Friday Foto Friends: Thanksgiving Blessings

Well, Friends, today (writing on Thursday) was Thanksgiving, and I'm sure most of you gathered around your table with loved ones and friends and enjoyed a day filled with feasting and blessings.  I thought about you today...as I was still preparing for our Thanksgiving Feast, which will be on Friday...so when you read this Friday morning I will be busily cooking our turkey, peeling potatoes, and getting things ready for our family gang of approximately 21 people arriving for dinner!  That's right...while you are out shopping on Black Friday (for those of you who dare to brave the crowds) we will be sitting down to a wonderful feast, enjoying the laughter and joys of the day that hopefully you already celebrated today!   While you were feasting on turkey and all the trimmings, I was arranging our table for tomorrow (Friday) and doing all the last minute cleaning and other projects that should have been done sooner...

So as I write this tonight, Thursday, while you have already cleaned up your tables and put away all the leftovers...I'm just getting primed and ready:

 I wanted to mention this cut glass turkey dish above.  Our neighbor behind the fence gave this to me...no, he didn't leave it on the fence post as he has other items lately. He brought this over himself to give me, as it belonged to his mother (who is now in a nursing home, suffering from Alzheimer's). He said that he remembers her always putting the cranberry sauce in this dish...and so that is my plan for tomorrow...and yes, our neighbor will be a guest here at our table. I think he is really looking forward to seeing that dish filled with sauce again the way his mother did. I am honored and pleased to be able to do so.  I'll try to remember to take a picture of it when it is filled.

As I said, we are expecting 21 people, so these are the tables...and yes, folks, I am using paper and plastic. I honestly thought about using real dishes, as I do have enough of the blue Currier and Ives plates, but the family wants to have more time to visit and enjoy each other, and not so much time cleaning up...so paper and plastic will be just fine with me.

This is the scene in the foyer as you enter the house:

"Welcome to our neck of the woods...where life is good...Fresh Air, Star Gazing, Quiet Spaces"

Here is the table that is set in the living room..."the kids' table", but the youngest kid is 13 and the oldest kid is 24, plus a few more of the next generation will join them...

I love this little couple of praying children...

Back to the foyer again...Please be sure to sign in on the guest book!

Okay, one last look at the tables in the dining room, where the "older adults" will be sitting...

One more thing...our son the "baker" is baking the family tradition specialty: Orange Cookies. This was a special recipe of my mother's, and she always baked these cookies anytime the family was gathering. Now her grandchildren carry on that tradition whenever the family gets together.  Click HERE for more about the history and significance of these cookies.   Everyone will be thrilled to enjoy these cookies when we get together tomorrow (Friday).

This morning (Thursday), we took a walk at the break of day.  This was something amazing...our little apple tree in the front yard has a blossom...

And a bud of another!  We have never had any apples on this tree, probably because we don't have the right kind of "mate" tree to cross-pollinate. But it has provided us with lovely little blossoms at the strangest times. I am counting this as one of my Thanksgiving blessings today...

 Also, as we were starting out on our walk, I noticed this woodpecker way up in the tree. Actually there are two of them here, but you really can't see the other. I knew this was a different kind of woodpecker from the ones we usually see...I believe this is a Northern Flicker.  They are not here all of the time, so I was especially excited to see them today! Another Thanksgiving blessing!

As we began our walk, I looked up at the sky and this is what I saw....

And by the time we came back to our yard from our walk, this is how the sun appeared, breaking through the clouds:

I knew it was going to be a glorious day...and it was!

In our devotions we read Psalm 150:

"1.  Praise the Lord!

Praise God in His sanctuary;

Praise Him in His mighty firmament!

2.  Praise Him for His mighty acts;

Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!

3.  Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet;

Praise Him with the lute and harp!

4.  Praise Him with the timbrel and dance;

Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes!

5.  Praise Him with loud cymbals;

Praise Him with clashing cymbals!

6.  Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord!"

One more special thing happened this week.  We celebrated the birthday of our dear friend Sharon, who is battling lung cancer. Many of you have prayed for her throughout this past year, and she is most appreciative and thankful for your prayers, as are we, her friends.  She didn't want any big celebration for her birthday as she tires so quickly. So hubby and I took over some dinner for her and her sister (current caregiver) and her son.  We had a very special time together.

Here is Sharon, holding up the candles. We didn't have cake as she doesn't eat sweets...but we still had to sing!

And here, something that is so typical when I spend time with Sharon...she always finds a way to bless me, instead of me being the one doing the giving.  Here my hubby and I and Sharon are holding up a lovely quilted vintage tablecloth, which was quilted by one of her sisters. It is a lovely wall-hanging, and I am waiting to hang it in our new house in a place of honor.  The back story is that Sharon's sister made this for her, but Sharon is in the process of cleaning out her home and giving away treasures to special friends and family. So this is a very bittersweet time and gift. Her sister suggested that she give it to me, and I am so very humbled and blessed to receive this gift. I will always treasure it, as I treasure this very wonderful friend that God blessed me with several years ago. I believe we have only known each other about ten years, but it seems as though we've known each other forever. Some friendships are like that, aren't they? They don't happen often, but when they do, it is always a gift to be thankful for. Sharon has been a gift to our family from God, and so on this Thanksgiving day, I want to give thanks to the Lord for His blessing to us.

Okay, dear Friday Foto Friends...while you are enjoying your day after Thanksgiving, I'll be enjoying a wonderful visit with my brother and his family from N.C., and my sister and her family from here in Florida, along with our kids and our neighbor and some other precious friends. God is good...all the time, God is good!  

Now let's go join our other Friday Foto Friends over at Deb's place at Breathing in Grace.  Have a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!!