100 Things I'm Grateful For

In no particular order:

1. My family -- my children are healthy and generally happy (although they think it is the end of the world when I turn off the tv and put the candy away) and my husband is here with us instead of being off in a foreign land helping Haliburton get richer, guarding oil fields, and fighting sand fleas and other people's battles.

2. My parents -- my mom for showing me how to be a strong woman with a big mouth and even bigger dreams and my dad for making her dreams come true.

3. My house -- it may be small, but it is huge in the way it has changed our lives.

4. My dogs -- yes, even Truman.

5. Living in Hawaii -- I'll be working off my turkey and the trimmings with a quick dip in the pool followed by a nice walk through the neighborhood IN SHORTS!

6. The 22nd Amendment to the US Constitution -- I fear they would elect him to a third term if it weren't for this godsend.

7. Purell -- if it weren't for instant hand sanitizer, my children and I would probably be sick all the time

8. The internet -- besides being a dynamic encyclopedia that feeds my constant hunger for trivial information, it has kept me connected with hundreds of people that I love dearly.

9. Money -- we don't have a lot of it, but we have more than enough.

10. My body -- despite the fact that it might not be much to look at, it has created 2 people and kept them well fed, plus it runs pretty well on left over Happy Meals and Diet Coke.

11. My Grandma Mallow -- she's a Renaissance woman who has taught me how to act like a cork and float above all the shit.

12. My brothers -- all five of them for teaching me how to fight, for giving me all my nieces and nephews, and for loving my children.

13. The works of William Shakespeare -- reading his work is like a decadent chocolate for the mind.

14. Chocolate -- my drug of choice.

15. My board -- you know who you are and you know how very much you mean to me.

16. My husband -- did I mention him already? Well, indulge me here. He really strives to make me happy and even when he doesn't succeed, I know he's still trying.

17. Wrinkle Releaser -- I will never iron again.

18. That it's only four years -- how much damage can he do in another four years. Really? How much?

19. Washing machines -- can you even imagine doing 15 loads of laundry a week BY HAND?

20. Pregnant bellies -- Call me a weirdo, but I love to see a pregnant belly. My very dear friend Terrie was just out here with her little baby bulge and it made me damn near giddy to see it.

21. Hawaiian sunsets -- God's animated artwork.

22. Cranberries -- one cup water, one cup sugar, one bag o'cranberries, boil, cool, and eat.

23. Our new "King's bed" (as Reilly Kate calls it) -- like sleeping on a great big cloud. Too bad I don't get to spend more time in it.

24. My friend Andrea -- godmother to my daughter and partner in crime to me. She's been through the thick and thin with me (literally) and still stands by my side.

25. Reilly Kate's preschool -- three glorious hours twice a week!!!

26. Magic Erasers -- truly something magical to take crayon off the walls.

27. www.fuckthesouth.com -- for making me laugh every damn time I read it.

28. The Catholic church -- an unlikely spiritual home for me that is the perfect fit.

29. My friend Amy -- her phone calls have kept me sane, her advice has made me a better mother, and her friendship means the world to me.

30. Palm trees -- of all trees, Palm trees are my favorite and I'm thankful I get to see them every day.

31. My teeth -- despite years of neglect, they are still pearly white and strong.

32. My son's kisses -- he just started giving them out freely this week and they are open mouthed and slobbery and sweet.

33. Ben and Jerry -- hormone free ice cream served in unbleached paper containers. Now if they could just come up with a calorie free flavor.

34. St. Anthony -- who just keeps helping me find lost items (Molly Dolly on Saturday and Roman's shoe yesterday, for example).

35. Water -- a simple thing that a majority of people on this planet struggle to have every day.

36. My ability to make people laugh -- it's basically my only redeeming quality.

37. My friend Holly -- my oldest friend, like a sister to me really, who worries when she hasn't heard from me and forgives me when I send her son's birthday gift 2 months late.

38. Tampons -- Pads. Eeeew.

39. My education -- someday I will do something with it all but for now those degrees make a nice decorating touch to my alcove office.

40. Digital cameras -- I love being able to see pictures and share pictures almost instantly.

41. Trade winds -- Trade winds are a very important thing here in the tropics. A bit of mother nature's air conditioning. We take them for granted until they die down and then we beg mother nature to give 'em back!!!

42. Mascara -- without it, I would look like I had no eyelashes.

43. www.beliefnet.com -- a great place to connect with all matters divine.

44. My friend Maya -- we've grown apart over the last year, but the impact she made on my life influences me every day.

45. The Old Napster -- I downloaded so many wonderful old Christmas tunes that my children now enjoy. I am crushed that greedy people who don't know how much money is enough had to squelch it.

46. Oxyclean -- have I ever mentioned I bought a white couch two weeks before finding out I was pregnant with Reilly? WHITE. COUCH. WHITE!!!

47. ACLU -- for fighting the good fight.

48. David Letterman -- because he's funnier than Leno.

49. I'm not getting a presidential Christmas card -- I'd probably put a match to it and set the whole house ablaze.

50. Portable DVD players -- the only way to fly with small children.

51. Roman's godparents, Terrie and Bill -- for coming out here for his first birthday and for being such great and interesting people. I cannot wait to meet their offspring!

52. Rainbows -- we have so many of them here and each one is just as spectacular as the next.

53. Snow -- only when I'm sitting in my warm, tropical home and watching it fall on CNN. If I'm shovelling it, then forget it.

54. Cloth diapers -- because I use them my kids have never ::knock on wood:: had a diaper rash.

55. Disposable diapers -- because I don't always wash and dry my diapers on a regularly scheduled basis.

56. My cousins Wendy and Melissa -- for allowing me to experience a little sisterhood in my youth.

57. 1010987 -- 3 cents a minute phone calls to any state in the Union, Canada, Western Europe, and Korea. What a bargain!

59. Tweezers -- what did women do before the advent of tweezers, I ask you? Did they just grow beards on their chins, bushy eyebrows, and hairy chests?

60. NPR -- because it is nice to hear REAL news versus the fluffy crap aired on the networks.

61. Air conditioning -- I spent the 8 months pregnant with Reilly Kate in the sweltering heat of Ewa before we installed air conditioners. I think I literally baked my kid and wrecked my internal thermostat. I'll never be cold again.

62. My treadmill (and my wonderful husband who bought it for me) -- without it (and Dora videos for the kids), I would probably never get to run.

63. The sounds of the ocean -- the most calming, healing, meditative sound in the whole world.

64. My literary soulmate, Michelle -- a good friend who I respect immensely. Check your local Borders sometime in the next 20 years for a book authored by the two of us.

65. Colorstay Nail Polish -- hands down, the best polish on the market. This stuff will keep my toes pretty for at least a MONTH! Normally, polish chips off me within hours of application. This stuff is the shiznit!

66. Reilly Kate's gorgeous, reddish, light brown eyes -- she and I are so much alike in personality that it is reassuring to look into her eyes and see someone else. Otherwise, I might think I'm totally nuts and arguing with myself.

67. Being from Chicago -- no place like it that I've seen (and I've been all over). It's a great place to be from and I love going home. Sweet home Chicago.

68. Turkey -- man, do I love me some turkey. I know what PETA and the Humane Society say. And they're right. Those poor turkeys go through fucking hell just to wind up on our plates. Their oversized breasts (something I know a whole lot of about and have the utmost sympathy for) and bum joints and infections are a total bitch. But, as I type with a belly full of turkey, let me say, I sure am grateful. So thanks, turkeys, from the bottom of my gullet.

69. And while I'm at it, 20lb turkeys for only 8 bucks -- just go to your local Safeway and get yourself a 20+ pounder for just 7.99 plus tax. America, what a country!

70. Believing in something greater than myself -- this belief guides me every day and makes me strive to do and be better.

71. My midwife and my doula -- without these two amazing women the births of my children would have been medically managed nightmares.

72. Living in a place where we are a racial minority -- it is extremely eye opening and I'm glad my children are being exposed to diversity at this young an age.

73. Intuition Razors -- eliminating the shaving cream step saves so much more time than you'd think. I can actually shave more than once a week now.

74. Being able to stay home with my children -- both a blessing and a curse that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world.

75. Sunblock -- it ain't easy living in the tropics with the two whitest children on the island. It would be impossible without sunblock.

76. Fragile by Sting -- this song changed the whole direction of my life.

77. Sasha, my only friend on this island -- because she's a liberal feminist military wife just like me. We are islands unto ourselves.

78. The pool -- the only free place on the island that the kids and I can walk to.

79. The Bush Tax Cut -- because I sent the whole damn thing to the DNC.

80. Skim milk -- low fat, high in calcium. Oh, and so so tasty with cookies!

81. Mozart -- you just can't tire of listening to Mozart. Even my kids love Mozart which I fully give credit to that Baby Mozart DVD. What a talent.

82. Geckos -- they eat the bugs that are the scourge of living in Hawaii

83. Christmas cards -- we send out over 100 Christmas cards a year and get very few in return, but the ones that we do get we are grateful for. It is sometimes the only time we hear from people throughout the year.

84. www.birthandbaby.com -- they've kept my size 42I cup breasts housed in the best nursing bras made for very reasonable prices. The gals there have only steered me wrong once and they've more than made up for that since.

85. Roe vs. Wade -- I highly doubt I would ever have need of an abortion, but I'm grateful that I have the right to decide what happens to my body.

86. Ebay -- the world's largest flea market. If you can't find it there, then you don't really need it.

87. The US Army -- for providing Mike job security. Sure, he could get killed, but he'll never lose his job due to downsizing just before retirement.

88. My friend Lorena -- she's coming out here for Christmas which will be so much fun for us. She's been a good friend to me for a long time and I'm thrilled she'll be spending our last Mele Kalikimaka with us.

89. McDonald's salads -- they are so tasty that you really don't feel deprived by not getting the Quarter Pounder and large fries. At least that's what I keep telling myself, anyway.

90. My spare change jar -- it always has enough in it to buy McDonald's when the hunger strikes and there's no cash in the house.

91. Thrift stores -- not only can you find cheap stuff, but it's a way to recycle and they employ otherwise unemployable people. Good all around.

92. Baking soda -- so many uses for it and it's economical to boot.

93. Our new van -- Stow and Go seats, dual doors, a DVD player with wireless headphones, and it's RED!!! I am now a very cool Mama with extremely happy children.

94. Santa -- it is just as magical being him as a parent as it was believing in him a child.

95. Vaccinations -- we are so privileged to have access to them. Our children are immunized against diseases that kill so many children in third world countries. The arrogant few that don't take advantage of this in our country are fools.

96. The Rosary -- a peaceful, repetitive prayer that is spiritually cleansing.

97. Sleep -- what little I get, I am grateful for, especially when it is uninterrupted.

98. "I love you more than chocolate" -- Reilly Kate's and my saying to one another.

99. Thanksgiving -- enough said.

100. I will give this one to Reilly Kate who when asked what she was thankful for responded, "Liberty." Yep. She said, "Liberty." When asked to explain she said, "The statue of Liberty. And being 'merican. Liberty." That about sums it up. The profound words of an almost three year old.

Happy Turkey Day!