My Thoughts This Thanksgiving Eve

Happy Thanksgiving Eve, everyone! I have been lousy at keeping the blog up to speed lately, but hopefully I'll managed to get some turkey pictures up before month's end. Tonight, however, since gratitude is on my mind, I'd like to be more sentimental and share some thoughts of my heart.

A couple of weeks ago, on Veteran's Day (Monday November 11th), our family took a quick drive up to Madera Canyon and hiked around a bit. We sought out new hiking trails, and found one in the Bog Springs trail.

It was steeper and rockier than the kids were used to, but we still managed to make it partway up, and made it a goal to return again someday when the girls are a little bigger and less whinier. The weather was unusually warm for early November, so that may also have contributed to everyone's fatigue. At any rate, we got to walk through a dry creek bed and check out some lovely fall colors (albeit not as much as we'd hoped).

Living in Arizona, I really miss fall. It is a very "blink or you'll miss it affair" in our part of the country; one day it's still hot enough to turn on the A/C, and a couple of days later you are putting on sweaters and wearing long pajamas to bed. Seeing even a few fall colors was a wonderful treat, one that I sadly took for granted until moving here. Nowadays, I am more thankful for the beautiful turning of the seasons (no matter how subtle), and the graceful way it marks the passage of time.

I am grateful to be able to share these little bonding experiences with my family. When I was growing up, I remember my mother sometimes saying that her kids were "all the friends she needed." As my kids get older, I am starting to feel the same way! Maybe it sounds weird, but I often prefer the company of my kids to that of other grown-ups (not ALWAYS, mind you, but often!). It is such a blessing to see them grow up, learn, change, mature, and bless the lives of those around them.

I love my kids so much. I am a better person because of them, and every day they make me want to become a better person still. I have never regretted the years I've stayed home to raise them; someday I will work outside the home again, but raising my little girls is a rare and special gift that I don't thank Heavenly Father for enough. They help me see the world around me through purer, non-cynical eyes, and watching them try to make good choices and be kind in their daily lives is inspiring to me.

Not long ago, Lorelai lost another one of her teeth. Instead of giving it right to the Tooth Fairy, she wanted to "wait a while" with the tooth, keeping it in her safekeeping. More than a week went by, and every night I asked her when she would be leaving it for the "Tooth Fairy" to pick up. Lorelai just smiled and cryptically said, "Oh, the Tooth Fairy can come tonight. SHE will know where the tooth is." Unfortunately, I had no idea where she'd put the tooth! In the end, I had to slip a dollar under her pillow and hope for the best. Heaven only knows where the tooth is now; chances are I will stumble across it in an unexpected place months later (ew).

What does this little episode tell me about my daughter? I suspect she was testing me. I think she is starting to lose her belief in the Tooth Fairy, and was testing my limits in the tooth-payment department. I was surprised to find myself a little sad at the thought of her losing her belief in a childhood legend (we don't talk about Santa much in our house, but all the girls still believe in him...for now. But for how much longer)? That probably means she is growing up and seeing the world through more thoughtful, analytical (even suspicious!) eyes.

I hope that even if my daughters stop believing in Santa and the Tooth Fairy, they will never stop believing in a world where miracles happen, and where love is a powerful force. There is much that is sad and evil in this world; however, there is much more that is happy and good, and that goodness only grows when it is shared. I have been blessed to live in a situation in which I have much, and I hope I teach my kids not to take our "much" for granted, and even to share our "much" with others whenever we can.

I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. Be sure to eat some delicious food, count your blessings, and share a kind word with your loved ones. Life is so precious, and it moves so fast! Let's not forget to appreciate all of it.