The Day Before Thanksgiving, So Much to be Thankful For

It has been a busy week since we last posted here, so I'll try to be brief in my reporting of it all.

We absolutely love the new oven and refrigerator.  Even though the fridge is supposed to be the same size, it seems to have more space in it.  I'm not sure if that is possible, but it seems so.  The oven is definitely 5 inches taller, so we are looking forward to roasting a 12 pound turkey in it tomorrow!  Last Saturday I baked a lemon cake in it, and it turned out perfect!  I used to have to turn the pan around half way through the baking to get both sides done......and it was never level on top.  This one was perfect, thanks to the new oven.

Here we are, set up in our site at Wilderness Lakes.  Last week I forgot to put a picture of our site in the blog, so here it is.


 Saturday  night our friends Diane & Steve came over for dinner and brought us an early Christmas gift.  They built the base stand and added the hanging flag on it.  She let us go pick the kind of solar lights we wanted for it, and we took her advice about using the center hole for seasonal flowers.  We had to order the lights from WalMart to get what we wanted, but they arrived yesterday, so we got to enjoy it last night. 
  I hope you will click on the picture so you can see how beautiful the Christmas scene on the flag is.  I am going to also include the picture I took last night, so you can see how much light the lamps provide.  The flag can be removed and replaced for the other seasons of the year.  I'm looking forward to the many different flags and flowers we can use in it.  Thank you Diane & Steve for this beautiful gift.

This just puts me in mind, once again, that we all need to begin each day with an attitude of gratitude.  Even when it may not seem to be true, we all have so many blessings to be thankful for, like our true friends and family, and loving pets.  It's so easy to forget that and feel sorry for ourselves if we focus on what other people may have that we don't have.  Most of us have all that we truly NEED and much more.  We sometimes even resent others who we perceive to have more that we think they deserve.  To feel this way only harms us because we feel bitter and spiteful.  Instead of being jealous of others, please take a moment to thank God for all you do have.  God KNOWS what you really need, and he will always provide it if you just ask Him for it.

Yesterday I was looking at our December issue of Motorhome Magazine.  In the back of it Alan Rider writes a column called "The Road Ahead".  In it he made reference to a well known phrase that we should all remember.  It simply said "Above All Else, Be Kind".  Please stop for a second and think about those five words.  The season to celebrate the birth of our precious Lord Jesus is fast approaching.  We are being bombarded with crass commercialism already, with very little mention of the true Reason for the Season.  As people begin the shopping (or have already begun it) how many people will take time to stop and be kind to someone else?  Yesterday we were in WalMart to pick up our solar lights.  A woman in a wheelchair was having trouble with her purse and packages.  I was so proud that Jim spotted the woman and spent a few minutes helping her to rearrange everything so she could continue on her way.  Others had pushed past her as if she was just another inconvenience to them.  It never hurts to be kind to others....and it will even lift your spirits when you see the smile on the face of the person you helped.  Every day offers us a choice.  We can choose to think only of ourselves, and what WE want, or we can choose to thank God for each day we are alive and ask Him how He would like for us to use this day to His Glory.  When you wake up, please think about all that you have to be thankful for, and choose to use your gifts to glorify Him by helping others who are less fortunate.  

I often speak of the need to purge because of our small space, but it also is a way to help others.  Do you have more clothes than you will ever need?  You could donate clothes to a homeless shelter or Salvation Army store.  Do you  have tons of blankets?  Animal shelters always need blankets to keep the animals warm.  And speaking of animal shelters, please think of them when you make your list of donations this year.  They need dog and cat food, animal beds and even toys, collars and leashes too.  Homeless shelters need donations of non-perishable foods too.  There are also Veterans and their families that need all the help they can get.  Donations of tooth brushes, and tooth paste, socks and underwear, warm jackets and gloves are always appreciated.  I'm sure you can go online to look for charities that are in need of whatever you can donate at this time of year.  I even saw a donation tree at WalMart asking for help for local needy families.  

Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving, and please begin the Christmas season with your focus solidly on the true reason for the season.  And don't eat toooooo much tomorrow.