Happy Thanksgiving

I never thought I would say that I miss the Kansas City cold, but it certainly does not feel like the holidays here.  We attended a Christmas service this evening with Cade’s school, which helped, but it is hard to feel festive when it is 90 degrees.  

When I dropped Paige off at school this week, her teachers asked me to tell them about Thanksgiving…what is it about?  How do you celebrate?   It gave me a moment to reflect on the holiday and how special it is as I shared my thoughts with them.    “Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays.  It is simple.  There are no expectations, no gifts, no dressing up, just enjoying great food with family and reflecting on all that is good.”

We are truly blessed with amazing family and wonderful friends.  Being 9,000 miles away on the other side of the world has made us even more thankful for all the people in our lives and we are so excited to reconnect with everyone in person very soon. 

On this unique Thanksgiving Day when we are away from family and friends on and not having the traditional meal, we spent some time reflecting on what we were thankful for this year.  

Our family list

• More downtime as a family
• Continued professional opportunities that challenge and inspire us
• Living by the water in a beautiful city that has made us more active
• A strong education system for our childrens’ early years
• Traveling to other parts of the world
• Good health

The kid’s list

• The Opera House
• Lollies (Candy)
• Legos and babies
• Sydney (our dog…not the city)

Paige’s school celebrated Thanksgiving today for the first time ever.  They enjoyed an extra special afternoon tea, made hands to put on a big turkey and talked about all of the things they were thankful for.  They said they would continue the tradition in Paige’s honor next year and adopt the new holiday as their own at school. 

Happy Thanksgiving to all!