Happy Thanksgiving!

What a crazy and amazing year it has been! Now is a perfect time to be a little introspective and realize how truly blessed life has been. It's so easy to caught up in the small stuff and forget to see the good stuff.

I'm so truly fortunate to live in the United States, and I'm so very thankful for the men and women who serve our country. My DH served in the Navy during Desert Storm, and my father was in WWII. I have many relatives who have served, and I can't begin to express how grateful I am to their sacrifices.

I am having my first contracted story released next year! How exciting and amazing is THAT? Less than two years ago I was challenged to write an erotic short story (which was subsequently published on the Whipped Cream Reviews site) and then Kealie and I challenged each other to write something a little longer. "Shut Up & Kiss Me" was the result.

This segues nicely into my thankfulness for my friends. There are days I don't know how I'd get by without them. They may not say or do much, but just knowing they're there (IRL or virtually) with a heart for me is so incredible.

My thanks for family is also something that needs expressing. Don't we take them for granted a little too much? I forget some days how my DH expresses his love for me by doing things. He works outside the home so I don't have to, fixed the cars, cares for the house, and so much more. Even when he drives me crazy, I need to remember that he's a good man.

I could go on and on... the little things and the big things are just such blessings.

What are you thankful for this year?

Pondering Joy and Thanks This Week

As my sweet monkeys decided that they needed to give food to those families who don't have that opportunity (entirely without our prompting) I was dumbfounded. Did I teach this to them? They got together three whole boxes of groceries that are non-perishable and a full Thanksgiving meal for some of those that are less fortunate than we are. They're good kids and it got me to thinking.

I look forward this week to spending time with my extended family as those of us who celebrate Thanksgiving here in the states gather to show our thanks for our family and friends and those around us. I think of my friends who are deployed and my family stationed in other places who won't be able to join us. I think about the family members that we have lost so recently and the fact that this will be our first big holiday without them. I think about the friends that I made this year, and hope they have a happy holiday... and the friends who have been my friends for a long time as well.

I am incredibly thankful for that family I will be spending time with this year, both the family I was born into and the family that I married into. They are amazing people and while I am usually exhausted after a day with them... I wouldn't have it any other way.

I am thankful that I live in a country where we are proud of our service men and women who go forward and do their best to secure freedom where they can. I am thankful to their families, as we ARE their families sometimes. I know how hard it is to watch the one you love walk away and go into battle and fear that you may never see them again. I know the sheer gratitude each time you get an email or phone call or they step off that plane/bus/transport and see their gorgeous face again.

I am thankful that I had the opportunity to know the family members we lost. They were absolutely amazing people and they are truly missed. They left a legacy of love and joy and even peace in all our lives. And I'm thankful my children will have such wonderful memories of these amazing souls.

I am thankful for my new friends and for my old friends. The ones who make me laugh even when I want to cry, and the ones who have seen me cry so much they know just what to say to pull me back from the edge. And all the ladies that I write with and work with who have become my rocks when I feel like I'm going under. All my author friends who poke me when I disappear too long with a loud, "Hey, what's up with you, girl?" Or the ones who corner me in a chat and make sure I know they've been thinking of me and hope all is well in my world. Well, for all y'all out there... I hope you know what you mean to me, I am so very thankful for every single one of you and hope you never have any reason to doubt that.

So, how about you? What are you thankful for this year? Are there people in your life that you wish you could make sure they knew how much you appreciated them, adored them? What are your plans for this coming holiday... if you even celebrate it? I hope everyone has a great time and that everyone remembers what they need to be thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving and we can move into the Christmas holidays. Enjoy! :-D

So Thankful!

"I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose." ~Woody Allen

I know a bit cliched, but I love this time of year, and I am really thankful for so much. So, today I wanted to just express what I am thankful for.

~ My Family: The one I was born into, the one I married into and the one I made. They are all so amazing. They've supported me in all my endeavors, laughed with me, cried with me and are just awesome to share a gene pool with.

~ My Friends: Always there for me to lay my head on their shoulder and cry or complain, they are also the part of my family that I made. They worry when they don't see me for long periods of time (unless I'm writing) and have been known to show up on my doorstep (both in the real world and the virtual world) for no apparent reason except that they haven't seen much of me.

~ My dog: He may drive me nuts with his overprotective and downright SCARY flipping barking, his dumping the trash in my living room if I leave for only 10 minutes but when he lays across my feet while I write, or when he simply sits next to me demanding attention I would do just about anything to see that silly doggy grin of his.

~My home: When so many people are losing their homes due to the horrid economy, we are truly blessed to have a home we can afford and is actually a rather nice size for our family. Now if I could just get it organized the way I want it to be!

~ My job: I am so lucky to do what I love and still love it at the end of the day. The kids bring me great joy and I have so much fun passing on my knowledge of dance to them.

~ Laughter: Laughter is the absolute best medicine. If we can laugh in the face of adversity then we can find ourselves in a much happier state of mind on most things. (Did that make sense?)

So, I am tired right now (extremely actually, sorry) so that's all I can think of off the top of my head that I'm so thankful this Thanksgiving season. I hope everyone else has a beautiful holiday filled with love and laughter, family and friends and most of all... LOTS of fabulous food. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!