What's Really Important

Thanksgiving is the time to be thankful for your many blessings.  It is the time for family, friends, decorate for Fall, watch the Macy's parade & football games & eat turkey with all the trimmings.   It is a time for traditions.   

For me this has been one of the best & sweetest Thanksgiving Day's & weekends.  One reason is because last year we never dreamed that we would be living here in Maumelle, AR near all our children & spending it with them.

Our day was one of taking it easy, enjoying a great meal, visiting, Dave & Ben playing Chess.  Jenny had  challenged the family to our first traditional croquet game the beginning of Nov.  We didn't know that Jenny had been practicing all these weeks.  We laughed from beginning to set-up the game to the end.  Jenny & I would be putting in the brackets that the balls would go through while Lauren would come behind picking them up.  We all started squealing & Lauren would squeal right back.  Lauren did get distracted with her own croquet ball & played in the upper part of the yard.  Dave & Ben never got started.  Amy was too sweet to knock someones ball to the other side of the yard.  I was too uncoordinated.  When I deserved the right to knock someones ball way off, I would always hit my shoe.  I was such a big threat.  Like I said, it was a fun time & Jenny won by a mile.

Amy & I have had fun shopping on our first Black Friday together.  We have really enjoyed her as she has been mainly staying over here for the weekend.

Going into this special time I wondered why cooking this Thanksgiving dinner was my easiest preparation time ever since I have been cooking Thanksgiving dinner.  I began cooking Thanksgiving dinner when the kids were toddlers about 30 years ago.

Normally, I get my menu planned, groceries bought, table set & cook two days before Thanksgiving.  This year I asked the girls to bring the nonstarchy vegetables.  I would do the turkey, dressing, pies, etc....  The weekend before we were out of town for four days.  Tuesday was spend Christmas shopping for sales & getting out first flat screen TV.  Also on Tuesday, after Dave worked 13 hrs, he hit a pot hole & busted two of my tires.  We had swapped cars so I could get the TV.  Wed. involved getting both cars repaired.   I didn't even begin to start my cooking until after dinner.  Surprisingly, I was at real peace over the situation.

This year I spent more of my thinking of not counting my many blessings but mulling over why the easiness of the day.  I realized it was one thing that made the difference for me this year.  LETTING GO!  I LET GO of all the cooking.  I'm grateful that I included the girls in cooking.  They enjoyed it also.  In fact I gave them a toast at dinner.  I couldn't have done the dinner without them.  I LET GO of the cleaning.  It was a dirty house.  LET GO two casseroles that I wanted to prepare.  LET GO making the bread that I wanted to make.

Because of this, I wasn't so worn-out or stressed-out, so I could interact with everyone.  When the baby wouldn't take her nap, instead of being in the kitchen, I was the only one who could rock her, snuggle with her & get her to sleep.

Sometimes, we women can strive too much to be this Prov 31 Woman in doing, 

& forget to be discerning to see what doesn't really need to be done. 

We were all stuffed, enjoyed each other, no one missed what wasn't cooked 

or didn't even see the dirt in this brown house.

Proverbs 2:2-4
  ² So as to incline thine ear unto wisdom, And apply thy heart to understanding;

 ³ Yea, if thou cry after discernment, And lift up thy voice for understanding;

 ⁴ If thou seek her as silver, And search for her as for hid treasures:

                                 











           ann :)