Without preamble, here are 5 things I am thankful for in 2021.

Here is 2020.

#1
I am so thankful for my kids. They make me a little crazy sometimes. (Bedtime tonight for example.) But they also brighten my days in ways that I never knew could be done. Scooters, bikes, walks, barbies, dress-up, princesses, quarantine, and coaching basketball: This dad is here for it.

#2
I am thankful for flying. See, I have gotten to travel a bit this last year for work. And, honestly, I love the travel days. Airport parking, boarding passes, lunch with dessert in terminal B, reading in lounges, ginger ale, an afternoon above the clouds. It totally sucks being gone from the family… But I enjoy flying.

#3
I am thankful for this blog. It sounds stupid to say. But every day that I continue writing and posting is another day that I didn’t give up. And I am proud of it the longer it goes. More coffee. More reading. More writing.

#4
I am thankful for a new job. Honestly, in the turmoil of my last job, I could not see the next steps my life would take. And then this dream fell out of the sky and landed in my lap. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

#5
I am thankful for Christmas lights. On our late-night walks, we have already enjoyed looking at the lights people have put up this year. We weave around through surrounding neighborhoods on the moonlit streets and marvel at the glowing houses we pass. It’s especially sweet to see the mystery of it all dance in the eyes of my (almost) two-year-old. We even put Christmas lights on our house for the first time this year.