I'll be spending Thanksgiving missing my family, my friends, and my appetite. My sister stopped visiting at this time because it was too painful for her in this house without our parents. I felt the same way, so we started celebrating Thanksgiving with some close friends of ours out here - our kids grew up together. However, my last memory is spending the holiday with them and our son just before he went to boot camp three years ago.

I won't be able to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal again until our son comes home.

I don't mean to be such a downer about this, but the emphasis for this holiday is food, family and friends - hard not to think of them first at this time.

However, I AM thankful we had the opportunity to take a trip to OK and meet a very close internet friend of mine. It's always such a treat to meet people who have proven themselves to be true friends over the internet. It felt good to be there for her when she needed me most. It felt good to see my husband welcomed by her friends with open arms. It was nice to see him at ease, instead of on guard.

The trip was exhausting, but now I won't have to complain about being cooped up until spring. It will probably take me that long to recover.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.