Thankful!

We had the best Thanksgiving, we normally go to our friends' house mid afternoon, to officially celebrate Thanksgiving and share a meal together with others, so the kids started out the day coloring and playing outside.

But it was just such a great day weather-wise that we decided to go for a family hike together. It was just beautiful. At first the kids were a little reluctant when we suggested a 'hike' so we changed it to an 'adventure' and got them all on board. Whatever it takes eh?!

 Poor Asia, we had hiked way out to a little alcove of a beach and we mentioned the tide was starting to come in and we should start to head back to the main beach and she COMPLETELY freaked out. She was absolutely terrified that she was going to drown, no matter how much we tried to reassure her that we were just planning ahead. No matter how much we cuddled and held her, even when we got back to the main beach she still was traumatized. It was SO sad. Don't think I'll ever forget that reaction and hope that she has not been scarred for life.

I decided to be 'present' for Thanksgiving, so no photos of the food, but it was, as always, a great time. We have so much to be grateful for.

Thanksgiving

 

I think that this may be the first time that I am in the photograph for Thanksgiving, after twelve years of celebrating this holiday.  Apart from my first year in this country when we visited my friend Karen's family, we have spent every Thanksgiving with our good friends the Buschs and whomever else they took pity on invited. 

There have been some smaller gatherings, especially in our pre-kid days but this may have been the largest. They moved sofas and chairs to make room for the super extended table, so that we could still all sit at a table and feel civilized and like one big happy family. With twelve adults (another two had been expected) and six children, this was no mean feat.

As is our tradition, we went around the table and each person prayed or stated something for which they were grateful. With so many people rather than having free reign this year, each person was asked to keep it to one sentence, so that the food would still be moderately warm by the time we were finished. None of the children, other than Arran opted to say anything, but he said the sweetest little heartfelt prayer, thanking God for Thanksgiving because he had so much to be grateful for and he liked that it was a good reminder for him.

As usual there was way too much food, and too much dessert, but it was all so good. We have leftovers in the refrigerator for lunch tomorrow which is always a nice bonus and one less thing to deal with on another day. 

We have so much to be thankful for, on a daily basis. Each night before I go to sleep I reflect on my day, no matter how hard or tiring or fun it was and thank God for as many things as I can think of, but I love that this country as a whole sets aside a day to do that too. There is always something to be grateful for and the world would certainly be a better place if we all focused a little more time on those things than on the things that drag us down.

Thanksgiving

When you live in a different country, you get to inherit their holidays too. The two main 'new' ones, not celebrated in England are the 4th July, when Americans celebrate their independence from Britain and Thanksgiving when they give thanks (originally for their new land, away from Britain).

I have to say that I really enjoy Thanksgiving, it is a time for reflection and gratefulness, for fantastic food and way too much of it. It is like Christmas, but without all of the gifts and the craziness and all the running around.

I have so much to be thankful for; a family who bring me such joy and make me laugh and give me unconditional love. My husband who adores me, who thinks I am beautiful, who pushes me to be more and do more, who is my biggest fan, my best friend. Friends, who love me with my many flaws and give me advice and encourage me when I am feeling down. A heavenly father who has given me all of this and so much more, who gives me hope, who cares about the little things and answers my prayers. I just feel so blessed.

There are days when I can lose sight of all of the good things, when I get caught up in the nitty-gritty, the kids bickering, the laundry and mess around me, but when I take a step back to look at the bigger picture, I am in awe of all that I have and can more easily stop focusing on what I do not have.

Whatever country you live in, I hope that you can take the time to slow down and back-up and think about all that you have to be grateful for. Not just today, but any day, every day!