Happy Thanksgiving!

Tomorrow (or shall I say today since it's already tomorrow?) we are headed for Columbia to visit with Darrin's mom for a few days. Rebekah has her Thanksgiving program at preschool in the morning and then we'll join her for the Thanksgiving feast for lunch. After that we are hitting the road and will be gone the rest of the week. We'll return on Friday to celebrate with my family.

Lately I've been reading some Thanksgiving books to Rebekah to teach her a little about what the holiday's traditions are about. We've discussed who the Pilgrims and Indians are and what they did. Tonight we read The Very First Thanksgiving Day, and Rebekah was extremely inquisitive about what was going on in each page. It was fun to see her so enthralled in the pictures and eager to learn about what they were doing.

As I reflect on Thanksgiving and what it represents I can't help but to be thankful for so much. Psalm 104:4 says, "Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and bless His name." First of all, I am thankful to my Lord and Savior who saved me at a young age. In no way do I deserve anything that He has given me, but I am amazed at the precious unconditional love God has for me, that He sent His Son to die on a cross for me, and that Christ rose again. Not only that, but He has been faithful even when I am not and has been my guide and loving God. I am also thankful for my family. Darrin is such a wonderful, understanding husband. He is a true servant at heart, and he is a wonderful provider, husband, and father. He takes great care of our family. I am so thankful for our two children. God has blessed us in so many ways with Rebekah and Joshua. They bring so much joy to our family, and they are such a delight. We laugh so much more since they have entered our family, and I am so grateful that the Lord placed them into our care to raise them. I am also thankful for our other family members, immediate and extended. They are a part of what makes us the way we are, and they are an integral part of our lives that means so much to us.

I am thankful for my friends, for our new Bible fellowship class, for our church, and for our home. I am so thankful for the progress Joshua has made this year in his gross motor development. He has come such a long way in the last 12 months, and I am so proud of him! There are so many blessings which the Lord has given us. He has truly been good to us, and we have much to be thankful for this year.

Here is a picture of the red maple in our front yard. It peaked in color a week or so after I had taken photos of the fall colors in our subdivision. Darrin planted this tree for me after we were engaged, so it is 8 years old now. Each year the leaves are fuller and more beautiful. I found it interesting that one side started maroon then turned a deep orange-red while the other side went from orange-red to a bright orange.



Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!