Thanksgiving, what are you thankful for this year?

My husband had double bypass after many angioplasties and stents,etc,etc,etc.Most of this happened since he was 44yrs. old. He is now going to be 65yrs.old next year and is retiring. He takes no medication and doesn't even have high blood pressure now. So you hang in there with that "stiff upper lip" and faith in God because that 's what gets you through to the other side. It is amazing how resilient the "Heart" is. I"ll be thinking of you and your husband and please know our prayers are with you.

I am grateful for...

my health
my 2 beautiful children
the support of my parents and friends
the way I can still laugh at life
that dh is still trying to get a grip on being bipolar
all the hugs and kisses I receive in a day - no matter how sloppy LOL
waking up in the morning and feeling as though I have things to accomplish
a wonderful job I enjoy
hair dye! LOL

Michaela:

If you check in today, know that you and David are in my prayers. I can think of nothing else that is so frightening. We love both of you!!

I am thankful that my internet server is back on. It has been off since early this morning and I have been going crazy wondering what everyone is up to!! Eleanor

We were waiting for you!

So THAT'S where you've been! Welcome back!!!

Pixie, what a great thread - glad to hear you're feeling better :)

Michaela, my thoughts and prayers are with you and David as well.

Not sure if it's even possible to list everything I'm thankful for! For starters, I agree with Victor, it's "all about family". I'm thankful that my mother is still alive and healthy at 76. I'm especially thankful for all the wonderful memories that my best friend (my father) and I shared before his passing at the age of 67. He taught me to love nature and everything it offers. He always had incredible vegetable gardens and although my vegetable gardens couldn't compare to his, he was always so proud of my other gardening endeavors. I'm thankful for three wonderful children and the opportunity to provide long lasting memories for them while gardening and exploring the woods on our property in Maine. When they were younger they complained about living "in the sticks" and not being closer to friends, but now when reminiscing about our "rough life" they pleasantly surprise me with their tales of the past and realizing how much more they got out of life because of where we lived :) I'm thankful for my husband and my 'second chance' at life in VA! He gave me the opportunity the do what I love most in life - work with plants, and to be thankful every single day when I head to "work". I'm thankful to have had the opportunity to travel more in the past 8 years than in the first 48! And I'm thankful that I'm still healthy enough to enjoy each and every day!

Last but not least, I'm thankful that I found DG and all the wonderful people here! And I'm especially thankful for Al, Dave and Victor's humor LOL

Debbie

But in reverse order!

Now Victor.....you can't ALWAYS be first!

If they are in alphabetical order, you're always going to be last Victor!! I won't tell you what my last name begins with, but my paycheck was always at the bottom of the pile!! So I know what it's like to be last - should have kept my maiden name!!! Eleanor

True - I am thankful that my last name is near the beginning alphabetically.

Eleanor:

My maiden name was a "W". Now I'm an "F". I'd still like to be near the bottom some days. That way, I can adjust my responses accordingly.

So here I am - at the bottom of this page. LOL!!!

Funny, Candyce. My maiden name began with a "W" and my married name also begins with a "W." When I was growing up I always swore I would marry an Adams, or a Brown, or at the LEAST, a Carter, because as a W in school, I always had to sit in the last row, get the last textbook or paper or gym suit passed down. . . usually the shabbiest one by then. The only time I can ever remember the school switching the order of the alphabet was the day we all got polio-shots in class. THEN I had to be first!

Must return to the thankfulness-subject, to say that I'm definitely grateful for DH, despite my remaining at the end of the row!

I'm thankful tonight that I'm alone!! Rough day and when DD#2 came to pick up Colin she insisted that his hair needed to be cut - what a mess and what a temper!! But his hair is cut and doesn't look too bad!! I'm enjoying the peace but I'll be ready to take on a new day tomorrow. Eleanor

Have a peaceful night, Eleanor!

Been there and done that! Yeah! Duh!!!

Wait until the day when we will need to put in our own real memory cards!

Take it from me when it's worn out there isn't a replacement!!! When i slow down I do much better with the memory. Eleanor

There will be one day - just like replacement joints today.

The miracles of modern and future medicine! It simply boggles the mind.

I'll need both replacement joints and memory!! Eleanor

I thought I would revive this old thread. When the going gets tough - it is always good to remember to be thankful for what you do have left after taxes!

This year I am thankful for good health, a paid off car that is still reliable, a programmable thermostat that keeps my heating costs down, that Sampson Thunderpaws, is a member of our family, that the lay-off at work missed me and that they had to hire my best work friend back(!) after she was laid off, that all the Civil Rights and Affirmative Actions agitation and laws have produced our first "minority" (not if you check the census data!) president and that it isn't any colder than the current 29 degrees! and last, but not least, for my DG friends.

I'm thankfull for being painfree for the first time in ten years and looking forward to gardening with less discomfort.
My children
This beautiful house and bigger gardens than I ever had at the old one.
There are too many to list and of course the Daves Garden community.

My husband.
His kids.
Their kids.
My home.
OUR garden.
AND Being able to post this again a year later !

My family.
My puppies.
My garden, though it is really cold outside and I'm two weeks behind in fall-cleanup but even so I'm grateful for the promise that I know is lurking below the frozen soil.
And for Dave's Garden. Another year of learning and support.

I haven't finished reading this great thread yet, and I'm not quiet enough at the moment to think about how I'd answer this, but for now I have 2 questions:

Kassia - You have TWO turtles now????

Celeste - you can pee on demand??? I found out this week I can't.....(medical test....don't ask) I'm really impressed that you can!

More later......

Wow - now I'm going to have to go back and re-read last year's posts!

I am thankful that Dave (my Dave, that is) and I have made it through another year. I am thankful that this November is less stressful than last November.

I am thankful we finally received permanent residency in May.

I am thankful I have a tenured job at a great private college that allows me to earn the money to pay the loan that covered the cost of the lawyer's bill for getting permanent residency ^_^

I am very thankful that youngest daughter will graduate this coming spring.

I am thankful that David will graduate this coming spring.

And if they can both find employment in this economy, I will be very, very thankful.

BTW, I am thankful to have good DG friends ^_^

I started reading this thread and got all teary eyed.

I'm thankful for the many blessings in my life- my family, my health, the fact that our busines is doing great in this economy and all my friends especially the ones here at DG.

I just reread this thread, and this year I am very thankful for my health.
And I'm still wishing my job was not a supervisory position, so maybe now is the time to do something about that. Less stress = better health.

Thank you so much for reviving this thread. I think we really needed to re-read it and add to it.

I am thankful for so many, many things. There are just too many to recount. Family, friends, pets, enough wood to get us through the winter, just enough food in the freezer to feel comfortable about the grocery prices, and just enough gas in the car to make it to town in an emergency.

And so many other things ...

I find the revival of this thread humorous! I lived through the 20th birthday of my youngest child and have recently survived his 21st too!! My oldest is indeed 30 now, almost 31 and I now have 3.75 Grandchildren instead of 2.75.
The best part??? I can still still walk, see, hear, and chew with my own teeth and pee on demand! Life is good!!!!!! lol

And once again I am VERY thankful for ALL my DG friends, old and new.
Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Celeste

Wow---very powerful thread, Pixie--thank you, & to everyone who shared. I'm thankful my DH has survived another year---he's a WWII vet---most of his friends are gone. For my super nice son & his wife---my supportive stepkids. My 3 grandkids---especially Grant, who was touch & go for 5 days after his birth---he started to crawl & pull himself up at 6 months, & he laughs at everything---for my Mom, who is 93 & still active. For my brother, diagnosed with cancer & Parkinsons, but still his quiet, cheerful self. For all my friends, some of us have been together for over 50 years! I'm thankful for all my dogs, even though they've been more naughty than nice. For my health, & my gardens, my books & certainly for all the friends I've made on this site---I was so happy to meet JoAnn & Deb in NY, & all the folks at the RU. I hope this will be a Happy Thanksgiving for all of you.

There are many of us here who are thankful though they have had a difficult year. I'm included here. I just want to add, that while we are thinking about our large and small reasons to be thankful, we think about the people who are homeless and have little to eat. I have asked our Thanksgiving guests to make donations to local shelters rather than bring food or share expenses. Please do what you can. These are difficult times for many.
Laurel

Thank you for the reminder Laurel, I take for granted that every town did what mine does. Each year the mail person places a reminder in our box with our mail that they will be collecting on such and such a day. We can place can goods or what ever we want in or by the mailbox to help feed the less fortunate. I swear they do this at Thanksgiving, again at Christmas, Easter, ect... We have a place on our main road that you can donate clothes, food, furniture at anytime also. Lots of times my kids took extra snacks to school for the kids who didn't have any at snack time. It made them crazy to think someone was hungry sitting beside them, so they changed that. I was/ am very proud of all of them for doing this and continuing it into adulthood.
One family will be a recipient of my families love this holiday season, sometimes if we can swing it....2 or 3 families. I would say it has been a family tradition for about 12 years and it is the thing we feel the best about all season. ^_^

Oh, the reason we do it....
I was a single parent with 4 children who left an abusive relationship, money was tight. Just before Thanksgiving I got a box of food...a turkey, potatoes, stuffing and the ingredients to make a pie, everything for a nice dinner. At Christmas Eve someone knocked on my door and left a bag with gifts in it for my children..I was more than grateful. I had done the 'leave the bag' thing with my Dad as a kid and now it was being done to me. Very humbling, but also the saying 'What goes around comes around' came to mind too. I knew then that when I climbed out of this hole and was doing better again...I'd give again too. And I do.


This message was edited Nov 24, 2008 9:56 PM

Celeste ~

You have been an inspiration to so many people, and you continue to be one!

Thank you Candyce as I blush a viberant shade of pink. lol

You are, as always, most welcome!