Day 1 - A Day of Thanksgiving

Today kicks off my month-long project of daily posts about the many Blessings in my life for which I am thankful.

It is Thanksgiving ~ a day set aside to be with family and give thanks for the abundance of gifts from God.

I won't stretch and call it a day of rest....no, not really a day of rest.  For today, Eddie and I prepared a traditional Thanksgiving meal for our family.  Turkey, cornbread dressing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, yummy yams, fruit salad, pumpkin pie.........well, you get the picture!  It's a lot of work in the kitchen (not to mention the craziness of the supermarket just to get everything).  But, this is a chore which gives me great joy to perform.  And the delicious smells that have filled this house for the past couple of days are a blessing on their own! 

On this day, I am thankful for this special time set aside to lift up prayers of Thanksgiving.  A day to reflect and be with family.  I'm thankful that we are able to prepare such a delicious meal and share it with those we love.  My dad and my mother and Bob were able to sit down and enjoy dinner with us.  Even though the kids were at their Dad's for the midday meal, they headed to our place for a fun supper of leftover turkey and dressing and their fill of desserts!  Today, I'm thankful that they can go back and forth from one home to the other without feeling like they have to choose. 

As I reflect on the day, I think how good God is!  And I am reminded that each day should be a day of thanksgiving....each moment to be lived in a state of thankful praise. 

This holiday season, from Thanksgiving to Christmas, seems to me to be the perfect time to focus on that state of thankfulness.  And so I embark on this project of taking the time to post here on The Porch daily, focusing on the many blessings, large and small, in my life.  Journey with me....

Warm hugs....

Jane

Getting into the Spirit of Thanksgiving!

Lately, I've been noticing a trend of Thankfulness going around on Facebook.  I'm sure you have seen it - people post each day about something for which they are thankful.  It's a beautiful thing to watch.....

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I've been thinking about starting a project similar to this.  But, I think my blog is a better platform to post about things for which I am thankful. 

As I consider this project, I realize that it is a huge commitment - to post each day about a Blessing in my life.  One Blessing a day - with as much or as little detail as seems appropriate.  Photos included - or not.  But, if I would commit to doing this on a daily basis, it would mean making the effort and taking the time to truly note the Blessing. 

I have been reading a wonderful book - "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp. 

 It has inspired me to start keeping a journal of sorts, listing even the smallest "gifts" which I notice.  Part of the act of Thanksgiving is acknowledging these gifts in writing.  It puts our focus directly on the physical impact of the gift - whether it is the pleasurable slant of the sun on an Indian Summer afternoon, or the smell of a pot of stew simmering on the stove.  By dialing in on simple gifts around us, we can learn to live in the moment, no matter what the circumstances. 

And, so now I am contemplating making the commitment, during the busiest season of the year, to stop each day and create a post to share about my own Thanksgiving.  Looking at the calender, it appears that by starting on Thursday, November 24th - Thanksgiving Day, in fact - I can wrap up this project right at day which represents the biggest Gift of all - Christmas. 

I hope you will take time to drop by and share in the Blessings with me.  Perhaps we will find that we have many of the same things that touch our lives and deserve our utmost gratitude. 

Now that I have put it in writing and am sending it out there for all the world to see, I am excited to get started....eager to put my daily post on my list of priorities for an entire month!  For you see, I have so much to be thankful for and I want to make it my practice to focus on all the good things.  They say that it takes three weeks to develop a new habit.  Well, 30 days should get me into a truly good routine!

See you soon! 

Jane

The Week Before Thanksgiving....

Oh, what a hectic week....and it's not over yet! 

I've not had the time to post this week...or get out and look around at all my favorite blogs.   I miss visiting everyone and getting my inspiration "on"!!!

I figure a lot of you are doing what I am doing this week - preparing for Thanksgiving....and, oh yeah, that holiday that comes nipping on Turkey Day's heels....CHRISTMAS!!! 

I'm truly hoping to find the pace slow down a bit soon so I can sit down and bring you up to speed on all the going's-on around The Porch.  It's about time to change out all the Autumn decor around here for something a little more red and green, silver and gold......maybe a little something more like this......

So, be watching for the changes comin' soon! 

Hopin' y'all have a terrific weekend.....

Jane

Prep Night and Pie...Revisited!

Hey, y'all!  Greetings from the Heart of Texas. 

Robin, over at "All Things Heart and Home", has the most wonderful idea for a holiday link-up party to cover all the holidays, Thanksgiving through New Year's!  She is truly one of the most talented bloggers around and I hope you will take a few minutes to head over and check out her terrific blog and the party!  

Since Thanksgiving hits first, I am revisiting this post from the night before Thanksgiving of last year.  It's one of my favorites because it includes a simple, but oh-so-yummy, recipe for pecan pie!  Give it a try.....I guarantee you will not be disappointed.  


Thanksgiving is upon us.  A time to count our blessings...to be with loved ones...and savor every moment! 


And speaking of savoring....I just finished my pre-holiday baking and it smells absolutely HEAVENLY at our house!!!  I've got the cornbread and biscuits ready to build some dressing around the turkey tomorrow.  Eddie baked two pumpkin pies, bless his heart!  Brownies with walnuts are cooling as I finally sit.  And I made two of my favorite old-fashioned pecan pies.  This recipe is the same one my mother used when I was a little girl and it's fail-proof, super easy, and TOTALLY YUMMY!!!


You will the following ingredients for one pie:



3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 stick of margarine - melted
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 cup pecan halves (this just works better than chopped pieces)
1 9-inch deep dish pie shell (uncooked) 


Beat or whisk the eggs. Add sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, vanilla extract and mix thoroughly. Stir in the pecans, blending them in well. Pour into the pie shell and place on a cookie sheet or shallow pan in 350 degree oven for about 40-45 minutes. The pie is done when golden brown and the middle stops jiggling! 


Now, I cheat...I always use frozen pie crusts! I just don't have the patience, the time or the knack for making pie dough from scratch. And the rich, gooey filling in this pie, combined with the delicious pecans, will overcome the shortcomings of any store-bought pie crust! TRUST ME!!!

With all this baking going on, you're probably thinking I have a house full of guests for dinner tomorrow. Nope. It will just be me, Eddie, my Dad (who drove in from Abilene) and Ed's youngest, Kenzie (who is home for college for the holiday weekend). Like alot of empty-nesters, our children and siblings are scattered so far and wide, it's hard to get everyone in one place. Once the young 'uns get grown, they marry and we have to learn to share time with in-laws. Besides that, Eddie is working night shift through tomorrow night, but we get to head to Abilene on Friday morning to see lots of FAMILY!

Until then, we'll be stuffing on the traditional Thanksgiving feast and giving thanks just to be together!

Wishing all of you a warm and blessed day with loved ones!

 
Jane 

******Oops! Looks like somebody's already been into this pie...******

Taking Time To Be Thankful

With Thansgiving fast approaching, I have noticed that there is a trend on Facebook for people to post something each day for which they are thankful. I am really enjoying seeing my friends share their blessings and I thought I would take this opportunity to make a list of my own:

* I'm thankful for a wonderful husband who continuously shows me just how much he loves me.



* I'm thankful for three terrific children who make my life complete.



* I'm thankful for three precious grandchildren who add so much joy to my life.

* I'm thankful for the wonderful relationship I have with my parents and their continued good health.

* I'm thankful for my sister and her new family and the happiness they have found.



* I'm thankful for wonderful friends, both old and new, who make life more fun.



* I'm thankful for a warm, comfortable house that we have made a home.



* I'm thankful for my job, including the challenges and sense of accomplishment it brings.

* I'm thankful that I live in a country where we can still disagree with our president and I pray that doesn't change.

* I'm thankful for each morning that I wake up and each night that I lay my head down to sleep.

We all have so much to be thankful for, here in our land of plenty. It's a shame that most of us only think about our blessings during the holiday season, when it should be something we do daily. I am as guilty of this as anyone else.

So, I'm making an extra effort to remember my blessings and be thankful for even the little things on a daily basis.

I wish each and every one of you a Thanksgiving filled with family, friends and all that you love!

Hugs,

Jane