Thanksgiving

Today was a beautiful day. It started out early as I was up at 5am to be downtown at 6am for the Run For The Hungry 5K. Although it was freezing and I had to wear TWO layers of clothes, there was something pretty neat about being downtown at that hour, and have it be so peaceful and serene. There was also something kind of special about being down there and having the streets blocked off so that we could walk from Petco Park through the Gaslamp Quarter, and around. Not something that happens everyday. I noticed that runners are a pretty quiet group of people, and they really like flourescent shoes. lol I say they, because I definitely am not a runner. I realized that this whole running thing is going to be harder, much harder than I originally thought. Although I haven't given it any attention either...I think it intimidates me. Maybe if I use the treadmill at the gym instead of the track there, I will have a bit of an easier time. Anyway...the 5K went well. My time was 52:24 which averages to just over 17 minutes a mile for walking. I think it's a fairly good time for just walking. I mean, we have a pretty good pace of walking.  I just walk for the cause, I walk because I enjoy it, I get to walk with my mom, I enjoy the different events, and one day...I really will run one. If I could, I'd do one a month for a different cause that I love.

We went over to my sisters house today for dinner. It was her first turkey and meal. We've all had our first... Hers happened to go perfectly. It was tender, moist, and delicious. Gotta love Thanksgiving dinner! I spent time making pumpkin pies, a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake and several different cheeseballs. Picked up cookies and crackers for them, had them bagged and ready to go. Only to get there and realize that not only had I forgotten the crackers and cookies, I had also forgotten BOTH pumpkin pies!! 'Good job, Ree'! Cheeseballs are slightly useless without crackers and cookies! No pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving?? Are you serious? Yep, all due to myself. I'm probably the one that missed it the most too. lol Despite all that though...it was an absolutely wonderful day. I'm getting sick, Larrs a little further along in that, but being with the people you love always makes everything a little easier and my niece and nephew keep us entertained.

I cannot believe that only one year ago we were spending Thanksgiving in Texas with Larr's parents and sister. I still have a hard time believing that it truly was only a year ago that we were there...so much has happened in that year. Honestly, I feel like I've aged 5 years in the last year that we've had. In that one year we lost 6 family members, including my dad. Time is a crazy thing. It's amazing what can happen in such a short amount of time, when it took so long to get to that point. It's been a rough year. It's been a year of changes. A word that has never really been my friend...CHANGE. I don't like it. I like comfort. I like knowing what things are. I order the same thing at the same restaurants everytime I go. I'm that kind of person. So to have a year with the amount of changes we had...took a toll on me. It was hard, and there were some dark days, but I got through them and here I am. I can honestly say that I am truly thankful for the lessons I've learned, and the trials I've gone through. I'm thankful for the people in my life that have stuck by through this bumpy time for me. I'm thankful for the people that have come in when others have gone out. I'm thankful that everyone that is in my life, is definitely here for a reason, and I'm so beyond thankful for them!!

On one hand I'm looking forward to the fact that a new year is coming. I don't know why I think I have to have a new year to have a big change, or to make a big change...excuses probably. lol I like the idea of starting over and starting fresh. I know it's just a thought...but it's a nice one at that. There are a number of things I'd like to 'change' about myself, and I'm just not sure I've figured out how to do just that with everything. I have started to change a number of things, so I guess that's just the answer. Do it. Yes, that was a typical 'Ree ramble'.  =)

While on the subject of things I'm thankful for...I have to mention my husband. He is truly an angel, and yes even though it sounds disgustingly sweet and impossible for a man...it's true. He is. I don't know what I'd do without him, and I'm glad that I don't have to find that out either. After 17 years of marriage, I still feel like I'm the luckiest girl ever. He is my best friend and knows me better than ANYONE else in the world. I love that.