President Bush and his family are having a traditional Thanksgiving dinner of turkey with cornbread dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans, fruit salad, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie.
Guests at the Texas ranch include the president's father, the former President George Bush, former First Lady Barbara Bush, the president's daughters Jenna and Barbara, and the president's brothers and their families.
Mr. Bush signed a Thanksgiving proclamation earlier this week, in a tradition dating back to the country's first president, George Washington. Mr. Bush said Americans are thankful for their freedoms and their families.
"Each year, at Thanksgiving, we gather in that spirit, to count our blessings, and to share those blessings with our families and with others. On this holiday, American families will be thinking of loved ones far from home, especially members of our military, who defend our country," Mr. Bush said.
While Thanksgiving is an American holiday, President Bush says Americans on this day are mindful of people in other countries who have fewer civil liberties.
President said, "We remember those in other lands who suffer under oppression, who long for freedom, and we pray that they might one day live in a world at peace and in a free society. And, in this nation of many faiths, we ask that the Almighty God continue to bless us and to watch over us."
In videotaped comments as part of a Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City, President Bush called on Americans to volunteer more in their communities, to share their blessings by helping out at neighborhood schools or food programs for low-income families.