Thanksgiving Thoughts

Thanksgiving is a time of reflection as well as celebration! For me, this means evaluating not only what’s transpired in our lives over the past year, but also what I can do to improve in the coming year.  What blessings are you thankful for this year? Here’s my 2010 roundup:

Thankful for...

Culinary adventures; I’ve really been having fun in the kitchen!

The ability to get out and run, bike, and hike a lot this year.

Starting Nursing school in December -- finally!: )

Our new wheels -- Soul on a roll!

Cait & Todd’s marriage, Kim’s baptism, and many new beautiful, healthy babies for our friends. Wishing each of you many blessings!

Jobs
I’m happy for the opportunity to do meaningful work for a great employer! Many of our patients received transplants this year, including a few that we thought might never have the chance. What a blessing!
Anthony’s business, Encodable Industries, survived the sharp economic downturn & is beginning to pick up again. : )

Another awesome Colorado trip with my family this year & a little romantic get-away to Gore Mountain (still thinking about that Cheese Fondue from Lorenzo’s. Mmmm)

Finding a church home -- thanks Trinity for welcoming me into your family.

A warm, safe home that’s filled with love and laughter.

The opportunity to make new friends and reconnect with old friends. Of course, I’m also incredibly thankful for the friends that maintain a constant, permanent place in our lives (and hearts).

Our family.
We suffered a devastating loss in October when Anthony’s dad lost his three year battle with cancer. My heart breaks to think of his suffering (especially at the end of his life) & we miss him dearly. I’m including this in my Thanksgiving post, because I am thankful that he was part of my life. He was an incredibly strong man & his work ethic was second-to-none.  As a roofer, he took pride in each of his jobs & never missed a detail. I learned this when I was privileged enough to meet one of his clients; his comments about the quality of Rolly’s work & more importantly, the quality of the man, will be with me forever. I don’t know about you, but this is the way I’d like to be remembered by my employer, clients, friends, and family.

I’m thankful for all of our parents and all of the amazing gifts that they’ve given us (especially their love, wisdom, and time). I’m also grateful for our awesome, supportive siblings. It’s a blessing to have each of you in our lives through the good times and the bad. Of course, I’m also really blessed by our two rambunctious cats, Cheshire and Chloe.

I can’t imagine life without them.

Salvation.
We are imperfect, but we are forgiven.

Room for improvement:

We have so much -- I want to share more of our blessings with those around us. Also, I need to learn to think more before I speak.
With God’s help, I’d like to be a better friend, wife, and employee. I’m sure there are many more ways that I can improve, but this is what comes to mind for now.

Happy Thanksgiving!