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Happy Thanksgiving too everyone. I’m not sure why we celebrate Thanksgiving in the United States.

I am thankful I didn’t like it when I tried a cigarette when I was twelve years old. It made me gag and I have never smoked another. My dad lost a lung to cancer from smoking.

I am thankful I didn’t like the taste of alcohol when I tried it at 17. The rum and coke burned my throat and it tasted so bad that I did not even finish the drink. I have never been drunk, and I say that gratefully!

The night of Thanksgiving I drove into town and noticed that their were people camping outside of Best Buy. I guess in hope of being the first too get good deals on electronics. Apparently some of these people have been camped out in front of Best Buy all day. I think this is crazy especially when you realize that in November in Michigan it gets really cold outside. Personally I have not even started Christmas shopping. I think I’ll start next weekend..

In my last blog entry I discsussed the importannce of continuing in the thankfulness mode during the entire holiday season. It will not only encourage others, it will also lift up your heart.

Here are a few suggestions on how to do that:

At Thanksgiving time we were all reminded in numerous ways to be thankful for the blessings we enjoy. I'm sure we did that and those expressions of thankfulness were a joy in the midst of gathering with family and friends.

Thanksgiving was supposed to be just another holiday. I had spent days buying food, planning the menu, making sure the kids knew what time they were to be at my house for a midday dinner. Everything was going according to plan.....sort of.....

Alright, I'm giving in to the spirit of the holiday. I can't help it. I normally couldn't care less. But I feel that I have a lot to be thankful for. So allow me to list them, if you will.

Probably the biggest thing I have to be thankful for is Diana. She truly is the best thing that has ever happened to me, despite all the complaining and griping I do about her. I can't even begin to list the things that she has done for me. She puts up with me...and that's probably the biggest thing. She has stuck with me and encouraged me in everything I've ever tried - no matter how ludicrous or incredible my endeavors were. She believed in me when I didn't believe in myself...and she still does when I have my "moods." I can honestly say that I don't know where I would be without her. I never would've went back to school and stuck it out long enough to get my degree if she hadn't stuck by my side every step of the way. She sacrificed for two years while I worked long hours and then came home and did homework every night until I fell asleep on the couch. She continued to "nag" me to keep me going, despite my constant "blow ups" over her "nagging." She stuck with me through the trials of having two terminally ill parents and she was my strength when I had none. There's not a day that goes by when I'm not thankful for the treasure I married.

Looking at incoming traffic to BlogEvolve I noticed a visitor coming in from a Google search for - what do i serve for thanksgiving -

I checked that phrase on Google and found Jellen's post called "Thanksgiving Tradition - What Do You Serve?" ranked at the #2 position.

Just wanted to share some thoughts and a couple of quotes about Thanksgiving. As I celebrate tomorrow I hope to challenge myself to truly be grateful. Rather than getting irritated with the stress and business that will be part of the day, or the relatives you wish were somewhere else, rather than being blinded by the mountain of food, I hope I can challenge myself to dwell on thankfulness. Just being thankful is not enough. I must be thankful to God. It is because of His gracious providence which I cannot understand, but which is taught in the Bible, that I have all the blessings I enjoy. Sure, I have plenty of problems, plenty of things in my life that are not what I want. At the same time I have more blessings than I usually acknowledge.

If April showers bring May flowers,

What do May flowers bring?

While you are thinking about that, I thought you might like to consider life through the eyes of a renter. If you rent, and have a landlord, then you might find yourself saying: