Grateful

Well, we can all see on which one of my 2011 goals I have fallen short, can't we?  I guess when I set my goals for this year, getting pregnant wasn't necessarily one of them, and that has kind of trumped blogging.  I do have several posts planned for December, so perhaps it will help to get me back in the groove.  (?)

The last several weeks we have been celebrating Thanksgiving.  I love Thanksgiving.  I love setting aside a time to show gratitude.  I love the food.  I love watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and remembering when Jim and I marched in it sixteen years ago.  I love having a house full of people who are laughing and talking and eating and loving life.

We started preparing for Thanksgiving last week as Cora had her first ever Mother's Day Out program.  Each class stood on the stage and "sang" one song.  I don't think a single child in Cora's class actually sang (they're only two years old!), but it was good for them to practice standing up in front of people and staying put.  Of course, Cora didn't really do that, either.  She climbed up and down the bottom stair for the whole song and kept walking over to her teacher, but it was cute.  She makes me smile.

The kindergarten at Brennan's school had an adorable Thanksgiving program on Friday.  Some of the kids were turkeys, some were pilgrims, and some were Indians.  It is a big school... You can't even see all of the kids in this photo!  (There are kids dressed as turkeys on either side of the photo.)  But even though it's a big school, we really love it and it doesn't feel big.  We are so thankful for our neighborhood school!

Brennan was a pilgrim, and for the first time in his five years of life, he fully participated in a program!  He sang every word, did every motion, and really enjoyed himself.  I was so happy for him and proud of him!!

Yesterday we had some friends over for Thanksgiving Day, and it was fabulous.  I just love hosting Thanksgiving!  I love having dinner parties, setting pretty tables, and spoiling my friends and family.  Plus, Jim makes a yummy turkey!  (Actually, this year he made two so we could have extra leftovers for our friends and our freezer!)

This year we had our friends Kylie and Jesse and their sons Dylan and Ryland (they have eaten with us for the last three years!), and our neighbors / friends Jefferson and Leslie and their son Jackson.  With four kids and a baby, it was the first time we've ever had a kid table for Thanksgiving!

The company was great, the food was yummy, and everything was wonderful.  Maybe next year we'll need two kid tables!?

These pictures above make it look like my house was so serene.  It was not.  At all.  But it was fun!!

I try very hard to show an attitude of gratitude each and every day of the year, so I hope Thanksgiving is just a continuation of that.  This year, among the many things I am thankful for, I am especially grateful for our friends.  I am thankful for genuine, passionate, down-to-earth friends who walk alongside us and encourage us to live for Jesus, allow us to be ourselves (and love us just as we are), and fill our home with joy and laughter.  Even without good food or pretty decorations we have so much to thank God for.  He answers the prayers we remember to pray and even the ones we don't.

Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others. --Cicero

I am so grateful.