A Thanksgiving Recap

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend! The Family came to my house for dinner on Thursday and on Friday I did a little bit of shopping, mostly at Joann Fabric's. Most of The Son's presents are already purchased on-line so we're ahead of the game for holiday shopping.

I have a few pictures from our day...

My centerpiece that I threw together. We never keep it on the table when we're eating anyway but I did think it came out pretty cute, especially considering that most of the "fruit" was purchased at the GoodWill for $1!

The Son helped bake some brownies... did you know that you can lighten up any recipe by removing 1/2 of the oil and adding something else in it's place? I used baby food prunes for half the oil and saved 480 calories in the recipe... couldn't even tell! If I had had "egg beaters" I would have used those and saved about 100 more calories but I didn't so we just used regular eggs.

The Husband did a great job with the turkey... we brined it for three days and used a recipe from my favorite, "Eating Well" magazine. It was very good and I'm not a big fan of turkey.

My (fairly) healthy plate... (yes, I did have seconds of a few things)

The kids getting ready to eat...

Cute!

After dinner while the adults sat and chatted, the kids decided to play Hide and seek. The Niece hid here in the corner which we all thought wasn't much of a hiding place but the most hilarious part was that The Son could not find her! He was right by her a couple times and still didn't see her. I think he's in training to be a husband... you know they can't find anything, even if it's right in front of their eyes!

The Son and The Baby Niece... so sweet!

So, it irritates me, but somehow, I didn't get any pictures of the adults at this event. I don't know what I was thinking! I think I was too busy worrying about dinner and dessert and making this...
my homemade from scratch apple crumb pie. It was worth every high-fat, calorie-loaded bite and Boy, oh Boy was it good. I'll let you know how the scale likes me this Thursday...


And on that note... I'll say goodbye for now! I'm off to the gym after I put The Son on the bus and then I have lots and lots of things to do this week, I got a little crazy and decided I NEEDED to make myself an apron so I've been working on that, I also have to put together a basket for The Son's school fundraiser and I must start thinking about decorating for the holidays, good times people... good times...

Have a great Monday!

OH! I almost forgot! The Niece and Ziggy got along GREAT! She was so brave and he was SO good. There were moments when they even were alone and close together, I was so happy and proud of both of them! We were not able to get a picture of them together however... maybe next year!

Battling the winter blahs...

I don't usually talk about things that upset me on my blog because I like it to be positive and I like it to be the place where I can try to put my best thoughts forward, but I've had some developments in my life in the past couple days that truly stress and sadden me. If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know I lost my mom to brain cancer a little over a year ago. It's been really hard to deal with and just makes every other stress in life magnified. I'm the kind of person who deals with stress by avoiding it, not talking about things that stress me out and not talking TO people who ask too many questions about the things that stress me out. I'm not saying this is the right way to be, it's probably not, but at this point in my life, I know if I don't tackle little stresses this way, I honestly won't get through the day. There'd be a big nervous breakdown in my future and I'm trying to avoid that since The Husband and The Son need me. I really don't like to talk finances on my blog but just so you understand, we still have two mortgages, the City House is still not ready to put on the market and we really need to get rid of it... I probably don't need to say much more, huh?

So... in an effort to be positive, I am going to make a list of some of the wonderful things I DO have in my life...the things that keep me going and keep me from sinking into an abyss of depression and stress.

Obviously, the biggest things would be:

1. The Husband: I'm so fortunate to have a husband who treats me so well, who loves me and supports me even though there are times when we make each other crazy! Watching him be a Daddy to The Son is one of the biggest joys in my day. He's a good man and I'm a lucky girl.

2. The Son: The biggest joy in my life. It's been really difficult the past couple weeks, seeing him grow up so quickly without my mom around. His fifth birthday was SO bittersweet, not because he's aging but because he doesn't have her around, she'd think he was hilarious and I know the two of the would be having the best times together. I try to remember the special things she did for my Sister and I as kids and the way that she raised us and I've been trying to pass that on to The Son. I think he's turning into a great kid so The Husband and I must be doing something right.

I'm also thankful for:

3. My Family and friends: I know how much my family loves me and it always keeps me going. The scrapbooking weekend I just spent with my sister was SO much fun and was one of the most relaxing times I've had in a long while. I knew The Son was being taken care of by The Husband and MIL and that made it easy for me to have fun. My Dad and I don't talk as much as we probably should but there's never any doubt in my mind that he loves me and for that I am grateful. My niece with all her cuteness keeps me laughing AND I'm getting a new niece soon to spoil and love...what could be better than that?

4. My dogs: Sure they have their moments that I'm not so thankful for but usually, they know just when I need a snuggle or a "press down" or some general goofiness to make me smile. My newest pup Ziggy is such a joy, I just love the big oaf. (I have to let you know he just peed on the couch because he doesn't like the snow/ice outside and I'm still saying I love him so that should tell you something, I guess I should be thankful for microfiber and it's ease of cleaning too...)

5. My message board girl friends: These are girls I've "known" now for over five years. I met them all when we were pregnant with our January 2004 children. Lots of changes have happened over the years, some good and some bad but I know that the girls who hang in there and remain my friends are people I'll always be friends with. I hope to get to meet all of them in person someday.

6. Facebook: I've written about it before but this crazy facebook thing has gotten me back in touch with numerous friends from the past, "kids" I did high school plays with, The Peter Pan to my Wendy, sorority sisters who I thought were lost forever and even an old friend from church choir many, many years ago. It's a really cool thing to reconnect and I'm enjoying it immensely.

7. Our YMCA: I really feel at home there. I enjoy working there, working out there and the general family atmosphere that I get when I go there. I was also lucky enough to meet two really good friends through the Y. I'm lucky to have them.

I guess that's enough for now, when I think about it, I could probably list even more...I'm sure it's not the most exciting post for you to read but I do feel a little bit better, I have a lot to keep me going even though at times it's hard to remember that.

Have a great day everyone!