Give Thanks Coloring Sheet

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What I Ate

So, how did you do? Thanksgiving went well for me. I had my plan and pretty much stuck to it.

I dished up my food and was somewhat disappointed at the little amount on my plate but I felt so good later that I didn't pig out and make decisions I would regret.

No matter how your Thanksgiving went, it is in the past. You can't change anything that happened but you can decide to make good decisions today.

This next month is going to be tough and full of temptations but just take one day at a time and make a plan. No matter what, determine to make better choices this year than you did last year. It's all in the baby steps.

What I Ate on Thanksgiving:

Breakfast
8 - cinnamon roll with icing (oh, yes, I did)

Snack
1 - WW string cheese
0 - banana, strawberries, raspberries

Lupper (we ate around 3:00 pm)
1 - punch (recipe coming soon)
4 - 4 oz turkey
3 - gravy
4 - stuffing
3 - mashed potatoes
0 - green beans

Dessert
6 - 2 pieces of pumpkiny pie

You can see where my priorities were but that's what I chose. :) It's all about the choices ... That's what makes it work in real life.

Recipe for a Grateful Heart

Recipe for a Grateful Heart

by Greg Asimakoupoulos
November 28, 2002 


I've discovered a fail-proof recipe for a grateful heart. 

First, crush a bunch of sour grapes for all the times you've felt someone else got credit for something you deserved. Drizzle in a drop of spilled milk for every remembrance you have of something you wish you could undo (no need to cry over it). Even though you may be tempted to, refrain from adding the "whine" you keep in the cellar for those pity parties you occasionally throw for yourself. 

To this rather unattractive concoction, sift in some flavorful thoughts that come to mind of times when God was kind and bailed you out. You know the times I mean: when you were in real hot water and had real doubts if you could stand up to the heat.

Then, while this mixture is sitting at room temperature, take some "thyme" alone and thoroughly measure out your blessings. Make sure you add in the plain vanilla ones (like health, shelter, employment, family, enough to eat and a good night's sleep). 

Don't forget to spoon up some sweet remembrances of happy days gone by. With your honey at your side, go to a quiet part of the house and pour out what's on your mind. If necessary, ask for forgiveness.

While bringing the ingredients to a boil, combine a cup full of contentment, all the while skimming off any envy or greed that surfaces. Blend well.

Let the aforementioned batter rise until it occupies a place of prominence in your thinking. Preheat your heart to the point where it takes on a pliable consistency. While your will is warming to the idea of thanking God (instead of blaming him) for where you are at this time in your life, sprinkle the mixture in question with a dash of determination to do whatever it takes to honor God with your attitude.

Then bake the combined ingredients until they are well done. While it is still warm, serve yourself the "peace" you've anticipated, all the while chewing on God's goodness while swallowing your pride.

Well, there you have it. Even though you haven't seen this recipe demonstrated on the Food Network, it's a keeper. A grateful heart is guaranteed. 

You don't need to be a Galloping Gourmet in order to serve up an aroma that will be pleasing to the Lord. All that is required is that you dismount from your high horse of self-centeredness and sit in the presence of the One from whom all blessings flow. As Israel's greatest king is credited with having said, "Taste and see that the Lord is good." (Psalm 34:8)



***Happy Thanksgiving!***
    

Thanksgiving Postcard From God

By Cheryl and Bob Moeller
http://www.marriagevine.com/
http://www.momlaughs.blogspot.com/


It was 10:00 a.m. the day before Thanksgiving. In just a few hours the doors to our inner-city church would open, and we would host our urban neighbors, many of whom were Native Americans, to a free Thanksgiving dinner.

We were making last-minute preparations when we heard a loud knock at the front door. Another interruption, we thought as we trudged toward the door. When we opened the door, we were greeted by two delivery men from Sears.

"Will you sign for this?" one of the men asked as he shoved a clipboard our way.

"Sure, what is it?"

"A freezer," he answered.

"We didn't order a freezer."

"Someone did," he said. With that, he and his burly partner pushed past us and wheeled a full-length deep freeze up the steep steps and into our church.

As we studied the invoice, we discovered a sister church, New Hope Church in Crystal, MN, had purchased the appliance for us. That's strange, we thought. They never told us it was coming.

Our minds returned to the Thanksgiving dinner. Within a few hours, the first flakes of snow started coming down. In Minnesota in late November, that can mean anything from a dusting to three-foot snow drifts. On this particular day, it meant the worst. By 4:00 p.m., the flakes had turned into a major-league blizzard. The timing couldn't have been worse. By that late hour, all the food for our dinner had been prepared—a dozen turkeys, nearly a hundred pounds of mashed potatoes, and scores of piping-hot pies.

But we had no one to eat any of it. All our food and effort was about to go to waste.

That's when we remembered the gift we had received only hours earlier. We wrapped the food and carried it upstairs to our new storage freezer. One week later we held the postponed dinner and served a hot Thanksgiving meal to a church packed with grateful neighbors and needy friends.

Looking back, we realize we received more than an appliance from a department store that day. We received a postcard from God.

What's a postcard from God? It's one of those providential, serendipitous events that appear in our lives, marriage and family—a reminder that God has not forgotten us. For us, it's like receiving a short note that reads, "Dear Cheryl and Bob, I was thinking of you today. Just thought I'd let you know. Love, Your heavenly Father."

The ways in which he sends these timely postcards are as unpredictable as they are amazing. The net effect seems always the same: to encourage and strengthen us, often when we need it the most.

Piles of unwanted junk mail are delivered daily. As catalogs, sales brochures, newspapers, and a host of other materials accumulate on our desks, our goal is to dispose of the piles as quickly as possible. In the same way, our lives, our marriages, our families, and schedules can become cluttered with carpools, shopping, taking care of kids, exercising, committee meetings, weekly deadlines, and urgent calls to make. Our goal can become simply to get through the day.

In the midst of sorting through such clutter, it's easy to overlook the simple notes our heavenly Father sends to remind us of his love. When we take the time to sort through "coincidences" of my life, we discover simple but much-needed messages reminding us, "I love you. I haven't forgotten you."

Signed, Your God.

Letters of Thankfulness

At Waukesha First Assembly, Pastor Todd has been doing a series on "Thanks Living." It has been so good and really put things into perspective for me. 
 
On Sunday, he shared some wonderful ideas on how to have a grateful heart during his sermon. One idea was to start a book and have everyone in the family take a page and write what they are thankful for in it every year.

Another was to write letters to your children each Thanksgiving telling them that you are thankful for them and why.  He said to give one copy to your child each year and put another copy in a book. They both reminded me of my "mom book."

I've never been very good at being meaningful over the years. This year I have really seen the importance and have been trying to do some meaningful things for others. This is another great way to do that. 

I'm going to write letters to my kiddos this year. I feel bad that my daughter had to wait 10 years before I started this but I plan on continuing until they are parents and grandparents themselves. 

I am so thankful for my children and I think it's time they know it. Who knows what a difference this could make in their lives? Or my life? 

I encourage you to start meaningful traditions with your children, too. The newest video game or Barbie doll is great but your time and words of affirmation are priceless. They truly are the gifts that keep giving. 

Pilgrims Coloring Sheet

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What I Ate

THANKSGIVING EDITION

Thanksgiving is coming! Are you ready?

This is the first BIG holiday I'll be celebrating since I've joined WW. I need a plan of attack.

I'm determined to stay within my daily points and I'm hoping not to dip into my weekly points. I do realize, however, that this is a special occasion and if I use a few of my weekly points, it will be ok. It's good to treat yourself once in awhile - as long as you don't go overboard and give yourself permission to overindulge.

I think my plan is going to be to eat a light breakfast with some fruit and vegetable snacks in order to save the majority of my points for the big meal. In our family, we typically eat one big meal about 3:00 pm, so that will work out great.

For those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving more than once in the same day, God bless you. That will be a challenging day.

My biggest piece of advice is to have a plan.

If you can, try to find out what they will be serving ahead of time. If you are bringing a dish, bring something that is points-friendly. For example, a vegetable dish or a lightened up dessert. Make sure it is something you like, so that you'll know there will be one thing there you can eat with little guilt.

Plan out your meals ahead of time. I use to do this everyday when I first started WW. Every morning I would plan out what I would eat for the day. Then I stuck to it. When you are constantly making food decisions all day, your resolve can wane and temptation can hit. If it's already mapped out, you don't even have to think about it. Dish yourself up and ENJOY every bite.

Don't try to make your plan too strict. If Aunt Bernice makes a to-die-for dessert every year, incorporate it into your plan. Try to figure out the points or guesstimate if you have to. Realize your portion may not be what it was in years past. Then make it work. Skip the mashed potatoes. Omit the gravy. Do what you can to still enjoy your meal and end with your heavenly dessert.

Lastly, realize that the progress you've made so far, is going to feel so much better than a full-to-bursting stomach. It's worth it. It's worth giving up the stuffing to fit into those pants you haven't worn for a year or ten. It's worth feeling good about yourself because you made wise decisions and didn't let the turkey talk. You are worth it! Don't forget that. You are worth the sacrifice, the hard work.

A couple of miscellaneous tips:
Chew gum. When you aren't eating your meal or as soon as you're done, pop a piece of gum in your mouth.
Find someone to talk to - away from the food, preferably.
Go for a walk. Grab cousin Mary and take a walk. You'll get your exercise in, you'll get away from the food, and you'll catch up with your beloved relative.

Here is a list of Thanksgiving foods and the points WW has assigned for them (figuring out your own points plus value is best but if you truly don't know, use these values to plan your meal):

*Stuffing - 1/2 cup = 5
*Gravy:
cream - 1/4 cup = 4
canned turkey - 1 cup = 1
brown - 1/4 cup = 3
*Roast turkey - 4 oz = 4
*Mashed potatoes - 1/2 cup = 3
*Candied sweet potatoes - 1/2 cup = 5
*Green bean casserole - 1 cup = 6
*Cranberry sauce - 1/4 cup canned = 3
*Pie
pumpkin - 1 slice = 8
apple - 1 slice = 11
pecan - 1 slice = 14

Here are some yummy recipes I've posted previously on my blog if you are looking to make a lighter dessert:

*Pumpkiny Pie
*Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins
*Pumpkin Bars
*Caramel Apple Tart


Happy Thanksgiving!!

Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart

This song is a throwback to my youth and has been running through my head this week. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought it was very appropriate.

This one's for you, Kelly ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtxmSAqMtDA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

For Your Turkey Table

Thanksgiving is next week! Can you believe that?!

Thankfully, I do not have to host a Thanksgiving dinner at my house (thanks, Mom!), but in case you do, here are some cute decorations I found for your table. Click the link under the picture to go to the tutorial and/or print the pdf.

Happy Turkey Crafting!



http://www.vintageimagecraft.com/thanksgiving-napkin-rings.html




http://www.vintageimagecraft.com/thanksgiving-place-cards.html




http://familycrafts.about.com/od/thanksgivingprintables/a/prthnksplcds.htm




http://familyfun.go.com/thanksgiving/thanksgiving-kids-table-fun/thanksgiving-printable-activity-pages/activity-placemat-807114/


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With the busiest time of the year quickly approaching and a lot of my time being taken up with REFRESH 2012, if any of you would ever like to do a guest post, I would be so THANKful!!

This is such a fun time of year. You could share a favorite recipe you like to make (it does not have to be healthy-tasty ;) or a new one you've just found.

Maybe you are working on a fun, holiday craft and would like to share a tutorial with us.

Or you could share a favorite tradition that is special to your family.

It could be anything!

Don't let yourself think that you do not have anything to share or no one would be interested, because you do and we are!

Think about it. Let me know if you are interested!

I'm excited to hear from YOU!!

(PS Just like in school, if there are no volunteers, I will be calling (on) people. I always wanted to be a teacher ... ;)

Horn of Plenty Coloring Sheet

http://www.activity-sheets.com/coloring_page/fall/fall-16.htm

Give Thanks ... His love endures forever

Psalm 136

 1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. 
            His love endures forever. 
2 Give thanks to the God of gods. 
            His love endures forever. 
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords: 
            His love endures forever.
 4 to him who alone does great wonders, 
            His love endures forever. 
5 who by his understanding made the heavens, 
            His love endures forever. 
6 who spread out the earth upon the waters, 
            His love endures forever. 
7 who made the great lights— 
            His love endures forever. 
8 the sun to govern the day, 
            His love endures forever. 
9 the moon and stars to govern the night; 
            His love endures forever.

 10 to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt 
            His love endures forever. 
11 and brought Israel out from among them 
            His love endures forever. 
12 with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; 
            His love endures forever.

 13 to him who divided the Red Sea[a] asunder 
            His love endures forever. 
14 and brought Israel through the midst of it, 
            His love endures forever. 
15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; 
            His love endures forever.

 16 to him who led his people through the wilderness; 
            His love endures forever.

 17 to him who struck down great kings, 
            His love endures forever. 
18 and killed mighty kings— 
            His love endures forever. 
19 Sihon king of the Amorites 
            His love endures forever. 
20 and Og king of Bashan— 
            His love endures forever. 
21 and gave their land as an inheritance, 
            His love endures forever. 
22 an inheritance to his servant Israel. 
            His love endures forever.

 23 He remembered us in our low estate 
            His love endures forever. 
24 and freed us from our enemies. 
            His love endures forever. 
25 He gives food to every creature. 
            His love endures forever.

 26 Give thanks to the God of heaven. 
            His love endures forever.

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What if you woke up this morning and had only the things you thanked God for yesterday?
                          - Max Lucado via Twitter
 

Turkey Coloring Sheet

http://www.free-coloring-pages.com/page/thanksgiving-22.html