Thanksgiving

Happy  Thanksgiving.      Gobble   Gobble  Gobble

Today is a day I take to reflect on the many things I am thankful for.  There are so many things I could list but most importantly is my family.  I have 5 of the greatest kids with the best son-in-law I could ask for.  Spending the day together was great.  To be relaxed with no time frame and no pressure to do anything was great.   Bret and I did some picture hanging (well he did the work and I gave instructions) and some house cleaning before visiting his family.  We ate lots and laughed much.  After leaving there we went to my mom's.  My family suddenly seemed so small with Margie spending the day with Eric's family.  This was a hard time for us without dad being there.  With his birthday last week and Thanksgiving  today we could really feel his absence. Logically we know that he is no longer suffering or living a live full of hospital trips and procedures, he is at peace, but we MISS him.  Mom was quiet today and I could see the pain in her face.  It makes me so sad.  The one thing dad did not want to do was to leave mom alone.  I am so grateful for my dad and the man he was.  He truly loved my mom and watched out for her always.  He would have been so mad to see all the work she did for today but he was the only one to tame her when it came to family events.  Dad was always someone who looked out for all of us.  When he was in the hospital he was checking on me to see if I was o.k. with money and having us all promise we would look after mom.  I am so glad I had a career change in these past couple of years because I had he time to spend with dad and it allowed me to give back to him a small fraction of the service he did for me.  He was my dad but was also my friend.  Someone I could always talk to and not feel judged by. I hope as I grow in my role as a parent that I could follow the example I had in both my parents.  When I went into mom's room today I sat on the bed fighting back tears when Becka came in.  She hugged me with tears welling up in her eyes and I asked her why she was crying.  Her response was so sweet and simple, she said, "I do not know mom, I just feel sad when other people cry and it makes me cry too." She is my angel and I am so thankful....for her and for so much more.  I wish to be able to reflect on the things I have to be thankful for not just today but everyday.     An attitude of gratitude!!!