Taking a toddler for a ride on an airplane is a lot like making her wait in a gray room for an hour before strapping her down with a belt to a fast moving object, that makes her ears feel funny, that’s full of mad people who want complete silence for two hours. It’s a whole lot like that. Throw in the fact that if the toddler moves around enough to jostle the seat in front of her, she will enrage the person sitting in that seat and it makes for a whole lot of good times.

I got to spend some quality time with our pediatrician today and he asked all the standard health questions. He even asked some in-depth questions about my kids’ hygiene, sleeping arrangements and risk factors for germ transmission. At one point, I laughed and said, “No, they don’t share a bed but Wanda likes to stick as many different toothbrushes in her mouth as she can.”

Lately I’ve been feeling really grateful. Everywhere I turn, there’s something to make me realize how lucky I am to be a mom, to be a wife and to live in a beautiful little town in a gorgeous free country. I’m blessed. Here are a few things I’m thankful for this year.