100 Things I'm Thankful For: #3. Books

I love books but then again, who doesn't!?! One of my favorite things to do is to wander around Chapters with a latte and pick up random books to look through - I never fail to find something interesting or funny or beautiful. I easily get wrapped up in a page turner crime novel, laugh out loud at a light and fluffy girly book, or tuck a scary story away in the freezer (see Friends Episode 3.13) LOL I get so excited learning something new in every non-fiction I read, often saying 5 or 6 times in an evening "Hon, listen to this!" to my husband who patiently closes his book and listens to me recite a paragraph. Books have a way of making me happy and that's something to be thankful for. I'm thankful to live in a community with a great library, thankful to have a Chapters down the street, and so thankful that my sister is a book junkie and owns (and lends) practically every non-fiction on the market... and the Twilight series.

100 Things I'm Thankful For: #2. My job

Times are tough for everyone. Finding a job or keeping an existing job is not so easy anymore. I'm so thankful to have my job. I work for a tiny accounting firm in the sleepy town of Elmvale where, as you'll see in the picture, people still ride cute bikes downtown and can leave them leaning against a lamp post chain-free. I don't pretend that I have my dream job but I'm good at what I do, I feel secure and appreciated, and I love my small group of co-workers who I also consider to be my friends. All in all, I'm not complaining!

100 Things I'm Thankful For: #1. Paxton

I can hardly put into words how grateful I am for my son Paxton. He makes everyday of my life an adventure! I love his big toothy smile, his infectious laugh, and his kookiness. I love watching him learn new things, his immense curiousity, and the way he sticks his tongue out when he's concentrating really hard. I love when he winks at me, I love his kisses, and I love his unconditional love. I am so lucky to have him.

Project One: Thankful = Happy.

"The secret to happiness is gratitude and reflection." Lately I feel like the universe is putting this idea in my face at every turn: an article in a waiting room magazine, books out of place in Chapters, and even while googling completely unrelated topics, I've ended up on gratitude related sites! You can say it's a coincidence but I don't think so. I hear that the universe starts out with a whisper and if you don't pay attention it'll slap you upside the head! So I say this:

Dear Universe:

I'm Listening!

Love: Val xo

I think I'm a very happy gal and so thankful for the things in my life but I never have a problem kicking it up a notch and so cue 'Thankful = Happy.' In this first project I plan to compile a collection of photographs of 100 things that I am thankful for in my life. It can be anything from the obvious to obscure and in no particular order. I'd love to get your feedback as the post starts rolling :o)

Gotta start somewhere!

The idea of writing a blog has always been interesting to me. I've tried blogging a few times but never had much of a plan for it and in turn the project quickly flitted out. I figure there must be something to blogging that keeps me coming back so I decided to tackle it one last time. My plans is to create mini projects with a vow to stick them out one at a time.

So what kind of projects, you ask? I love photography! I love taking pictures - finding the right light, the right angle, the right subject. I get a huge amount of satisfaction from uploading my pictures off my camera and finding a beautiful shot. And when the right shot just isn't there, I love photoshopping 'meh' pictures into mini works of art. With that being said all my projects will be somehow based in photography. Stay tuned for Project One: Thankful = Happy.