Happy Friday folks! It’s time for another of my favorite past-times – list making! In honor of this Thanksgiving week, I thought I would share some of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions – past and present. How about you? I’d love to hear some of yours. I love this holiday season!

Favorite Thanksgiving Traditions – Past and Present:

1. Pickled Eggs – it was the one time of the year we could expect my grandmother’s “famous” pickled eggs. When she stopped preparing a Thanksgiving meal – I tried to continue the tradition, but I’m pretty scattered with it and have missed a few years (including this one). They take a little while to prepare, so it can’t be done last minute – my favorite time to do most things!
2. Yummy casseroles – why is it that we tend to wait to make and eat some casseroles only at holiday time? Whatever the reason – I DO love green bean casserole, sweet potato soufflé, pineapple bake, corn casserole, and whatever else finds its way to the table.
3. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade – no Thanksgiving is complete without the noise of the Macy’s Parade in the background. While I seldom get to watch the parade in great detail, I love listening to it while cooking.
4. Football – no explanation necessary – football is…well…simply football! LOVE IT!!!!!
5. Being with great friends – we’ve spent the last several years celebrating Thanksgiving with dear friends of ours (they might as well be family), and we tend to laugh and cut up constantly when we’re together!
6. The desserts – again, another one needing no further explanation. Pies, cakes, candies, more pies, cake and candies! Yum!!!!!
7. Going to get a newspaper early in the morning for the sheer purpose of reading the ads. We usually spend time scouring the ads after the big meal and make a game plan for the day after Thanksgiving shopping spree we also undertake.
8. Shopping on Black Friday – As much as it wears me out…I love me a good bargain!
9. The Turkey – the smell and taste of it. While we eat turkey at other times of the year, there’s nothing like the smell of a turkey baking on Thanksgiving Day!
10. Watching the men come in with a deer or two after a morning in the woods. This happened last year…can 2009 by a two-peat?

Happy Thanksgiving blog friends!

I really don’t want to fill up this blog space today with a bunch of words or thoughts. I just want to take a few moments to publicly give thanks for…

My Savior – who died for me and loves me unconditionally and constantly pours out undeserved grace & mercy.
My Husband – who showers me with blessings, speaks words of adoration over me, and lets me know in even the subtlest of ways that I’m his girl
My Daughter – who brightens my day with her laughter, forgives my mistakes, and has gently taught me how a mother is to love her young for the last (almost) 13 years
My Friends – who show love, mercy, and kindness even when unsolicited and allow me to bare the depths of my soul while withholding judgment
My Church – that eagerly opens its doors to embrace the oppressed, the orphaned, and the widowed and has taught me how to worship in spirit and in truth
My Freedom – that enables me to worship openly, study God’s Word visibly, and attend church freely
God’s Word – that arms me with THE knowledge I need to get through each moment, each hour, each day, each week, each month, each year, and ONE lifetime
My Blog Readers – that continue to give me a reason for doing this “blogging” thing, that provide encouragement for me each step of the way of this journey and are willing to journey with me

What are you giving thanks for this day?