Happy Late Thanksgiving

I started to write a post last night, but then got distracted and then later I was too tired. You know how it goes.
But anyhow, happy Thanksgiving everybody!
Thanksgiving here was weird, not bad but weird. Obviously, I am not in the U.S. and therefore it is not considered a holiday here. So I worked yesterday. It was my first Thanksgiving working and my first Thanksgiving without my family. I kept busy most of the day and worked from 7:00am to 6:30pm just so I could avoid being home and feeling sorry for myself. I did have some invites to go elsewhere and celebrate, but I felt like that would only make the homesickness worse. You have to put on a happy face and spend the evening with one or two people you know and a bunch of complete strangers, when where you really want to be is with the people who know you the best (even if they are crazy). So instead of doing the big group thing, I went home and called my family. Julie, Mary, and Tommy were all doing well and having dinner together. My parent's went to visit other family and I didn't get to talk to them. When I got off the phone with them, Rosemary and I ordered in for our Thanksgiving dinner. Then two of my friends from church/work came over and we chatted while we celebrated the day with pizza, calzone, and Foster's. I watched movies and fell asleep on the sofa. So I guess that's at least one thing I traditionally do on Thanksgiving day, although it's usually holiday movies I watch not Bourne Supremacy and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. All in all, it was a really good day. Today I will be more social and go to a more traditional Thanksgiving dinner I was invited to.
So in honor of Thanksgiving I am writing a thankful for list. These are in no particular order.
I am thankful for. . .

1. The Kauffmans. Rosemary and Ed's generosity. Sara's listening ear. Esther's sense of fun. Edward. I am thankful for his randomness.
2. My coworkers. They are good people to work with. They support you with all that they can and slowly are becoming more like a family to me.
3. My cell group. Though I feel like I am not doing a good enough job at times. They are always there to fill in the gaps when I run out of time, energy, or ideas of things to do. But mostly I am just thankful that they are who they are and I get a chance to know them.
4. My friends at home. The ones who occasionally drop me a line and make me think "Yay! Maybe I haven't been forgotten!" The ones who you know as soon as you get back you can pick up with like you were never gone.
5. My family. I am thankful that they don't resent me for being gone for the last year, even though I missed a graduation, two babies, all the birthdays, most of the family drama, and the little ways that we have been there for each other day in and day out of our lives.
6. My church. It's a good place to be and a good place to grow.
7. My sanity. Sometimes I am amazed that I'm not truly and genuinely crazy.
8. Egypt. Being here has been the most amazing experience of my life.
9. Love. I come across it in so many ways and in so many forms. It is a powerful force. It is a gentle reminder. We wouldn't exist without it.
10. Music. Who needs an explanation for appreciating good, quality music.
11. Sleep. What a wonderful way to escape.
12. Coffee. There is nothing like a good, strong latte.
13. Nail technicians. Thank God there are people out there who will touch my nasty feet and turn them into something I can show in public for at least a week.
14. Books. There is a quote I remember, but I don't know who said it originally. "We read to know we are not alone."
15. Cold weather. What better excuse to cuddle up in sweaters and blankets and drink hot cocoa.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!