Day 30

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 30.  November 30.

An End and a Beginning.

First Sunday of Advent.  HOPE

Day 29

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 29. November 29.

I am sure I have mentioned this before, but it is worth repeating.

There are three great goods in life.   A warm bed.  A hot shower.  A good cup of coffee.  (Or, a warm bed, a hot bath, a good cup of tea)   I am thankful that all three goods are readily available to me every day.

Eleanor agrees with me.  Although she says she would add a fourth-- orange marmalade.

The End of November Fave Fives

 Day 28 of A Month of Thankfulness.  And the fourth and last Friday Fave Fives of November.  This month flew fast!  As usual, I am posting on Friday five things that have reminded me to be thankful during this past week.  You can link up at Susanne's blog.

1.  Earlier in the week, I mentioned that I am thankful for good doctors and nurses.  I had a minor surgery on my hand and all has gone very well with the recovery.  

2.  I can knit again!!  Yes, I just tried it!

3.  Chap's wife's sister (PAL's nickname for her is Gooster) is here visiting for Thanksgiving week.  I have known her almost as long as I have known my daughter-in-law, and it has been fun to visit with her.  Walks.  Tea times. Conversations.

4.  I am thankful that all but one child and one grandchild were here at the cottage for Thanksgiving.  We had a great time.  The nerds played some kind of board game after our luscious dinner while the rest of us put together a jigsaw puzzle.  Included in the afternoon was a quick walk around the neighborhood to exercise off some of the pies that we all ate.  It was a delight for us to have two extra people celebrating with us, both co-workers of Older Daughter.

5.  Now we are off to watch Older Daughter dance in the local Nutcracker performance!  She dances in the ballet every year.  These photos are from last year's performance. She is the singer on the right in the blue dress.  You have to search for her in the second photo...

And this Sunday is the first week of Advent!

Day 27. Happy Thanksgiving!

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 27.  Thanksgiving Day.

Today I am thankful for all my family! And whole lot of other things, too many to list.

Day 26

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 26.  November 26.

As Ginny mentioned in her comment yesterday, we should be thankful for nurses, too.  I agree.  Nurses are essential in caring for patients.  And I am particularly thankful for this nurse...our youngest daughter.

Day 25

 A Month of Thankfulness. Day 25. November 25.

Today I am thankful for good doctors. We have a friend who had surgery last week and we visited him today in the hospital. He is recovering well and should be discharged tomorrow.  Other friends have a newborn son who has many issues. Today he had surgery and is doing great. And today I had a minor surgery on my right hand which was done by a wonderful caring and expert doctor.

Day 24

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 24.  November 24.

I am thankful that I have many reminders of my parents in things that I inherited from them.  One insignificant trinket that I deeply love is this small plaque that always sat on my mother's dresser.

Day 23

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 23.  November 23.

I am thankful I can sing!  Our church has a choir that sings maybe two times a year.  We'll be singing at the Christmas Eve service.  That means several practice sessions.  Obviously, no photos...

Day 22

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 22.  November 22.

I am thankful that I can travel to faraway beautiful places.  Nine years ago, exactly, Older Daughter (Rocket Science Girl) and I spent Thanksgiving in Dorchester, Dorset, England.  What a beautiful place to explore.

Our favorite?  Maybe Maiden Castle.  Info:  Maiden Castle was a fortified hill-top settlement originally built during the Iron Age.  It changed greatly through the centuries and there was actually a castle built on the top of the hill in about 600 BC.  We enjoyed our explorations there and also in the town of Dorchester.  We returned with some of our family in 2019. Would we visit again?  YES!

November 21. Day 21. Week 3 of November Friday Fave Fives

Happy Friday!  And Happy Fave Fives!  I hope you have had a productive and joyful week.  I'm here on Day 21 to share my Friday Fave Fives. (the link takes you to Susanne's blog so you can read more and join in)

 Every morning is a fresh start.

Wake up with a thankful heart.

1.  I noticed this statement on a facebook post this week.  It struck me with its truth.  Yes, we need to begin each day being thankful.

2.  I am making good progress on some knitting projects.  More miniature Christmas mittens (I have a decorating plan).  Gloves for myself.  A sweater for newborn baby boy.

3.  A good visit with my dermatologist.  And maybe a plan moving forward to help with the remaining issues.

4.  Some warmish days. I was able to be outside a bit to continue to work in the garden, putting the beds to sleep for the winter.

5.  I am always thankful for hikes in the the woods, especially with my family.  This week's hike was at Infirmary Mound Park, a large county park that has many many trails including the fairy trail.  This week as we were walking through a dense forested area, I told Nurse Girl, "This looks like where we hiked up to Hadrian's Wall."  What a beautiful world we live in!

Pictures from our visit to Northumberland.  The path we followed to Hadrian's Wall and St. Oswald's Church.

And a post can only be better with a BARN.

Happy Weekend!  I hope you have found many blessings in this past week, too.

Day 20

 Day 20.  November 20.  Posted on Day 21...

I am thankful that my grandson enjoys playing trombone in the high school concert band.  We attended a performance at the school this week.  This is a rather unfocused photo due to lighting. But it does help to provide privacy to all the students in the band.

Day 19

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 19.  November 19.

I spent the afternoon baking.  I made dinner rolls from my paternal grandmother's recipe.  And I baked sugar cookies using the recipe from my maternal grandmother.  I am thankful that I am able to use these saved recipes to bake tried and true goodies for friends and family.

This cookie recipe probably came with my grandma's family from Germany.

Day 18

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 18. November 18.

I am thankful for Trail Life.  Both grandsons, Tall Boy and Warrior Boy, and The Professor are involved in the local troop.

Day 17

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 17.  November 17.

Today I am thankful that although the wind blew cold air, it was sunny and a lovely day for a hike at one of the local county parks.

A perfect day for wading through all the leaves.

Day 16

 A Month of Thankfulness. Day 16.  November 16.

I am thankful for a day of Sabbath rest.

Day 15

 A Month of Thankfulness.  Day 15. November 15.

Halfway through the month.  The second to the last month of the year.

Today I am thankful for the knit (and crochet) group I am part of, which meets once a month at a local coffee shop.  We met today.  Just five of us this month.  I enjoyed the chai latte and the peanut butter bagel and sharing the different projects we were all working on.

Me?  I was knitting Christmas mittens.  Like these.

Day 14. And Friday Fave Fives

Day 14.  A Month of Thankfulness. And Friday Fave Fives. A week of blessings.  I am combining today's post and the weekly FFFs.  Friday Fave Fives is hosted by Susanne every Friday of the year.  She is so faithful to organize it and keep it going.  And I am thankful I can join it.

1.  An autumn walk at the arboretum.  The Arizona family is enjoying the change of season.  I love watching their joy in the falling leaves and fall colors.

2.  Veteran's Day. It's a day to celebrate those men and women who have serviced the US in the military.  That includes The Professor and our son Chaplain Dan. (and many other members of our families)  I am proud of the service they have done for our country.

2.  Our friend T is also a veteran (Navy). So we decided to forego our coffee time and have breakfast at Denny's on Veteran's Day because the guys' breakfasts were free.  We had a great time and saw many other veterans enjoying their free breakfast, too.  I appreciate how so many stores and companies honor our veterans with gifts of free meals or drinks.

3.  Speaking of Veteran's Day, it was Chap and his lovely wife's anniversary!  I am so very thankful for the wonderful woman who my son married.

4.  First snow!  It's a bit early for snow here in Ohio, but we had almost an inch of snow at the beginning of the week.  Of course, it melted quickly, but PAL was ecstatic to experience her first snow.

5.  Lately, I have been making an effort to limit my time on social media and focus on reading books.  I am really enjoying that change in my activities.  Yesterday, I finished reading A Lucky Child by Thomas Buergenthal.  It is a memoir of a young boy who survived living at Auschwitz during the Holocaust of WW2.  Now I am beginning a DE Stevenson novel titled The English Air.  I appreciate having access to so many books through my local library.  And I appreciate the time I have to focus on reading.

How was your week?  Did you find many things to be thankful for?

Day 12, Day 13

 Yes, I missed posting yesterday.  But I will catch up today by posting for two days.

A Month of Giving Thanks.  Day 12.  November 12.  One reason I did not post yesterday was because the weather was borderline okay for working in the garden outside, so I spent several hours cutting back bushes that already had dead leaves and emptying pots with dead plants.  I am thankful that I had a warmish day with time to work outside.  And no, I didn't take a photo of that pile of dead leaves... you're welcome.

Day 13.  November 13.  Something else I did last night... Well Read Mom meeting.  I am thankful for the good discussion we had about this month's book, Giants in the Earth by O.E. Rolvaag.

Day 11

 A Month of Giving Thanks.  Day 11. November 11.

Today is Veteran's Day.

I am thankful for members of my family who are veterans or current active duty service members.  My father, two uncles, my husband, my father-in-law, my son.

I don't have photos of all these brave men.  But here is my father and my son.

my husband in Vietnam (obviously not a fun place to be)

Day 10

 A Month of Giving Thanks.  November 10.  Day 10.

Today I am thankful for the beauty of SNOW.  Our first snow of the season, about an inch.  Of course, by now it is all melted.  But The Professor and I had to make a quick trip to the beekeepers' store to grab a couple of things that our bees will need to stay warm over winter.  Our drive took us through rural areas and of course through wooded areas.  It was beautiful!

Day 9

 A Month of Thankfulness.  November 9.  Day 9.

I am thankful for a warm, safe and secure home.  Tonight, as I write this, it is snowing.  A warm place to live is a true blessing.  (full disclosure:  this photo is not from today [it is 2022], but it may look like this tomorrow...)

November 8

 A Month of Thankfulness.

Day 8.  November 8.  I am thankful for trees with beautiful autumn leaves.

November 7, Friday Fave Fives

 Day 7 of my Month of Thankfulness.  Today I will actually have five things I am thankful for, all from this past week.  Every Friday all year, Susanne hosts people who want to share their blessings from the week; it's Friday Fave Fives.

Here are my faves from this first week of November.

1.  One morning, The Professor and I drove down to a town south of us where there was an event to recycle electronics.  So we were able to safely dispose of old phones, laptops, and tablets.

2.  On the way home, we decided to take a road that we haven't taken before.  The views were amazing!  And there were barns!  Here are two of them that I managed to photograph (with my phone because I didn't think to bring my camera).

3.  I've had several days at home because I wasn't feeling well, so I just rested.  I'm thankful I could do that-- just rest.

4.  Yesterday, Nurse Girl and I were invited to tea and knitting with PAL and her mom (Rocket Scientist Girl was at work).  We had a great time!  Earl Grey tea and homemade scones!

5.  If you read my FFFs, you will remember that I asked if anyone could guess what kind of car Nurse Girl owns.  The answer is JEEP! And my fave about that is I got to ride in Mags again today when we drove into the big city and did some winter clothing shopping.

What things happened to you this week that brought a smile to your face or made you thankful?

November 6

 A Month of Thanksgiving.  Day 6.  November 6.

I am thankful for yarn.  Nuff said.

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November 5

Day 5.  November 5.  A Month of Giving Thanks.

I am thankful that three of our four children all live in the same town with us.  I never never ever thought this would happen and I am so happy.

And fourth child stays in close touch even though he doesn't live nearby.  I am so blessed.

November 4

 A Month of Giving Thanks.

Day 4.  November 4.

I am thankful for morning coffee.  I sure needed it this morning!

November 3

Day 3. November 3.  I am thankful that I live in a place where there are lovely trails to walk, especially in the autumn months.