Thankful

It's Thanksgiving and this time of year is always bittersweet for me. Bittersweet because as a kid I loved and hated the holidays. Loved them because it meant time off from school, time at home to read and play and do whatever I wanted and hated them because it meant split time between my parents. It meant rushing from house to another trying to keep looking thrilled about every gift and trying to pretend that I LOVED it more at whoever's house I was at at the moment. YUCK!

Now all grown up, I still feel torn between all the places we're "expected" to be. I still feel guilt when I realize I so did NOT get that person a present and I still feel THRILLED to be out of school!

This particular holiday is about giving thanks though and all day long I've been hearing people tell what they're thankful for and it got me thinking...I'm thankful for a handy husband who in the last 2 years has had to fix 4 MAJOR water leaks in our house, redo our heat/air at least twice, paint our living room, redo our kitchen, fix our leaking roof, replace our busted hot water heater and numerous other projects. I'm thankful for my precious children who are consistently happy and forgiving, despite how their parents may act. I'm thankful that the Lord has seen fit to provide for us this year as we've been through the toughest economic times our small family has ever seen. I'm thankful for a job that I love and for my work family who make working seem like play everyday. I'm thankful for Chris' business and that we're beginning to see the other side of these dark times. I'm thankful for a family that raised me to believe that God will send rain but he'll also send rainbows. I'm thankful for a roof over my head, food on my plate and hope in my heart. I'm thankful for friends who mean more to me than they'll ever know. I'm thankful for a Savior who died so I can live.

What a wonderful, adventureous year it's been! Happy Thanksgiving! And Happy Black Friday! (Not sure which I like better! :) )