Giving Thanks

With Thanksgiving 2 days away and my check list half complete, I decide to take a break from my crazy busy evening. Yes it’s two days away, I am cooking for 20 people, and my kitchen is upside down. But for now, I am sitting. I’ve decided for 10 minutes to put all my lists away. To stop organizing, decorating, baking, sorting and list making. I am going to sit. My husband looks at me like I have lost my mind. I am sitting with a cup of hot cocoa with Thanksgiving less than 48 hours away and I am typing on my computer. And it's 11 p.m. But then, again, he’s used to me staying up late trying to squeeze in one more thing.

Right now I’ve decided to stop and just sit down. To remember all l that I have and all I am thankful for this holiday season.

It’s been a crazy fall, that’s for sure. And although I’ve found the perfect fit for me, going back to work full time has definitely come with challenges. Besides the early mornings and late nights, I have also been chairing a non-profit event, which means more meetings and more late nights. And although I consider myself an organized-I-can-do-anything mom of two, I felt myself overwhelmed more than once these last few months. I thought all was going along smoothly until the day I locked my keys in the car at work- a sure sign of my overwhelming stress. And to top it off, I can feel myself getting sick.

This year as Thanksgiving approaches, I’m reminded of all that I have. As mothers we have so much to be thankful for beginning with our children and ending with our sanity. We are thankful for their health, their wellbeing, their security and their love. But there are so many little things, things that go by almost unnoticed each day, which I am thankful for as well…  

Such as the never-ending pile of crayon and magic marker drawings I find on my bureau almost every night or the way my older daughter brings her litter sister into the bathroom to start teeth brushing. I’m thankful for the extra long hugs I get every day as I leave for work and the ones that great me when I arrive home each night. I’m thankful for the Barbies that seem to stay dressed and for those that find their way back to their storage case. For books that get returned to the library before a nice notice comes home, and for lunches that get eaten. I’m thankful for my husband who tries his best at ponytails, and even uses the spray bottle to keep down the frizzies. I’m thankful that he goes along with my manic cleanup every morning and crazy family projects. I'm thankful for finding matching socks in the morning and for Jimmies pizza on Wednesday night Irish Step Dancing night. I’m so very thankful for my parent’s living nearby, for their unconditional love and for the fact that they completely ignore me when I tell them the girls don’t need gifts (or BARBIES) every time they see them. I’m thankful for having two sisters in my life who I get to see become mothers, and for talking to them every single day. And I’m so very thankful that my girls are growing up with cousins who are like a brother and sister to them. I’m thankful for having wonderful and caring in-laws who adore their granddaughters and love their visits. For having a wonderful, singing Aunt who will come at a moment's notice if I am in labor and trying to get a press release out and for our lovely babysitter, who not only cares for my girls, but sends me the most beautiful and insightful updates as to what they are doing and where they have been. I’m thankful for the open parking spot in the morning when I’m running to school drop off and to my dear friends who come to the rescue when I need a little help or a night out. I’m thankful for loving what I do so it doesn’t feel so much like “work” and for feeling like I’m making a difference.  And I’m thankful for my Crockpot, which has become my good friend this year.

Although Thanksgiving morning will be hectic, with last minute cleaning, preparation and running around, I am so very thankful to be able to have this holiday, with all of us together, the entire family. And even though my brother-in-laws will shake their heads and think I'm a lunatic for organizing a kids' Thanksgiving Show (complete with costume changes), I am so very very thankful.

I asked the girls tonight if we should go around the table at Thanksgiving and have each family member say what they thankful for this year. Without missing a beat, my five-year old said, “Oreos. “

Then a pause. “And you and daddy,” she added.

Well … at least we come right after the chocolate.  

Happy Thanksgiving!