I thank you, Lord!

I made this wreath for our front door. Inspiration was found here.

Isn't it great that this month we have a day on the calendar dedicated to thankfulness?

Yes, I have so much to be thankful for. So rather than bore you, I will only list my top 21.

Yes 21.

I am thankful:

1. for our loving and merciful God.
2. that at this very moment, my sister-in-law, Ederlen, is undergoing surgery (masectomy, reconstruction, and partial removal of liver). This surgery is major and although I wish she would never had needed it, I believe that this will be a defining moment in her journey to becoming cancer-free.
3. for my husband and child. They make me crazy sometimes but I am happy to be crazy for them! Horacio, my love, my rock. Mateo, God's gift. I will never know a greater love than the love I feel for them.
   
4. I am NOT thankful that I got laid-off from my job in January, but I am thankful that in being at home I was able to be here for my parents and brother when they needed me most.
5. for drug treatment centers and the people who work in them. With their help and God's divine intervention, my little brother has a second chance.
6. for my sister, Cari. Although she is the baby, she is such an inspiration to me in so many ways.
7. for my brother, David and his wife Jeanette for their hospitality and willingness to share the burdens of life.
8. for my nieces and nephews. They fill that little empty space in my heart and they quench my longing for more children. I am thankful for their naughtiness because then they make me feel better that I only have one!
9. for my parents and the balance and stability they provide in my life. Especially my mom, my friend, my confidant.
   
10. for my mother-in-law, "Mami Nacha." She is the essence of dignity, humility, and elegance.
11. for my cousins. God's merciful way of providing extended family so that we never have to feel alone.
12. for my aunts, Felipa and Concha for always making me feel like a daughter.
13. for the joy that knitting, crocheting, sewing and crafting bring to my life.
14. for my friends for accepting me and laughing at my silliness.
    
15. for prayer.
16. for God's Word.
17. for nature. There is nothing that makes me feel closer to God than when I am admiring nature and its beauty.
18. for mornings. I love mornings. No matter how bad yesterday was, each morning brings renewal.
19. for forgiveness.
    
20. for unconditional love. There is nothing we can do to merit love. If it not be for unconditional love, we would not know true love.
21. for my faith. Without out, I would not be able to sit here now and be thankful for all of the difficult valleys that I have gone through.