Chcken Coop

As we prepare to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow, I decided to take a break from baking and cooking and share with you some of the reasons, both big and small, monumental and inconsequential, that I am thankful for the life I lead.

Of course there are the big, serious reasons to give thanks:

I am thankful that my husband didnt get sent to Afghanistan and that our friends who did all came home safely.  

I am also thankful that due to his years of service, we have access to affordable medical care and as long as the government is running, he will get a paycheck. In this economy, I realize that isnt something that everyone can take for granted.

I am thankful that we are healthy and that our parents, although we dont see them nearly as often as we would like, are healthy, thriving and only a phone call, Facebook post or email away.

I am thankful that we live in a place where are are given the opportunity to raise any kind of animals we want to, and in a country that if we choose not to eat them (which we dont!), there are grocery stores, farmers markets and local farms where we can buy fresh produce and meat.

On to some more frivolous, but important to me, reasons to give thanks:

I am thankful that the kitchen in our house was SO ugly when we bought it that we didnt have to feel guilty about ripping it all out and redoing it into my dream kitchen.

I am thankful that Fresh Eggs Daily has proved to be so popular and brought me many opportunities in literary and poultry circles that I never would have thought possible or have been able to achieve otherwise, thereby negating the need for me to go back to being accountant (blech!) or selling on ebay (double blech!).

I am thankful for all the fans friends Ive met over the past two years who dont think Im crazy for hanging curtains in my coop or baking bread for our chickens and actually LIKE seeing photos of fluffy butts.  And I am thankful for being able to help teach new chicken keepers how to raise happy, healthy hens on such a large scale and give advice when they run into trouble.

I am thankful that, despite my husband saying no funny-looking chickens when we first started raising them, I managed to slip in a few Cochins and Faverolles when he wasnt looking anyway (feathered feet = funny-looking in case anyone was wondering).

So many reasons to be thankful really.

As I was preparing the food for tomorrow, I thought about my grandmother setting out all the serving dishes on the dining room table each holiday with a slip of paper in each one naming what was to go in the dish so she would remember to take everything out of the oven and refrigerator. I thought about my Mom organizing themed holiday celebrations where we cooked foods from a different country each year and dressed up in that countrys native clothing.  

We generally go a bit more traditional.  My husband is descended from the Pilgrims and can actually trace back to ancestors who arrived on the Mayflower. 

Since we are both from New England originally, we prepare a traditional menu and serve it in a Colonial-inspired dining room.  

We will also be serving a fried turkey, creamed spinach, homemade bread, herbed cornbread stuffing, and scalloped potatoes with cheesecake and pumpkin pie for dessert.

A beautiful floral arrangement arrived this afternoon from dear friends.  It was such a lovely surprise and the colors coordinate wonderfully with our holiday table setting. 

Of course my table had to include a nod to our feathered friends.

Ready and waiting....quiet now but tomorrow our dining room will be filled with fine wine, good food and great friends.

There is so much to be thankful for just because we are fortunate enough to live in the United States. We never have to worry about having a roof over our head, enough to eat or warm clothing.  I also feel very thankful this year, and every year, for our liberties and freedoms.

What are YOU thankful for?