a day of thanks, part one...

We had a quiet Thanksgiving this year.  I still miss the large holiday celebrations from when I was a kid.  There was a packed house, tons of cousins, lots of food and loud Italians talking and laughing everywhere you looked.  However, there is something to be said for an intimate holiday celebration spent with the ones you love.  We were blessed to share this Thanksgiving with Papa, Emay & Memejo.  Oh, there were loved ones missing... but we did pretty well, if I do say so myself.

Before I go on, I would like to personally thank all the men and women who serve our communities as rescue workers.  They often miss out on holiday celebrations with their families but they are fulfilling a greater need that most of us could never fill.  Dominic wasn't able to be with us this year because Thanksgiving fell on his shift at the fire station.  We missed him but are so proud of him and his commitment to serving others.

The weather was unseasonably warm and it allowed us to go on our traditional Thanksgiving walk.

Landon was riding his bike when he came around the corner and saw this giant pile of leaves.  He ditched the bike and ran straight for the leaves, cannon-balling into the deepest part.  

Ashlyn wasn't far behind him…

Thankful for the joy in just being a kid...

Memejo headed straight for the swings when we arrived at the park…
My mom brought a large jump rope with her to the park.  The kids jumped right in (no pun intended)...
Watching them brought me right back to my own childhood.  My parents had a camper parked on the side of our driveway and Dominic and I used to tie the end of a long rope to it.  I have no idea how we did it but we would spend hours out there jumping.  Sometimes there would be a long line of neighborhood kids waiting for their turn.   They smiled and laughed the whole time. My heart overflowed.  I love these moments.  I cherish them.

Family.

Togetherness.

Love...  All of it.  

The kids asked me to take a turn.  Landon sang the rhyme as I jumped and he was pretty impressed that I made it through the entire thing and kept jumping.  I was actually pretty impressed myself.  Shortly after I got a massive cramp and had to stop.  Jumping rope is hard core.  Either that or I'm seriously out of shape!  

Of course, I had to get in on the action too.  What can I say…like mother, like daughter.  
More Thanksgiving to come...