Thanksgiving, Advent and the holiday rush

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.   I joke that i is four days off work, all centered around eating as much as possible, but that's not it.  I love to cook.   Thanksgiving is my "gift" to people who join us for dinner.  I begin working on it mentally a few days before the actual prep work begins.  When it does, it's more like a military campaign than anything else.  I am like a machine in the kitchen.  This year I added Chocolate mousse in cinnamon cups to the usual pumpkin and apple pies.  I made teriyaki chicken as a starter and for one guest who wasn't crazy about turkey ( which he ate as well!)  But Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on my blessings.  A lot of people use the month of November to list something they are thankful for every day and I like to do that but somehow it got away from me this year.  It's December 1, the start of the Advent and I am way behind on everything, so here in no particular order are the things I am thankful for:

Chris-well that goes without saying, but I will say it anyway. If you know me, you know that my husband is my rock and my greatest gift.  His love is my center and I don't think I could not have faced a lot of the challenges presented me without him ( I probably could have but he made me stronger)

Bobby- My little man is such a bundle of joy, he fills my heart when I think about him.

Family- even if we are far apart, we "see"each other on Facebook or in emails and I know we are connected by our hearts

Friends- I am truly blessed with the most amazing group of friends, they are more like extended family than "friends"

Coffee.  No explanation necessary

Work-  I have a job that frustrates me a lot more than it should these days, but I am thankful that I have work that is meaningful and makes a difference, even if it is not splashy or obvious. I am not saving lives or on magazine covers, but I think my work is important as it helps the system do what it does.  I cannot imagine a world without libraries and would not want to live in one that did not have them.

Books.  Again, no explanation needed.

Music.  I love to sing, even if I do have a voice that will sterilize toads at three hundred paces.  I listen to music in my kitchen when I am cooking or when I am driving.  I don't like music at work.  I find it distracting in an office setting.  Not everyone likes or wants to hear the same type of music.  I have a waterfall machine on my desk that seems to help, when my coworkers are listening to their music.  I work in what is becoming a small space and sharing it can be a challenge. We do our  best.


Today begins Advent. I do not have my calendar.  I don't have children so maybe this year I will forego it.  As we enter the holiday season, we are bombarded with the BUY BUY BUY of Christmas.  I am going to try to remember what I believe the holiday season is all about; we become reflective int he last month of the year, we remember the joys and try to thank those who have been a blessing this year.  We try to forgive and shed ourselves of the old wounds as we enter into the hope the new year brings.   I am sick to death of the "buy the perfect gift" commercialism that the Winter holidays- ALL OF THEM- have become.  I will try to remember that giving of myself is the real "reason for the season".