Grateful

It's Thanksgiving tomorrow so I'd be remiss not to reflect on the many things in my life that I am grateful for. I love this time of year because it reminds us to be thankful. We shouldn't need a holiday to remind us to give thanks for the blessings in our life, but the reality is that we are all human and sometimes, we need a reminder in the form of a holiday!

So, here's what I'm thankful for this year!

1. Paul - Of course, I have to start with this little nugget of joy. Becoming a mom has been the best experience. Yes it's been trying at times and I'm super exhausted but it's all worth it.

A couple people have said Paul looks like me in this photo!

Mmm, pickles! He takes after me and loves pickles.

I am so in love with the latest batch of photos from our wedding photographer

2. A strong partner - It's been so fun to watch Phil become a dad. He had never held a baby before Paul was born but you'd never know from watching him. The work of mom and dad is never divided 50/50 but he helps out as much as he can. He's definitely Paul's favorite!

Paul loves rough-housing with daddy!

3. Our other baby - I can't leave our other/first baby, Oscar, off this list. She gets less attention since Paul came on the scene but has adapted pretty well. Paul loves her so much! She's been letting him get closer to her lately - hopefully they will be best friends some day!

4. Supportive family  - We are lucky to have supportive parents and siblings that offer advice or "I've been there!" comments. And his grandparents can't get enough photos of him! I send photos to my mom and MIL all the time and they seem to love getting them!

5. Friendships - Admittedly I haven't been able to devote as much time to friendships as I have in the past, but I'm still grateful for the good friends in our lives, both near and far. I know they understand that we are in a season of life where it's hard to get together with others. It helps that Phil's friends have similar-aged kids so we see them more often since they are on a similar schedule (i.e. they are all about afternoon/early evening get togethers that end at 6:30!) Because of this group of friends, Paul already has some buddies, like Gus. I can't wait to watch them grow up together!

How does this thing work? 

6. My health and good drugs - 2018 was a volatile year for me between the blood clot in January, my RA acting up so much during the pregnancy and having an unexpected C-section. But I'm thankful for my kind and competent team of doctors. And I'm thankful for the cocktail of drugs I take to keep my RA symptoms mostly at bay.

7. My job and my company's generous PTO policy - Coming back to work has been so hard - harder than I ever imagined it would be. But I know that continuing to work is the right decision in the long run so I am fighting through this difficult and lengthy period of adjustment. It helps that I came back to a job I like and a team that love. I'm also lucky that my company had a generous maternity leave (at least compared to other US companies - not compared to other countries unfortunately) and PTO policy. Taking every other Friday off to get extra time with Paul has really helped! I don't think we'll be taking any big vacation in 2019 so I will continue to use my PTO to get extra time with Paul.

8. Paul is cleared for tubes - We had Paul's ENT follow-up last week and as I suspected, he had another nasty ear infection so they decided to proceed with putting in tubes. He has surgery next Tuesday. It's not ideal for him to have surgery but I'll take that over repetitive ear infections and terrible sleep!

9. Daycare providers who love Paul - It's not easy to be away from Paul for 10 hours each day, but it helps to know that he's being taken care of by women who seem to genuinely love Paul. He's always happy when we pick him up and he doesn't cry when Phil drops him off. Each week they have a curriculum so parents can see what skills they are working on. I'm not sure how much Paul gets out of the curriculum at this age but eventually it will be more relevant.

Paul's first class photo. He clearly loves the camera!!! Some of the other kids look less thrilled. ;) 

10. All of you! - Some days I wonder if I should keep blogging but then I read comments from all of you or get an email from someone who reads my blog and I'm reminded that the community and friendships I've built make blogging worthwhile!

Happy Thanksgiving to those in the U.S. If you live in the US, what are you doing to celebrate? We are going to Phil's mom's for the day. I'll miss seeing my family but it will be nice to not travel! What are you thankful for?