A time to give thanks...
It's November and you know what that means...
Yes, turkey legs and pumpkin pie (although my personal highlight is the stuffing). It also means that people everywhere are giving thanks for the wondrous gifts they have in their life and I'm no
different.
I appreciate the gift I have of a wonderful family, that we all have reasonably good health and
enough money to scrape together a 6,000 calorie meal on this special November day.
But I am honestly thankful for most of those things every day.
I am also thankful for a few other things I might overlook the rest of the year.
I am thankful for 50 degree days in November that lend themselves to hanging Christmas lights without gloves, or hand warmers, or even jackets.
I am thankful for Christmas cards that I still make out and mail so there continues to be one time a year I can acknowledge and hear from people, other than on Facebook, that I never get around to calling and telling I miss otherwise.
I am extremely thankful for our dual control electric blanket. (However, Kirk needs to turn his side down because I'm confused whether I'm just getting too warm under the covers or if I'm actually experiencing the hot flashes I've been on the lookout for).
I am thankful for my relentless personal trainer, Miller (not like the. beer). Our Springer Spaniel with- not-so-much-spring who looks at me every day and says, "Let's do this! You're no wimp!" when it's time to go for our morning walk.
I am ever so thankful for hot coffee in the mornings and hot toddies in the evenings. (OK...maybe not (or maybe) every single night but the option for any number of delicious concoctions is there if I desire one.)
I am thankful for the gift of hair coloring and a stylist that does it just right, and the bounty of creams and lotions and ointments that lend themselves to a 35 minute routine every night before I get into bed so I can appear to be six months younger than I really am. (Okay, I mostly cheat and really take about four minutes. Okay, sometimes I might use bar soap and a quick rinse.) But I'm thankful I have all those products for when I feel particularly tired or haggard looking.
I am thankful for awesome friends from all of the areas of our life: hockey parents who have shared all those trips out of town and weekend tournaments over the years; childhood friends who know us better than anyone and share the memories of bad home perms and that painful journey through puberty; and those that have come from surprising areas like the places we've worked and parents of our kids' friends.
I am thankful for small sized feet because I often get to buy my shoes from the girls department at most stores and those darned little pipsqueaks are pretty stylish. (Size 6 women = size 4 girls).
I am thankful for a family that knows our holidays have to be flexible and don't even question it.
I have always appreciated my children's go-with-the-flow attitude about this.
There are lots of homes where people's jobs mean their turkey is ate at creative times.
(Thank you hospital workers, law enforcement, those that will be there working next to my husband and others that do this all the time). For 25 years Kirk's job, and especially in the earlier years when I worked in radio, has meant our kids have enjoyed some very non-traditional holidayrs. Turkey dinner this year? Not too bad ... on the right day even - just no later than noon.
But my kids will all be home. They're following dad to work a couple of hours later so they can scoop up some bargains. They don't mind crowds and we've created thrifty people.
And I still get to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.
I am thankful that this has finally been a year with no bad news.
Kirk and I took a couple of fun trips away together,
Kayla was able to find a job in her major after college,
Kirstin and Ben's family is growing,
and Kyle is enjoying his last year of high school. It is a wonderful life.
Oh yeah, I am ever so thankful for the big things ... and the little things.
