Things I'm Thankful For

This week has been my first real week of full time commuting which includes an about 15 minute walk from where my bus drops me off to my office. I've found myself during my walk feeling so elated and happy and most of all thankful. Which is a nice way to feel first thing in the morning, especially after waking up at 4:45am and wanting nothing more than to just go back to sleep.

I think a big part of it is me trying to focus on the fact that I'm here, I'm doing this. I've dreamed of moving to and working in DC since I was a teenager. Mike and I have spent so many days wandering the city hand in hand talking endlessly about how we would love to move here, if that were ever possible. And look, we're here. I walk to work with all the other commuters; zigzagging around the lost tourists and cutting in front of cars before the light changes. I sit at my desk and look out at gorgeous rowhouses and my dream neighborhood.

So in that vein, here are some things I am currently thankful for that popped in my head this morning on my walk:

 - Family to support us. Our families support us in so many ways, it could be its whole own daily blog. Most recently, my dad and step-mom (who side note JUST found my blog and all my facetious mentions of her on here as step-monster...) offered to let Mike and I move in with them when our lease is up in October to save money and give us time to really find the right place in DC. And my retired dad will be watching the pups all day so double bonus.

 - The commuter bus. Maryland has an amazing system in place for commuters to DC. The buses are convenient, clean, the drivers are super friendly and awesome, they know every back way into DC you could possibly think of in order to avoid traffic, and everyone on the buses are courteous and nice. And they have bathrooms (I kind of wish there was a video of my trying to pee in there this morning while the bus entered the freeway, that was not easy, guys). A two hour commute isn't so bad when you're comfortably sitting on a heated bus, reading your book, being driven by someone you trust.

 - Being part of a great team. When I started commuting with Mike instead of me being home all day, it really rocked our routine. I'm so glad that Mike and I are able to work so well as a team, just falling into a new routine, no matter how tiring it may be. I love the moment after dinner when we, without words, go into the kitchen and clean and prepare each other's lunches for the next day together.

 - Our amazing dog walker. I cannot praise this woman enough. I'm actually sad we're moving away just because we have to say goodbye to her. I am a giant stress case when it comes to our dogs and having her taking care of them once a day has made me feel so much better. She texts me a photo of them every day on their walk and then leaves us these adorable notes to find when we get home always telling us who "went #2" and how much she loves them. It makes my day. Check her out here!

 - Loose dresses. No seriously, I'm so fat right now I would be screwed without my tent dresses. Hashtag go on a diet already you whiner.

 - Time to read. The best thing about the commute is that it gives me about 3 hours a day just to read. As you've seen from my unemployment posts, I knew I needed to be reading more instead of messing about on the internet or watching tv, but I'm so bad about doing it when I'm home alone. I've found myself looking forward to the time on the bus to catch up on some much needed reading.