Thanksgiving or Giving of Thanks

I am sorry for my lack of posts lately. I have no reason for it, other then I didn't think that I had anything overly interesting to post. Anyways, I am here now!

Thanksgiving was on Thursday and once again the people that I am honored to be surrounded by amaze me. It was a joyful, loving, fun-filled and beautiful day. We had a fantastic time with the Richmond Clan. Great food, football, a family scavenger hunt, and a few games of Bingo! It is so wonderful to see all of the little cousins get together and play, they are so sweet with each other. We manage to all squeeze into someone's home for every major holiday, and every holiday our family continues to grow. The continuation of life despite losses. I remember being at the funeral for the father of a very close friend and as we were slowly leaving the burial site, we saw our baby and theirs sitting playing in grass and my friend made the comment that despite everything, life goes on and happiness is always waiting. It was an amazing, surreal moment and one that I will never forget. Two years ago we lost the matriarch of our family and despite that immense loss, we have continued on with love and happiness. More babies have been born and more people have voluntarily joined our unique and at times overwhelming crew. We are a beautiful family and I love each and every one of you very much.

After leaving the Richmonds we headed to the Murphys. There we enjoyed a smaller group, but possibly louder! Especially when Tatum and her two cousins get together. There was lots of screaming and laughing. They are so cute together and love each other so much. I enjoy every moment and love those little girls and my in-law family very much. We ate amazing food, and enjoyed another scavenger hunt and watched Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. We were also able to speak to DH's brother who is living in Korea for a year. Modern technology is amazing when it comes to keeping families together when distance is between them. I need to utilize it more with my siblings.

I have noticed that many people have been listing the things that they are thankful for and I realized that I should do the same. As noted above, I am grateful for my family and friends. They have enriched my life and I cannot say how grateful I am for everything they have done for me. My DH and daughter give me the best reasons to get out of bed everyday. I love every moment, even the difficult ones. I am thankful for my health and my second chance at life. I am extremely grateful to the doctors and nurses that gave me this chance. I trusted them with my life and they made sure that I would be here as long as God lets me. I am thankful for an amazing job and my fabulous co-workers. Some days are extremely stressful, but most days we flow through with few problems and enjoy the days together. Thank you for making me want to come to work. I love you all. I am thankful for our home and food on the table. I am also thankful for our loving animals who show us unconditional love. I am thankful for a car that works, despite all of the money we have dumped into them. I am thankful for laughter and whatever makes me laugh. A good book, movie, joke, something silly that a 5 year old says, the list goes on and on. There are so many little things everyday that I am grateful for, especially my blog and my amazing readers. Thank you.