We give thanks...

It was a lovely day to celebrate with family and give thanks for all our blessings.

New outfits, heading off to church.

Church began our thanksgiving celebration and there was an added poignancy this year as all the children brought fresh food to St. Matthew's. With arms full of carrots and apples, squashes and potatoes, pomegranates and turnips, they processed to the front of the church and placed their offerings at the altar. The food was blessed and was delivered to the Daily Bread Foodbank today. Really helped bring home how very much we have and are thankful for.

After some quiet time at home, nanny and papa arrived and we headed off to the Aberfoyle Mill near Guelph. Our family tradition for the last 10 years or so has been to go out for Thanksgiving dinner and we have visited inns and mills all over the place - first up near our cottage in Orillia, and in recent years closer to home. This year we returned to the Aberfoyle Mill which we hadn't been to in over 20 years. What a wonderful treat - lovely pond out back that we explored a bit...

And then inside to the cozy mill restaurant filled with antiques and the orginal mill works still in place... kind of a nice link to the past and the local farmers who had brought their harvests of grains to the mill for many decades.

The dinner itself was phenomenal and though the Thompsons all stuck with tradition and enjoyed a three course turkey feast with all the trimmings, we cannot wait to return and try some of the other gourmet treats on the menu.

We were SO full at the end that dessert was really unnecessary but we just had to try the chocolate mousse and spiced pumpkin cheesecake.

Cassidy overjoyed at the first taste of her chocolate dessert.

Happy thanksgiving to our family here and in the States (who will celebrate in a few weeks themselves) and to all our friends. We are blessed to have YOU in our lives.