Thankful for So Many Things

Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday, one of my favorites. This year was the first year that I was away from my parents, and so I wanted to have a turkey dinner at our place--to both keep me busy and start our own holiday traditions. I'm so glad we were able to host it, and that all our nearby family was able to join us . . . even though I don't remember a whole lot of that night! The Sunday before the big day I came down with a bad cold that quickly turned into a sinus infection. I had laryngitis off and on, and was just generally miserable. We went to the store and got me some cold medicine that alternately knocked me out at night, and had me hocked up on amphetamines during the day. Randy was so wonderful and helped me out Thanksgiving day by hefting the turkey out of the brine (we bought a serious 24 pounder), and following my directions to make a jello salad treat. He also was an angel to help me clean our house before everyone arrived. Mandy and Joe came a little early to help and hang out, and Mandy helped me do some cleaning and then kept me company while I was high on all the cold medicine. But in spite of the fact that I felt like my head was floating somewhere close to the ceiling, the turkey was delicious! I was nervous, never having cooked a turkey before, but the cooking magazine that my sisters-in-law gave me for my bridal shower gift paid off. I followed its recipe for a brine and was very happy with the resulting bird. I was thankful for a dinner that I managed not to ruin, for the family I had to share it with, for our home that was large enough and comfortable enough to host our family in, and for all the blessings God has given Randy and me this year. The blessing of being together is something we are thankful for every day.
Now that Thanksgiving is over, we are looking forward to Christmas. We have our little Christmas tree up and lighting our front room. We also have all of Joe and Mandy's earthly belongings! They are in the process of moving, and had a few days' gap between their old place and new, so we are helping them store everything. We were glad to be able to help them out, and to have enough room in our house to do it comfortably. We are looking forward to seeing both our families over the Christmas holiday, and to meeting our new little nephew Henry!