LOL, you blogging chicks crack me up! I have some people who are just now sending me their posts as they wake up, and others who are beating down the door to my blog saying “where is the carnival?!?!?!?!” . . . must be you gals across the pond ;-). Ahhh, the beauty of international communication, LOL!

Anyways, if the title weren’t enough suggestion, this week’s carnival is all about thanksgiving - not necessarily Turkey Day, but thanksgiving in general. And boy, do we have some great posts! Here they are, in the order in which I received them:

Where was the first Thanksgiving celebration held in North America? CyberCelt shares a surprising story on Texas RV Travel blog.

Anna says, “They rejoiced and feasted in what we call the first Thanksgiving with the Native Americans who had aided them. I suspect that they may have possessed a better character than I.”

truevyne writes about “A fresh start contained in a fresh egg.”

Julie Carobini celebrates family, friends and her beloved California coast.

Some things Barbara is thankful for are her family, professionals, and BLOGGING!

Can’t forget my own post, LOL! I talk about how thankful I am for my AWESOME parents!

Caylynn discusses her first Thanksgiving in Germany and provides some background and history on the Canadian Thanksgiving celebrations.

I will be taking posts until this afternoon, so please send yours in if you haven’t already!

As we round the corner into the holiday season, I (like every other blogger) am taking a look at what I am thankful for. I could say my faith, my health, my citizenship . . . a number of wonderful things that I am VERY thankful for.

But the one I would like to mention specifically is my parents. I really could not ask for better parents. My parents and I have (and have always had) a wonderful relationship. I hear so many horror stories about people who have a falling out with their parents, people whose parents are unaccepting or have no respect. Teens who fight with their parents and children who are beaten by them.

Not only are none of these the case for me, but we love each other VERY much, and we have very active, open communication. Most days I feel as though my day isn’t complete if I haven’t at least touched base with Mama and Daddy. More often than not Mama and I have 1/2 hour to an hour conversations every day. There are some days where we may call back and forth 2 or even 3 times in a single day.

I have always felt this way about my parents, but this Thanksgiving I am particularly thankful for them. I graduated college, and they have supported me emotionally and financially. When I was so miserable in the graduate program I was in, they listened to me crying like an idiot over the phone, and then when I said I wanted to drop out, they supported me fully in my decision. I cannot imagine what the past few months would have been like without their love, respect, and assistance.

I aspire to be the kind of mother that my mother is, and I hope to one day find a man as honorable and loving as my father. And if I’m lucky, we’ll be great parents like the ones that I have been so blessed with!

This post is also posted at Reading Red Letters, my faith blog!