Happy Thanksgiving!

In 2000, I went out to Indiana to spend one last Thanksgiving with the extended family. We knew we had some terminally ill family members, so we made the trek out to spend one last giant holiday party with the family. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and our family. We talked for hours into the night, telling stories and laughing. There were close to 30 members of the extended family who showed up. Dinner started at  2:00 pm and people sit around and talked for 12 straight hours. As we got tired, we would pull out a blanket, find a place on a sofa or the floor and doze off while everyone else kept going. By the time we finally went to bed at 2, there was no food left. We had decimated the deserts early, and then kept pulling leftovers out of the fridge to make sandwiches as the night wore on. This remains one of my favorite Thanksgiving memories.

This year, our daughter is cooking. 

They want to host both families in their tiny little one bedroom apartment.  This is going to be great! It has all of the hallmarks of the very best of memories in the making.  Small apartment, first large family gathering, first time cooking a turkey...  So many possibilities for so many wonderful stories. Best of all, the two families will get to spend time getting to know each other better as our kids make a new family.  Who could ask for more?

Do you have a favorite Thanksgiving memory?

WKRP Turkey Drop

To mark the beginning of Thanksgiving Week, I give you my most favorite bit of television, ever. I will forever be thankful that I remember seeing this on television with my family the first time this aired. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Thankful

I have so many things to be thankful for.  I have been blessed beyond all reason.

1) I have a roof over my head.
Circumstances have been kind to us.  We have been able to buy a house in a neighborhood we love in a community with people we adore.  We have scrimped and saved in order to purchase our first house and have continued to cut corners to work at paying our mortgage off early.  Again, we are fortunate that we have jobs that allow us to pay for our house and living expenses.

2) Our Health.
Aside from oldest child's stay in the NICU when he was born, all three of the kids have been healthy.  Oh, we've had broken bones, food allergies, and assorted illnesses, but  overall, we are healthy.  As husband and I get older, we continue to focus on getting daily exercise and eating right.  Our goal is to stay healthy as we age and stay out of the medical system for as long as possible.

3) Education
Love it or hate it, our country is unique in the history of the world in that every single citizen is eligible for a free public education.  Every person learns to read and write, and an education is provided through grade 12.  It's a privilege that I think too many of us take for granted.  Even today, there are places in the world where children do not get to go to school unless if their parents have money, and many girls have to drop out of school because they fall behind their male peers due to the fact that they have to miss several days of school each month due to their menstrual cycle.

4) Food
Food on our table, food in our fridge.  I am thankful that I have always had a yard, pots, or a community garden plot to grow some vegetables.  Our jobs have provided enough money to keep food on our table every single day.  Don't think I ever underestimate what a blessing this is.

5) Employment
Speaks for itself.

6) Friends and Family
You know what they say: you can choose your friends, but you can't choose your family.  We are blessed indeed.  My family lives within an hour of us, my Mom is still with us (not a certainty after last year), and we have fantastic friends that I am honored to know. 

Many of my extended family has passed on, but I am thankful to have had them in my life.  Their guidance and encouragement when I was younger helped shape the person that I am today.  Without them, I wouldn't be here.  Every day, I give thanks for the tremendous impact they have had upon my life.

What about you? What are you thankful for this year?

I am thankful for

The top ten things I am thankful for:

1) My family - my husband and my kids.

2) My friends.  They've been there for me  through thick and through thin.

3) This amazing country - the United States of America- in which we live.  I know the system seems broken at times, but we are a 200+ year experiment with a freely elected Democracy.  Pretty cool when you think through all of the implications!

4) My Mom.  She's still alive, healthy, and feisty.  Since she's 83 years old, I don't underestimate this gift.  I am very fortunate.

5) My House.  It's not much, but its where I live.  I'm thankful to have a roof over my head and a place to lay down at night.

6) My Job.  Yes, I am a substitute teacher.  I live the life of a vagrant, up and down halls of schools, facing different children every day.  I am very fortunate that I work primarily out of one school, and I know almost all of the kids in that school.  The kids are awesome, the staff is amazing!

7) My Church.  I have a wonderful church, with amazingly gifted leaders.  I feel blessed by them and their leadership on a daily basis.  Even more, I can freely worship at the church of my choice.  Considering world history and religion, that is not something to sneeze at!

8) Good Weather.  We are traveling to my Mom's house today.  I am thankful beyond words that the weather is bright and clear for our travels today!

9) The cats.  If you have pets, you know what I'm talking about!  

10) You.  The people who take the time to read my ramblings!  I see the number of people who visit my site, and I am humbled.  Thank you so much for spending some of your day with me!  You have no idea how much it means to me to realize that someone feels my writing has worth and value. Thank You.