A lot to be thankful for

Mostly for these two

who without my wonderful husband would not exist. Which leads me to being thankful for my parents, one who literally gave me life and the other who renewed all of our lives. I'm thankful for my siblings who played with me as a child and now play with my own children. I'm thankful for my friends who make me laugh til I cry (I know it's not that difficult!), I'm thankful for the internet and all the wonders and connections it had provided in my life, I'm thankful for being able to provide for my family. I'm thankful for good health, which sometimes is interpreted on a spectrum, but hasn't let us down. And finally I'm thankful for digital cameras, for without them I don't know if I could remember all of the wonderful things that have happened over the years.

My Pilgrim children wanted to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving too:

And Guppy couldn't stand to not be included:

I'm thankful for the fact that we had 18 people who wanted to have dinner with us, in our house. This is what the tables looked like. In case you can't tell, the end closest to you is actually in the foyer! That was a whole lotta people.

In total we had Muddy and Guppy, Steven, Cathy and Matthew, Wendy and Richard, Kimberly and Tom, us 4, Danielle, Scott and Graham and Brian's parents.

I'm also thankful for the opportunity to video chat with LouLou, Bub, Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Amanda.

Being a social worker and working in a children's hospital everyday makes me very aware of how lucky I am. Not only to have children who are healthy and bright, but because I meet families whose whole lives are lived within hospital walls. I meet families who know no different
than to make due with nothing.

So in the spirit of the holiday season that is now upon us, I ask you to consider giving back to those in need. Addie and I will be ringing the Salvation Army bell in the mall on Saturday, collecting money in the infamous red kettle. Each week when we do our grocery shopping, Addie and Ben are excited to pick from the Angel Tree, which holds the name, sex, age and Christmas wishes of a child who otherwise may receive nothing. I want to instill in them the beauty and wonder of helping another child out.

I'm thankful for the fact that Addie and Ben believe the rest of families are like ours, with tons of people who love them and shower them with affection every chance they get. But we all know that's not reality for many children and families out there. This year has been particularly tough on many families who until very recently did not know what it meant to need something.

Please be generous to others this holiday season. May you continue to believe in the spirit of giving. I'm thankful for my blog followers.