Digging carrots

These are not my carrots. But I did dig up a big bucketful this afternoon (with the help of my hubby) and got them washed. They are resting on my counter. Drying. Waiting to be placed in bags so they can stay fresh in my refrigerator all winter long. Crisp and tasty! Mine looked amazing! A lot like those pictured above!

Things I'm thankful for today:

1. I am thankful that I have the space, motivation and excitement to garden. It was a rough year for our garden. We replanted some things once, some things twice! In the end, though, it is so worth it. I am grateful to have this time to "practice" gardening and hopefully figure out what works for us so that when the time comes "to do it for real" I'll be ready. Plus, gardening is almost free. Just a little sweat equity needed! This year I used two empty flowerbeds for my squash and cucumbers. It worked out great. I am grateful that I can plant tiny seeds and end up with delicious food for my family.

2. I am thankful for the knowledge I have of canning. I have canned and canned and canned AND canned this year. I was very blessed to have a plethora of fruits and vegetables come my way and be able to preserve them. I am still learning and consider this book my canning bible. It was lost for a while but I found it again and I feel so much more secure when I have it to use as a reference. I am thankful to all those people who have helped me can this year and to those who have taught me what I know. Thank you!

3. I am thankful for teachers. Especially elementary teachers. (I only have a child in elementary school, but I'm sure once he is in middle and high school I will greatly appreciate those teachers too!). I helped out in Garrett's class today for an hour or so. His teacher is awesome. She teaches and runs her class with what she calls "Love and Logic". Basically the kids learn that there is a consequence to every action, whether good or bad. Garrett is a different child this year. He is the student we knew he could be. It is wonderful to see his good grades come home, to not have a knock-down, drag-out bawling fight each night over homework, and to see him happy and excited for school. Thank you Mrs. Wheeler! No words can express how thankful I am for teachers like you!!

4. I am thankful for warm November afternoons. This day was gorgeous and I will enjoy it as long as I can. I love being able to send my kids out to play without a jacket on. It was 60 plus degrees today, sunny with no wind. Perfect! The fall colors are gorgeous and the leaves are falling. My burning bushes are on fire! I do not take these kinds of days for granted.

5. Finally, I am thankful for books. And for the people who write them. I am able to immerse myself into a story or a topic and either relax and escape or learn and grow. I am thankful for those people who take the time and effort to research topics so that I can be educated or entertained. I am thankful for authors who make their characters seem so real that I wonder what those characters are doing right now. (I know they aren't real. But they could be!). I am thankful for an author that describes a character so vividly and with such passion that I am almost shocked when I realize they are describing a real person-someone that I knew existed but didn't think much about-someone that I know exists and I work my hardest to avoid. If you are wondering what I'm talking about, you should read this book. And the 5 others that follow it.

Ok, enough for today. Can I tell you that I really love doing this? I am thinking all day of things I'm grateful for. I am grateful for that!