Thanksgiving

We are back in Haiti.  And on the occasion of the Thanksgiving holiday in Canada I thought it would be appropriate to reflect on some things we are thankful for.  We just returned from a month away and it would be safe to say that while we are all grateful for the time on vacation, we are also glad to be back home.  Here are some of the other things we are thankful for.

Our time away included a couple weeks in Canada visiting with family.  There are some locations that we seem to go back to year after year.  One of those is Petrie Island on the Ottawa River.  This year we drove there in my parents camper and spent the day "at the beach."  Not the same as Haiti (pretty cold water) but the sand was soft on the feet.  The kids built sand castles with Esther, played Baci ball with Oma and enjoying a walk in the nature park.  There were lots of interesting creatures to see and flowers to examine.

We are very thankful for our family and the opportunity we have every year to visit with them.  The kids particularly look forward to time with their Ontario cousins.  This year they got to see the Fogh cousins, spend a night with the Moores cousins and also see the young Jaques cousins at a visit to UrOma and UrOpa.  They may not get to spend a lot of time together but after a bit it is like they were never apart.  We thank God for our family.

Our kids are with us all the time in Haiti.  This makes our yearly night away in Ottawa a much anticipated event for Heather and I.  This year we went to Lac Leamy across the river in Gatineau, Quebec.  Great meals, cozy bed and quiet.  We forget how noisy it is in Haiti.  We live just off the main highway from Port-au-Prince to the north coast of Haiti and the vehicles are constantly on the move, blowing their horns, screeching their brakes.  So we are extremely thankful for a time of quiet.

We were also thankful for the relief from the high heat of Haiti.  We are not all agreed about liking cold weather, but the fall weather during our trip was wonderful.  Apple picking season has become another Canada tradition for our kids.  The fields were full of pumpkins, the trees loaded with delicious apples, and we the chance to wear long pants is not to be missed.  We are thankful for God's creation and the changing of the seasons we don't experience in the same way in Haiti.  So much to be thankful for.  Happy Canadian Thanksgiving everyone!