Giving Thanks

Once again, my favorite holiday of the year has come and gone. I really, really love Thanksgiving. I do. Even all the preparations. . .the cleaning and raking leaves and hours spent in the kitchen. . . these give me a lot of time to reflect on our blessings.

The crazy season is over. The restful season has begun.

We still have our farm.

We still love each other.

We get to use our beautiful china set. It has mugs with matching saucers. They are very fancy and I love them.

Our children are healthy and strong and old enough to manage a wheelbarrow.




They are handy with kitchen tools and chicken-like in their willingness to eat the scraps.




A lot of this sort of silliness goes on in our house. It's a happy place to call home.




In keeping with tradition, we cooked for ten times as many guests as we had actual plates on the table. We had one entire pie for each adult and enough leftovers to fill the commercial freezer in the garage. Which helps explain this picture, one I believe should be titled "the aftermath". Food, and Thanksgiving food especially, is my favorite way to love the people I love.

The simple things really are the most essential.

Happy Thanksgiving, all. I'm grateful for your encouragement, your tremendous good humor, and your witty and generous comments.

Forever and ever.

Amen.