Ten Things of Thankful

It is that time to reflect and to write about being thankful, not just because in another month it will be Thanksgiving, but because every Friday the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop link opens and until Tuesday bloggers can express gratitude. Kristi Brierley of Thankful Me is currently our host who reminds us that it is time and encourages us to participate.

 1. Good news from my family and something to anticipate. There is nothing more to share about that now, but you will no doubt read more in the future.

2. An increase of registered voters. To read that more people are wanting to participate in the election process and are will to consider and study the measures and the background and experience of the candidates is encouraging.

3. The boxelder bugs are nearly nonexistent at our place after a week of sweeping the walkway morning and evening where they fell to their death. One less chore to do.

Dead boxelder bugs

4. Signs that more rain is coming. We had a day or two of light sprinkles, but when I saw this little banana slug near our house one morning I figured he was our new weatherman. During wet weather we might see a few, but rarely beside our house. The next couple days after seeing him, we had rain, not just sprinkles.

3-1/2" banana slug

5. Plenty of wood pellets so we could start the stove one morning this week. We had stocked up last spring, so we were ready for that one cooler day.

6. Help from a dietitian trying to figure out what type of foods I should be eating the next 10 months. Normally I would just resort to the Internet to help me out, but the doctor had encouraged me to meet with the dietitian. I did try googling, but soon realized there was more I needed to know before assuming what recipes and foods were going to work for me. She was able to show me the SIBO test results and clarify what I would need to do. What one can eat following a positive result with this test varies from person to person. Now I am able to find recipes that I can modify to meet my requirements. My breakfast this morning was an omelet (pictured below), half of a banana and a very small clementine orange.

Omelet (6 T of liquid eggs, 1 T shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 1 piece crumbled cooked bacon)

7. New wall hanging. On our trip to the national parks recently we took a plethora of photos. My husband had one of his printed so we could replace a large photo of a praying mantis on a rose that had previously hung in that spot. I like that when we decide to use the tread mill we can gaze upon this beautiful scene. Let's see, praying mantis or Bryce Canyon. . .

Bryce Canyon National Park

8. Waking up to a phrase in the middle of the night. There was a day when I had a lot of concerns on my mind. Out of a sound sleep that night, I awoke with the phrase "strength beyond my own" running through my head. I thought that rather strange, but I have learned from some past experiences that it is good for me to pay attention to these occurrences because there may be a message there for me. Because phrases from music have helped and encouraged me and sometimes come into my mind, I got up and tried to locate the source. After locating a song by that title, I listened to it several times before returning to bed. The message was very comforting to me. I may have heard this sometime in the past, but it wasn't a piece I knew or remembered having heard.

Source

9. People who helped a musician with Alzheimer's make sure his music was retained for posterity. He had composed music over the years, but it was all in his head. What a kind gesture!

10. Messages from plants. I love the message of this peace plant that I found almost hidden from sight this morning. Sometimes with plants and with people, one needs to look deeply to discover the all their hidden talents and the beauty they have to share with the world. 

Tiny, but perfect, peace plant blossom

May your week ahead be peaceful and happy.