10 Things to Be Thankful For This Thanksgiving

It’s my favorite holiday – Thanksgiving! As one friend who shares my opinion so aptly put it, “It is the one family holiday with lots of good food where we don’t have to also juggle in time at religious services.”

How true. Just a lot of good cooking, good eating, and great times with family. It is a cozy, warm and fuzzy holiday if you do it right.

I love cooking for Thanksgiving. I make all the traditional foods and as my Philly based cousin who once visited me on the holiday remarked, “Arlene, you cook the best Thanksgiving meal ever.” He went on to repeat this remark yearly to remind me how great all the food was – he still talks about it.

Yet regardless of the great food, and the great family times, the best part of the holiday is that it gives us a chance to reflect on the reasons we have to be thankful for our very blessed lives.

Here is my annual list of the 10 things I am thankful for this year. (Not in any particular order!!)

1. I am so thankful each and every day that I have the coolest kids on the Earth. They are fun, funny, smart, successful, and have the biggest hearts possible. I burst with pride for the adults they have become. Someone recently mentioned to me how special my kids are – someone who doesn’t get to see them that often. I am truly blessed.

2.  I am also thankful that my kids ( all five) are all happy and thriving in their careers and lives.

3. I am thankful for my own career successes, in my many endeavors. (Includes my very successful Huff Post blog) I seem to have career A.D.D. but I have succeeded in many fields and I enjoy what I do. A friend recently read some of my blogs and told me I have had a very interesting life (career wise etc) and I agreed.  That’s really something to be grateful for.

4. I am thankful that my immediate family is here for Thanksgiving, for the first time ever, including my parents who just moved to Houston this year.

5.  With many friends and acquaintances going through various health challenges, I am so thankful to be healthy and to celebrate the health of all those I love. What more can you ask for? In fact health should be number one, always, in the thankful department. Health is such a blessing.

6. My wonderful and supportive husband Gary – he has been such a trooper this year with my dad moving in with us. He is appreciated more than ever.

7. My old friends, long distance friends, friends from long ago, and reunions of all sorts this year. From my bestie in California who I only get to see occasionally, but when I do it’s like we were never apart, to old friends on the East Coast who I get to have reunions with when we spend time in Margate, to my first boyfriend and love, it was a great year for “Reminisson.” (Reminiscing with a clever spin using my last name – thanks HG)

8. The yummy food that we will be gorging on without a calorie care this holiday.

9. The WONDERFUL, loving, supportive, and fun friends I surround myself with in my hometown of Houston.

10. Of course, my readers. All of you out there keep me going with my writing. Thanks to you my creativity is peaking, and I enjoy all of your private messages, blog comments, emails, and mentions in person. I could not do this without YOU.

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