Happy Thanksgiving!

                                                    Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

Catching Up...

B and I went to a couple of Christmas Craft Shows.  I am always so impressed with how talented people are and am a bit envious that I do not share their talents.  We picked up some gifts for the kids as well as some fun ornaments for our tree.

Thanksgiving was quiet as usual this year.  It was just B and I and football on tv.  My youngest son and dil go to her parents for Thanksgiving and then spend the Christmas holiday with us.  My oldest son and dil live across the country and trying to fly home for Thanksgiving is too expensive and crazy.

We got the Christmas decorations out over Thanksgiving and started to decorate the house.  I used to go hog wild with decorations but for the last few years, I have pared down quite a bit.  So I decided this year to purge some of the decorations I have.  The kids have taken the decorations they wanted and I will be donating the rest to St. Vincent de Paul and another thrift store in town.  No point in having them sit in boxes when they can be enjoyed again by someone else.

The kids gave me their Christmas lists.  I usually pick one or two things from their lists.  Children's "toys" get more expensive as they get older.  However, my kids are pretty good at choosing things that are not too expensive for retired mom and dad.

This week is grocery shopping for the holidays.  It shouldn't be too bad as I already have most of my baking ingredients as well as turkeys and hams in our freezer.  I still have to figure out some more vegetarian dishes.  My dil is a vegetarian so those are recipes I do not have a lot of.  I  would love some suggestions if anyone has some.

Saturday, B and I will be going with my son and dil to the local Christmas tree farm to pick out our trees.  A lot of people have suggested we get artificial but B says as long as we can, we will get real.  We have a great time with the kids at the farm.  There is hot chocolate, a firepit with chairs around it, music piped in throughout the farm and homemade treats and crafts as well.  There is even a sleigh and a decorated truck for picture taking.


       

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Grateful

In this season of Thanksgiving, with all the negatives going on around us, it can be hard to find what we should be grateful for.  The world seems to be in such a bad place these days...the pandemic, natural disasters, hate-filled people, etc.  It is sometimes so hard to find something good to hold onto .  Something that helps us to believe that it will get better if we just hang on.

There is nothing I can do to change the state of the world we live in but there is something I can do about the small part that I live in.  So I look to what is good in my small world, what I am grateful for and that which I will keep close to my heart as I wait for the rest of the world to catch up, if ever.

I am grateful for...

The steadfast love and unending support of my God, no matter what kind of person I have been on any given day.  Knowing He has a plan for me and even though I do not know what that plan is, I am confident He will do what is best for me.

Close to 50 years with a man who can still make me laugh, surprise me, comfort me and fill my heart with the same passionate love from that first date so many years ago.  

A 70 years life filled with memories both good and bad.  Good memories to remember and share.  Bad memories to learn from and not repeat, if possible.

Seeing my sons become the men I knew they would be. With kind and loving hearts, courage to chase their dreams, strength to stand up for what is right and the knowledge that the world does not revolve around them but in what they do for others.

My sons having good women in their lives who love them almost as much as their mother does.  Women who have become my daughters not by blood but by love.

Parents who taught me about romantic love between soul mates, the strength of a unified family who can get through any adversity and the belief that it is what is inside a person that is most important.  Although I miss both of them very much, I am grateful for the years I had with them.

For the small things in life--hearing the coo of the morning doves who roost in my lilac bush, watching the mares (or "the girls" as I call them) graze in the field, the smell of freshly mowed grass, the taste of hot orange tea in my nanny's teacup on a rainy morning, the touch of my husband's hand when we are out for a walk, the purr of my cat as he snuggles on my lap.

Good food on the table, a roof over our heads, a comfortable secure retirement life even in this year of high prices and supply shortages.

Time to pursue those things we enjoy without worrying about work schedules, projects, etc.

Books that you hold in your hands, turn the pages and appreciate the beauty of how they look; music of all genres that lift you up or calms you down and art in all mediums that makes you wish you had just a small percentage of the talent the artists have.

Being a cat mom and a dog & cat grandma.  I may not have human grandchildren but I can still be a doting grandma to the fur babies.

Being able to appreciate the positives in life and a continued belief in the goodness of people.

I am grateful for...

On this Thanksgiving Day 2019, I am grateful for...

The love and support of my God, no matter what kind of person I have been on any given day.  Knowing He still loves me eternally.

The beauty of the earth in all its forms.  God was on top of His game when He created it.

Over 40 years with a man who can still make me laugh, surprise me and fill my heart with the same passionate love from that first date.


The continued good health in body, mind and spirit of my family.

Memories of a 60+ years life to remember and share.

Watching my children become the adults I knew they would be with good, kind, loving hearts and the
courage to share their dreams.

Seeing that my boys have good women in their lives who love them almost as much as their mother does.

Parents who taught me about romantic love between soul mates, the strength of a unified family who can get through any adversity and the belief that it is what is inside a person that is most important.

The appreciation of the small things in life--hearing the coo of the morning doves, watching mares graze in the field, the smell of freshly mowed grass, the taste of hot orange tea in my nanny's teacup on a rainy morning, the touch of my husband's hand when we are out for a walk.

Food on the table, a roof over our heads, a comfortable secure retirement life.

Time to pursue past times, travel with my husband and just enjoy day to day living.

Books that you hold in your hands, turn the pages and appreciate the beauty of how they look; music of all genres that lift you up or calms you down and art in all mediums that makes you wish you had just a small percentage of the talent the artists have.

Being a cat mom and a dog & cat grandma.

The ability to appreciate the positives in my life especially on days when there seems to be more negatives.