But I Smile Anyway…

  
If you’ve been reading this blog long enough, you know that yup, it was coming up to one of my biggie birthdays!

And finally it’s here!

I’m not scared of growing older, I’m a firm believer that age ain’t nothing but a number, and every year I grow older, it’s another reason to be thankful!

So… Thankful… Maybe I should think of 40 reasons to be thankful, and grateful, for this special day!

1. I must start this list with my husband. My soul mate, the one who has put up with me, and accepted me for the loon that I am, I love you so much hunny, thank you for being there for me all this time! 😍
2. The two miracles in my life, my children. Thank you for making me smile, more than you’ve made me mad! I can’t believe that I am a mother to two such darling souls! 😘
3. My parents, wonderful role models who have given me the best start in life. Love you to the moon and back Pops and Mum!
4. My brother, sister in law and nephew. Life is hard with no support, and I have been extremely lucky with the siblings that I was graced with. Yes, we’ve been through the argumentative ‘I hate you’ phase, but as adults, there’s nothing we wouldn’t do for each other!
5. Great in-laws. They have loved me and made me feel more like a daughter than a daughter in law, and for that I will always be thankful.
6. My best friends… There are a select few of you who I will cherish for ever, I have many acquaintances, but those friends who know everything, who are there for you no matter what, I’ll always be thankful for them!
7. Sonu Singh, my kitty. I never thought I’d get a pet, but now we have him, I wouldn’t change a thing! He has helps to teach the kids about responsibility, and is such a cutie, I’m so glad he’s in our lives!
8. All the rest of my family, near and dear, and those watching down on us. Each of you has affected me in some way to make me who I am today. I miss not seeing you all regularly, but you are never forgotten.
9. A roof over our heads.
10. A licence so I can drive.
11. A car so I can get around, and take my kids where they need to go, effortlessly, and also so that I can see my parents whenever I want.
12. A job I love so I may come home tired, but I feel satisfied!
13. The opportunities I have had to travel, through family and school to India, Kenya, America, Spain, Canada, Finland and Russia, among other places.
14. My education. Private school, which my parents paid for, and university, where I learned a lot about life, as well as how to teach.
15. My health. Ok, soI have hayfever, and I have PCOS, and my back aches… But I can still do everything and experience so much around me.
16. My opinion, and freedom of speech. Thankfully we live in a country where women are not oppressed, and even in our family, I am not scared. I am confident that I can speak my mind and that my opinion counts.
17. Good neighbours. I have learned over the years that if you have good neighbours, you should count yourself lucky, and make sure you appreciate them… Bad neighbours can make your life a living hell.
18. Being able to read and write. It’s even been a therapy of sorts in my past.
19. My curly hair! Believe me I wasn’t thankful before, but the years, and a mature head on my shoulders (yeah right!) had made me realise that curls ain’t bad!
20. In the same vein, I’m eternally thankful for straighteners, when I want a change!!!
21. Curves… Because I’m a woman, right not a broomstick!
22. Being a British born Indian with Kenyan roots! The colour that has brought into my life, I could never have bought that cultural background, it’s just there in me, and inspires me day after day.
23. The love of books that my mother instilled in me and I’m thankful that my children have also learned to love books too!
24. Disney!! Just because! Disney films have made me smile when I was down, and taught lessons that I needed to learn at times…
25. Music. I’m thankful I can hear, so I can listen to the amazing music out there. It keeps my soul uplifted, but can echo my feelings too.
26. My bed. I know we get midnight visitors ‘n’ all, but at least I have one!!!
27. My sense of humour. I’d be crying half the time if I didn’t have one!
28. Chocolate! It had been my saviour in many times of stress… And has also helped my waist to disappear!
29. Moisturiser! Yup. I am thankful for cream! My skin is so badly dry that if I didn’t have creams, my legs would look like a pair of snakes, with all that scaly skin!!
30. Ice packs. Seriously! You know how clumsy I am!!!! Ice packs have been very important to me… Or frozen peas!!
31. The Internet. Wow, how it has revolutionised our lives! I use it so much, not just for mindless social media, as hubby thinks, but for work ideas, recipes, keeping the kids busy, discounts…!
32. My garden. As little as I actually do in my garden, it is an oasis of calm, and we are lucky to have the sized garden that we have, in this part of the country, so I’m definitely thankful for that!
33. Fans. Electric fans. Hand fans. Yes, I really am! I am naturally a very hot person (thanks to mum for that gene!) and on a usual hot day, I melt. In fact it takes a few people in a room, and a bit of dancing for me to look like I just ran a mile… Makeup and me, though we are aquaintances, we’re not best mates, on a daily basis, because it just slips of my face!
34. My skin – quite a big one, but I’ve been lucky to not have the angst of teenage skin, and acne. Yes I get the odd spot, sometimes a huge one, but again not something I had to worry about on a daily basis. That’s my mum’s ‘wash your face and use Oil of Olay’ routine. It works!!!
35. Positivity. A lesson my parents taught me early on in life, and it’s served me well. I’m thankful that I learned how to see the positive in any situation. It’s a hard one to learn. I know it’s the easier route to think negative sometimes, but if you look hard enough, there is always that silver lining!!
36. Enough. I’m thankful I have enough. I have enough to live, enough to survive, enough to exist happily. More, we think is better, but why not be happy with enough? At least that leaves more out there for others to fill their ‘enough’ quota!
37. My memory. I am thankful I still have memories, little scenes to play back in my head, to remind me of great times past. And to remind me of things to come!
38. I’m thankful for all the little things. If you don’t learn to appreciate the little things that come about in your life, the big things really have no meaning.
39. My Blogily. Little did I know that 10 months ago, that little blog I started, just for fun, would become such a huge part of my life! All of you, my Peeps, my on -line family, have become an integral part of my day, and I’m thankful for the way we interact, and how you can bring a smile to my face! And I’m also thankful that in certain times, I have been able to help some of you! 😘 But this last two weeks especially, you Peeps have been amazing! I made a little request to hit a milestone, and you all went above and beyond, and I have now hit my dream target of 1000 followers, and gone over it too!
40. God. Of course I’m thankful to Him, without him, I wouldn’t be here, able to appreciate all the above things I’m thankful for!

There is plenty more I am grateful for, but these are just a few things.

Now, enough of being serious! 

It’s my birthday!!!!! Wherever you are, have a drink on me this evening!!!

And you can sympathise with me too… I’m spending the main part of my 40th birthday, back at work for the first day of term, on training, learning how to teach phonics!

See, this girl knows how to party!!!!!!!

Have a wondrous day Peeps!!!