And my heart is so happy, so filled with joy..... that I'm teary and have had a little frog in my throat the whole livelong day.
This morning on fb, the Pioneer Woman was having a contest (LOL!! I entered a contest... :-|||) to win a gorgeous new KitchenAid mixmaster. Now, I have a brand spankin new fire engine red one I got for my birthday this year, but the one that's up for the prize is the epitome of lovely! I never enter contests.... ever. But I couldn't pass this up. To enter you had to leave a comment of what your favorite holiday was and why. This is what I said:
Thanksgiving!! Not all the craziness of December. Love the simplicity of everyone living (or visiting) under my roof writing something they're grateful on a leaf for everyday during November, spending time with loved ones, French dip sandwiches on Thanksgiving Eve. And on the actual holiday itself.... a family work/service project in the morning, chatting and laughing while making the meal, using loads of butter, the 'turkey bowl' football game at the neighborhood park, singing 'For the Beauty of the Earth' around the table before the blessing, playing card and board games while eating dessert.
And it started me off with this thinking for most of the day.
There is much.....MUCH.... to be grateful for.
Specifically, three things...... that also encompass many things:
My family.... and here I can barely contain myself. Why me? To have been blessed with these amazing people. I don't even know where to begin. There are about a gazillion things running through my mind. But mainly unconditional love, compassion, unselfish freely given time, encouragement, acceptance, FUN!, unabashed happiness, laughter, generosity, strength.
My friends..... my dear dear friends. How do we survive without them? I have been blessed my entire life with the gift of good friends. I only hope they know how much they mean to me.
And lastly, the bigger plan. I see and feel the warmth of the sun through my windows and it's glory and beauty and brightness overwhelm me. And I know that it's creation didn't just happen. And tonight, when it sets and the colors of it's time to end THIS day will show across the whole grand, gigantic, great big sky, I will be reminded again that this wasn't all by chance.... that the happiness I feel in this life will be carried over into an unimaginable, indescribable peace for eternity. And thinking about it puzzles me, because I can't imagine being happier than I am at this moment.
But I will be.
There are many happier days ahead even.
Wow.
Oh.... and just a side note.... or a bottom note, in this case.... this is what the KitchenAid that started all of this looks like:
This morning on fb, the Pioneer Woman was having a contest (LOL!! I entered a contest... :-|||) to win a gorgeous new KitchenAid mixmaster. Now, I have a brand spankin new fire engine red one I got for my birthday this year, but the one that's up for the prize is the epitome of lovely! I never enter contests.... ever. But I couldn't pass this up. To enter you had to leave a comment of what your favorite holiday was and why. This is what I said:
Thanksgiving!! Not all the craziness of December. Love the simplicity of everyone living (or visiting) under my roof writing something they're grateful on a leaf for everyday during November, spending time with loved ones, French dip sandwiches on Thanksgiving Eve. And on the actual holiday itself.... a family work/service project in the morning, chatting and laughing while making the meal, using loads of butter, the 'turkey bowl' football game at the neighborhood park, singing 'For the Beauty of the Earth' around the table before the blessing, playing card and board games while eating dessert.
And it started me off with this thinking for most of the day.
There is much.....MUCH.... to be grateful for.
Specifically, three things...... that also encompass many things:
My family.... and here I can barely contain myself. Why me? To have been blessed with these amazing people. I don't even know where to begin. There are about a gazillion things running through my mind. But mainly unconditional love, compassion, unselfish freely given time, encouragement, acceptance, FUN!, unabashed happiness, laughter, generosity, strength.
My friends..... my dear dear friends. How do we survive without them? I have been blessed my entire life with the gift of good friends. I only hope they know how much they mean to me.
And lastly, the bigger plan. I see and feel the warmth of the sun through my windows and it's glory and beauty and brightness overwhelm me. And I know that it's creation didn't just happen. And tonight, when it sets and the colors of it's time to end THIS day will show across the whole grand, gigantic, great big sky, I will be reminded again that this wasn't all by chance.... that the happiness I feel in this life will be carried over into an unimaginable, indescribable peace for eternity. And thinking about it puzzles me, because I can't imagine being happier than I am at this moment.
But I will be.
There are many happier days ahead even.
Wow.
Oh.... and just a side note.... or a bottom note, in this case.... this is what the KitchenAid that started all of this looks like: