Giving Thanks 2014

I have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, as I do every year. It's a general repeat post, with add-ins... but the bases are all the same, as they are all the same things I am thankful for year after year.

I am thankful for my family, who still puts up with me even after all these years. The older I get, the more I appreciate them, even though they are just as certifiably nuts as I am.

I am thankful for all my friends and contacts worldwide, who have always been there for me throughout the good times and the tough times alike.
I'm thankful for my wonderful Future Hubs, who puts up with me, laughs with me, gets into tickle wars with me, dances like an idiot with me, sings out of tune with me, snuggles me, and looks into the future with me, always right there by my side no matter what.

I am thankful for my menagerie of pets... the make me smile and laugh every day. Without them, life would be empty and colorless.  

I am thankful that I am still excited for the future, because it's only just beginning. This year has brought me further than I could have possibly imagined, and if I accomplished this many things this year, I can't wait to see what next year holds.

I am thankful for Texas, because even though it's STILL one of the most ridiculous and random decisions I've ever made, it led me right to Future Hubs, my herd of cats and dogs, my kooky mares, my career, and new friends and adventures... and that's exactly where I want and need to be.

I am thankful for Metro and Quincy, my two long gone but never forgotten boys. I honor their lives by naming my business after them, and not a day goes by without missing and remembering them.

I'm thankful for five beautiful, crazy, intense, amazing, eventful, and memorable years with my Gogo. She made me a far better horsewoman and rider, she made me laugh and cry, she molded who I am now as a young adult, she got me started on my career path of choice.... and so much more. 

I'm thankful for my two crazy, nutty, wonderful mares. P and O are polar opposites and both ridiculously awesome in their own ways. I can't believe that this time next year, I'll have another little baby horse to celebrate with too! I am thankful for P for being her father's child, and for helping me perpetuate her cherished bloodline. I am thankful for O for being exactly who she is, every day, without fail - because it reminds me to do the same. She wasn't supposed to be a keeper, but she barged her way into my heart, and she has a place here with me for life. I am grateful for every single day together, and am looking forward to our adventures in the coming years, especially with our newfound sport.
I am thankful especially this year for eight wonderful years with my old lady greyhound Ti. Losing her this year was very hard, but her memory lives on in all of us. We hope to all be reunited at the Rainbow Bridge one day, along with the rest of the critters I've loved over the years. I am also thankful that we were able to adopt a shelter dog last month (his name is Pike, and he's a wonderful holy terror!) - there is nothing like giving a second chance to an animal at death's doorstep.

From Pike, Tonka, Twiggy, Jasper, Snidget, Mimi, Saba, Pickles, Monster, Shitner, Pangea, O-Ren, Future Hubs, and myself, Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope you all have plenty to be thankful for too.