Week of Thanksgiving: You!

Stinky sledding on Thanksgiving. Perfect afternoon.

I'm grateful for you all! Thank you for reading my blog. I sometimes worry about putting stuff out into the void, but I love knowing that people are reading. Thank you for reading and commenting, even when I can't always respond right away- the perils of blogging with a new baby on my lap. You all boost me up!

Week of Thanksgiving: The List

Here's what was on our Gratitude Tree this year:

* Naptime * Being Together * Stinky * to b e me * Tealah * Mommy * Daddy * Excedrin * Bubba * Rotten * PreSchool * hand-me-downs * our house * baloons * sugar * Santa Claus * Warm Blankets * having a job * kisses * a high concentration of awesome * Movie Days * candy * toys * WBH * electricity * aunts and uncles * family * my birthday * aunt heather * home * bedtime * cousins * halloween *

Week of Thanksgiving: Friends

I mentioned the friends we wer so grateful for, and just to mention a few are Tealah (above), whom we jokingly call my sisterwife (seriously joking here, folks. We don't do that anymore and haven't for a long, long time). I love this girl like she was my sister- I'd break knees for her. Since moving here, we've met James and Elizabeth, some of our very favorite people at church. We're so grateful for their friendship! Also, Kevin and Thalia, the next door neighbors we're SO glad to have and call friends- the kind that will forgive your child for almost setting their house on fire! We're also thankful for having families that we can also call friends. This definitely tops my gratitude list this year.

Week of Thanksgiving: Home Sweet Home

Especially in our Arctic Blast this year, I'm grateful for our home. All the work WBH has done on it has been incredible, too, and it has been so exciting to see what it's becoming from what it was when we bought it.

More than the phyisical home itself, I'm grateful for the feelings we have when we're there. I'm glad it is a welcoming, comfortable place for family and friends, and I'm grateful for all the fun times we have while at home.

We wanted badly to buy a home much earlier than we did- we tried three times to buy, but things were never right until this one. Now, with the friends we have, the congregation we attend, and the other community connections, we know we're exactly where we're meant to be.

Week of Thanksgiving: This Guy

WBH is one of my life's biggest blessings. He's an incredible husband, but watching him as a father makes me love him even more.

And thanks to snowy, icy weather, he's home with us today.

Week of Thanksgiving: Brothers

When we went in for the mid-pregnancy ultrasound, I was sure that our baby was a girl. I would have put money on it. When the ultrasound tech told me there was no doubt, this was another boy, I was shocked for a moment, and then I thought "brothers!" Then I cried like a baby, but good tears. I love the way that Stinky looks out for his little brother. I love that Rotten laughs and smiles at him in a different way than he does for anyone else. It's almost conspiritorial, and I know it should scare me. I'll worry when Rotten is mobile.

Week of Thanksgiving: Snowy Day!

We got the first pre-thanksgiving snow here in a long, long time. It was pretty light when I took these pictures, but Stinky loved running outside.

"Oh no! NoNuts is peeing on my snowflakes!" (Hooray for cropping, right?)

The rest of us are dealing with a cold, so we've spent a lot of the day snuggled under blankets, keeping warm. WBH is crossing his fingers for a 2 hour delay for school tomorrow- then it doesn't require an extra day, but he still can sleep in.

Week of Thanksgiving

To help Stinky learn about gratitude, he and I made a gratitude tree. We explained that when you're grateful for something, it means a lot to you and you're happy that you have it. Since then, he's drawn pictures on the tags and I've written what it was on the back of the picture. It's been fun to see what he thinks up, and while most of the trees outside are almost bare thanks to windstorms, this one keeps filling up. Somedays he has added 6 tags at a time- all with different things. This is definitely a tradition we'll repeat.



Another tradition that will be repeated is a week of Thanksgiving on the blog. Later on today and for the rest of this week, I'll post something I'm grateful for. Hope you'll be back.

Week of Thanksgiving

There are so many things I'm grateful for that this blog could consist of just them. To name just a few more:

Family far and near, but especially I'm grateful to have all of Stinky's grandparents near. Thanksgiving where all we have to bring is Tupperware. My mother's dinner rolls. My Mother in Law's cheese and spinach dish. Company coming- both having the friends, and the motivation to clean their visits lead to. WBH doing much of that cleaning while I got to sleep in (Thanks, honey!). Working with the Young Women at church. Modern medicine. The icicle lights that WBH hung on our home. Stinky's Preschool. Craft stores. A beautiful sunny day in which to get a Christmas Tree. That the day after Thanksgiving means it's okay to play Christmas music in our home. My first Black Friday morning spent sleeping in a long time.

I hope you're surviving Black Friday, however you spend it!

Week of Thanksgiving

I'm so grateful for our home. It makes a difference knowing it's ours, that each month we are one-third of one percent closer to really owning it (here's to one percent!). We tried 3 times to begin the home-buying process before this, and each time we were that much closer, but still not there. It wasn't a smooth process, and there's a lot of work still to be done, but we love it. We love calling it home.

Week of Thanksgiving

Please forgive the picture quality- camera batteries are dead, and these are all from my cell.

How could I not be grateful for Stinky? He brings so much joy to our home. Lately, he loves dinosaurs, preschool, kisses, and singing "Suddenly Seymour" from Little Shop of Horrors.* We almost have Jingle Bells down and are working very hard on Silent Night.

And doing little things to make me laugh. Almost all day.

Hey, did you know it's National Tie One On Day? And by 'one,' they mean apron. I made this one for Carrie, my friend that I work with at church. I guess this is the apron of the month! It's based (very loosely) on the Mango Tango pattern from A is for Aprons. Hey, do you like my messy kitchen?

*We visited the drama classroom today with WBH, where the incredibly lifelike Audrey 2 puppet from both productions we've seen lives. He listens to the music, sings songs from the show, and has cast himself, the dog, and me in roles when we play. Yet seeing the plant that close to him, he literally trembled with fear. We felt a little bad.

(picture taken last winter)

I tend to gush about WBH a lot, but he earns the pseudonym every day. Even after a long day at work, yesterday he came home and cleaned up, then went out in the cold and rain to get his grumpy, gimpy wife the soda she was so desiring. His thoughtfulness amazes me - little things like notes in the snow and compliments out of the blue. He's such a great dad, I don't know that much makes me happier than watching him with Stinky. He's been so good to me- I am just the luckiest lady on earth!

Week of Thanksgiving

Resurrecting last year's week of Thanksgiving, I'd like to start by saying thank you for the kind and encouraging words on last week's post. Perspective can be a difficult thing to maintain, but knowing people care helps so much.

Also, I am so grateful for the laughter in our home, because there's a lot to laugh at with goofballs like us.
Even NoNuts gets into the act.

Week of Thanksgiving: Friday

My in-laws: We had such a fun Thanksgiving with them, the food was delicious, and Stinky was delighted to be with them. I love them, and the proof is that it was mostly their gift that got me up on black friday.

Surviving Black Friday
WBH letting me sleep inafter fighting with the crowds. Until 1:30. Love that man.

Week of Thanksgiving: Thursday

Our home: It isn't perfect, and it isn't ours, but it is home. I'm grateful for the time we've had to live here, the landlords with integrity, and the opportunity to attend church wuth a congregation we really, really like.

Roller Derby: This gave me an outlet and focus when I really needed it. I am so happy for the opportunity it gives me to exercise, let out some aggression, laugh, and have adults to talk to. I am grateful for the workout we got last night- now I feel like I can go into Thanksgiving guilt free.

Week of Thanksgiving: Wednesday

Today I am grateful that my son was exclaiming "Flicker!" and not what I thought he was shouting.

I think the folks who work on Handy Manny are screwing with our heads, moms. Creating a character named Flicker on a show aimed at an age group without the best enunciation? That's a little messed up. It will be funny, until toddlers run around saying "flicker" in public.

Then it might just be hilarious.

Week of Thanksgiving: Tuesday

Flannel Pajamas
Text Messaging
Knee Socks (it's a derby thing - plus, the extra layer of warmth is so awesome in our drafty house)
Baked Oatmeal- I find myself making a big batch early in the week and eating off of it all week long. Here's a great recipe for it.

2 c oats
2 2/3 c milk
1 1/3 c water
1tsp cinnamon (we've discovered Stinky has an allergic reaction to cinnamon, so I sub allspice)
dash nutmeg
1 1/3 c(at least, more is awesome) fruit, raisins, etc your choice
1/2 c brown sugar, maple syrup or honey (less is usually fine)
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a cooking dish. The recipe says to mix it all in a bowl- I just dump it all right into the baking dish- a deep 8x8 pan and stir it with a fork. Bake for 40 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

I love mix 'em and leave 'em recipes, so this is right up my alley. Right now I have some with peaches cooking in my oven. The oatmeal made this way is so lovely and creamy.

Week of Thanksgiving: Monday

-My husband. He is my best friend, my biggest fan, and he has the patience of Job when it comes to me. Last night, stressed, overwhelmed and not feeling well, he sent me upstairs to take a break with the bed,TV, and a little less noise. When I came back downstairs, he had picked up everything and was starting dinner. How I love that man of mine.

-Stinky. Like the pseudonym, suggests, and the stories here prove, he makes me crazy somedays. I wouldn't have him any other way, though. I love the slobbery kisses and the running hugs. I love the determined look in his eyes. He was so wanted, so prayed for, and I am so happy we have him.

-I'm grateful for the 5 pounds I lost when I threw the Halloween candy away. Yes, that's more of a brag then a gratitude, but TAKE THAT, trash talking mexican mall guys!