Happy 36th, Becky.

Today, a special birthday greeting goes out to one of my closest friends from my high school days, Becky A. Becky, I hope that this day is filled with love from your 3 precious kids and your hubby, Mark, and lots of pampering......take today to celebrate the awesome woman of God that you are. You have inspired me and blessed me with your friendship. Have a great day up there in Beautiful Northern Michigan country! You have a goodie box coming your way from me next week.....I decided to combine your birthday and Christmas goodies into one box, so it'll be something to look forward to........love you and miss you, Sister.

Still Sick.

So this post will be short and sweet. I am still coughing up a lung (or two), and have this lovely sinusy headache that just will not budge. My anxiety is mounting, too, because I should be grading papers, but that much reading makes my head ache and increases the nausea. I'm hoping that an early bedtime tonight, and coming home from work early tomorrow, will set me up for a clear-headed weekend of grading and scrapping this weekend. Night-night.

A Spoonful of Sugar.

We're dealing with a nasty cough around here, mainly affecting myself and Hayden. Of course, as the good parents that we are, we called our neighb0r, who also happens to be our doctor, and had him write up a prescription for some cough medicine. Yum. Now, even though I have a cough, too, that is getting the best of me, I typically will just suffer through it rather than take cough syrup. Yuck-O. But my own biases against nasty-tasting medicinal concoctions do not stop my from making sure that my son takes his medicine. After all, isn't that what a good mother does? What's fair about that? But isn't it our job as parents to make sure our kids understand that life isn't fair? :) My son has been a real trooper taking his medicine....and the "coolness" of being able to take it with an empty syringe is a little bit of sugar to help the whole ideal go a little smoother. And we only lost one syringeful when, in a fit of resistance, he shot the medicine across the kitchen all over the floor and appliances. Nice. Usually, our puppy laps up whatever we spill on the floor.....but she got one sniff of that stuff, and ran into the living room with her tail between her legs!

Today is all about resting and trying to shake this bug. I have HUGE MOUNTAINS of grading to get done in the next 2 weeks before the semester ends for Christmas break, and I don't have time to be developing a more serious illness. So, I'm sucking on the vitamin c-drops, drinking hot tea cup after cup, downing Thera-Flu in between, and trying to get as much rest as humanly possible when you work and have 2 young children. Why, oh why, don't mothers ever get a sick day?

Thanksgiving Highlights.

I am writing from a bit of a fog this morning, as I seem to have picked up a bit of a bug that my sister had over the weekend. Lots of gunk in my throat and a pretty foggy head makes for a slow-as-maple-syrup-after-the-break Monday morning. But, I wanted to log on to share some highlights from our wonderful and very blessed Thanksgiving weekend.

Wednesday was a nice, leisurely day of sleeping in, getting ready and packing. We left just in time to arrive at my in-laws' in central Michigan for a yummy lasagna dinner and some down time with the folks. It is fun to watch my kids play there, because my mother-in-law has many of the old toys from my husband's growing-up days. They love to be at their grandparents' house, for sure.

On Thursday, I slept in and read a few chapters of my book before heading downstairs around 10:00 am. Already, I could smell Thanksgiving wafting up the stairs to greet me. We woke to a fresh blanket of white on the ground, and the kids were so excited to go out and play. It was lots of fun to watch them frolick with Ruby in the fresh powdery white. We looked through all of the sale ads, amazed and even saddened that so many stores are now doing their best to lure people away from their families and into their stores on Thanksgiving Day. I, for one, would like to see all stores close their doors on Thanksgiving, to really emphasize the spiritual necessity of this holiday of gratitude. But once again, the mighty dollar wins. Such a sad sign of the moral obligations--or rather, lack thereof--of our society.


At 2:00 on Thanksgiving Day, we sat down to a delicious feast of turkey, mashed potatoes, cheesy potatoes, roast pork, sweet potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, assorted salads, fresh rolls....and so many other dishes I didn't even get a chance to try. Oh, yes, and I would be remiss not to mention that appetizers included fresh sausage from my husband's deer.....very tasty, if I must say so myself. When you have a group of nearly 50 people bringing their favorite dishes to contribute, there is never a lack of food. What a blessed time we had, celebrating thanks and anticipating upcoming weddings and watching football and napping and just being together. One funny story to share: I sat in the chair after dinner, and must have dozed because I woke up to my nephew (who has autism) making snoring sounds. I said, "Michael, are you snoring?" and then must have dozed off again, because I was again awoken by his snoring. Soon, I realized the truth...I WAS SNORING and he was imitating me. So honest. So funny.


On Thursday late afternoon, we packed up and made the one-hour drive to my parents' house in northern Michigan. We arrived to find a couple of my aunts and other family members, so it was fun to catch up with them. After sharing in some leftovers, I had my annual slice of fresh pecan pie, warmed with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream. I eat pecan pie one time per year, and it is always heavenly delightful. I am not a big pumpkin pie fan or any other type of pie for that matter, but pecan pie is my all-time favorite dessert, and it never tastes better than at Thanksgiving. We relaxed that night and played with the kids, before settling into cozy beds for a good night's sleep.

On Friday morning, we slept in and then all went out to my grandma's house for breakfast. A morning trip to Grandma's is so reminiscent of my childhood, when we would often head out to grandma's house for Saturday coffee and breakfast. My aunt, uncle, cousin and her new twins were out there, so it was fun to meet Hannah and Nicholas for the first time and to get a photo of my grandma with four of her great-grandchildren. Notice how all the girls are behaving but the boys on the ends are causing all the ruckus!

It is always nice and comforting to spend time at my Grandma's house with family, and it has been too long since we have had the opportunity to do that. Matt hunted for the day but didn't get another deer (which is really fine by me!)

Friday afternoon was spent taking a walk, playing, and running into town for a few errands. At dinner time, my sister and her husband arrived for a yummy dinner of turkey noodle soup and turkey-and-dumplings. After our meal, we played a round of Apples-to-Apples Bible edition, which my daughter and I ended up winning. Unfortunately, Kendra wasn't feeling well so decided to go back home. The rest of the night was spent playing with the kids, including my 5-month-old niece, Sammy, who is at such a fun age of rolling over and smiling and just so alert to everything going on around her. It will be fun to have a baby in the house at Christmas again this year. The kids drew and drew and drew, played marbles, read books, and just loved hanging out at Grandpa and Grandma's house for the evening.



Saturday was a leisurely day. We basically slept in, ate, played, got packed up, and headed home. It was a great weekend away, but it is always so nice to get home and have some time to enjoy each other in our own home surroundings. We ordered pizza for dinner (no turkey!) and watched a movie before climbing into our own beds.

Sunday was a self-proclaimed PJ and movie day. We didn't get dressed and watched movies/football and worked on craft projects all day. We love those days. Days where there is no agenda. No schedule. No traveling. No expectations. Just rest and leisure and entertainment and being together. A perfect end to a long Thanksgiving weekend, if I do say so myself. Now, if I could just shake this nasty post-holiday bug.......

Happy (Pre) Thanksgiving!

I think that I like the days before Thanksgiving and Christmas just as much as I like the actual day. This morning, when I woke up and walked into the kitchen, it felt different than every other morning. It felt cozier. It felt special. I love lightning a candle on my stove, making a hot cup of chai tea, and starting holiday meal preparations. It makes me feel connected to past generations of my mother grandmother, great-grandmother, and before who engaged in the same types of domestic preparations to make sure the holiday was special for their families. Now, I am the first to admit that I am not an everyday domestic type; but around the holidays, I savor the cooking and decorating and domestic tasks that go along with the holiday. Usually, I make our traditional harvest candy swirl cheesecake, and it is a favorite of so many in our family. But this year, I just wasn't feeling it, and I wanted to try something different just for one year. So I decided to put my own twist on this "Pumpkin Dump Cake" recipe. It is basically a pumpkin cake topped with layers of brown sugar, butter......and then I threw on my own twist of toasted pecans, coconut and butterscotch chips. It smelled SO yummy as it was baking last night, and I hope it makes people forget about the harvest cheesecake just for this year!

Yesterday, we enjoyed a tasting feast at my daughter's first grade classroom. It was fun to gather with the other families to enjoy turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, and pumpkin pie.
















We are off to my in-laws' in a few minutes, so Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one near and far. I am thankful for creativity, and for my husband and children, and for our furry pets, and for a warm kitchen full of holiday preparations, and for my mother and mother-in-law who are busy today preparing the bulk of tomorrow's meals, and for safety in travel, and for the amazing teachers who work with my son and daughter every school day, and for Mary who provides excellent care to my son on the days I teach, and for the amazing Christ-centered community in which we live, and for wonderful neighbors, and for freedom to worship, and for music and for Jesus' saving blood and that He wants a relationship with us each and every moment.....and for so many wonderful things. Remember not only to thank your friends and family for what they bring to your life, but to also thank deeply the source of all things good and right and true, God and Jesus Christ. Peace to you all on this amazingly profound celebration. And don't forget the nap after the turkey!!

Pilgrims.

As we were growing up, I distinctly remember a set of ceramic pilgrims that my mom would display around Thanksgiving time. It seems that those little figures displayed on the shelf signified that the much-loved Thanksgiving gathering of our family was right around the corner. I also remember a set of ceramic carolers that she would display around Christmas time. Sometimes, I think that we (I) get so caught up in getting the latest and greatest holiday decorations, that we forget about the simple ones that, when used year after year, become so special and meaningful to our children and families. Until today, I didn't really have anything specifically for Thanksgiving; sure, I decorate our table with pumpkins and gourds, and I have a few "Give Thanks" signs that stay up year-around, but nothing specifically to decorate for Thanksgiving. Today, when I was at Hobby Lobby, I spotted this neglected set of pilgrims. They look old, and I love that. Better yet, they were 80% off so the set cost less than $4.00. I brought them home, set them on the table, and it is amazing how my kids keyed right into them and held them and talked about the pilgrim and Indian story. I hope that these will become beloved family heirlooms across the years, and that my kids will come to see these as a sign of the holiday, just as I did as a child. I also rescued a metal turkey for 80% off....he had a missing wing. I have looked at these at Hobby Lobby for three years now but could never quite bring myself to pay the 49.99 price; but this one-winged guy.....I got him for less than 10.00, and even found the random wing to boot. After a little Thanksgiving operation, he should be as good as new.

And, here is my little pilgrim this morning at his preschool tasting feast. This is a time when the kids get to sample traditional Thanksgiving foods and dress up like pilgrims. So adorable. My son's favorite tastes were the mashed potatoes, corn bread and whipped cream. The pumpkin pie? Not so much. But the heart-shaped corn muffins were a hit, and the kids even got to make their own butter. So much fun.

Tomorrow, I'm going to share our Tree of Thanks that we have been hanging tags on. It has been a fun holiday project and a great way to encourage kids to get into the habit of expressing what they are thankful for. Enjoy this crispy fall pre-Thanksgiving Monday, everyone.

Find What Doesn't Belong.....

Over breakfast this morning after church, I was reciting my grocery list to Kennedy, and she was writing the list for me. She is really into spelling these days, so she loves to make lists. After breakfast, I put the list into my purse and didn't look at it again until tonight, when I was at Meijer getting some groceries for Thanksgiving party preparations. So, I pull the list out of my purse and start reading.......corn muffin mix (for Hayden's preschool tasting feast tomorrow), pumpkin pie (for Kennedy's class' feast on Tuesday), corn, hamster.........HAMSTER? I had to laugh out loud, and I chuckled throughout my whole shopping trip. I tell you, you just have to give her credit! She has been obsessing over getting a pet hamster for Christmas, so we are in the position of deciding whether or not to make her dream come true and add one more species to our home.

I found some cute little heart-shaped muffin foil cups so decided to make my corn muffins into hearts. The 4-year-olds should love them tomorrow at the tasting feast.

My sister and I had a nice weekend scrapping, sharing meals, and just catching up. It has been a long time since we have spent 2 days together without kids or husbands, so it seemed really nice to reconnect. Today was pretty much church and resting and getting groceries and making sure everything is set for this week's cooking. See you tomorrow for the first day of Thanksgiving festivities.