Thanksgiving Traditions

By Creg

Sterling, Steele, and Samantha working on the Thanksgiving table cloth.

 Since 1980, when I was 13, my mom has had our family write on our table cloth every Thanksgiving. After our hearty lunch we get out the markers and the calendar and fill our space with the many thankful things for the year. It started out with my brother and I writing, and drawing mainly about our favorite sports teams, our own accomplishments, and our girlfriends (All except one has been crossed out :). Now it's filled with stories and pictures about how God has worked in our lives. Since all four of our kids are now participating we go through a table cloth every few years. It's really neat to look at the previous years and remember our blessings.

Samantha and Steele's 2012 Thank You on the table cloth

  This year we added something new. The kids had die-cut some Thanksgiving images on colored paper and we all wrote a note to everyone. Our guests this year were Brack, Lloyd, and Brigitte and her two kids; they were in on it too. After lunch we took turns reading our notes about why we are thankful for that person. We all went home with a lot of neat mementos, a thankful spirit, and a full belly.