Thanksgiving

Well, I have certainly taken a break from blogging for a while.  Life got busy.  I appear to have reached my photo limit on Picasa  so adding photos to my blog became a challenge.  I haven't been able to put things into words for a while, even though so much was happening in my thoughts.  So, I took a break.  Well, tonight, I decided to unload the pictures from my camera to my computer, and that has inspired me to update my blog.  We will see how far I get through this busy holiday season.  

Thanksgiving.

The kids and I had a great Thanksgiving holiday this year.  I was starting to get a grip on life again, and finally feeling like I was not as consumed with grief.  Dare I say I was starting to live a little, too.  My youngest sister and her family were going to be visiting our parents for a couple weeks, and our middle sister offered to host a big family Thanksgiving at her house.  The idea of getting the 3 sisters together again....along with our parents.....and the 11 grandbabies, was too exciting to miss!  Considering the youngest grandchild was born this year, this was the first time we were all going to be together.  Being the photo-loving family that we are, we planned a family photo for the occasion as well.

Everything turned out great.  I was especially spoiled.  The kids and I made the drive to my sister's house.  We did not have to prepare any food or bring anything.  She did all the cooking, with the help of both of my brothers-in-law.  We took photos before the meal, when everyone was freshly dressed and happy to be together.  The photos turned out great.  The meal was delicious.  The kids got along incredibly well.  It was a really fun time.  It was sweet to see my parents surrounded by all of their grandchildren at the same time.  

That evening, we drove to my parent's house for the night.  Then, we drove home the next morning.  (I prefer to drive during the daylight).  As I was driving, I thought about how nice this Thanksgiving was.  We made some great memories, and even cuter photos.  I would say it was one of my best Thanksgiving celebrations.

My absolute favorite Thanksgiving memory was in 2003.  Jersey #2 had just survived open-heart surgery the week before.  She was home from the hospital, we were home from California, and Jersey #1 was home from Granny & PawPaw's house.  Our family was alive, healthy, and reunited again.  Due to the high risk of germs and post surgery recovery, we stayed in isolation.  We did not invite anyone to the house, and we did not travel anywhere.  We stayed home and enjoyed a simple celebration.  We had so much to be thankful for that year.  A living, breathing, 3-month old, and her super sweet big sister were at the top of the list.  We had just endured a great roller coaster of stress and emotion, so the down time was a huge blessing.