We have a very lovely Thanksgiving this year. Gwen and Tim and the kids spent Thanksgiving day with us. As usual, they spent the night so Gwen and I can shop till we drop! We all watched the Macy's parade and then the National Dog Show (which has become a yearly tradition for us!) Both Gwen and I made several on-line purchases this year, and with the closing of ToysRUs, we only had five stores to visit on Thanksgiving evening! We were home and in bed before 9:00pm! This year we only had one stop on Black Friday morning, and we didn't have to leave the house until 5:45am. We were done shopping and back home before the kids were even awake. Tim spent the entire time working on our home improvement projects. Among other things, he finished our kitchen back splash, did some work on our baseboards and trim and painted the foyer! Needless to say, Ken and I are very thankful for Tim's help with all updates!
And for a little family humor, when Doug says that he is "in the backyard smoking" it does not mean that he has taken up cigarettes! Most likely he has some good meat in the smoker!
The cousins had a great time together. Grace is getting old enough that all of sudden she can enter into all the fun activities of the big kids. Susie had bought a craft kit for the kids to make foam turkeys. Grace was right there doing her own turkey (with a little help from mom). By the time I took this picture............
The kids had so much fun making cookies with Susie. Even Grace was able to join in and have a hand in the cookie making
Of course all of us were able to eat the cookies! And we were thankful for them!
My favorite part of Thanksgiving was going around the table and each of us sharing one thing we were thankful for. Lia was thankful for her family. I was thankful for a warm house to gather together. Anna was thankful for the world! Doug was thankful for a job and all the provision it brings. Susie was thankful for good food. We all decided that Grace was thankful for mommy and daddy. Ellie was thankful for family and friends. Tim was thankful for his children. Ken was thankful for Tim and his help and for all of us and for me especially. Gwen was thankful for a fun family that gets along. Zeke was thankful for his life. Susie ended our thankful time, saying that we all are thankful for Jesus!
Every year it seems like the holidays just fly by faster than the year before. I am especially thankful this year that there are more days in November after the holiday so that I have more days to reflect and be thankful!
Yes, I am blessed. The biggest blessing of these family gatherings is all of the love that is shared. The wonderful and amazing thing about love is that the more you give away, the more love you have! That is the best thought to carry us into the Christmas season. Yep, that is going to be my Advent goal. Seeing how much love I can give away!! Will you join me?
Jesus, thank you for your great love for us. It is your love that allows us to love others. Holy Spirit keep us mindful of those that might especially need more love during the weeks ahead. Give us courage and obedient hearts to share love with those who might need it the most. Thank you Jesus for family, friends and fun. Mostly, again, thank you for your love. Amen
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