Thanksgiving: Faith, Family and Friends ... what more could I need?

I started out this month attempting to do a "month of thanks" each day ... posting about what I'm most thankful for and why ... I made it to day 12!

Not that I don't have TONS to be thankful for ... or people to whom I'm thankful ... or a great God who has given me so much ... but as I was doing those daily posts it soon hit me that they can all be boiled down to be thankful to God for:

FAITH, FAMILY and FRIENDS

See, the funny thing is ... when I sit down and think about it, these are the three things that make my world:

1. FAITH: my Catholic faith keeps me going thru the good and the bad times; when I'm feeling most sorry for myself ... most envious of others ... or just plain disgruntled ... I realize that I firmly believe in a loving God who only wants the best for me at any given time.  This makes me look for the best in the situation -- why would I be going thru x, y or z right now ... is it something I can change or not ... how can I make it better or learn to accept.  My God is a great and good God and my Church holds me up and keeps me going.
2. FAMILY:  my family is pretty bizarre ... I have family I see/talk with all the time, some I only see/talk with occasionally and some I never see/talk with ... but yet I love them all.  They are a great gift for which I am always thankful.  I'm especially thankful for the family members that don't call or write or visit -- they make me evaluate what I'm doing: is it my fault ... could I do something better ... do they need me?  The family members who don't contact me are a blessing both for what they make me think about changing and also, and more importantly, for the chance I'm given to pray for them and for our relationship ... to pray that they may "come home" ... that I may be a source of help to them.
3. FRIENDS: my friends tend to be an eclectic mix of folks ... and always have been.  When I was in undergrad, my friends came from all groups: the druggies, the hip and groovy, the geeks.  I got along with all of them.  My friends throughout life have helped me and allowed me to help them.  I have learned from them and taught them.  I have been prayed for by them and been given the chance to pray for them.  I have grown stronger in my Faith because of (or maybe even in spite of) their friendships. 

So please, on this day when our country says "thanks" ... remember first, to Whom we're giving our thanks and really think about what you're thankful for ... don't take anything for granted and know that there will always be others better off and worse off than you ... no matter where you are.

God's grace and blessings be on one and all .... I pray for you all everyday!

 

Friends who are family ...

We have dear friends who live down in Raleigh-wood.  We used to live across the street from each other right after Rick and I married, when Kotch and Brickhead were in grade school as were our neighbor's older boys ... we had boy-babies within 6-weeks of each other, when I was in Austria having BamBam, she was in the States having her first girl ...

Well a few babies since (three more girls for her) and we're all still very close.  In September, we were privileged to be able to stay with them and last night I received a couple of pictures from that wonderful weekend (John, I guess you finally cleared the camera queue, huh?) ...

 My BamBam is in the orange shirt, his brother Lego Maniac just behind and StringBean is the big girl with the baby laying all over her. 

 This is how the girls ended up sleeping each night!

It's particularly wonderful that I had a reason to post about this dear family today ... since the Mama Bear is celebrating her birthday today!  Happiest of Birthdays to our dear friend -- that family of yours better treat you right ... we love you and pray for y'all daily.

Birthdays: my 49th year ends!

Wow, what a weekend!  My dear family believes in doing it right for my birthday and always does at least a "birthday weekned" if not a full "octave"! 

This year was especially poignant -- not just because it marked the end of my 49th year, but it also marked the welcoming of a new member to the family:  Max, the mini-schnauzer -- he's only 8 weeks + 2 days old and is a little shy ...

but String Bean already has him playing nicely!

I am SO blessed with my family and friends ... many of whom sent wishes all summed up in the Byzantine song, "God grant her many years".  My children and dh gave me many wonderful things, including the cards and table decor shown below (if you look closely, you'll see BamBam's gift:  a Steve Young football card!)

I am so amazingly blessed!  THANK you to all, near and far, for the good wishes, prayers and love ...

you mean so much to me and mine!

The best laid plans of mice and men ...

Well, the plan WAS to leave Friday morning ... heading south to Raleigh ... to surprise big sister Sarah and watch her play volleyball in the NCState Tournament.  As we were heading out, we decided to call said sister and let her know our plans. 

We then found out that our 6-0 senior at Georgia Southern had dislocated her shoulder and wouldn't be playing ... but she would be in Raleigh with the team ... she just wouldn't be playing.  Which actually worked out better (isn't God good?) as we were able to see her and visit with her a bit (we probably would have only seen her playing and then a quick hug after the matches if she had played!).

We also had the wonderful chance to spend time with our old friends in Raleigh (who so generously allowed us to spend the weekend with them!) .... they knew Sarah when she was just a little kid when we all lived in the same neighborhood over 10 years ago. 

... and I got to a knitting shop in Raleigh that wasn't there when we lived in the City of Oaks ...

a wonderful trip all 'round (except GSU didn't win any of their matches except for the one we DIDN'T see!)

Sarah is great seeing you ... and spending time with you ... we'll see you at the SoCon in Boone in November!

Books: Betsy-Tacy Reading Challenge

We're half-way through the month of October and I'm done!  I've read all 10 of the Betsy-Tacy books ... I pre-read the four younger ones (and String Bean and I are working through those together) and then I read all six of the teen and young adult ones.  What a great series.

I think the reason the books have such a loyal and vocal following is that these books ring true -- in every book you get the sense of family and love and loyalty and the simple pleasures.  The sentiment is a bit akin to Dorothy clicking her heals and saying "there's no place like home, there's no place like home."

And home can be the little cottage across from Tacy's house on Hill Street .... or the house on the windy junction of High and Plum Streets ... or the house in Minneapolis ... or the house she settles into in married life -- they're all home!  Why?  Because Betsy always has her family around her in lifeperson or in spirit.  The letters that fly back and forth during times away ... or the phone calls to catch up ... or the late-night sessions: all keep the family connected and strong and involved.

I think that these book read so well today because many of us miss those days: the days of staying in the same town for years and building up friendships and connections that stand the test of time.  We miss the long, hand-written letters that people used to write, the ones that have been replaced by IMs or txt-msgs or emails.  We're all so busy now in our own worlds we don't have time to share with our family or friends.

Betsy-Tacy books give us back those times to share.  The B-T books give us a slap in the face that says we can have much of this back again ... in addition to our IMs and emails when those are needed. 

Now, having read these ten books, which is my favorite? 

For me, my favorite is Betsy's Wedding. This should really be titled "Betsy's Marriage" since the wedding is done right at the beginning but the book goes on to show how Betsy and her husband are able to balance married life with working/writing and impending war.  The book is a great portrayal of what marriage can and should be: a meeting of two lives that become interwoven into one life, with some give and take, some sacrifice and obedience, some hard and stressful times.  But all of the life is imbued with love ... and because of the love, all comes right in the end.

That said, I think the favorite for anyone reading these books is going to be based on where the reader is when he/she reads the book.  For my 9-yod, her favorite is Betsy-Tacy and Tib, because String Bean is part of a triumvirate of friends and sees herself and her two friends in each of the characters.  When String Bean is in high school, I'm sure she'll find that the high school books become the favored reading. 

And that's at the core of the BT books -- because the characters grow through the books, the reader can grow with Betsy.  The reader can start out a young girl and become an active, happy, popular woman without sacrificing her family and friends, without losing the heart!  The reader can see herself in Tacy's natural friendliness to boys without romance, or Tib's inability to find love until she acts like herself.  The reader can see that families all have their differences and yet, if real love is present, than all works out in the end. 

Maud Hart Lovelace wrote these books about her own growing up years; growing up in the first half of the 20th century in a small town near Minneapolis.  These books were written from the heart, to show a world filled with love in a time when the World was filled with war.  Both of those worlds still exist, but the BT books help us to see that love of family and love of friendship will always win out against the war-torn world.

If you've never read the Betsy-Tacy books, either to yourself or your children, here are the books, listed in chronological order.  I think you'll find they become favorites in your house, too.

1. Betsy-Tacy -- at 5 years old the friendship begins
2. Betsy-Tacy and Tib -- at 8 years old, the pair find a third to join in
3. Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill -- at 10, the girls are starting to spread their wings a bit
4. Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown -- at 12, the girls begin to really see the world around them
5. Heaven to Betsy/Betsy Inspite of Herself -- 9th and 10th grade pass with a bit of teenage angst
6. Betsy was a Junior/Betsy and Joe -- 11th and 12th grade get the girls ready to launch on the world
7. Betsy and the Great World/Betsy's Wedding -- Betsy's world tour and marriage don't slow down the friendship or love of family

Family: 4Real IRL!

We have the distinct pleasure of knowing MaryM very well ... so well in fact that when they headed east we got them to commit to a 3-night stay at the "farm".

We love this family ... my boys love Mary's son, my daughter loves Mary's daughter, and dh and I love Mary and her dh ... couldn't ask for better than that. They were dear friends to us in Denver (altho I knew her much longer on 4real, just not-IRL) and are still dear to us.

We all play together so nicely!

Yesterday, we had an added treat of hosting Ruth's family for their first visit out here (they live almost an hour away but had to come in for a doc appointment and took advantage of their proximity to us) and a chance to meet MaryM IRL.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:

Just a wonderful visit with lovely ladies (and other kids that wouldn't let us photograph them!).