Thanksgiving 2025 is a "Wrap".

 Oh dear friends, are you as tired as I am?  If you hosted Thanksgiving dinner at your house, I'm sure you know what I mean. But it's a happy tired, the kind that keeps you going even when your body is saying time to quit...but you don't want to miss a thing or leave something out, so you keep persevering in spite of your aches and pains. At least that's my experience...and now it's time to sit down and organized my thoughts and pictures and share it all with you before it's a dim memory!

Where to begin?  I guess I'll let the pictures do the talking for me (mostly).

Let's start with the day before Thanksgiving...this is what I did...One apple pie and two pumpkins.

And in between pie baking, we went out to lunch to meet my brother Clifford and his wife Caryl, down here in Florida from North Carolina. Caryl's extended family was gathering over at Palm Coast to celebrate Thanksgiving, but they had time on Wednesday to drive over to meet us for lunch. That was a wonderful surprise and blessing!

Our son Benton joined us as well, but sweet Rose had to work so unfortunately couldn't come.

We had a great visit, and I am so thankful for this time. We don't get to see each other very often, so I will grab every opportunity I can!

Back at home again...I got the tables set the night before. We were set for 11, but my brother in law sadly ended up not being able to come due to some health issues, but my sister Doris and the rest of her family still came anyway. We really missed having Art here, but totally understood his need to stay home and rest. My sister took home plenty of food for him to enjoy.

LOL.  Here's the family gathered around the table...Of course I caught people with their mouths full...LOL.  Sorry about that. I tried three times, but they were all funny...

I didn't get in the picture, but here's my plate:

That's my nephew Jack. He's the youngest member of the family, and such a cutie.

Actually I was trying to take a picture of this beautiful "paper" centerpiece that my sister brought as a "hostess gift".  Isn't it beautiful? It looks so real!

There's a story here...this is the lime jelled salad that my sister brought, however, somehow she stepped on the container/carrier that it was in, and this is how it looked! LOL. (It was covered with Saran Wrap so nothing got dirty, just smashed!)  It still tasted wonderful! LOL!!

 

 (kind of reminds me of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and Aunt Bethany's jello mold story. LOL   IYKYK)

Speaking of cats...Blackie got a lot of attention from everyone all afternoon.  He followed us around while we walked around the yard after dinner and basically charmed everyone with his antics and rolling in the sand to show off his belly. He was quite happy. Kind of helped soothe the empty spot of not having Sunshine there too...

While us girls walked around and visited, the guys all played "football" in the front yard, well, they tossed a football back and forth and basically had fun just being "boys".

Meanwhile, we girls took pictures of each other...Here's Rose and my niece Debbie:

My sister Doris and Debbie, (her daughter):

Debbie, Doris and me...and Blackie in the background:

And here's the whole family gathered together...

My niece was playing around with an app on her phone that created funny pictures, and here's one she did of me: LOL!

And here's my sister Doris and I wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving:

As you can tell, we had a wonderful day, filled with laughter and good food and the joy of being together.  I am so thankful for our family and also for the ability for us to still be able to get together. 

This particular Thanksgiving quote/meme popped up on my Facebook page the day before Thanksgiving. Of course it really touched my heart, when you see that sweet little orange kitty curled up there...and then the verse itself...

It reminded me that even in the difficult times and moments of life, we are taught and encouraged to "Give Thanks".  It's not always easy to do so, when we are hurting from the loss of a dear pet or missing a precious loved one who was taken away far too soon, or when we see horrific things happening in the world or our nation's capitol on the eve of Thanksgiving.  

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18   NKJV

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; 

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

These are difficult words, but when we put our faith and trust in God, we know that somehow He always causes "all things to work together for our good" (per Romans 8:28. )  We have to look at the bigger picture that God sees from His side of heaven, and realize that this world is not our final home. There's a much larger story going on that we can't see, and we have to trust God to do what He deems best for us in every circumstance.  One day, we will see Jesus face to face, and all of our questions will be answered. All of our sorrows will be replaced with eternal joy and peace. For now, we have to accept this by faith no matter how difficult it is.  I am thankful for this peace that passes all understanding that only faith in Christ can give.  I pray for those who are still searching for this peace and hope it will be found.  Amen.

And now we prepare for Christmas...stay tuned...blessings and love  to all.  

Tuesday 4~We Gather Together

 

We Gather Together..



Welcome, welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 .


This coming Thursday is Thanksgiving Day when we gather together to ask the Lord's blessing as the song says.
What are your Thanksgiving Days like?


1. Do you celebrate with family, friends or by yourself?

This year we are celebrating with my sister Doris and her family, along with our own immediate family. Everyone is coming here to our house, so I am busily cleaning and preparing our house for a wonderful day! 

2. Do you watch the Thanksgiving Day parade from Macy's in New York City? The appearance of Santa at the end signals the start of the Christmas season. What does the day hold for you?

I rarely get to watch the parade as I am usually too busy in the kitchen to sit down and watch it, but if I can have it on while I work I will catch snippets of it in between my frantic pace of cooking in the kitchen.

3. What foods are the hit of Thanksgiving Day for you?

Well, of course we will have turkey, but that is not my favorite part of the meal. I am more of a "sides" person. I will be making my usual Sweet Potato Casserole as well as regular Mashed potatoes and gravy. My sister is bringing the stuffing, a jello salad, and the rolls.  My niece is bringing assorted vegie and relish trays or some kind of appetizer. Rose is roasting the turkeys (2 small ones) at her house  and bringing them here. I am making the pies: pumpkin, apple, and maybe a pecan pie if I don't wear out before then. LOL.  

4. We say grace before and after meals. Is grace a part of your Thanksgiving meal?

We always say grace before the meal, and then while we are gathered around the table we each share something we are especially thankful for.

Whatever your Thanksgiving traditions, I pray that the day is meaningful and filled with love for you whether with family, friends or alone. May God shine his blessing love down on you and yours and make us all truly thankful this year.

Thank you, Annie, for this post this week. I understand that today (25th) is also Annie's birthday, so let's all wish her a Happy Birthday!

I want to thank you all for your kind words of sympathy and support regarding the loss of our dear sweet kitty, Sunshine.  You are all the best friends, and I thank God for each one of you!   I am thankful for the time that God gave us with Sunshine. He truly was a blessing to us. Now we have to concentrate all our love and attention on his little buddy "Blackie", who is very lonely without his dear friend.  We are thankful to still have Blackie, even if he is a little "scamp". LOL.  He brings smiles to our faces.

Hug your family and furry friends a little tighter. We just never know when this day or this Thanksgiving may be our last time together.  May God bless you each and every one. Amen.

Link to a previous Thanksgiving Day post from years past.

All Creatures of Our God and King...

I don't know how to begin this post, but somehow I need to put this into words...

Our sweet sweet Sunshine went over the "Rainbow Bridge" last night.

I like to think that just as he loved to lay down in the shed in front of the cross and the Nativity scene that we stored there for Christmas, maybe he's laying down at the feet of Jesus now. I don't know where our beloved pets go when they die, but somehow I think there's a special place for them in heaven.

This was Sunshine and Blackie, watching the sunset just a few evenings ago.  

This was last week. Little did I know these would be the last photos I would be taking of sweet Sunshine.

A few weeks ago he seemed to be losing his appetite for the dry food we fed him and Blackie all the time. So we started them on some canned food to see how they would like it, and I think I already told you they loved it.  But as the days went by, Sunshine lost interest in that food as well.

I thought he looked a bit sad in this picture, but I didn't realize he was telling me good bye.

The last couple of weeks he stayed mostly on this straw doormat outside our glass doors. He rarely left it except to go potty or eat, but then he just lost interest in eating altogether, and on this past Saturday and Sunday he didn't eat a bite of food, and barely drank water.  Of course it was the weekend, so there wasn't much I could do. 

All day yesterday he barely moved, but when he did move, he took himself to the woods where he always loved to lay under the cool trees near the pond.

I knew in my heart that he was going there to die, and although my heart was breaking, I knew he was where he wanted to be.

Tearfully, I sang this song to him...

"You are my Sunshine, my only Sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray, you'll never know dear, how much I love you, please don't take my Sunshine away..."

Remember when I took these pictures of him with this ceramic cat we have that looks just like him? He was so funny about looking at that cat...

Anyway, as the sun was going down in the west, I knew that Sunshine was breathing his last breaths. 

I didn't know what else to do, so I just wandered around, praying for him, and taking pictures of the beauty of the evening...

The Sand Hill Cranes were out there on Still Waters Pond, settling down for the night:

And this morning when I woke up and the sun came up, I went and checked to see if Sunshine was still in the same place, and yes, he was. He had not moved an inch, so  I knew he was gone.  

I couldn't reach him because of all the underbrush. So we called our son Benton to come over and help us get him out of the woods and bury him, which he did so very kindly.

Blackie knew something was up...he was comforting me and himself by clinging to my legs...

Benton took care of the burial, and I found something appropriate to put on his grave...

I am sorry to start this Thanksgiving week off with this sad news. But I am thankful for the almost a year that we were blessed to have Sunshine and Blackie here with us. Thankfully we still have Blackie, but Sunshine is going to be missed by all of us.  

I will close with this hymn of praise to our God and King...

1. All creatures of our God and King,

Lift up your voice and with us sing

Alleluia, alleluia!

Thou burning sun with golden beam,

Thou silver moon with softer gleam,

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

2. Thou rushing winds that art so strong,

Ye clouds that sail in Heav'n along,

O praise him, alleluia!

Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice,

Ye lights of evening, find a voice.

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

3. And all ye saints of tender heart,

Forgiving others, take your part,

O sing ye, alleluia!

Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,

Praise God and on him cast your care:

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

4. Let all things their creator bless,

And worship him in humbleness,

O praise him, alleluia!

Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,

And praise the Spirit, Three in One:

O praise him, O praise him,

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

Amen.

Thursday 6 and Thursday Thankfulness

 My friend Syl over at Sylify is the hostess for this Thursday 6 meme each week. Just six questions. Syl lives in the Netherlands (right, Syl?), and I enjoy visiting with her on her blog throughout the week.  Since I didn't have anything else in particular planned for today, I thought I would give this a try, so here you go!

Welcome!
Theme of the week:  Greetings

1. Did you already have snow this season?

No, because I live in Florida, where snow would be quite unusual, especially in November. It has happened before in January or February, but never enough to accumulate...it usually melts before it hits the ground, but when it does happen, everyone goes crazy for a few minutes just wanting to enjoy it!

Newspaper articles about when it snowed in Central Florida in 1977.  I remember this night, because I was about 8 months pregnant with our youngest son, and I had just arrived at church with our other two children for Wednesday night church, (or some other program).  We had just gotten inside the building and had taken off our jackets when people came in saying it was snowing...and the kids and everyone ran back outside without jackets to see the snow!  My hubby was working as a FHP State Trooper at that time, and he was actually directing traffic out in the snow. He said people were driving like they forgot how to drive. It was crazy everywhere! But so much fun for a few minutes.

2. Who puts the rubbish outside? How?

Usually my hubby and I take the rubbish out together, and we just did that a few minutes ago, because the garbage truck will arrive around 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, and we need to put it out tonight rather than try to wake up on time to catch them in the morning.  

3. At what time did you close the curtains yesterday?

Well, the curtains on the front side of the house stay closed all the time because we live on a rather busy street and I don't like people looking in our windows as they drive by. Plus the sun is very bright on that side of the house in the morning, so we keep them shut to keep the sun from being too hot in the house. 

Here's the view from the front porch early this morning:

 The blinds on the back side of the house overlooking the pond are open for much of the morning, but when the sun moves around to the southwestern side of the house, we have to close them during the middle part of the day or it makes it too warm in the house and the glare off the pond (when there's water in it) is hard to look at.  Then we usually open them back up when the sun goes down in the evening (or on a cloudy day they stay open all the time, which I love).  We don't normally close them back up at night on that side of the house because there's no one behind us to look in them.  

This was the view from our back porch windows last night:

Blackie and Sunshine were enjoying watching the sun going down:

Psalm 113:3 NKJV

3 From the rising of the sun to its going down

The Lord’s name is to be praised.

4. How do you keep warm during the night? What kind of cover?

Funny you should ask...when the cold snap hit a week or so ago, we brought out the new set of flannel sheets that I bought at the end of last winter. I've been anxious to put them on the bed, because I just love the little cabins and pine trees in the snow...

Aren't they cute?  And they are so soft and warm and cozy.  They make me smile just to look at them!

And when I really get chilled, I add this sherpa lined blanket that I got for Christmas last year:

It is super cozy!! Especially when I snuggle up with my little brown "Bear Bear" you see there...and of course my big Teddy Bear hubby too...

When the temperatures start to drop, I think "cozy" is my favorite word...

5. Have you bought Christmas cards yet?

I actually just ordered some yesterday. They don't seem to be carrying them at Walmart anymore and I have a hard time finding any locally, so I had to order them. I also bought some Christmas postage stamps today, but what a sticker shock that was! I may be limiting my Christmas card list this year to people that I don't communicate with online  that much...I don't know...we'll see. I do love to receive cards in the mail, so it's only right that I should send them out too...but it's really getting to be quite expensive!

6. Do you feed the birds when it's cold?

Yes...Feeding and watching the birds is one of our favorite pasttimes in the winter/spring months.

 

Now that we have these porch kitties living here, I do hope they won't scare away all of our pretty birds this winter.  Time will tell.   Mostly our cats just lay there on the porch and watch the birds...they really haven't been that interested in stalking them, so I hope that will be the norm for this winter...

I guess that's the end of the questions for the week for Thursday 6, but I still have more to say! (Of course!) LOL.

Yesterday we had some fellas from our church come and trim those big oak trees in the front. They cut back a lot of low hanging branches and really made them look a lot better!

Here's the finished product!  They cleaned everything up and it looks so nice!  We are very thankful for their hard work and excellent job!

While I was standing on the front porch, this beautiful Gulf Fritillary butterfly came and landed on the pot of Penta that is still blooming so prettily! What a blessing! 

Another thing I am thankful for this past week was as I mentioned in an earlier post HERE, that son Scott came home and cleaned up his room so very nicely.  Then son Benton came over on Tuesday and hauled away some things to the dump, and also helped me get the bed set up the way I wanted it.  I didn't take any before pictures (because it was too big of a mess!!) but here's the after pictures:

The bed used to be turned so that it was up against that wall where the head of the bed is now. You couldn't get beside it on that side so it was very hard to make the bed, but that's the way Scott always liked it.  This way is much better for my purposes and to possibly use it as a guest room now. 

Here's the organ that Scott inherited from my parents' house...(he's the only one that wanted it). It's quite old now and very heavy, but it still works, and he still loves to play it when he comes home, so it will stay there until he has a house of his own to move it to someday.

Here he is playing it at my parents' home when he was about 11. That was where you'd find him everytime we went there.  He doesn't read music, but he makes it up as he goes, and it's actually quite nice. I wish he'd taken piano lessons when he was young...but he calls this his "therapy".

Here's Scott a few years ago when we were in the process of moving and had our stuff stored at the church parsonage where we stayed until we closed on this house...(another long story).

I am very thankful for our family and for these sweet memories.  

Well, it's getting late, and I need to wrap this up.  If you wanted to join in the Thursday 6, it's not too late. Click HERE for the questions.  Thank you, Syl, for coming up with the questions for the week! I enjoyed this!

Psalm 100  NKJV

A Song of Praise for the Lord’s Faithfulness to His People

A Psalm of Thanksgiving.

"1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!

2 Serve the Lord with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

3 Know that the Lord, He is God;

It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;

We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

5 For the Lord is good;

His mercy is everlasting,

And His truth endures to all generations."