WHAT A JOY!!

I hope your Thanksgiving day was filled with not only a delicious meal, but that you were surrounded by family and friends. Everything went perfect at our home except for the matriarch of the family. I had to lay down. I sort of missed out on all the fun but I could hear it and as I laid there on my bed I heard the "belly laughing" of the men, the children outdoors playing in the dark and having the time of their lives. I could hear the women and children laughing so hard that I think one or two fell off of their chairs as they were playing games around the different tables. We had 31 people show up and still had room for more. All of my children were home and that was the first Thanksgiving in many years that we had that experience. All of the grandchildren were there with the exception of Brent and his wife Carolyn back at BYU in Provo and Brent's sister Heather who was in North Carolina visiting friends.
We all talked about what we were thankful for and the first one to speak was 11 year old Landon. He said he was thankful for his family. None of us could repeat what he said so we had to come up with something different, even though that was on the mind of all of us. We had our daughter Julie say she was thankful for freedom and that her husband was home from Afghanistan; another said they were thankful for the Gospel and another said for Jesus Christ. It was good to hear the deep feelings of everyone. We are a thankful family...we have been given much...bounteous blessings. Of course we have had pains and hurts like everyone else, but we are a family who bounces back, supports and loves one another...that is what I am most thankful for...my family...just like Landon said.

Mimi's Thought For the Day: We all at times desire some material item...could be fancy ipod, camera, tv, car, house, etc. We work hard and spend extra time in trying to have the latest and the best. Can we take those items with us when we leave our earthly life? I suggest that you spend your time on the greatest treasure you will ever have....time with your family. They will not remember the Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, etc., but they will remember the fishing trips, the picnics, the hikes, building a tree house, raking leaves, building snowmen, playing games, sitting at the table as a family for dinner and being together at church. Let's build on something we can "take with us" and in turn we will leave behind precious memories for our loved ones.