Giving Thanks

I love Thanksgiving. I love the family atmosphere, the wonderful food, the start of the "Holiday Season". But most of all, I love how it's a day dedicated to being thankful for what we have. All too often, we (and I'm including myself in that we) tend to focus on the things we don't have instead of those that we do.

Every year during the month of November, I post a daily (except for weekends, since I'm seldom on the computer Sat/Sun) thankful post on my Facebook status. I thought it would be fun to list them all in one place this year. So below, you will find just a fraction of the things I'm thankful for.

Candy...

*is thankful for a healthy family, as I know many who are dealing with sickness and disease or even the loss of a loved one.
*is thankful that I live in the United States of America, where I can voice my thoughts and opinions without fear of persecution. How do I voice those thoughts and opinions? One way is to get out and VOTE.
*is thankful for music and the ability to hear and enjoy it.
*is thankful for my Carhart jacket on cold mornings when I have to feed the calves and horses at 7 am and 25 degrees (or colder).
*is thankful for a hard-working husband, even if that trait is one I simultaneously love and don't love about him. ♥
*is thankful for a beautiful day spontaneously spent at the zoo with my girls and a great friend!
*is thankful for the roof over my head and all the things I have under that roof--even if they need to be cleaned or washed or thrown away--because it reminds me I'm more fortunate than many...and to count my blessings.
*is thankful Andy was feeling well enough (he stayed home from work b/c he's sick) to monitor nap-time so I could go for a 1.5 hr horseback ride on this beautiful, sunny November day that is 62 degrees--which is 20 above average!
*is thankful that I finally got off my butt this spring and went to the optometrist. Seeing things clearly again is amazing!
*is thankful for the great library we visit--it's a beautiful building, staffed with wonderful employees and volunteers, filled with fantastic books and opportunity, and visited by some pretty great people!
*is thankful for all the men and women who have served, or are currently serving, our country (including their families who sacrifice so much!) A special shout-out and thank you to my cousins Matt and Reed, who are both active duty right now.
*is thankful for where we live--I love Wisconsin and all the seasons and changes.
*is thankful for a great family day--a little shopping; then basketball tournament for Alayna; 8+ inches of fresh, wet snow that was a lot of fun to play in; a great snowy day dinner and then a family viewing of Grumpy Old Men, one of the best movies ever!
*is thankful the power came back on after about 2 hrs--it was getting cold in here!
*is thankful that Andy and I have the same weird, warped sense of humor--we make each other laugh all the time and that's such a huge blessing!
*is thankful for my girls, who bring me such joy, love, confusion, anxiety...but I wouldn't trade them for the world!
*is thankful that not all socks are toe-socks. :-P
*is thankful for the ability to read--it allows me to learn, grow, dream and escape. (I'm also thankful for writers and authors who allow me to do the above mentioned things.)
*is thankful for new opportunities.
*is thankful that I don't have to be on the roads today, Day 2 of freezing rain and ice. Fun stuff.
*is thankful that Andy installed my new light above the kitchen sink. It hasn't even been quite a year since I bought it... ;-)
*is thankful that I found my Grampa's pocket-knife after 3 yrs!!!! My Gramma gave me one of his engraved knives after he passed away and I was certain I'd lost it for good. SO happy!
*is thankful for LIFE!
*is thankful it's time to decorate for Christmas!
*is thankful for the great 4H group that we belong to.
*is thankful for the likes of Mannheim Steamroller and TransSiberian Orchestra this time of year...and Sarah McLachlan's "Wintersong" cd...and all Christmas music, really.

*Knock Knock* Hello?!

Is anyone still out there? I know, I know...It's been a long time since I updated. Over a month and a half. Ouch. We have been busy and while that's not an excuse, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

But I've been informed that people have missed our little family. And I've missed blogging. So I'm going to make a bigger effort to keep this thing caught up again. But in doing so, I'm going to do one update post right now, with some pics, and then we'll be off again on the daily what-nots.

So what's been happening since Lilly turned 6? Well, she had her friends over for a friend party. And she was able to officially join 4H as a Cloverbud. Alayna started basketball, which has kept us running at least 3x a week for after school practices and 5 Saturdays in a row for tournaments. We celebrated Halloween, where we dressed up as the 3 Blind Mice, the farmer and the farmer's wife (complete with a cardboard and aluminum foil carving knife) Mid-November brought us our first snowfall of the year--10" worth--and a great day in the snow. The snow is still around and today we are dealing with freezing rain on top of it. I started watching a new little girl for daycare and last week interviewed a new little boy who will start after Thanksgiving. I also found out one of my families has a brother who will need childcare for his son come January--so I feel very blessed to be keeping busy. Andy shot a very nice buck on opening day of deer season, and the head is in my freezer. Yes, I'm told it will get mounted. I can't really fight him much because he lets me do just about anything when it comes to decorating the house...

That's the last month in a nut-shell. Now here are some pics and we'll hopefully see you soon, same place and whatever time is convenient for you.

Alayna zooming by with the ball

Lilly wanted a big brownie instead of cake for her party

Halloween 2010

Snow!