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Once when Annika was little, my Dad had a hard time remembering that the German word for Grandpa is “Opa” and he asked Annika if she missed her Oompa. That gave us all a good laugh, and so sometimes we like to call him “Oompa Loompa.”  We can sing the cute little ditty and everything.

My Dad is here now for business again, and while I know all this traveling is difficult and draining for him, we sure are glad to see him! Today I am grateful for my parents. I used to think that parenting ended when your kids left home. Now I know that you never stop being a parent. Not only does the worry and the concern never leave, but the time and work don’t either. I am grateful for a Mom who spends so much time on the phone with me, and who plans Skype playdates with Annika. I am thankful for a Dad who has spent hours reviewing Brad’s application resume and essays, and who called me after my wallet was stolen to walk me through all the things I needed to do. My Dad tells me that he loves me all the time, but that phone called showed me how much he cares. I would like to think I am a responsible adult, and I am sure I could have figured all those things out, but it made me feel so good to know that my Dad was still taking care of me. I’m a lucky girl.

And my three little girls are pretty lucky too. All day long they’ve been running into the kitchen to tell me “We’re having so much fun!!!!!” Thanks for coming, Dad.

Halloween has come and gone, and while Annika is disappointed, I am not shedding any tears. Halloween is fun because I have three little girls who love dressing up, but I am ready to move on to better things.

Like Thanksgiving, for example. Isn’t it fun to have a whole month where we focus on things we are thankful for? We need 12 of those months. As I look around me, at my generation in particular, I am struck by what I see as a sense of entitlement and a lack of gratitude. This is not to say that this applies to everyone, or that there aren’t problems in our world and society and that we shouldn’t work hard to make our communities and our world a better place. But I think we could also benefit from recognizing how good our lives are, from acknowledging the sacrifices that our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents made for their future, for us. We have much to be thankful for.

Today I am thankful for a little girl who sometimes acts her age, but most of the time rises to my high expectations for her. Especially when it comes to being a big sister, she is mature beyond her years. Annika became a big sister when she was hardly more than a baby herself. While we have our challenges, most of the time she is patient, selfless, and loving towards her two little sisters. There are not very many things that make me as happy as seeing the three of them happy together. I am grateful for the big sister in our house.