Thanksgiving is a week away, can you believe it? It’s my favorite holiday, a day set aside for thankfulness and food and I think I’ve really gotten into the Thanksgiving spirit this year. Our house is decorated with fall leaves and gourds, turkeys and a Thankful Tree.

You know what a Thankful Tree is, right? It’s just what it sounds like – a tree loaded with things for which you are thankful. I made mine last Sunday and it didn’t take much time at all.

I had Dale bring me a branch from the yard and I stuck it in a vase of cranberries. I used my scrapbooking supplies to cut out circles and ovals from fall themed paper.

I strung those tags on orange yarn and hung them all on the branch and now each day we take off a blank tag and write something we are thankful for on it.

So far it includes things like each other, our marriage, our jobs and our homes. We’ll continue to add to it each day until Thanksgiving and I’m sure we’ll come up with more creative and unique ideas as the days pass.

It’s good to acknowledge all that we have. It’s good to be thankful.

And here we are with the 4th installment of Thankful Thursdays. I think it’s been even more rewarding to write these posts this year because I covered the major things last year (family, home, job, friends, etc.) and didn’t want to be repetitive. That has meant that I’ve really had to think about all the things I am thankful for and I’ve realized I have many blessings. And so, finally, this week I am thankful for:

1. My camera. It has allowed me to share so much of my world with you and I am grateful to have a very nice camera along with some pretty awesome lenses.
2. The internet. I remember the days when there were no search engines and you had to use a url to find anything. Now there is so much out there and it has been a wonderful resource for me. I have made friends, and enhanced my ability to do my job. I’ve wasted a lot of time, too, but it’s all good.
3. Thanksgiving. I guess this is obvious but if we didn’t have Thanksgiving I think it would be really easy to just forget to be thankful. So on Thanksgiving I remember all I have – the ones I love, the job I enjoy, the comfort of my home and my pets, the hobbies and the friends and all the blessings in my life.

In closing, let us consider the words of this quote:

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Let’s all live with an attitude of gratitude! Happy Thanksgiving, my friends.

Is it really the third Thursday in November already? Sometimes I think these weekly themed posts make the weeks fly by too quickly. Surely it isn’t my advanced age.

Anyway, this week I am thankful for:

1. Our woodstove. It’s a beautiful soapstone stove that we bought right before we got married and I love it. There’s really nothing quite like a fire to provide not just warmth but also a high coziness factor. Dale replaced the glass on the front of the stove this week and I can’t believe how clean and beautiful the fire looks now. While it’s certainly extra work to haul wood, the benefits are wonderful.
2. Hannah’s upcoming homecoming. It’s only 5 sleeps away now and I can’t wait to have my girl back under my roof for several nights. I haven’t seen her since 10/10/10 and I’ve really missed her.
3. My ability to cook. I don’t mean this to sound conceited but I’m really thankful that I can plan and prepare meals for my family. We save money, we eat more nutritious food, and I get a lot of pleasure in showing my love for people in this way. Whether it’s a fancy dinner like last Saturday night’s filet mignon with baked potato and brussels sprouts with maple butter pecans, or something simple like American Chop Suey (yes, I said IT), or a homemade apple pie, it’s always delicious and it always makes me happy.

Reflecting on thankfulness makes me happy, too.

You know what I really love about Thankful Thursdays? It actually makes me think about being thankful all week long. You see, I plan my posts in my head and this makes me think of all kinds of things I could list when it comes time to write my Thankful Thursdays post. It transcends Thursdays, my friends.

This week I am thankful for:

1. Veterans. Today is Veteran’s Day and I am thankful for the men and women that served our country. I am thankful for those that volunteered for this service and I am thankful for those that were drafted into service. I am grateful that they sacrificed their time with their families in order to protect mine.
2. Kiwanis. I love being a part of an organization that does so much good for our community. Last week we donated $500 to a local child who suffers from Spastic Quadriplegia Cystic Fibrosis. It was an instant and unanimous decision and it feels great to give away money like that – and that’s just one example of the kind of things we do for the people.  Tonight we are assembling care packages to send to our soldiers who are overseas. We work hard at our fundraisers like selling Christmas trees and the Pancake Breakfast, but it’s wonderful to be part of a group that exists for the sole purpose of helping others.
3. Wheaton College. When I went to Wheaton it was a small liberal-arts college for women. It was (and still is) a gorgeous campus and I know without a doubt that it was the exact right place for me to be. I would not be the woman I am today if I had gone anywhere else. Things have changed at Wheaton, in fact the decision to go co-ed was made on the weekend I graduated, but I think the school is still a remarkable place. Last week I heard that the son of an acquaintance is applying “early decision” to go there, just as I did 28 years ago. While it’s still strange to me to hear about a man going to my alma mater, I’m thankful it’s still there and I’m so thankful for the experiences I had as a student there.

Being thankful feels good. And it’s contagious, too.

It’s a Thursday and it’s November and that means it’s time to resurrect Thankful Thursdays. I covered a lot last year and am still thankful for all of those things – my family and my pets, my job, my hobbies and my friends. You can go back and read the archives from each week if you would like but then please come back and read this week’s installment.

This week I am thankful for:

1. My right to vote. The race that was closest to my heart this week did not go the way I wanted but I am still thankful that I could vote and hold a sign for my candidate. And I am thankful that we get to do it all again in a couple of years.
2. Foliage. I live in a beautiful area and the foliage this year (as evidenced by some of my pictures lately) has been spectacular.
3. Spin night at the library. Once a month I host a spinning get together with a wonderful group of people. This week we brought a new spinner into the fold and I’m thankful for what she will bring to our group.

I hope some of you will join me and participate in Thankful Thursdays this month.

Here we are with the final installment of Thankful Thursdays. I have so enjoyed writing these posts and reading everyone else’s posts, too. I think we should do this every year! And today, on Thanksgiving, I am thankful for food. My family has more than enough to eat and I am grateful that I have never known real hunger.

In particular, on this day of feasting, I am thankful for:

1. Turkey. It’s the star of the meal and while I love the white meat for a sandwich, when it comes to the Thanksgiving dinner itself, pass me the thigh.

2. Stuffing. Call it dressing, call it stuffing, call it whatever you want just please make mine with celery, onion, oysters, and lots and lots of Bell’s Seasoning.

3. Mashed potatoes and gravy. This combo rounds out any meal nicely but on Thanksgiving it’s the best part of the meal.

Of course there is also squash and turnip and cranberry sauce. And no Thanksgiving dinner is complete without the relish tray, stuffed dates and figs, and pie – my own contribution to the holiday meal.

Whatever your favorites, I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

We’ve covered the big stuf in the last 2 weeks of thankfulness posts. Family, job, home, pets. There’s still so much left to talk about, though!

This week I am thankful for:

1. My friends.  I certainly never thought I would make so many friends when I started this blog but that’s exactly what happened. And I have wonderful friends at work and at home, too. I have many and I am blessed.

2. My hobbies.  Knitting comes at the top of this list but I also love spinning and photography. I am thankful that I have the time and resources to devote to these hobbies.

3. The wonders of our modern world. Indoor plumbing and electricity. Email and iPods and cell phones. Aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Microwaves. All those little and not-so-little things that make my life better.

Expressing thanks for all these things makes me happy.

I have to say that I so enjoyed reading everyone’s Thankful Thursdays posts last week. Some were serious and some were funny and all were wonderful reminders of everything we have. I can’t wait to read what you all have to be thankful for again this week.

As for me, I am thankful for:

1. My job. I love being a librarian and a manager. I really love being “the boss” and the flexibility that comes with it.

2. My pets. Okay, mostly Mason. I love Dixie, of course, but I am a cat person through and through, and Mason is the cat of my heart.

3. My home. I have a roof over my head and a pretty low mortgage by today’s standards. While I don’t have closets or a second bathroom, my house is warm and cozy and Dale gives me the freedom to decorate it in any way that pleases me.

This thankfulness thing can really brighten your outlook. If you haven’t already, give it a try!

The other day I was reading Kate’s blog and she mentioned that, in the spirit of thankfulness, she would be posting 3 things she is thankful for each time she posts during the month of November. Her idea inspired me to start Thankful Thursdays - a weekly post about being thankful. I’ve invited some friends to join me so you may see these posts popping up a bit. I think it will help all of us remember that we have much for which to be thankful.

This week, and every day, really, I am thankful for:

1. My husband, Dale.  He loves me and supports me and tolerates my moods. He reads every blog post I write and admires every picture I take. He loves my hobbies and my friends and even my cat. I cannot imagine life without him.

2. My daughter, Hannah.  I love her fiercely and I’m grateful every day that I get to be her mom. She’s one special kid.

3. My stepchildren, Brant (and his wife, Heather), Jessica, Luke and also my stepgrandchildren Patrick and Ambrynn. It wasn’t easy blending our families but these kids accepted me because of the one thing we’ve always had in common: loving Dale. I never thought I’d have such a big, crazy, loving family but I do and I wouldn’t change it for the world.

I hope thinking about the things you are thankful for makes your day a little better.