Lots to be Thankful For

Last weekend the kids and I went to Madison for an early Thanksgiving meal at my sister Laurie's house.

Since it was also the opening weekend of deer season, Jon stayed behind to hunt. We were thinking about him, though. Here's Jon in paper cut-out form, surrounded by the Braggy ladies of his life...

It was quite the gathering. All of my brothers, including the one who lives in Arkansas, were there with their families and/or loved ones. And Mom and Dad, along with Mark's parents Judy and Van, were there to preside over it all.

We tried to do the meal potluck-style, but of course most of the food prep and clean-up responsibilities fell to Laurie and Mark. They did a great job making everyone feel welcome (and full) that weekend.

Of course, one favorite holiday past-time is kid-watching. It is always fun watching the "cousins" reconnect with one another. Mikey and Kenny played lots of board games together, and Emma and Beth did art projects.

Leila and Stephen spent time hanging out on Laurie and Mark's carpeted stairway. Leila is now able to climb up and down stairs with relative safety.

Leila and Stephen liked opening and closing the doors of Mingo and Lily's dog kennels, as well as petting the dogs. Both are very gentle and well-behaved (the dogs, I mean... not the kids).


A few attempts were made to pet Laurie and Mark's cats, Miss Fanny and Mr. Britches, but those attempts were usually met with hissing and low growls.

Little Miss Leila was a bit of a beast herself... she looked for mischief (and usually found it). One fascinating thing about Aunt Lulu's house is the bubbling cat water dishes, that resemble little fountains and are very fun to splash in. Laurie's car keys and electronic door lock made a satisfying little splash, at one point... I was happy to hear later that the door lock eventually dried out and now works again.

It was warm outside that weekend, and brother Bob had brought along a football, so the younger folks were able to head outside and toss a football around before the Packer game (and meal). It was a lot of fun-- both for the players and the watchers.

It was good to finally meet Bob's girlfriend, Deb. She brought along some delicious pumpkin and cream cheese rolls-- definitely a hit.

Bob brought along his sing-star, so everyone had a chance to unleash their inner karaoke beast.

Good times.

I have to admit the Packer game was exciting... and I'm about as sorry an excuse for a football fan as you can come up with. Still, when you watch a game with true fans (like Jim), it's hard not to get caught up in the excitement.

As for the meal... delicious! Mark's roasting of the turkey was masterfull, and all the old stand-bys of Thanksgiving were present but kicked up a notch... mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, pie. You name it, we had it.

At the end of the night, when everyone was well-fed and starting to think about where best to have their post-turkey nap (aka food coma), we all went around the room and said what we are thankful for.

Dad perhaps summed it up best in saying that just being together under one roof with so many loved ones is in itself an overwhelming and wonderful thing.

We all came up with different declarations of gratitude. But I think all shared a simple appreciation for the affection and camaraderie present that night. Just the simple loving acceptance of one another that seemed in the air.

Sure, there was teasing. And noise. And disorder.

There were even car keys in the cat water.

But there was a general feeling of good fortune...

And now I'm going to interrupt myself here. I'm getting philosophical again, and I still have two more pictures to post (and not much time to do it!).

On Thanksgiving day itself, here in Colfax, we had a second holiday meal with just the kids and a few neighbors.

Jonathan wasn't with us because he was in West Virginia with Susan and David (meeting Jay)However, the "big kids" seemed with us in spirit... or at least in carrots. Susan called us several times that day to get tips on how to make my "world-famous" candied carrots. I was pleased they like them enough to try to make them on their own for a holiday meal. And pleased to see Susan cooking for a holiday celebration on her own like that... she's growing up, ya know.

Anyway, the day after Thanksgiving my neighbors Candy and Johnne came over (they're sisters) to show me how to make home-made noodles. Emma was an active participant in the lesson. We were able to use some of that left-over turkey in a wonderful soup with those home-made noodles and some added veggies.

Then yesterday we went to Bud and Jane's to celebrate the kids' birthdays (Emma's was a few weeks ago, and Mikey's is coming up soon).

There were TWO birthday cakes waiting for us. Pretty nice, huh?

Well, I better get going. Sorry this week's blog is a bit of a rushed job, but this is the time of year when there's so much to do and not enough time to do it!

Hope all are well! Love, Lisa