The Allen Family: Thanksgiving...and being thankful...

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It's a time to spend with family and remember all that we have to be thankful for...

This year, I am looking beyond a generic "family and friends" answer to the question, "What are you thankful for this year?" God has blessed me in incredible ways.

I am SO thankful for another year of being married to Chad! For fourteen years we have been a team, raising kids, figuring it all out together. When more and more people are getting divorced and families are falling apart, I am so grateful for a husband who is committed to our family and our marriage. He is an amazing person. He has integrity, he works incredibly hard, he is an amazing father, and he's a pretty handy guy on top of all of that. He is my best friend. Thank you, Lord, for Chad.

We have three beautiful, healthy, intelligent, amazing girls. Every day we laugh and wonder at the things that they say, the people that they are. They are great kids. Each one different from the next. They are growing and maturing every day. They amaze me. They make my life more interesting and wonderful. Thank you, Lord, for Emily, Megan and Abbey.

Our girls have an amazing dad! I wish I could make them understand how truly lucky they are to have a dad who jumps on the trampoline with them, goes on walks with them, takes them on dates, and tells them they are beautiful. He encourages them and hugs them and talks with them. Chad has helped heal some of my hurts by being such an incredible father to our girls. Thank you, Lord, for the father that Chad is to our children.

We are finally close enough to see family almost whenever we want to. After all the years of living 400 miles away, it is so fun to have cousins and grandparents and aunts and uncles around to spend time with. And when out-of-town family comes to visit, we can host the gatherings. Thank you, Lord, for our getting to spend time with our family.

For me, getting to spend time with my mom has been an amazing treat. I still haven't quite gotten used to how close she is. She and I both forget sometimes that we can call each other and invite the other to run errands or to a movie. Thank you, Lord, for my mom. And thank you for protecting our relationship through my teens. I am so thankful that we made it to the other side and that I can call her my friend.

(This picture is of us with "Sam the Cooking Guy.")

I've also gotten to spend time with sister-in-law and my goofy brothers. I missed them when we lived in Modesto and it is so great to be able to talk and share stories and "remember when's" with them. Thank you, Lord, for my brothers and a sister thru marriage.

And friends... We got to see three sets of friends this week. We met up with the Villanuevas and the Cernanskys at Disneyland and the Proms came and stayed with us for the weekend. We had so much fun with all of them. It is great to see how everyone's kids have grown and the people that they are becoming. It is great to chat and catch up and remember how lucky we are to have developed such great lasting friendships with them. Thank you, Lord, for our friends and the fun that they can bring into our lives.