I Heart Macro! On Being Grateful!

"Over and over I marvel at the blessings of my life: Each year has grown better than the last."

Lawrence Welk

Listing Saturday:: November:: The month of Remembering and Thanksgiving

 

November

We remember.

We thank.

We gather.

We eat turkey.

We prepare for Christmas.

We celebrate.

We speak our memories.

We miss our loved ones who are gone.

We get cold.

We stay inside.

We shovel snow.

We wear long underwear.

We call our loved ones.

We attend church.

We look at old photos.

We cry a little.

We laugh a lot.

We play games.

We remember other holidays.

We gather with our extended family.

We give thanks.

After the holiday

I hold on to the memories.

We had fun.

We enjoyed each other.

We laughed.

We remembered.

We ate.

We joined friends in celebrating the day.

We played games.

We watched TV.

We took naps.

We even went shopping.

It was a good time!!

After the holiday, I know how truly blessed I have been.

New Tab on My Blog

And it's called "Gratitude Journal."  Click HERE to go to it!  I have wanted to continue my journaling on this blog for a long time.  Now, I have to journal.  I hope to do this everyday, but we shall see. 

I've read that people who live with gratitude are happier people who sleep better at night.  I want to be one of those people!

My question for you then is:

Do you journal?  If so, what kind of journal do you keep?  Do you keep a gratitude journal?  Has this helped you to improve your life?  I'd love to hear from you on this!!

Random Thoughts of Thanksgiving

1) Even though they aren't supposed to get along, they do!  I'm thankful.
2) The stem cell transplant is over, and Jenny is coming home early.  I'm thankful.
3)  I'm tired and worn out, but that means I'm alive.  I'm thankful.
4) I have two wonderful children who have proven the strength of their characters in this time of crisis.  I'm thankful.
5) Life will become more routine again.
I'm thankful.
6) Life goes on.  I'm thankful.
7) We have been changed for better or worse.  I'm thankful.
8) Our lives are certainly NOT dull.
I'm thankful.
9) Lemons into lemonade--the bitter with the sweet.  I'm thankful.
10) True friends and family, they've been here with us.  I'm thankful. 

What are your random thoughts of thanksgiving?

Celebrate! Celebration!

On Thanksgiving, our "extended" family gathers at one home or another to celebrate
the day.
With an adult table for those of us who are over, well, let's say, those of us who are the parents
of the adult children,
and
a table for the children,
and now,
children of the children,
we gather to celebrate Thanksgiving.
We eat the meal that took hours to cook.
We talk.
The children run and play.
The men gather to watch the game on TV.
The women do the dishes and wonder why.
We sort out the left overs.
Then, everyone goes home to
nap and watch more TV.

Now, Pixie, she puts up with whatever goes on her head,
no matter the season. Then, she sleeps.

Now, when I celebrate my birthday,
I buy a new pair of shoes.
Then,

Jenny drives,
and
I have my margarita for the year.

When Nick comes home, Pixie takes care of her man.
Nick relaxes and Pixie grooms him, then

they cuddle on the couch.

Jenny celebrates with her love for animals.
Then when it's just us,
we talk,
we eat,
we rest,
and
Pixie
sleeps.
That's our celebration.

Are you Sure that Was Pumpkin Pie that you ate?

Happy Shopping!

In Thanks for all the Blessings

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the United States. Customs vary from family to family, but, on this day, during our get together, there is generally a turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole. pies with real whipped cream. To that I add some traditional food that I grew up with. This year it will be Carne Adovada (Chile Pork) and Red Chile and Cheese Enchiladas.

Our gathering is one of friends that have become "family" through the years. Our children have grown up. Now some of them are married. There are grandchildren. (Here's where I need to remind MY ADULT CHILDREN that my biological clock is ticking, and I don't want to be drooling and in diapers when my grandchildren are doing the same.) Enough said about that.

We do have a separate table for all the children, including the adult children, because they don't like the topics we, parents, discuss. Not only that, we can't all fit at one table any more. I'm really not sure, but I don't think we ever could.

So, we gather. We toast the one who left us way too early. We celebrate those who are still with us. We enjoy the company, then we hear Bob say, "Boy, Terri, that couch is calling my name."

That is the beginning of the end of our gathering.

We put the leftovers in plastic containers to send home. (Mark always gets an extra helping of the Chile Pork.) We sort through the food. We throw away the disposable plates. We lend a helping hand to the young parents as they gather their children to go home.

The football game is turned off for a bit. We hug. We say good bye. We think about next year when we gather again.

If anyone ever asked me what I was most thankful for this year, I know I'd have to say, our gathering. We are both friends and familiy. We are growing up and older together.
God brought us together for this celebration. What a wonderful blessing this is!