Thanksgiving

We decided we wanted to host this year. The past three years our apartment was too small to have anyone over comfortably, but this year we feel really blessed to have room to share. So we invited a bunch of families. We tried to invite anyone we could think of that might not have a place to go this year. It turned out that most of the people we invited couldn't come, so we ended up with a much smaller crowd than I had anticipated. I really look forward to Thanksgiving. I love that Paul and I have made some traditions together and we each have our favorite things we like to make. I love to decorate for fall. I love the warm earthy colors and the cornucopia that symbolizes plenty and bounty. It's such a comforting holiday to get to appreciate, especially since we do feel like we have a bounty of blessings this year. I made a bunch of yellow circles this year and for the two weeks before Thanksgiving we wrote down things we are grateful for and then taped them to the wall. They formed a stack of "coins" that represent how "rich" we are in blessings.

We had a good time with our friends, and the food was delicious! We played a little rock band and boggle and pictionary and the kids had a good time too.
I think the day and the weekend went great, but to be honest, there was a cloud of sadness over our house. I don't think either Paul or I realized until later why we felt a little extra irritable and just sort of gloomy.. and well, it's because we miss our dad. It just doesn't feel right to celebrate when we still feel so sad. Not a day goes by that we don't cry. And I think holidays will be sad for a long time. At this time of Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for Steve and that I had him in my life.