What are you Thankful for this Thanksgiving?
With all the doom and gloom media headlines about the housing bubble burst, recession, stock market declines and comparisons to the Great Depression, along with our days getting shorter and more dreary weather and rain, it could be easy for many of us to get trapped into negative thinking.
Next week is Thanksgiving and I believe there is a lot to be thankful for: our family and children, our friends and relationships, our health and wholesome food, our beautiful cities and towns, our parks and outdoor playgrounds.
Sure we may have to watch our wallets for a while and skip a few extras over the next while, but it’s also a great time to learn from our children and teach them how to enjoy the simple yet overlooked budget-friendly joys in life:
- taking a walk through the park and admiring the brightly coloured fall leaves
- having friends and family over for a potluck and good conversation instead of going out to a restaurant
- visiting the library and reading stories together or start a family book club
This Thanksgiving, if you find that the conversation turns to the negative headlines about the economy, take a moment to find out from your family and friends to find out what they are thankful for and what brings joy to their life.
Share with momcafé the joys that you are thankful for and also your ideas on budget-friendly activities. Post your comments to any momcafé blog posting before October 31 for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Country Furniture.
Thankful
I am thankful for my health and especially for my wee family. When the bad news overwhelms I like to take a moment to appreciate the wonders around me - the turning leaves, the fresh smell of the rain and my children's hugs. All the turmoil around me can't take those moments away from me.
I'm thankful for ...
Having the opportunity to get together with our friends (who we classify as our Vancouver family) for a brilliant Sushi & Pumpkin pie Thanksgiving dinner. Yes, it was a bit of a non-traditional feast but the company and fare was enjoyable all the same.
I have written a blog post about our Thanksgiving dinner here:
http://blog.raspberrykids.com
What are you thankful for?
Sue
North Shore - Pay it Forward
I am thankful for the great community I live in and in which I had the opportunity to raise my children in. To give back, I spearheaded a Pay it Forward initiative (based on the concept in the movie of the same name)for the North Shore which began this Thanksgiving weekend and runs til Nov 30th. Participation is free and there are some great weekly prizes as well as a grand prize for a 2 night stay in Pan Pacific Whistler as well as a $500 cash prize for the winner to donate to his/her favourite registered charity. Just do three random acts of kindness and know that you are contributing to making our world a little brighter place one small act at a time. Fill in a postcard (available at any North or West Vancouver Rec Centre, as well as the North Shore News office or online)with a minimum of three acts checked off. Whistler and Squamish are running the campaign simultaneously so that the amount of positive energy created will be that much greater. This is a great project for a whole family to get involved in and is guaranteed to bring lots of smiles and good feelings.