Thanksgiving looks different this year

Thanksgiving looks different this year.  It's just the five of us, sitting around in our sweats, looking through the paper {it's the only paper we get each year and the kids don't seem to know what to do with it}.  Handsome Hero got donuts for the kids this morning so they would think something was special.  Nothing says Happy Thanksgiving like a donut.  Or tacos, which is our dinner.

Getting over pneumonia and a hospital stay is harder than it looks, mostly because it requires me to do something I don't do well.  I have to sit still.  I don't have the energy to put into doing anything other than a nap, which I already did, so cross that off my list of activities.

Since I'm being sedentary, let me take a moment to sit and write about the reality of Thanksgiving this year.  This year, we are supposed to be at my parents' house, enjoying everyone and gorging ourselves and being loved on.  It's tradition.  Instead we're here, and that's okay.

I have so much for which to be thankful.

• There are hospitals available to us when we need them.  I'm on the mend.  I kept down a little food yesterday for the first time in nine days.  Today I haven't even needed nausea medication or some of the other "as needed" meds that I've wanted to get off of.

• You wouldn't know the kids had ever had pneumonia - they're crazy.  It's a beautiful thing.

• Speaking of them, my parents took them while we were in the hospital and got to deal with their sicknesses.  They brought them back with clean clothes and clean bills of health.  I'm so grateful to them.

• Handsome Hero has been healthy and able to take care of everyone.  I don't know how he doesn't ever seem to catch anything, but I am so very thankful.  Not only that, this man does not complain.  He has cooked, cleaned, slept on a hospital couch, been mom and dad and nurse, and done it with a smile.  I'm bowled over.  This is love at its best.

• Handsome Hero's work told him not to come back until I'm well.  For the number of hours he works and how hard his job can be, they have been great through this.  And I'm staying sick until Christmas.  Hope that's okay.

• Our church has been wonderful, taking the kids before we knew they were sick, and bringing so many meals we've had to ask them to stop.  One of my church friends just dropped off Thanksgiving dinner.  They ate earlier, and she brought us some of each dish.  I guess she wanted us to have some real Thanksgiving fare.  Ella was so excited she was jumping up and down!  I hadn't realized how much she wanted the tradition.   

I guess tacos can wait. :)

There is so much for which to be thankful, but my favorite might be this.

Each night in November, the kids tell me something they're thankful for, and I put it on a tag on our thankful "tree."  It is a highlight of the year for me, and I keep past years' tags in mason jars on the mantle to read to the kids.  They love how silly they used to be.

They are so much more mature now!  I, also, am thankful for eyebrows and cheeks.

When I got sick, I couldn't do the thankfuls and didn't mention them to Handsome Hero because everything else in the world was on his plate.

When my parents brought the kids back from their house, my mom handed me a bag.  In it were all the thankfuls we missed.  They did them at her house.  I couldn't help it.  I cried.

I am indeed blessed and thankful.  Happy Thanksgiving, friends.

My parents

The older I get, the more I recognize how blessed I am to have these wonderful parents of mine.  They're funny, energetic, loving, and an amazing example to all of us.  I'm so thankful for them.

My mom has the heart of a servant.  She is always helping.  This year she struggled because she had knee surgery over the summer and did not recover as quickly as we thought she would, and as any of you who have had surgery know, it takes longer to get your oomph back than you would think.  In past years, she has been the one to take the littles {Elijah and Nate} in from the beach for naps or snacks or general fussiness.  She is a very early riser, so she would already be up to snuggle with any kids who got up every.single.morning. to see the sunrise {ahem, Jack}.  

This year, by day three my sister and I and our beloveds were trying to figure out why we were so tired.  No one wanted to stay up late.  Everyone wanted a nap in the afternoon.  Suddenly it dawned on us:  Mom was sleeping in!  She wasn't getting up with the kids!  In fact, her pain meds were knocking her out so that she was sleeping late and we were trying to keep the kids quiet so that they didn't wake her up!

She was still really helpful, because it's just her nature, and even though she couldn't go out into the water where she would be unstable, she still logged some silly beach time {you'll see below}, and Elijah and Nate both took advantage of her when she was out there.

My dad is just plain awesome.  He's always thinking of a joke, always has a song in his head {usually Frankie Valli} and loves spending time with his family.  He works very hard and needs vacations like these.  I sometimes think that God gave men like Handsome Hero and my dad their families so that they don't work themselves into the ground.

The nice thing is, he has learned how to relax.  He loves to boogie board and he's really good at it!

One night during the week, he was reminiscing of when Rebecca and I used to fix his hair with all of our hair bows and barrettes, and I thought, "Used to?"

There isn't much left to fix, but I think I did okay.

He loved it.

You can tell.

The next series of photos are potentially my favorite in the history of ever.  They are so open to captions I just can't limit myself.  I lay them before you.

Can you see why I love these guys?  They make each other laugh so much.

I would try to convince you that we are a serious crew, but you already saw evidence to the contrary.

These guys are so loved.

Blessed, indeed.