Thanksgiving...Only Once a Year?

Today was Thanksgiving. At our house, we had the traditional turkey, stuffing, pumpkin pie, and a lot of other goodies in between. :) I am sure I could list a whole bunch of things that I am thankful for - things that I usually take for granted, but, by far, the biggest thing I was thankful for today was my family. They are a bit on the crazy and loud side at times, but I love them dearly! :P What made me more conscious of family this year than perhaps other years is the fact that today there was someone missing from our dinner table. My Pop-Pop (mom's dad) has been in the hospital for a week now. Earlier this week, he seemed to be doing really bad, and we weren't sure what was going to be happening in the near future. Thankfully, it seems like it was related to the medication he was on, so he is doing better! However, it sure was different not having him around to tell his famous "corny" jokes, puns, and stories.

We made his eyes light up later on this afternoon when we showed up in his hospital room with a tray of food from our Thanksgiving meal. There is nothing like getting a home cooked meal when you have been living on hospital food for a week!! (Let's just say he is not a huge fan of the hospital food!) He ate as much as he could of his turkey, stuffing and green bean casserole, but he kept eying that pumpkin pie. The vanilla ice cream on top of the pie was quickly turning into mush, so I gave him permission to eat his dessert before he finished his main meal. ;-)

I was glad we could go brighten up his day, because I know he was very discouraged to still be in the hospital. The first words out of his mouth when we visited him when he was first admitted into the hospital was, "I hope I can be at your house for Thanksgiving!" As my grandparents get older, and their health is beginning to decline, I am realizing more and more that each and every day is a gift. I need to treasure each moment I have with them. So, yes, although I have about a bazillion things I could name that I am thankful for, family definitely ranked the highest on my list today!

Our table before the food...

Our table after the food was placed on it, and just before we all dug in!

Later tonight, we played a rousing game of Phase 10. Phase 10 isn't what you would consider a rousing game all on its own, but my family definitely made it rousing tonight! It was my Nannie's first time playing, and she REALLY got into it! Let's just say there was a lot of yelling, frustrated sighs, and laughter throughout the evening. We were wiping away tears from our eyes at times because we were laughing so hard! It was a blast!! :)

We have so much to be thankful for!! It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the "holiday" that we forget what the purpose of Thanksgiving day is all about! We should be thankful every day of the year - not just on the day set aside to give thanks.

One of our "traditions" on Thanksgiving Day has been to watch an episode of a show called "That Girl". The episode is called "Thanksgiving Comes But Once a Year....Hopefully." It's about this girl who wants to impress both her parents and her boyfriend's parents for Thanksgiving by making all their favorite dishes, but everything seems to go wrong. Although it's a funny episode to watch, it just reminds me of how far people are from remembering the true meaning of this day! They get so focused on "tradition" and stressed out about the food instead.

However, it is a funny episode, so if you want to watch it, just follow this link! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-UYyBl8gOM