Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, really it is. It always has been since I was a little girl. This year it snuck up on me. The last several months I've been real busy with the kids and school and home and work. I thought I still had 2 weeks till Thanksgiving until a friend said, "No, it's next week and the kids will be home for week!" YIKES!!!! I needed to get into gear and figure out what we are all going to do.
I started to feel real emotional. I felt happiness, because I knew I would see my family and at the same time it was sad. This meant my second Thanksgiving with out my sister Sylvia. Oh I miss her daily, but there is something about Thanksgiving. You see there is this one memory I have from many years ago that I will never forget. ( I'm not too sure of my age, I think I was 7). It was Thanksgiving morning and I woke up to an empty house. I went room by room looking for my parents and my sidekick sister Sally and my grandparents from Texas that were here visiting. I did not find them. I stood in the hallway and started to cry. Then I heard movement in the kitchen. It was Sylvia. I still wasn't happy to see her. You see I knew that the rest of the family had taken a trip to TJ and I wanted to go. I wanted to be with them and have all the fun eating real Mexican candy and coming back with a few extra things for me. Sylvia did not baby me. I was her baby sister but we always had tiffs! Yes, she fought with her sister 15 years younger then her!! I laugh about it now, because I remember her always laughing during our tiffs!
Anyway she made me breakfast and told me she was making Thanksgiving dinner all by herself and needed my help! It took me a few minutes to warm up to the idea. I was 7 and that wasn't as fun as shopping in TJ..LOL!
Sylvia put me to work and I had a blast! We had music playing in kitchen! She was singing I was singing! I don't remember too much of what we made, I know there was a turkey but that’s about it. I just remember her picking out my outfit, combing my hair and her and I spending some time together. The house was warm and clean. The table was set and we sipped on Apple Cider and waited for the rest of our family to arrive home.
That is as far I could remember of that day, I carry this memory with me and I am so thankful.
I have so many memories of Sylvia and I and I will keep sharing them.

I get to be thankful on daily basis; I thank the Lord every morning for another day of life

This year more then anything I thank him for always providing and taking care of my family!
For my brother Sal, his bypass surgery was a success.
I’m thankful for it all! The ups and downs!

This Thanksgiving I wish you all the best and that you are all able to share it with the ones you love and even if a few are missing. I hope they know they are missed and loved too!

From the deepest part of my heart,
Happy Thanksgiving!

Love,
Cynthia, Josh, Jyllian, Cynthia D and Steven