A Very Very Grateful Day....

Thanksgiving....the glorious November day in Charlotte.

Here they are...the darlings. 

Dylan is wearing the shirt I made his father when he was 6.

I love generational things.  I used fun food fabric..

Three darlings, but only one princess!!!

Voila..the Thanksgiving skirt.

Uncle Bri teaching Lynsey how to count the marshmallows on the tators..
He is so clever.

See how she learns!!!  L for Lynsey...the sweet potato way.

This year...an outside event.

My girl made it all so special!!
Tradition has us using our Christmas china at Thanksgiving.

The feastly complications...:

I was thrilled to have my brother here with his wife, not so much their 16 cats in their rented van.

We had a lovely time laughing and playing traditional canasta...

My brother's leg is awful.  If he continues to be homeless, his leg will not heal.

He will eventually have to lose his leg or his life thru sepsis.

They had agreed to look at a trailer park my DIL had seen before.

It was all set up.  Then SIL refused to go.  She preferred to live in the van.

There is nothing I can do.  They have left.

I am glad they came.

My girl has made Thanksgiving a real feast.

She and her man are outstanding cooks.

I did nothing. So happy....so grateful..so proud..
My girl brought the joy with her.
She and her man continued traditions that the grands will hold dear.

Even surrounded with such love, tears came.  There is an emptiness that can never be filled.
There is a feeling of desperation and despair...
This is not a mind thing, it is a gut thing born of loss.

They have left.  I am so grateful that they came.

There is joy in the coming and sadness in the leaving.

That is the way of life.

The Gifted Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving has been a gift from the beginning..

.I found myself deliciously awake at 10 am with no noise about. 

 Emily and her man had taken care of it all...Downstairs I found grandchildren occupied and Em and Bri in the kitchen fixing the dinner.. Mr. O'Quilts' nursing assistant had washed and folded all our flannel from the fun flannel spree at JoAnn's yesterday!!

...My cup runneth over!!
I was allowed a preview of the preparations.. Yummy brussel sprouts on the stalk from Trader Joe's
 

No one asked for my input on the dinner so I sewed and read and hugged my man.

Then I picked up the kids' Mom, from the bus stop.
  She has earned the dinner with us today.

There is a lot to be thankful for.

 Our tradition is to use the Christmas plates on Thanksgiving to welcome in the holiday season.

A sneak peak tease of some of my new flannels..Now two of the CNAs are buying machines for themselves for Christmas!!!

Then too, were the kids cutting card stock and Christmas paper with my new Accuquilt-Go cutter.  The vendors both said that it would be fine for paper without dulling the blade..  The grands had a great time cutting Christmas trees and snowflakes. 
When they see their mother on Saturday, they will take the cut outs with them to make a bunting.
My dear man feels better today and before dinner all 11 of us were together holding hands with him at his bedside saying our blessings.
The best Thanksgiving Ever!!!!

Thanksgiving

Traditions...the pig with olives on toothpicks from Great-grandma..a must...long after no one eats olives any more:)

 My nephew, Barry's birthday cake.  We used to tease him when he was young that he was the turkey on Thanksgiving...poor Barry...now at 28 we cannot let it go...his favorite cake and his favorite candy..tradition!

 Family carrying on the tradition...my two wonderful children.

 Generations in the kitchen carrying on..Lynsey helping Aunt Emily make her apple pie from scratch.

 Lynsey helping her daddy make the mashed potatoes, quality control.

Family and gratitude.