I am thankful for:

[Lulu]

To celebrate Thanksgiving please post what you are thankful for:

Things I am thankful for every year:
My husband, my family and his family
Home and health and our crazy greyhounds
Amazing friends

New things to be thankful for this year:
Fastrunning Blog and the blogging friends I've "met"
Our amazing 10mo old, Bubbles, whom I prayed and hoped for ... for more than 8 years!
Extreme silliness Bubbles has brought to our house
Tripping over toys in the living room we used to never enter
Her cries because it means she is alive and here!
Dirty diapers -- see above.
The nights we've all had to take showers or baths 4 times because of projectile vomiting.
Spontaneous games of peek-a-boo in the rear-view mirror in the car
Laughter and smiles everyday I would never have known
The feeling of having my heart outside my body
Looking at her sleeping every night before I go to bed because she decided she wanted to sleep in her crib by herself now (I am also grateful for all the times I got to wake up with her next to me in bed)
Waking up and looking forward to seeing her in the morning
The special feeling of feeding her when she is hungry
Her innocence and trust
The glorious happiness she has given to me and my husband
The times that she crawls into the jogging stroller and sits and waits for me to finish putting my running clothes on
When she pretends she is going to kiss me and gives me a raspberry instead (or licks me)!

I could go on and on, but tell me what you are thankful for...

Lulu

[Bethany]

Thanks for starting this thread Lulu. Touching entry, very fitting for this time of year.
I think I will have a go at expressing what is so hard to reach with our meager language...gratitude is inadequate.
My faith in God that has always come so easily and readily.
A stable, secure, faithful, loving husband.
Two miracles that have surprised me with the deep and raw emotions they bring to my life. Once my kids were born, I knew they were always a part of me waiting to exist.
All my senses, health, and strength. Good friends, good hometown, at least a handful of people who really care no matter what.
All my opportunities, missed and taken.
My country and my freedom.

[Dave Holt]

My family - my loving and understanding wife; my beautiful, crazy, entertaining, beastly, amazing daughters; my dog Maggie (and even the cat Woody); wonderful parents and brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, in-laws (?!); and friends
My beliefs - my faith; my church duties; the blessings that surround them all
Good health - for me and all those I love (you don't often recognize it until you don't have it)
Running - my life is not/was not the same without it
all that other awesome stuff - home; food; freedom; living in America; living in Southern Utah!; and so much more

[Sasha Pachev]

My faith in God - I never take that for granted because I have not always had it.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - easy to miss its depth, especially living in Utah, but as imperfect as people may be, the teachings do come from Christ himself, and this is very serious stuff. There are many things in my life I would have done different if I could not see it, and now
I am glad I could see it, believe it, and act upon it.

My growing family - the old timers tell me there is much more to come from the seeds planted now, and I fully believe them. Especially thankful for the Fast Running Mommy who believes the same way.

The ability, the opportunity, and the drive to run. Looking back at my life as a teenager in the Soviet Union, I almost literally ran away from trouble. I was also blessed to develop something special. I did the math and realized that in my entire life I've run somewhere in the range of 50,000 - 60,000 miles. That may have something to do with my current ability to run high mileage and not feel anything bad.  And with that comes a general drive to accomplish that transfers into other endeavors.

Many other things.

[Jesse]

Of course there are all the usual things, but I would say the deep abiding hope is that I will be with God when I die.  Even if my faith falters, even if I don't do the things I'm "supposed" to, even if I mess up, my eternal presence with God is secure.  Not because of me, but because of Him.  1 John 4:19 We love him, because he first loved us.

[Mikal Epperson]

It's time to restart this thread!  I am thankful for more things than I could possibly list!  I ran 14 miles this morning with some good friends and the miles just clicked by, while I had the chance to reflect on my life and all that is right!  All too often, people find themselves searching for elusive dreams and greener pastures.  It's great to have this holiday to take time out for reflection and a little introspective thinking. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!