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!

 

Month of Thanks Day 12: this is a VERY secular one!

Tonight, I am extremely thankful for Amazon.com.  I know that sounds frivolous and silly, but I have to tell you that knowing that I can order something online without the kids knowing ... receiving a box from Amazon with "school stuff" in it ... and not having to drive all 'round ....REALLY, REALLY makes my day!

Especially since my youngest's birthday is coming soon -- Nov 24th -- and he'll be 8 and he's WAY too aware of what's going on and secrets and just knowing everything ... it really is nice to be able to order:

• How to Train Your Dragon (dvd) -- this one is the double-DVD so he gets a bit of "gaming" and fun without the cost of the wii game ....
• How to Train Your Dragon jigsaw puzzle -- he is my jigsaw-puzzle solving whiz-kid ... I guess he takes after his Godfather, my brother Joe, who is an amazing puzzle guy!
• How to Train Your Dragon ... the book -- I am trying to push him to read to his potential ... I think this one may just get him staying up till 11 (like his brother Lego Maniac) to finish a book so he can whine until I order/buy the next one in the series!

Now see, this way, I've got it set up so he'll ask for the wii game for Christmas .... gotta love Amazon.com!

Month of Thanks Day 10: Thanks be to God for Our Max!



Max at 7 weeks with String Bean



Max at 15 weeks

We have had our Max for almost 7 weeks now (he is 15 weeks old now) and he has wormed his way into all our hearts (yep, even dh thinks he's pretty great.).  He is doing great on the whole potty training thing and crate-training is an amazing help for his overall health and well-being. 

We took him to the Vet on Wed 11/10 and he weighed in at a whopping 9.8 (pretty good as 3 weeks ago he was just over 6 lbs.).  And except that I found out we were going to one of the most expensive vets in the area (which we will QUICKLY remedy ... and did you know you can purchase Frontline Plus online rather than paying the exorbitant vet charges????) ... he had a great check-up and is healthy as, well, as a 15week mini-schnauzer should be.

Thank you God for working it so we could get this bundle of love to add to our family!

BTW, this should have been posted last night ... but some kind of stomach issue was running thru the family and I just didn't get to it.  Thanks be to God, that seems to have passed!

Month of Thanks Day 9: Thanks be to God for Flexibility in Homeschool Scheduling

One of the great benefits to schooling at home is the adaptability of our schedule to new choices ... exciting events ... or just plain letting life flow around us and sweep us up into the whirlwind. 

Today was just such an example:  Lego Maniac was able to spend the morning participating in a class, "Shakin' up Shakespeare", led by a some folks who are in the Richmond (VA) Shakespeare Company.  Not only did he learn about Shakespeare's plays (by acting out, miming and interpreting the Bard's works), he also came home an enthusiastic witness to this classical author!  How many kids in 6th grade have learned to LOVE Shakespeare ... he loved it ... and now String Bean (5th grade) and BamBam (2nd grade) WANT to learn more about these plays ... so we'll tweak the schedule a bit and dive into Shakespeare!

Love, love, love the homeschooling gig!  Thank you, God, for the ability to homeschool my little cherubs and turn them onto loving, living and learning ....

 

Month of Thanks Day 8: Thanks be to God for Baking Weather!

Bam-bam was sick with a cold, so we didn't go to morning Mass ... instead, I baked!  What a great way to warm the house (and make it smell great, too!).  I made 3 loaves of pumpkin bread and tonight I baked a Leek-Mushroom-Red Pepper Quiche (to serve with cold leftover ham from last night).

Wow, did the house smell good.  And since it didn't get much above 60 today, it was so nice to rev up the oven!

God is so good isn't He?

BTW, if you've got a minute ... I know so many folks who need prayers; prayers for illness, diagnoses, family issues, pregnancies, etc ... please add all my friends' prayers to your own!  Bless you!

 

Month of Thanks Day 7: Thanks be to God for Old-fashioned Sunday Night Dinner

Tonight, I am so thankful for a wonderful Family Sunday ... poor dh had to go up to the high school for open house, but the kiddoes and I spent the afternoon watching old movies (on Netflix, no less) ... a bit of football ... and making a full, old-style Sunday dinner ... baked ham and homemade applesauce, green beans almondine, buttered pasta ... the piece de resistance:  orange marmalade jam roll with bittersweet chocolate.

Dh declared it the best dinner I'm ever made!

Here's the recipe for the jam roll, and old standby in my baking repertoire that I haven't made in years!


Orange Marmalade Jam Roll smothered in Chocolate!
Ingredients:
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Powdered sugar (for generously dusting towel)
• 2/3 cup high quality orange marmalade
• 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
• 2 tbls butter
• 2 tbls powdered sugar
• 2 tbls boiling water (or hot strong coffee if want a stronger chocolate taste)

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°. Line jelly roll pan, 15 1/2 × 101/2 × 1 inch, with cooking parchment paper.

Beat eggs in bowl with electric mixer on high speed about 5 minutes or until very thick and lemon colored. Gradually beat in granulated sugar. Beat in water and vanilla on low speed. Gradually add flour, baking powder and salt, beating just until batter is smooth. Pour into pan, spreading to corners.

Place marmalade in bowl and place above oven to slowly warm marmalade while cake is baking.

Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately loosen cake from edges of pan and turn upside down onto towel generously sprinkled with powdered sugar. Carefully remove paper. Trim off stiff edges of cake if necessary. While hot, carefully roll cake and towel from narrow end.

Cool on wire rack 10 minutes. Unroll cake and remove towel. Beat marmalade slightly with fork to soften; spread evenly over cake. Roll up cake and place on serving platter.

Make chocolate glaze:  in microwavable cup, place chocolate chips and butter. Heat cup in microwave for 30-60sec.  Remove and stir till chips are melted.  Add powdered sugar and boiling water/coffee.  Stir till smooth .... drizzle over roll.

Enjoy!
 

Month of Thanks Day 6: Thanks be to God for First Saturday Devotions

Today, I am thankful for our dear pastor who began First Saturday devotions at our church ... liturgy of the hours, exposition, rosary, confession and Mass ... all before 10 in the morning.  I came home refreshed and ready to tackle organizing my work space and prep for some heavy, heavy designing, knitting and home-office work!

On a lower level ... I'm thankful for doggie baths with lavender baby shampoo because, well, Max was a bit ripe after missing his bath last week (sorry, I did have the whole performance thing going on ....)
 

Month of Thanks Day 5: Thanks be to God for Our Daily Transportation

Tonight I am most thankful that our van, Cannonball, is back safely in our garage after spending a few days in the shop, getting a brand, spanking-new catalytic-converter.  I'm also extremely thankful that the car place is within walking distance... that my kiddoes are truly troopers ... and that we could afford the cost (over $900) of getting him/her fixed.

It's amazing how much we missed the old van!

 

Month of Thanks Day 4: Thanks be to God for my Knitting

Sorry this is about 9 hours late... 

for day four I am very thankful for my knitting ... my companion in the evenings when the rest of the house is settled for the night ... my stab at being creative and imitating the Divine Creator himself ... my chance to make a bit of "egg and butter" money for the family ...

Thank you, God, for this talent!

Month of Thanks Day 3: Thanks be to God for my Three Little Ones

Tonight I am thankful for my three youngest ... they make each day an adventure, teaching me much more than I could ever teach them ... they are amazingly resilient to life's ups and downs and just keep on a-smilin' (even if LegoManiac missed his postponed-from-last-week fencing scrimmage tonight due to the van being in the shop with a failing catalytic converter ... ka-ching, ka-ching)

Month of Thanks Day 2: Thanks be to God for my St. Agnes Fiber Club girls

Tonight, I'm thankful for my girls from various homeschool families who come to my home every other Tuesday for our St. Agnes Fiber Club.

You guys are the best and such fun to "turn onto" the love of fiber ... even if the smell of raw wool upsets y'all a bit AND you eat up ALL the snacks I serve!

Blessings and prayers and thanks!