Days of Gratitude catch up:

After the first of November, when I was so positive I was off and running on this gratitude band wagon, I got derailed.  Yes, thats me,  SHINY!!!!!! and I am off.  Some how, fighting with my kids over the computer in our computer challenged home was not worth the effort by the time I got home from work, finished any left over "homeschooling" cooked and cleaned up from dinner.. did some laundry, and maybe just maybe took a shower.  So, Today as the cosmos has lined up so that I am sitting at a computer with thoughts in my head and a moment to spare, I plan to catch up. 

Day 2:  I am thankful for the family of my origin. Isnt that a great way to say "the people who brung me up?"   The thing is, that family of origin doesnt simply mean the man and woman who brought me in to this world and raised me.  We use this term because too many of our children, in this age, are not in the original family.  They are in split homes, in blended and then reblended and maybe even REblended homes, they are with grandparents, or aunts and uncles or even foster or adoptive homes.  So, we use the term to indicate children who do not live with the single mother and father who are their genetic origin. 
     To me, MY family of origin does not just mean my biological mom and dad, who incidentally are the only mom and dad I have.  Wierd, I know.  But, I consider my family of origin to be those people who brought each of my parents in to this world and made them the people whom THEY became.  Those people, my grandparents, each had parents as well.  Not only that but each of the afore mentioned people had aunts, uncles, cousins who were around to help shape them as I have had as well. And we go back generation after generation.  THIS is MY family of origin.  All those people who brought the world to where I am now. 
     I am thankful for each of those people who "brought something to my table". They all came from hearty, founding fathers kind of stock.    I recieved quite an education from those ancestors of mine.  I hope that I can pass half of what I was taught on to my children. 

One of these days, I will go in to the things I believe I recieved from my heritage, but today, I am just thankful for all I was given.