: Easter!!!!

Hello again,
Sorry this post is late-I was unable to post yesterday. For this post I am very thankful for Easter and what it means to me. Good Friday represents the day that Jesus died a horrible death on the cross and Easter Sunday represents the day that He rose from the dead! Jesus did this so that when we screw up that we can be forgiven because we do screw up and sometimes we screw up big. Jesus paid the price though for our screw ups because there is no way we ever could. Easter also means hope to me. Something good came out of something so bad. Bad things happen all the time but good can come out of it also. Anyways these are my thoughts on Easter. I hope I haven't offended anyone by sharing my thoughts. This is why I am thankful for Easter.
P.S-can't forget to mention the chocolate too! lol with Easter comes chocolate. :) I love chocolate. :)

Day 186: good days

Hello again,
Sorry for the short absense but I have been unable to post. So this post is for Saturday and I wanted to post about being thankful for Good days. I think I should explain this a bit. What I call good days are the days where I have minimal pain and I have a good day. The reason I am thankful for these good days is because of days like Saturday which was a bad day. Every so often I have bad days where I am in so much pain that simple tasks like walking around the house or carrying something as small as a glass of water are very difficult due to pain. On days like Saturday, I am now starting to be grateful for the good days instead of thinking about the pain I am in and being negative about the bad days. I was proud of myself that while going through the pain, I kept feeling grateful that it isn't constant and I have good days because that pain could very well be constant. Because of the bad days, I don't take good days for granted and I enjoy each one and I don't think I would so much if I didn't go through the bad stuff. I don't think I could recognize how much of a blessing it is to be without pain if I didn't know what the pain felt like. I know that everyone can relate because we have all been in pain and then gotten better and it feels so amazing doesn't it? Like when you have a headache and the headache goes away and you are so grateful to be headache free because it feels so amazing. Where if you didn't have the headache then you would not realize how amazing it is to be without a headache right? That is what I mean here. Another example would be the weather I suppose. If we didn't experience cloudy stormy days then we would not realize how wonderful the sun is and wouldn't be so happy when it comes out again. If we always had the sun, we might take it for granted because we haven't experienced anything else. I am not saying I want pain or like pain but I am finding the positive in it which is that it helps me be thankful for the good days. Looking forward to the next good day helps me to get through the bad days also. So this is why I am thankful for good days. :)

Day 185: Good Friday

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for Good Friday which we celebrated today. It is the day that we use to remember that Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world. I remember the year that I learned what a horrible awful death it is to die on a cross. As a child I knew the words that Jesus died on a cross but it didn't mean much to me other than He died. Whether you believe that Jesus is the Son of God or that He was just a man, He really existed and He died a horrible death. For people who believe He is the Son of God, He died that death so we could be forgiven. I am not here to debate whether He was or wasn't who He said He was but there is plenty of evidence that He did exist and I am talking about a real person. I say this for those who may feel I am being disrespectful to what they believe by sharing my beliefs. Anyways I believe He is the Son of God and I believe He died for my sins and that means so much to me. He paid the price because there is no way I ever could. This is possibly the thing from my whole list that I am the most thankful for. He went through so much pain for us. He was mocked and beaten and killed in a horrible way to pay for our sins. That is so powerful to me. But death could not defeat Him and He rose again in 3 days. I am so thankful for Jesus dying for my sins and the sins of others and for Good Friday to remind us of what He did for us. thanks for reading my blog.

Day 184: Earth Day

Hi again,
This post is for yesterday because I was unable to post. I felt that since it is Earth Day and Good Friday today that I should have a post for each so for yesterday's post I chose to be thankful for Earth Day. I think Earth day is great because it reminds us to be kind to the environment and to think of ways that we can be more environmentally friendly. It doesn't have to be anything huge and it doesn't have to be costly either. In fact some ways to be more environmentally friendly actually save us money! One example would be turning off lights when we are not using them which cuts down on electricity we use (which helps the environment)  and also saves us money. Choosing to use the air dry function on the dishwasher saves money and helps the environment as well. Making your own compost is great and saves money because it helps your plants which can cut down on fertilizer you need which cuts down on what you spend for fertilizer. Some things like cutting down on the waste you create may or may not save money but it is a great thing to do. Even creating a flower garden with plants that don't need to be watered as much is helpful to the environment. Or simply buying a plant for your home helps clean the air. Or plant a tree outside. There are many simple ways to change how we impact the environment and I am thankful for Earth Day because it gives us a day to think about what we can do. We don't have to make drastic changes to how we live to help the environment but you can do that if you are able to. I would like to leave you with some facts to check out.
One of my most favorite facts is this one: Recycling 1 aluminum can saves enough energy to power a tv for 3hrs!!!!
There is also one that says recycling a glass bottle can power a light bulb for 4hrs!!
There are some really neat facts here also at http://www.planetpals.com/fastfacts.html It is worth checking out!

Day 183: people who read my blog

Hello again,
Today I could definitely say I am thankful for learning from mistakes but that one is done already. lol I made quite a big mistake today with my plants and thankful that I learned from it.... hopefully. lol Anyways today I am thankful for you- the people who read this blog. I have learned that more people read my blog than just the people who officially follow my blog and I am thankful that people read what I write. I do not know how many people read it but I do know I am thankful for each and every one of you and the time you take out of your lives to read what I write. It really means something to me. I hope that you are able to take something from what I write each day and it is helpful in some way. I hope that I am helping you to be more aware of blessings in your life as well. If not and you just come to see what I write-that is ok too. :) Anyways I am thankful for you reading my blog. I truly hope that you experience many blessings in your life as well. Having blessings in our life and being aware of them does not mean there is an absense of negative stuff but that we just choose to focus on the positive the best we can while going through the negative things in life. I know that we all go through alot because no one is immune to that but I also know that we have alot of positive blessings in our lives too, along with the negative stuff. Anyways today I am thankful for people (you) who read my blog!

6 Months down and 6 to go

Hello again,
Well today is the 6 month mark of my blog and I have been thinking about it alot. This is my half way point in this project of mine and it is causing me to reflect and see if it is making a difference in my life or not. If I am being honest, I think it has made some difference for the better but counting your blessings and being aware of them doesn't make everything ok and all rosy. I think there is more to becoming a more positive person than to be more aware of my blessings. But I think that seeing my blessings is definitely a big part of being a more positive person. I was under no illusions at the beginning that this project would stop bad stuff from happening but I hoped it would help me focus on the positive more often instead of dwell on the negative. I think for the most part I am getting there. I still see the negative and I still have to deal with it as well but it helps to see the positive side of each situation also. I am also aware that some days it is very difficult to come up with something to write about but I am happy to say that I have come up with 182 blessings so far, no matter how big or small or silly they are-I am genuinely thankful for each one. This is also a personal list of blessings for me and I don't expect everyone to relate to each blessing I post and I thank everyone who has joined me in this journey of mine so far. I do have to admit that sometimes I wonder if I will indeed be able to find the entire 365 blessings that I pledged to find in my life. But I also know that they are there and exist and I just have to be aware of everything good in my life. I fully intend to find 365 blessing and believe that I can as well.... no matter how big or small or silly they are. I appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read my blog and I hope you are able to take something away from it as well. I do challenge everyone to come up with 100 blessings at least because I know that we all have at least that many. If that is really simple for you-I applaud you and challenge you to keep going to 200. I know that each of us will have a different list and I think that is neat because it shows our uniqueness. Feel free to share blessings in your life with me and others-I would love to hear them! Or let me know that you took my challenge. Feel free to challenge others as well. Now I must go and write about Day 183. Thanks for reading my blog!

Day 182: getting really close to a robin today

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for getting really close to a robin AND having my camera in my hand. lol Usually if I manage to be close then I don't have my camera or if I have my camera then the birds are never close by. lol But today I looked out my window to see 2 robins in the tree outside and I decided to take my camera and try to get close. Once I got outside there was only one robin left but it let me get so close to it and take pictures as well. I was so extremely happy! Usually they get scared and leave before I can get close enough to get a good photo. So I ended up with a few reasonably good photos which I will share a couple of below. It was difficult to get good photos without branches getting in the way though. This was quite a treat though to get up so close to the robin. I am really thankful for that chance to do that. Anyways below are two photos and I hope you enjoy them!
I just ask that you don't copy them. Thanks for hopefully understanding.

Day 181: the book "Complete Guide to Houseplants"

Hi again,
This post is for yesterday because I was unable to post. For this post I am thankful for a specific book today- "the Complete Guide to Houseplants. The easy way to choose and grow happy healthy houseplants" This is actually a library book so I don't own it but it is an amazing book!The reason for this is because I learned alot flipping through the book especially on the day I got it. The day I got it out of the library, I had also gone to Walmart and I had been looking at houseplants. I had seen a houseplant at Walmart that I liked but of course it didn't have a name on it. So I started flipping through this book and happened to land on the page for this exact plant I had just seen in Walmart. lol I found that quite amazing. The plant is called a Button Fern. This book has the most houseplants in it that I have ever seen in a book from the books I have looked at and it has a section on each plant to explain how to take cuttings if it is possible. I really like that because I love taking cuttings off of our plants to make new plants. I also learned that spider plants do not have to be attached to the parent plant to be rooted and this is something I have been wondering. There is so much information in this book that I am quite thankful for it! I also discovered what the name of one of our nameless plants is! lol This book is a great book if you are into growing houseplants like we are. :) I am sure there are still lots of plants not included in this book because of the amount of houseplants out there but it has every single one of our plants in there and more. It is very helpful to know the name of the plants because it makes it much easier to know what the plants need to be happy. So this is why I am so thankful for this particular book! :)

Day 180: Ice Scrapers

Hi again,
Today I am thankful for ice scrapers... well yesterday I was really thankful for ice scrapers but I had something else to post about so I left this for today's post. :) I had to post about it though because having an ice scraper in the car is so wonderful when you need it! You don't really notice how wonderful till you don't have one handy or you hear of someone who didn't have one handy. lol I often take it for granted that when I need the ice scraper, I just reach into the back seat and grab it and it is there. Yesterday was one of those days that I needed an ice scraper because the car was sitting in the parking lot for awhile and it was snowing and melting and freezing on the car. When I got to the car, there was ice on the side mirrors and the back window. I was very thankful for that ice scraper and the fact that we never take it out of the car because you never know when you will need it. We seem to have lots of snow storms seemingly at any time of the year(well except July thankfully). lol I have a friend in Texas who was without an ice scraper when he needed one and ever since then I have been reminded to be more grateful for having the ice scraper in the car. I remember someone mentioning you can use a credit card but I can't imagine having to use a credit card for the whole back window? Yet if that is all you have I guess it is better than nothing. Anyways today I am thankful for ice scrapers!!!

Day 179: time with friends

Hi again,
Today I went out with a couple friends and we had such a great time and I am so thankful for that time spent with them. We had fun chatting and laughing over lunch and it was so nice. Then we went and saw a movie together which turned out to be good also which is great. I haven't really been able to do much of this in the last few years so it is really nice that I am able to get out again more and do stuff like getting together with friends. Plus I am thankful for my friends specifically for who they are because they are such nice kind people. :) It's nice to get away from all the "stuff" going on in life and just have some fun. So that is what we did this afternoon and it was great! So today I am thankful for time with friends. :)

Day 178: Learning new things

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for learning new things. I feel that if we want to, we can spend our entire life learning and that is part of what life is about. I love learning and gaining knowledge and understanding stuff that I didn't before. I am drawn to stuff I don't understand and I love to figure it out and learn about it. That is partly why I love the library so much with all the books that contain so much information to soak up and learn. I have been delving further into photography techniques and gardening stuff this week and understanding new things that I didn't know before. It is neat how I can know a fair bit about a subject but in terms of all there is to learn about it, I have only scratched the surface. So it is neat to think that I can always keep learning and never get to a point that I have no more to learn. As you can possibly tell, I love learning! :) I am thankful for the ability to retain what I read and learn as well or else it would be useless to read. Of course I don't retain everything I read but alot of the important stuff sticks I hope. It helps me to be more effective in day to day activities or more creative in my projects when I know more. I also like the feeling I get when I learn new things-I suppose I feel smarter and less confused. I hate the feeling of not understanding something and being confused. So this is why I am thankful for learning new things. :)

Day 177: A good photo of Canadian Geese

Hello again,
I am afraid that despite my best efforts to not post anything twice, I realized that yesterday I did. I posted about Blood Donors near the beginning of my blog. So I am doing another post for yesterday because I feel that I need to stick to my plan to post something different each day. I know that sometimes some posts are nearly identical but it is sometimes hard to avoid that I think. I hope you are enjoying my blog as much as I am enjoying writing it. :)
Today I am thankful that I finally got a good photo of Canadian Geese! This is something that I have been attempting to do for some time but they either are too far away that I can't get to them or I scare them before I get the picture I want. I finally got a better lens for my camera and yesterday I was able to capture a photo of two geese that I am proud of. I hope to get better photos in the future but this one I am happy with. I am so thankful for the picture because it is one more thing that I can cross off my list of things to do. :) I would not say this list is a bucket list of any kind-just a list of stuff I want to do. So below I have attached the photo and I know it isn't steller or anything but it is the best photo I have ever gotten of geese.

Day 177: Blood Donors

Hello again,
Today I got to thinking about blood donors and how wonderful blood donors are. During my last back surgery I lost alot of blood and required a blood transfusion and that blood was there because of people who took time to donate blood. Since then I have been so extremely thankful for that and the difference it made in my life. I can not donate blood currently but I hope to be able to in the future. I have always known the difference it can make to have blood available when people need it but until I personally needed it, it never really hit me like it does now. To me, blood donors are heroes in a way because their blood that they take time to donate saves lives. So to all the people who have donated in the past and those who donate currently- you are all amazing people and thanks from someone who has needed blood. I hope I never need another blood transfusion but I don't know what the future holds. I wish that no one would have to need a blood transfusion but the reality is that there will always be a need for it. So I am very thankful for blood donors and I ask that anyone who doesn't donate blood to please at least think about it. You can save a person's life. Thanks for reading my blog.

Day 176: Hairspray

Hello again,
This post is for yesterday because I was unable to post. For this post I am thankful for hairspray because it comes in handy when it's windy. :) The past few days have been quite windy and while there is a certain point that hairspray can't hold your hair, it is useful for breezy days and your hair isn't all over the place when you walk inside. It also holds those annoying little hairs in place that are determined to not stay out of your face. lol Or hair that isn't long enough to be pulled back into a ponytail. There are also some amazing uses for hairspray that have nothing to do with hair! From an article on http://www.lifehackery.com/ it states that hairspray can help preserve cut flowers. Apparently it also works as insecticide but it does this by hardening the wings of insects which I think would lead to a slow painful death for the insect. But that is my opinion. Readers Digest claims that it can stop runs in pantyhose! RD also says that hairspray is useful to remove lipstick from fabric. "Apply hair spray to the lipstick stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Wipe off the hair spray and the stain should come off with it. Then wash your shirts as usual." Another use apparently is keeping recipe cards clean. Apparently if you spray the recipe cards with hairspray it makes wiping food splatters off easy. RD also says that it removes ink stains! This could be very useful because this has happened to me a few times. It works by spraying the ink stain and then wiping it and apparently it comes right off. So there you have it-hairspray is something to be very thankful for!

Day 175: Abilities

Hi again,
Today I am thankful for abilities or gifts that we each have. We don't all have the same abilities and we are all unique. I am thankful for my abilities and what I do well. We are all unique and we all fit together because of that. If we were all good at the same things then there would be a problem. I am proud to say that I am creative and I think I have a gift at that. I am told I am good at photography also. I am also good at Math and Science. I also love my green thumb! I think too often we look at what we can't do, like with me I know I am not the best writer but I truly do appreciate those who have this gift. I think we need to stop looking at what we are not good at that other people are and look at what we are good at and be proud of that. Not to make ourselves better than others but to be more positive about ourselves. I think it is ok to toot your own horn once in awhile. :) I am proud of what I can do and I think we all should be proud of our abilities. I am also thankful for my gifts because I have something to hopefully contribute and make other people's lives better. I hope this makes sense. :) anyways this is why I am thankful for Abilites today.

Day 174: Mistakes

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for mistakes I have made. This may seem a bit odd to some people so let me explain. Every time I make a mistake then I have the opportunity to learn from it and not repeat it again. If I learn from a mistake then I am hopefully becoming smarter on what not to do. lol  I read a quote once a long time ago that something is only a mistake if you don't learn from it. So I have always remembered that and I try to learn something so I don't repeat the same thing over again. I suppose I am growing as a person through my mistakes. Another way to phrase it is that my mistakes teach me lessons. I do not always learn though (I am human after all) and it sometimes takes a few times for the lesson to sink in. lol I also find that when I look at mistakes I make in this way that I have less regret. I can move on and not continue kicking myself. We all make mistakes-that's part of life. We might as well turn those mistakes into something good right? I remember a story about Edison creating the light bulb. As far as I remember it, people thought Edison failed 10,000 times before creating the light bulb but Edison told them "I haven't failed, I've found 10,000 ways that don't work." While in this instance it was failure and not mistakes, I still think it is pretty similar and makes the same point I am attempting to make. Every time he failed or made a mistake according to other people-he was learning and using that to do better the next time. He knew not to look at something as a failure and to look at it as a learning opportunity. This is why I am thankful for my so called mistakes/failures. :)

Day 173: our greenhouse

Hi again,
Today I am thankful for our greenhouse. A few years ago we built our own greenhouse and it has become like my second home during the warmer months. lol Even while recovering from surgery I managed to take care of a few plants. I couldn't lift anything but I had help with that so I could still grow flowers. Sometimes it seems like the only thing I am good at but at least I am good at something! :) I like tending to the plants and watching them grow-it is almost like therapy. I find it very relaxing and I would not be able to do this as much as I do without the greenhouse. The most I have ever grown in one year is about 400 plants which was too much for me. lol I usually grow a couple hundred even though it never seems like that much. So you can see how I spend alot of time in the greenhouse! It also gives me a purpose, a reason to get up- something needs me. They may not be another person or even a pet but the plants are alive and will die if not taken care of. A couple of days ago, I started being able to take my little seedlings out into the greenhouse during the afternoon because it has been warm enough outside and in the greenhouse for them and that is partly why I am feeling so thankful for our greenhouse today. The seedlings will grow into much nicer plants in the greenhouse than if they sat by a window. So this is why I am thankful for our greenhouse. :)

Day 172: Flower Seeds

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for flower seeds as I begin to plant them again for this year. I am thankful for them for a few reasons. The first is that I can grow flowers on my own without needing to do cuttings and what. The second is because each year I am left in awe over how a plant can come from such a tiny seed. It reminds me of the wonderful things that happen around us every day. It helps me to notice so much more around me  to be thankful for when I really think about everything that happens around us without us having anything to do with it. Sure we water and care for the seeds to grow them into plants but we don't cause the photosynthesis or tell the seed to grow roots and a stem and then leaves and so forth. Everything that is programed into that tiny seed is so amazing. The last (but not least) is that flower seeds grow into plants which grow flowers which I love so much. :)

Day 171: The Blue Day Book

Hi again,

Today I am thankful for "The Blue Day Book -A lesson in cheering yourself up" by Bradley Trevor Greive. It is a book with cute animal photos with captions underneath that are funny but true at the same time. I like to look at it when I feel down and it cheers me up some. I will end up smiling over the funny photos and captions which helps me feel a bit better. Today I read through it again and handed it to my parents too to read. Anyways I am grateful I bought it years ago and have it to pull off the shelf and read when I need something to make me smile and remind me of stuff. The picture below is taken off of http://www.amazon.ca/ There is a youtube video of it below as well if you want to check that out.

Day 170: Lactaid drops

Hello again,
Today I am thankful for Lactaid Drops. They are special drops that you put into milk and it makes it safe for lactose intolerant people like myself to drink it. I can then use the milk in baking and cooking and I don't need to worry about taking a lactaid pill each time. This way I can have milk and cooking/baking that contains milk in it where otherwise I would be unable to. I recently made Boston Cream pie that I used the Lactaid milk for and I can't imagine not being able to have that dessert! Of course sometimes the drops are not able to be used which is where the pills come in handy. :) When I eat out at a restaurant I need to use the pills which I am also so grateful for! The Lactaid drops also work out cheaper to use than if I used pills alone for every time I want to consume milk or stuff containing milk. Anyways I am really thankful for lactaid drops!

Day 169: Remote Controls

Hi again,
I have to admit it-I love remote controls. lol I know that may come across as being lazy but I prefer to think of it as being efficient. lol Just think about the time saved that you don't have to walk up to a device and change something vs having a remote beside you and you can change it instantly. lol Yes there are times the remote has legs and gets lost and then it wastes time searching but then we get exercise looking for the remote so it's all good. :) Another plus about remote controls is the MUTE button! Oh my goodness that comes in handy when those annoying commercials come on that I can't stand. Or when I used to watch American Idol and needed instant relief. :) For some odd reason there is never a mute button on the tv-only the remote. I have never been able to figure this one out. Anyways, I am thinking about this today because I didn't have a remote handy for my cd player and was reminded how thankful I am for remotes. :) Speaking of cd players-if you love somewhat jazzy music then you should check out Meaghan Smith! A friend of mine told me about her music and shared a music video and I love her music. Anyways today I am thankful for remote controls (even when they go missing lol).

Day 168: Light bulb moments

Hi again,
This post is for yesterday because I had a migraine and staring at the screen was pretty difficult so I thought it best to leave it till today.
So for this post I am thankful for light bulb moments-the moments where things all of a sudden make sense. I didn't have one but I am hoping for one. lol It can be so gratifying when you have these moments because of the problem you are facing has been difficult to figure out or make sense of. It is wonderful when you finally understand something that has been eluding you. I wish I understood everything and why everything happens but I don't. So the next best thing I guess is light bulb moments when the light turns on so to speak in your head and you finally get it. lol So that is what I am thankful for today.

Day 167: podcasts

Hi again,
Today I am thankful for podcasts from Itunes which are quite nice. I subscribe to a few and you can learn all kinds of stuff through podcasts-even stuff that is not useful. lol I tend to stick to the useful informative podcasts though. lol One podcast I really enjoy is one from the Mosaic Church in Los Angeles where they film the sermans and I can see them all the way over here in Canada. The Pastors at the church are great speakers and have great messages so I enjoy being able to see them. I have even attempted to learn spanish through podcast despite it not working so well. lol

Photo of the first robin spotted here this year!!

Hi again,
As promised, here is a photo that I took this morning of the robin I saw. It was the best I could do and I hope to get better photos this year with my camera but I thought I would share a photo of the first robin to visit our place this year! Enjoy!

Day 166: The first ROBIN this year!!!!

Hi again,
Today I am so incredibly thankful for seeing the first robin this year!!!! This morning I was outside for a walk and I spotted the robin hopping along in the snow and I could not believe my eyes!! If this isn't a sign of spring coming then I don't know what is! It is so incredibly wonderful hearing the robin singing again! It has been too long since I have heard that sweet song. I have to admit I am longing for more variety than the chickadees, magpies and crows all the time. lol Seeing the robin this morning gave me more hope that spring could come again! lol I did grab my camera and got a photo of the robin even though it wasn't very close. I will be sure to post it either tonight or tomorrow hopefully. I do feel bad for the poor robin though-it must be confused why there is still so much snow on the ground.
On a not so exciting note-flies are starting to appear as well as spiders. Ewww the creepy crawlies are thawing out...er.. coming out of hiding. lol I actually killed two spiders already. But it means spring and I love signs of spring. The creepy crawlies are food for the birds so I must be thankful for them as well I guess. *sigh* lol As you can possibly tell, seeing the robin today was really exciting!!! I do love the sound of birds and winter can be so silent while they are gone. But they are starting to come back and I am very thankful for that and super excited!

Day 165: Pancakes

Hi again,
Today I am thankful for pancakes. I had a craving for pancakes today so I made some blueberry chocolate chip pancakes. :) They were very yummy! Anyways pancakes are so good and easy to make and I am thankful for them. I find I am thankful for alot of food on here. lol

Day 164: April Fool's Day

Hi again,
Today is April Fool's day and I am thankful for it because I love to read about the pranks that people attempt to pull and have a laugh. Now that we have twitter, it is fun to read the tweets meant to fool people as well. One that I did read that was obviously a prank but so funny is that youtube.com is celebrating 100yrs and to click to see the top 5 videos from 1911. I just about fell over laughing on that one. LOL Just in case people are wondering, Youtube was created in 2005 which is not quite 100yrs ago or even 10yrs ago. lol I am wondering if anyone actually fell for that one? If you are half asleep you may not realize it is a joke? I don't know. Anyways that is the best one I saw today. So that is why I am thankful for April Fool's Day. :)