A Thankful (but Random) Tuesday

Believe it or not (personally, I can't quite believe it), Thanksgiving is only a little more than a week away. And, I don't know about you, but I've been dreaming of that Thanksgiving meal from the first moment the temperature got below 70 degrees. It may very well be my favorite holiday of all, because of its simplicity. Family. Food. Football. Relaxing. Being thankful. No gifts. No real pressure. It's just always a good, good day.

So, join in the Random Tuesday fun with my special Thanksgiving Edition and let me share with you...

A Thanksgiving Tradition:
There's always certain foods on the table, and getting to be with family members we don't see otherwise, is a wonderful part of the holiday. But my favorite tradition is one we started in our immediate family when McKenna was maybe four-years-old.

Some time before the holiday (today was the starting point for us this year), I set out strips of paper and pen and pencils and instruct everyone to write down things they're thankful for on them. Sure, it gets a little repetitive over the years and we tend to be thankful for some of the same things, but there are always wonderful little gems in there...and, also, who doesn't need to be reminded of those "normal" things that we're thankful for?

We never sign our names, so part of the fun is guessing who wrote what when we read them together on Thanksgiving morning.

You may remember that last year I made a little book out of all the strips of paper.

This year, I'm doing it this way. Giving everyone strips of construction paper to write on, then telling them to ring them together in a chain. I think Sydney will especially like this idea.

A Thanksgiving Memory:
Lots and LOTS of great memories over the years, things like...playing football in the back yard with cousins, the first Thanksgiving Gary and I spent together, getting up to watch the Macy's Day Parade...but the specific memory that always sticks in my mind for some reason is the White Thanksgiving we had when I was maybe seven- or eight-years-old. We were living in the Ozarks in northwest Arkansas and were invited to Thanksgiving dinner at some of my Dad's cousins. Their house was a big, beautiful house up on top of a hill surrounded by farmland. It was picturesque enough as it was, and then it decided to snow. And it snowed and snowed some more, and covered everything in white. It was just beautiful and, since I've never experienced a white Christmas, it's the only holiday I remember with snow on the ground.

My Favorite Thanksgiving Food:
Gan Gan's (Gary's grandmother) dressing (I'm not a dressing person, but will--no kidding--eat two heaping plate fulls of this stuff. It's delicious!), my Mom's sweet potato pie (I take SP pie over pumpkin pie any day, and Mom's is great!), fried turkey, the brisket we usually have at my parents'...and pretty much anything else they put on the plate. The food spreads at both of our family gatherings are truly amazing!

My Plans for Thanksgiving this Year:
I am SO excited because I have a big crew of family members coming to Alabama from out-of-state. My parents will have a full house, with my grandmother, uncle, and cousins coming from Texas; aunt and uncle coming from North Carolina; cousins coming from Georgia. I haven't seen many of them in several years, so I'm very excited about it!

We will do lunch at Gan Gan's, then a later meal at my parents' with all the visiting relatives. We will be officially stuffed, but in a very good way!

(The day after will include shopping, and then the day-after-day-after will include going to the Iron Bowl with Gary. A very good three days of exciting stuff!)

5 Things I'm Thankful for Today (not including the "generic" family and friends):

1. My husband's spirituality
2. Sydney's great sense of humor
3. Alabama football
4. Sweet tea from McDonald's
5. Good deals from the thrift store
6. And, thrown in for good measure although it breaks the "rules": My awesome friends, and my amazing family. I am truly blessed!

All right...you know how Random Tuesday works. Put your answers in the comments section. Let us know you're doing it on your own blog, so we can come read it. Or, be a slacker and don't participate...LOL...but still ponder all of the blessings you have in your life!

Have a wonderful day!