Giving Thanks

Martha Stewart

Is it me or does it seem like Thanksgiving and Christmas are starting blend into one holiday? The music is already playing and the holiday decorations all up before Thanksgiving is even here. I may or may not be guilty of listening to a little Christmas music already. I know a few people that are already done their Christmas shopping, but as for me - I may just have a list started somewhere.
But with Thanksgiving just a few days away, I will be thankful for not having the pressure of making the turkey this year and I have a found a new useful way to get rid of all those monkey balls in my yard, leave it to Martha Stewart- I did one of my first blog posts on monkey balls, wanting to patent a way to use them in decorating- darn her!

Martha Stewart

But regardless of all our fussing to make our tables look just right and the food taste perfect,  it's a time to give thanks for all that we are blessed with. I have been sharing ideas over the last few weeks on ways to decorate for your Thanksgiving, but Thanksgiving should be nothing but sharing time with friends and family. There are no gifts to worry about, just a time to reflect and be grateful. It makes you feel a little guilty when staring at a huge amount of food on your plate.
We have started a prayful time with our kids at dinner and it is amazing how much they remember to do it each night, even when we might forget. But we go around the table and say one thing that we are thankful for- some nights it may be for applesauce, but that's ok. After that, we say one thing that we would like to pray about. The kids come up with many different things, but it gets them thinking and realize how much they should be thankful for.
No matter what this time of the year brings, it's nice to be a part of a tradition where we should reflect and stop for a short while and be thankful. I reflect often of my relatives that have passed and think of all the time that has gone and how much older I've gotten. (and hopefully a little wiser?) I remember every year at Thanksgivng my grandmother would always talk to the Thanksgiving turkey and give it a little pat and tell him how good he is going to be. I now catch my own mother doing that with a tear in her own eye remembering her mother. I wonder if one day I will do that as well, just because. Finding thanks in my kids and husband, family and friends, that is my biggest blessing. I do have a love for design and art but without the people in my life what would there be - I give thanks for them. May we all celebrate the people in our lives this Thanksgiving as we sit around the table this year.

(Love the old photograph place cards, how great to place old photos of those who have past as rememberance or of younger days)