Thankful Tuesday Number Four

Aloha!  From my desk in the beautiful Texas weather, I am celebrating Thanksgiving and Tuesday again today.

This week, this is what I am thankful for:

1.  A handyman husband
Not only is Adam extremely smart, he's also extremely talented at saving us thousands of dollars on fixing items around the house.  I can't tell you how many times we've been in a bind and he's fixed the pool pump, or the toilet, sink, sprinkler system, electrical problems, etc., etc.  Yesterday he did it again.

On the advice of his godparents, once a month, I have been draining the bottom gallon of the hot-water heater.  Supposedly this removes sediments built up on the bottom and extends the life of the hot water heater.  The problem is, we've lived here about seven years and only knew about this for one year.  Apparently beginning maintenance on an already old appliance isn't such a smart idea.

Yesterday I did the draining thing but when Adam got home, it was dripping.  He was tightening the knob I had loosened and it broke.  Long story short, it took a few hours and lots of wasted buckets of clean water to get it fixed.  Luckily it is fixed now and we don't have to replace it.

2.  Kleenex.

When I was a child, I had terrible allergies.  I took every medicine on the market and shots and still went through boxes and boxes of Kleenex.  I remember my mom getting upset that I was using too many Kleenex because they weren't cheap back then.  I am pleased to say that times have changed and Kleenex are cheap now.  Also, the generic brands are much softer than they used to be.  Hooray for cheap facial tissue!

3.  My husband, again.

This week we will celebrate 10 years of marriage.  Not only do I love how funny Adam is and that we can share an inside joke with just a glance across the room, I love that he gets me.  It's wonderful being married to someone who is your opposite and strong in every way that you are weak.  Since we've been married, I have written countless checks, but not had to balance the checkbook once.  He is both empathetic when I am upset and holds me accountable when I'm wrong.  Insert mushy gushy love stuff here.

4.  God-incidents

Last week was full of them.  From the reparation of a friendship to getting lost and ending up in front of the hospital to visit a dying friend, there were about 80 incidents last week that I thank God for.

5.  My NookColor

For Christmas, Adam got me a NookColor.  I love, love, love that I can think of a book title I want, look it up and download the book any time, day or night.  It's like having a giant library branch at your house.

6.  A Perfect Wedding

My cousin Lindsay got married this weekend.  Claire was one of the flower girls.  Both the ceremony and the reception were at the Botanic Gardens and everything was absolutely perfect.  It was so much fun and so perfect that it made Adam and I want to go back in time and redo our wedding.

7.  Clean Water

As I was dumping out the buckets of water pouring out of our hot water heater last night, I thought about all the people in the world who don't have access to clean water.  All we have to do is touch a button and not only do we get clean water, we get to pick the temperature of it.  We are blessed.

8.  Free Babysitters

This weekend Adam and I will be taking a roadtrip to Fredericksburg for the weekend with our friends Stacy and Matt.  I am so grateful that Adam's sisters are willing and able to watch the kids all weekend for the price of a souvenir.

9.  Backyard Parties

Every year we don't have to debate what we will do for the kids' birthdays.  We just open the back door and we automatically have a party.  A pool, playset, and a trampoline makes for an excellent and affordable party.

10.   Coupons

I probably saved $10 or more yesterday with my coupons.  My grandmother taught me how to be an excellent coupon cutter, and I don't go to the store without them.  It's pretty amazing that you can hand a cashier a piece of paper and all of the sudden you don't have to hand her as much money.