Today I am grateful for sleep . . .

Today I am grateful for comfortable shoes . . .

I love shoes!  Unfortunately, most of the really cute ones don't like me.  I have friends who wear the greatest shoes and I envy them because I just can't do it.  I don't exactly walk around in orthotics, but I have a few favorite pairs of sandals and boots that my poor feet can tolerate that I wear most of the time.  Looking on the bright side, I save a lot of money by coveting my friends' shoes instead of buying them myself!

Today I am grateful for times when I feel pretty . . .

I'm hesitant to publish this post as I don't want to appear to be fishing for compliments, but bear with me as I do actually have a point to make.  This morning my hair went the way I wanted it to, I looked fully rested and my pants seemed to fit me just right.  As I was getting ready to leave for work, I thought "Wow, I don't look half bad today."  It occurred to me that most days I just don't feel like I look all that great.  Don't get me wrong - I've valued intelligence over looks my entire adult life.  But I'd be lying if I said I'm immune to the insecurities that all of us feel from time to time.  Unfortunately, time is definitely not my friend in this area.  While I am proud of the woman I've become as I've earned my extra pounds, wrinkles and grey hairs, I am not handling the aging process as well as I always assumed I would.  Does that make me shallow?  I prefer to think it just makes me human.  So, while I'm still coming to terms with the fact that I no longer get attention from men who are neither drunk nor mentally challenged, the good news is that maturity has also allowed me to develop better coping skills and appropriate perspective.  There is more to life than winning beauty contests, but it doesn't hurt to feel like you could actually enter one every once in awhile!

Today I am grateful for DOTS . . .

No deep philosophical post today.  I am sitting here enjoying my favorite candy ever.  I'm more of a salty snack kind of girl than a sweets fan, but I make an exception for DOTS.  I'm sure my love of the ridiculously sticky gumdrops helps keep my dentist in business, but I just can't help myself.  I even choose my movie theatres based on whether they sell DOTS or not!  Do you think they have a 12-step program for people like me?  :)

Today I am grateful for trailblazing women . . .

Today I am grateful for opportunities to reconnect . . .

Today I am grateful that my husband works for a great company . . .

I write this post tonight from beautiful Tiburon, California.  My husband's employer is headquartered in nearby San Raphael.  They had a company-wide meeting yesterday, and they planned some fun activities in conjunction with it.  Last night was bowling and today was a tour of three wineries in the Sonoma area.  With many companies making expense cuts these days, I was surprised to get an invitation to come along.  I am so glad I came.  My husband has been with the company for just about three months, so I had never met most of his co-workers.  What a wonderful group of people and a great company!  I have been fortunate to work with some really amazing groups of people in my career, so I can really appreciate how fantastic it is when you find that perfect fit.  After all of the time he spent searching for a job, I am just thrilled for my husband that this is the one he finally landed. 

Today I am grateful that we have two air conditioning units . . .

It's that lovely time of year when temperatures rise to over 100 degrees and A/C units decide to give out.  Unfortunately, we were the victims of it last night.  Our upstairs unit started blowing nothing but warm air.  The good news is we have two units.  The bad news is that all of our bedrooms are upstairs.  It's a little warm, but at least it's bearable with the downstairs unit still working.  Now I'm just hoping it holds up until the repairman comes tomorrow!

Today I am grateful for longtime friends . . .

I have to say that I am blessed with some amazing friends.  I had dinner with two of them tonight.  We all used to work together and we've known each other for quite a while.  It's so nice to get together and catch up on all of our family happenings.  I am so thankful to have so many wonderful people in my life.  It makes the rough times so much more bearable when you know you have great friends for moral support.  :)

Today I am grateful for IT professionals . . .