Don’r know if I blogged about this last year and frankly don’t care to go back and look at this point. Thanksgiving the last few years has really, truly sucked ass. I was thinking today of any really good Thanksgiving memories.

There are some, don’t get me wrong, just the negative of the last few years if over powering. I think the last good Thanksgiving was in 2002. The year before, we had Thanksgiving at our house in Mitchell. I’d just found out I’d be having to work in Pierre and Amy miscarried. Joyous, no? Of course, in 2003 we received Mom’s death sentence on Thanksgiving. And last year we had Thanksgiving here, but it was only a few weeks after Mom died. Again, a very tough time.

In 2002, we had Thanksgiving in Lake Wilson. It was just Amy, the kids, and I and my folks. I was on call for work and had to go in each day, but it was a lot shorter from L.W. We bought our van that weekend and saw a Disney on Ice show in Sioux Falls. Odd how quickly all of it changed.

I did go home on the anniversary of Mom’s death. I bought some flowers to put at her marker. Dad told me he was going to spread her ashes later that day, but wanted to do it alone. He spread some in the lake, some at the park (where she loved to watch her kids and grandkids play), some at the baseball field (she loved watching us play ball), and I think the rest at the cemetery. I’m glad it is done. She had wanted it done ASAP after she was gone. It got done as soon as Dad was ready.

We had invited my Dad to come to Yankton for Thanksgiving, but he’s staying home. He had surgery on his knee last week and isn’t too mobile just yet. He was scheduled to have surgery on his shoulder, but that was postponed when he developed an infection in his knee.

Mark went to be there for the surgery and asked that I go last weekend. I was going to go but came down with a chest cold. Have some guilt about it. Also feeling bad as I think Mark and his crew are heading to L.W. tomorrow to surprise Dad. I had told Dad about it. He was adamant that he doesn’t want anyone there (afraid someone will accidentally bump into it) and that he’s okay with our not going to see him.

So, we are having our own little Thanksgiving. I’m getting up at the butt crack of dawn on Friday to do some shopping and then we are heading to Mankato. Amy’s folks are going to be away on vacation, so this would be basically our only chance to see them before Christmas.