When I was invited to participate in the Blogger’s Seasonal Harvest Tour, I didn’t have any idea what I would share.
A whole house tour was out of the question. By the time I cleaned and decorated, Christmas would be here. So I didn’t give that idea a passing thought.
I could have dug through my junk stash and looked for something to repurpose for fall, but to tell the truth, my heart just wasn’t in it.
I keep things pretty simple in my home for fall, so I decided to keep things simple for this event by sharing a quick stenciled place mat project and some thoughts on how being thankful in everything has new meaning for me this year.
I’m not gonna sugarcoat it – between losing my husband’s mom in January, losing my dad in March, and my mom getting cancer … it’s been a tough year.
But I’m a firm believer that there is always something to be thankful for, and I also believe it is possible to give thanks in everything.
I’m thankful to have had a mother-in-law who dearly, dearly, dearly loved her grandchildren.
Many children don’t know the true love of a grandmother, and my children have been blessed to have two grandmothers who lavished love on them.
Although my dad wasn’t a perfect dad (because there is no such thing as a perfect dad), he was the hardest working man I’ve ever known, he instilled a love of nature and country life in my sister and I, and because of him, my sister and I can both sing the lyrics to any Rogers and Hammerstein musical (Oklahoma, The Sound of Music, and The King and I, to name a few) … we can’t sing them on key, but we can sing them! 🙂
And my mom’s cancer?
Okay, I’ll admit it’s not easy to give thanks for it.
But I’m incredibly grateful that my mom and I have an extremely close relationship and that I was able to be with her when my dad passed away and earlier in September when she was getting one of her rounds of chemo.
I pray that God will grant her many more years with her kids and grandkids and that she’ll get to see her grandkids get married and have children of their own.
To me, being thankful means treasuring every moment God blesses us with … even those moments that break our hearts.
Supplies used (affiliate links included for your convenience):
The Pioneer Woman Ruffle Top Bakeware
Pay a visit to the rest of the bloggers in the Seasonal Harvest Tour!
Vaya con Dios,
Simply beautiful, Angie! I really love this idea! Pinning!
angie- you are right. admist the pain, grief and challenges that are thrown our way in life, there is goodness and something to be thankful for. I’ll be praying for you and your family.
I’m so sorry for the year you’ve had! Love your simple touches of fall. Thanks for participating in the tour, and I sure hope things get easier for you.
Brenda
Going through that kind of stuff is EXHAUSTING!! We almost lost my husband last year to a heart attack, down to filling out organ donation paperwork. The morning he was to be removed from life support, he made a miraculous recovery, stunning the doctors. Days later, on his 44th birthday, he was taken off life support. A week after that, he woke, his brain function fully intact. I remained grateful and trusted God the entire time. The hospital staff were just amazingly wonderful. People were praying all over the world, which the heart surgeons credited with his recovery (the entire left side of his heart was dead; he literally survived a widowmaker heart attack). He had months of therapy, and in our excitement, planned for a huge birthday party for him this year. It’s now almost that time and we are still exhausted! Also, we are paying a LOT of medical bills (happily so!). There will be no big party, haha! Just a small one, probably with his brothers and their families. I shared all that to say – I do hope you are giving yourself lots of grace and rest! You have been through so much and are still going through your mom’s cancer. Prayers to you and your family!
Oh Angie, what a year, indeed. Your tenacity to still find thanksgiving through it all is a testament to your person, and it shows in your home, no matter what the season. I hope you have many memories still to be made with your mom in the years to come.
Rita C at Panoply
Thanks so much for your sweet words, Rita – they blessed me.
I am so sorry about all your loss, and I pray for the best with your mother’s health♥ Blessings to you and your family. The mat is really cute♥
Thank you, Summer!
I understand your sorrow. I lost three close family members in a short time and my world has been forever changed. I will keep your mom in my prayers.
Big Texas Hugs,
Susan and Bentley
Thank you Susan – I’ll take that big Texas hug! 🙂
Absolutely beautiful. My family has had a rough year also. We have to keep going on, but things will never be the same. I wish you and your family the best and hope you have a nice holiday season, if that’s possible. Hugs to your Mother.
Thanks so much, Marijean!
I’m so sorry to hear all you’ve been through in such a short amount of time. Praying for you and your family.
Hugs,
Cristina
Angie, I totally get it. We’ve had a bunch of years like that lately and I agree, somewhere in all the mess, there are reasons to be thankful. I love the reminder and I am sending hugs and prayers.
Thanks so much, Kim.
I love reading your post everyday, you are so inspiring. So many great ideas! I have a question, when you stencil something how do you keep the lettering straight? I have a project to do and the stenciling is keeping me from getting it done. thank you. Have a blessed day.
Debbie, my stencil designs are ready-made, so the letter’s are already lined up and ready to use.
Great post!
so lovely and you’ve got me hungry for some warm bread!
What a remarkable spirit you have, I give thanks that you shared your story with us. We all sometimes have to search for things to be thankful for and concentrate on those rather than our losses. Always, always remember the good times and not the pain.
Many blessings.
Oh my…what a stressful time. My best wishes for a better year ahead. Sheila
I am so sorry to hear that you have had such a hard time, Angie! I love that you are able to still be thankful through your tough time! Sending gigantic hugs!
Your project turned out wonderful and seeing your photos have got me craving some freshly baked bread! Yummo 🙂