Favorite {Photo} Friday--Dad + Gratitude Project 2009 Day 2

My Dad has been here since Tuesday and he's leaving tomorrow, so in honor of Dad and because scanning and showing photos last week was so fun, here are some photos of me and Dad!

My favorite photo, at the Oregon coast:


The back of this photo says 7A, and it took me a minute to recognize that this must be the number from the film negatives--remember those? LoL!


And the back of this one says 12A. I love the Olympia Beer shirt my dad's wearing!


Starting out a Fun Run:


Further along and still having fun, apparently!


Fishing, my dad's all-time favorite hobby. He fishes for steelhead and salmon and smokes it... it's the best smoked salmon you've ever had in your life anywhere in the world, I guarantee you. He even made some for my wedding!


And now, on to the gratitude!

I am thankful (for):

1. My love of reading and love of letters and words, and that I'm a good speller! :)
2. That I asked Nunzia, our neighbor in Italy, if she'd teach me how to make pasta. She did, and gave me cooking lessons in her kitchen every single week for months! I made completely-from-scratch lasagna tonight and it was soooooo good!
3. People who are kind just because it is the right thing to do.
4. That I'm learning more about myself and my limits and accepting and adapting to them.
5. That gasoline here in America is less than $3 per gallon (in Italy it was $6-7 per gallon).
6. My Epson printer/scanner; it makes me annoyed sometimes but it's pretty cool that I can just scan something in really quickly!
7. Our health insurance, which covers most of my Chiropractor visits.
8. A strong marriage going on ten years. We've been through a lot and have seen couples shatter at less.
9. That I'm finally starting to be able to ask for help when I want/need it, even if it's "dumb" like tonight when I needed Jason to open a jar for me but he was on the phone. I really needed it opened right away so I asked him to put down the phone and open it. Previous versions of me would have waited until he was off the phone and been mad that I had to wait... STUPID.
10. That I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, even if it is just a teensy tiny pinprick at the moment.
11. My washer and dryer and that I don't have to hand-wash all our clothes. I mean, I really hate hand-washing things! Hooray for machines!
12. That I'm from Oregon so while everyone else is getting totally depressed about all the rain I just put on my raincoat and go about my business, LoL!! :)
13. My fuzzy flannel pink sock-monkey pajamas. Lori sent them to me and I'd totally love them anyway but knowing they're from her makes them that much better!
14. Cheese. I know it might sound stupid, but man, I really love cheese! We had a Roquefort and Apple pizza today, and cheese really does make everything better. YUM.
15. That I'm starting to learn my way around this crazy area that I live in, and I'm also learning how better to use the GPS to make it take me where I want to go the way I want to get there! :)
16. Hilarious people on television who make me laugh out loud instead of just on the inside.
17. Etsy orders, hooray!
    
18. My awesome mailman Mike who is super sweet.
19. Jason and my dad cleaning up after dinner so I could put on my pajamas and relax and finish The Lost Symbol!
20. Fridays!! :)
    

For even more gratitude, check out Jilliene, Heather, and Lori! Let us know if you're playing along in the Gratitude Project, and have a great weekend!