Thanksgiving 2010

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone.Man, I just love that holiday. Setting aside an entire day to thank God for all He has blessed us with is just a precious thing. Of course we should be thankful every hour of every day, but I like the idea of stopping everything and reveling in the goodness of our Lord. :)

Even though I adore the idea behind Thanksgiving, I really do appreciate the season in which it's set. Autumn is such a beautiful time of year, and I enjoy seeing all of the orange, brown and yellow decorations, the incredibly changing leaves on the trees and the cool and crisp feel to the weather (which didn't come until Thanksgiving day here, but better late than never!).

I spent so much time enjoying the day that I hardly picked up my camera to document it. No pictures of the beautifully laid table this year or the wonderful people who surrounded it. And you know what? That's alright with me. This year, as in past years, I got a lot of the cooking (and even pre-cooking) chores done ahead of time; so all that remained on Thursday morning was to mix up the stuffing and get that bird in the oven. It left me much free time to spend with my wonderful family and friends who came to spend the day with us.

We spent time visiting, playing cards (of course!), going through Black Friday ads and planning out our shopping trips, and lots of eating/snacking throughout the day.

We were joined by Sam's parents, our friends Ingrid, Crystal, Sharon and Ava. Later in the day Sam's brother David and family came to spend time with us. Ava's roommate Kat and another friend Jarrel came for games later on in the evening. It was just about perfect!
(These are a few of the place cards that Henry made for the table. He worked so hard on them! I did the cursive but he did the rest.)

Jonah was my joyful helper that morning. He sliced up mushrooms for the stuffing, washed dishes, mashed up deviled egg filling, helped set out snacks and didn't want to leave the kitchen. What a treat to spend the morning just with my little bear! Bridget spent the morning reading books and trying to entice someone, anyone to sit and read with her. It was sweet. She had piles of books all over the house. :)
Henry had a lego-land spread out in the living room and created his own little haven of ships and buildings and all sorts of fun.
And of course Sam got a chance to run the vacuum...during dinner! Those that know him know how happy this made him. :) I love my sweet husband and his need for order.
Thank you Lord, for another wonderful Thanksgiving! We were reminded once again of all the blessings you have heaped upon our family.