A Week of Joy and Thanksgiving!

"Gratitude is the fairest blossom
which springs from the soul."
- Henry Ward Beecher

What a wonderful, week in November it has been. As I headed into town everyday I was amazed at all of the lights on many houses and also many Christmas trees all lit up and decorated in peoples windows.

I'm kind of traditional, in the fact, that Thanksgiving means Turkeys, Pilgrims and pumpkins at my house. I love Thanksgiving SO much that I want it to be special for the things that it stands for. So, needless to say, Christmas doesn't get put out one moment before the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Thursday, November 27th...
I awoke to such a gorgeous sunlit sky. Next to our yearly backpacking trips, one of my next favorites events of the year is Thanksgiving Day. WHY? Because, of the wonderful, inspirational, Thanksgiving morning program that I am able to be a part of.

This has been a tradition in our community for over 35 years and it has been a tradition of our family for the past several years . I'm grateful that I have been able to be a part of the community choir for the past 2 years.

I've had to be creative with my time and plan ahead a little bit, but I was able to bake up 3 pies (Coconut cream, Apple and Three Berry) and 4 dozen rolls on Thanksgiving Morning before I had to leave at 8:30 for warm up before the 10:00 program.

This was the sight that I saw
as I pulled up to the Tabernacle.
I just LOVE the tree with orange berries and the electrifying blue sky.
We couldn't have asked for a more gorgeous morning.

The banner outside
telling the community about the Thanksgiving morning program.

This building is 100 years old
and has such gorgeous details all throughout the Tabernacle.

The program...
I LOVED every song that we sang:
"Go out with Joy"
"Alleluia"
"Heartland"
"I'll Flay Away" (Medley)
"We Thank Thee, Dear Lord"
(this song was written by Newell Dayley
and our choir was the first group to perform it)
"You'll Never Walk Alone"

Remembrances from the morning!!
I am SO sad this over. Our practices were every Sunday night from 7:00 to 9:00 from the second Sunday in October until Thanksgiving Day and what an uplifting and spiritual experience! It was the perfect way to start my week. These people enriched my life greatly and I will miss them!
Music feeds my soul!

(Top photo...our little family after the Morning Program.
Bottom photo...three generations photo)
We ate Thanksgiving at Joel and Shelley's house (Tracy's sister and brother-in-law).
It was an "off year" and so we didn't have everyone there, but it was a wonderful time, nonetheless.

LOTS of yummy food!!
Joel and Shelley always make the yummiest stuffing and their turkey gravy was the biggest hit of all. Close seconds was the cranberry and orange relish and of course the homemade rolls.

We enjoyed watching "Stalking Santa" and "UP" after dinner, enjoyed lots of great conversation and laughter and best of all...we enjoyed PIE and Oatmeal Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!
OOPS...the leftovers were too tempting and calling our names and so we all made up a late night snack of turkey, potatoes and gravy and rolls!
What a WONDERFUL day from start to finish!!

This time of year
I am grateful for....
The Love of my Life Tracy!
He always makes sure we have time for US each day and the highlight of my week is our date nights! I'm so proud of the wonderful dad he is to our kids and now he will be a wonderful example to the 12-14 year boys in our ward as he just got put in a Scout Master.
It will be ALOT of work, but I look forward to helping him to magnify his calling and help these boys be able to reach their goals. Tracy has SO many awesome talents in regards to the outdoors, camping and spirituality and he will be an influence for good in these boys lives.
I'm SO lucky and so are they!

I'm grateful for Candace (Tracy's neice) who took time out of her busy life to snap a few photos of the four of us as a family so we can have an updated family photo and also a photo for Christmas cards.
(I will post the results of family photos in a week or so..I want them to be a surprise for Christmas cards).

I'm thankful for being able to see my children do the things they have been taught. I was touched as we were walking into the mall last week and Jade was a little ways ahead of us and he noticed a lady struggling to open the door with her stroller and Jade ran up and held the door for her. It made me get teary-eyed!

I'm thankful for FOOD, shelter, warmth and clean water...
phone calls from family,
the gorgeous colors of the sunrise and sunset that brighten the somewhat gloomy days we experience this time of the year.

I'm thankful we at least have a bathtub and we aren't living in days of old where all they had was a wash basin to bath once a week. Tracy is redoing our shower and so we aren't able to take showers right now...only baths. (Jade thinks it's terrible, he has been a little grumpy about taking baths).
********************
I'm thankful that Tracy had five days off work during the holidays and he took such good care of us. (even though I'm sure he wished he would have had more time to work on projects, he did the "little things that matter" for all of us). I came home from work to a yummy soup for lunch on Wednesday and Friday and he fixed the kids pancakes and eggs for breakfast on these days as well.He is AWESOME! I LOVED our afternoons. Since, I don't get to be with him in the afternoons during the middle of the week, it was such a treasured time and I loved every moment of it!

I'm thankful for a supportive husband and children who let me go and enjoy my Sunday night Choir Practices for the past 7 weeks.

Most of all I'm grateful to have a home where LOVE abundantly abounds and I look forward to the JOY that comes as we head into the
"Most Wonderful Time of the Year"!!