Gratitude and Remembrances

 
 I sit at my kitchen table drinking a fragrant cup of cinnamon tea, I am anticipating the upcoming season of Christmas.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I absolutely love, love, love Christmas!  I enjoy just about every thing about Christmas.  I'm not fond of shopping in overcrowded shopping centers and dealing with grinches, but online shopping has delivered me from that particular ordeal.
   Anyway, back to sitting at my kitchen table...
   Chris and I were talking about the Thanksgiving Day that had passed just a week ago.  We have so much to be thankful for.  We have gotten in the habit of writing down the things we are thankful for.  An attitude of gratitude changes our hearts when we start to feel down because we dwell too closely on the circumstances that are dragging us down.  We can't change the difficult parts of our lives, so we need to be diligent to stay positive and remember that the Lord is in control of the things that want to overwhelm us.
   As we were reminiscing and just enjoying the season, the song on the radio changed.  "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" came on the internet radio.  I really like this song.  Usually I start singing it at the top of my lungs.  I opened my mouth to sing out loud, and to my surprise I suddenly found my eyes filling up with tears instead.  All the memories of past Christmas's flooded my mind and I realized how different this year will be.  Nanny, the force behind this big Italian family, is gone.  How do we celebrate without hearing her voice?  Uncle Anthony is also gone.  This year has brought so much suffering and pain.  How do we continue our traditions with such big pieces of our family missing?
   I am so thankful to God for his mercies.  We still have Josh.  That's such a little sentence, but the feeling behind it is huge!  So many times during the last year, we watched him while he got weaker and weaker and we wondered if he would survive.  Thanks be to God for his grace and mercy toward us!
   So, we will celebrate!  Our family is different this year, but our God is the same!  So many things changed this year, but God didn't.  I will choose to be grateful.
 
 

Spoiled Puppy

I know everyone loves their pets, but I think maybe we've "loved" Pepper a little too much.  She has turned into such a little begger!  If we're in the kitchen, she's right there underfoot, hoping for us to drop something.  I'm convinced she can smell chicken a mile away.  She's also pretty fond of marshmallows.  We were making marshmallows and dropped one and before I could pick it up to throw it away, she had devoured it and was begging for more.

Happy Hunters

These are two of my "manly men".  It seems like they live for hunting season.  So far, they haven't had any luck, but they live in hope.  For their sake, I hope they get something soon.  The lazy part of me hopes they don't.  I would have to do some serious freezer cleaning (again!) to make room for meat.  

I'm so grateful for Godly men who have a deep desire to provide for their family.  In this day of feminized men, it is refreshing to see men who will do what is necessary to care for their loved ones and who take their responsibilities to heart.  Even though their hunting escapades make a lot more work for me, I am truly thankful for their sense of responsibility and family.

Tea Parties

I am thankful for girls who still love to have tea parties with their mom.  I'm even thankful for boys who swipe most of the goodies!