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

Knocking Back Stress (aka Resisting the Urge)

I'm trying really hard not to feel like I'm running behind!  In the last few days, I have learned that both my daughter, Bonnie, and my mother have put up their Christmas trees and started decking their halls! 

Then I go online and browse through my favorite blogs and see a Winter~Wonderland~Holiday~Bonanza going on out there! 

Oh, my....OH, MY!!!  The temptation, the urge, the feeling of obligation to keep up is pounding at my door!

However, I am truly resisting the urge to start dragging out boxes and crates.  It's an undertaking that simply takes more than one day to accomplish.  I haven't had a day yet to devote......

And perhaps that is a good thing! 

I have decided to view it this way ~

It is too early to decorate for Christmas and Life's pace has reminded me of this.  Next week, after taking the time to stop for a day and give Thanks in an appropriate manner, I will have the rest of a long weekend to prepare our home for Christmas.  This is the way it will be.  This is the way it is working out.  And I accept that.  

So, until next Friday, I am putting self-imposed guilt and stress on hold, refusing them entry into my flow.  While many will venture out in the dark hours of early morning that day, I will sleep in for just a bit.  Then I will get up and have a nice cup of coffee with pumpkin spice creamer in it.  I will dress in comfy sweats and put on Christmas music.  Finally, I will take my time and decorate with holiday cheer until my heart is content. 

Until then, I will just have to settle for reflecting on some of my images of Christmas (and the related decor) Past.......

 

And feel at peace with the way this will fall into place.

Blessings to you on this chilly evening ~

Jane

Under Foot....Defined!

This is what I must contend with when I try to sit down at the desk in my home office.....

Bless his heart!  Jake just doesn't realize that he does NOT fit under the desk!  Every time he does this, he lays on the power strip and shuts me down.  Eddie says "He just wants to be close you.....". 

Side note ~ I recently got the settings on my camera all messed up and out of whack!  Still working on getting it lined out so I will have it ready to grab-on-the-go when I start counting my "30 Days of Blessings" later this month.  I actually have had to pull the owner's manual out to try to figure this out....it will be a tremendous blessing if I can just figure it out!

Loving my pups today!

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

Welcome, November...

Good morning, November!!!

You have arrived sunny, windy and crisp.  With carved pumpkins still sitting on the steps out front, and leaves drifting down to settle on the lawn.  Like a breath of fresh air, you came during the night.

Now my thoughts turn towards nesting; cozying up on chilly evenings with a cup of steaming cider.  Darkness falls before the dinner hour.  The smell of fireplace smoke floats in the air. 

You are my favorite, you know.  My favorite time of the year.  Before the Christmas frenzy starts, when the world pauses to take a look around and reflect on all the Blessings bestowed in the Harvest. 

Stay for a while and let me take it all in.  Soak up the weakening rays of the sun on late afternoons, scuff along in the leaves.  Enjoy time with the Loved Ones. 

Welcome, November......

Jane

TRICK or TREAT!!!

What a wonderful evening with Family tonight!

Put together an impromptu dinner of simple "hamburger stew" late this afternoon.  Opted for store bought jalapeno cheese bread, corn muffins and thumbprint cookies to keep the stress levels down since this was kinda "last minute".  Grabbed a few extra pumpkins while I was at the store. Then Bonnie, Ben & Bethany, Sam, Mom and Daddy gathered at our house......and we had a terrific time!  

Pumpkin carving commences on the back porch

We had wonderful, mild weather for being out of doors

In comparison to last year, it seemed we had quite a few kids come to the door for treats.  We just about ran out of candy!!!  I had to bring out my secret stash of snack-size Heath bars for the last few kids.  (I guess that's probably a good thing....)

This is how our porch looked at the end of an evening of carving........

Kinda spooky, huh? 

Hope you've had a fun time with your loved ones this evening!

A big BOO to you!!!

Jane

When To Start???

I was sitting here this morning, looking at the calender.....Thanksgiving, followed closely by December, is just around the corner.  I am trying to stay focused on the "holiday" right before us - Halloween.  But, my thoughts are already racing towards the next decorating bonanza.....

Our tree - 2010

 The dilemma for me always boils down to "when" to start the Christmas decorating!  Unfortunately or otherwise, I generally start putting out Christmas decorations out and decking the tree prior to Thanksgiving.  My twisted logic tells me that if I can have everything done prior to Thanksgiving, I will then be able to fully enjoy the four-day weekend without being in the throes of stringing lights and garland. 

Somehow, the special Joy that is the spirit of Thanksgiving seems to get overlooked.  Shouldn't we still have signs of Autumn and the abundant harvest adorning our home as we stop for the day with Family and simply give Thanks?  Instead, it has turned into a pre-Christmas escapade, with all eyes focused on the debut of this year's tree and tiny lights.  It's almost like we're doing Christmas twice....

And so I am contemplating how to proceed this year.  When to start the Christmas frenzy......

When do you start turning your thoughts towards Christmas???

Jane