Thirty days of thanks.

Every year, a number of Facebook friends post their daily thanks. I'm always late to the party, but better late than never, right?

So here are 30 things for which I'm grateful.

First, the obvious:
1. My God, my Father, my Rock.
2. My family: husband, children, parents, in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and the greats.
3. My friends, "the family I chose for myself."
4. A job that's a true vocation, a calling.
5. Ample food, clothing and shelter: the perfect house with electricity, heat, air, and even wi-fi.
6. Two dogs and a cat who round out our family perfectly.

Next, the luxuries:
7. Longhorn season tickets and a great tailgating spot.
8. A decent camera.
9. A new(ish) car with Longhorn plates.
10. My iPhone.
11. U-verse.
12. Longhorn Network.
13. Bean and cheese stuffed sopapillas from Chuy's.
14. Creamy jalapeno from Chuy's.
15. Just about everything else from Chuy's.
16. Two University Co-op stores within 30 miles of our house.
17. Burnt orange everything, from watches to purses to paint on my wall.

Then there are the groups and gatherings:
18. Our church family.
19. Our Praise Team and booth gurus.
20. Our church leadership.
21. My "lunch bunch" at work.
22. Book club.
23. Bunco.
24. Football buddies and tailgating friends.

And finally, my entertainment faves:
25. Lyle Lovett.
26. Billy Joel.
27. Amazing Race and Survivor.
28. Friends.
29. The Brady Bunch.
30. BLOGGING!

Lists like this are always so ridiculous because really, they could go on forever. But that's also the great thing about making lists. Even in the midst of our struggles, this exercise forces me to admit that our cup runneth over.