Give the Thanks

I think these pictures best showcase what I am grateful for this year. My photography skills. Wait, that would be a haaayy-no. I'm still learning this whole SLR camera thing. But the photographs do capture what I hold most dear, my family.  Being the oldest of 5, I have quite an attachment to the youngin's. It's hard to believe we are all growing up. My oldest younger brother is serving a mission in Colombia, hence his table setting being occupied by his framed picture.

My family does the tradition of saying 3 things you are thankful for before we feast, which pretty much turns into a testimony meeting. So I'm not going to re-preach my three things here, but rather highlight the little things that seemed too secular to be emphasized at the family fireside/dinner table:

1. A good pen. I have like 5 favorite pens that I whip out depending on what kind of paper I'm writing on.

2. The fact that when I inch forward in my car 3 inches, the other car behind me does the same.

It's a fun game I play with myself when I'm bored on the drive.

3. Dawn dish soap. It gets out EVERY stain. Just soak it on there for 10 min and wash it out.

4. My new found love for yams. Plain yams, not candied. They are like dessert.

5. Forever 21 cheap EVERYTHING. I can achieve a JCrew look in $30 rather than $330.

6. The color Gold. It makes my hair look blonde rather than brassy

7. Movie quotes. I think about 90% of what comes out of my mouth isn't an original thought of mine at all, but rather a movie quote that is most relatable to the situation at hand.

8. The show Modern Family. My brother had never seen an episode, so dedicated many hours over the break to its cleverness.

Although those are trivial things, they do make life a little better. 

I had much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving season.  I am in awe at how blessed Jared and I have been, and we know it is not by our own fortune. 

Gratitude is a wonderful blessing.

"We can lift ourselves, and others as well, when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues."

Thomas Monson