Thinking About Thanksgiving

As I mentioned in my last post, I need to think about Thanksgiving. It will be a busy time for me as my Mother will be here for 2 weeks. That's in addition to having my Mother-in-law, and of course, my daughter. So I think this will be the last post until December.

A friend did a meme about Thanksgiving and it seems appropriate for here since I have nothing to mention regarding knitting.

I hope everyone's Thanksgiving is as special as our's will be.

1. Which do you like better: Cooking at your house, or going elsewhere?
While I prefer cooking at my house, visiting family/friends is good also.

2. Do you buy a fresh or frozen bird?
Typically frozen turkey breast. Any other part is wasted in our house.

3. What kind of stuffing?
I'm from the south. Cornbread dressing with loads of sage. ;)

4. Sweet potato or pumpkin pie?
Normally neither. We always do a sweet potato dish that doesn't include crust. However, my daughter has discovered a love of pumpkin pies so I am making one. My Mother, however, wants sweet potato pie and she can taste the difference in the two. I'll probably buy one since I have never made one before - or Mom has to coach me. :)

5. Do you believe that turkey leftovers are a curse, or the point of the whole thing?
That's the point!! After all that work, there should be something left to show for it. haha

6. Which side dish would provoke a riot if you left it off the menu?
Green beans. I have no idea why that is a tradition for my husband's family but he makes a point of mentioning it if I forget to do them. And deviled eggs. That's a must have for him too.

7. Do you save the carcass to make soup or stock?
I don't buy the whole turkey so no carcass.

8. What do you wish you had that would make preparing Thanksgiving dinner easier?
Talent for cooking! That would make it much easier. I mean, I'm a fine cook but I have no "sixth sense" for it. Luckily I have a husband who does and can "fix" anything I mess up. :)

9. Do you get up at the crack of dawn to have dinner ready in the early afternoon, or do you eat at your normal dinner hour?
I do not like "crack of dawn" for anything! But I do if I have to. Normally I try to get some of the work started the night before. But I do like having dinner ready early afternoon that way there's plenty of time for a 2nd helping before bed.

10. If you go to somebody else's house, what's your favorite dish to bring?
In the past, I have made cheese cakes to take to friend's house in California. I know, not traditional. But we're the folks who have been known to BBQ ribs for Thanksgiving so our tradition changes year-to-year. haha

11. What do you wish one of your guests wouldn't bring to your house?
That darn green bean casserole. It's been overdone IMO.

12. Does your usual mix of guests result in drama, or is it a group you're happy to see?
When either my or my husband's family gets together, there drama of some sort. Sad really. But this year, it should be Mothers only. Small and intimate gathering of elderly where the worse problem should be lack of hearing aids. haha

13. What's your absolute favorite thing on the menu?
Pecan pie! I don't care if we're having sweet potato and pumpkin....I want pecan pie!! And I'm the chief cook....so there.

14. What are you thankful for this year?
This year, I will count all my blessings from 2009 - looking on the bright side and not necessarily in order...

• Husband and daughter top my list of blessings always.
  
• No surgery was needed for my broken ankle
• Our house survived the April wildfire
• Mother-in-law is healthier now that she is in assisted living
• I met the deadline for my next publication
• We've reconnected with extended family now that we live closer
• My Mother is coming to stay with us for two weeks during Thanksgiving
• Many things I haven't thought of yet.
  

I am especially grateful to all the men and women who serve our Country. They have been on my mind a great deal with the news of Ft Hood shootings. Being a veteran, I know how stressful it is to serve overseas but that was during peace times. I can't imagine the stress of serving during war/conflict. Thank you.

Norman Rockwell

The Native American in me...

....loves being close to nature. That's one reason why we love living outside of metropolitan areas. (I'm a descendant of Pawnee Tribe on my maternal Grandfather side).

In our little area, we see deer and hear hawks daily. Today I snapped a photo of a hawk in the woods out the backyard area.

I *believe* he's a red tailed hawk. Beautiful and majestic.

We pay homage to the Native American background in our art work also. A lithograph of Frank McCarthy's "Big Medicine" is one in our collection.

About 4 years ago, I read about buffalo yarn and knew I wanted to give it a try. It's not an easily found yarn, nor is the price conducive to stashing it away. So when Buffalo Gold had a call for test knitters, I jumped at it. Yeah, I know....I am my worse enemy when it comes to taking on too much. But I really wanted to knit with this yarn (probably the ancestry thing again). Here it is before winding into a ball.


It's worth every penny if you can get your hands on it. I never imagined that bison (buffalo) hair could be turned into this soft yarn.

And speaking of Native Americans...I had a reality check yesterday. Thanksgiving is 2 weeks away. While I'm happy to see 2009 coming to a close (it's been a tough year), I'm amazed at how fast it's leaving!

Back to finishing up the Leisure Arts publication I'm doing. Both it and the test knit should be finished this week. Then I need to think about holidays. How 'bout you?

Monster's bash

Last week was a week of Halloween parties. The first on Tuesday night where bowlers are invited to bowl in costume. And even though bowling in costume isn't easy, I managed one game of 191. Angela got tired of trying to bowl with her hat on...

...so finished the 3 games sans hat. Candy and cookies were had by all (nice little sugar high hehe)

Then there was the Goodwill party which was a blast! Friends, pizza...

..and dancing. Her job coach did the twist with her. Fun to watch.

Hope your trick or treat was a blast too.

Say hello to my little friend

*title is a quote from Scarface*




Too much weight gain the past year. Probably stress. Regardless of the reason, I must do something to get myself moving again!

Because of the ankle issue, I need low impact exercise. Recumbent exercise bike seemed to be the most convenient choice of low impact exercise. A little research brought this one to the top of the affordable heap. It has the card slot for iFit workout cards. But most importantly, my short legs will comfortably reach the petals (5'1" ya know!?) Plus I believe I'll be able to KNIT while exercising which is a plus.

It's a done deal. Now I just need to stay motivated and away from the chocolate.

Knitting update - sample knit for Knit Picks finished and ready to ship tomorrow. Book re-knits 1/3 done.

Absent blogger

Absent from Twitter too. I've been super busy but happily it's a good busy!

Part of the time, I've worked on the family "to-do" list.

We've managed to get the swimming pool winterized and covered...

...while Elvis watched.


We also managed to settle my 86 yo mother-in-law into her assisted living apartment, cleaned out her house in Dallas, and are in the process of selling the property.

Plus we finally found what seems to be the right program for our daughter (21 yo with disabilities) so that she has something outside of family...her "niche" so-to-speak. Because everyone needs to have something that promotes self-worth - especially folks with disabilities.

Thankfully it appears we found it! I'm thrilled to say that my daughter has decided to participate in a sheltered workshop at Goodwill.


She works two days a week. Works! She started training last week. Job coach(s) have said she is doing fine. She says she loves it. A very important item on "to-do" list done!

The other busy stuff has been knitting. On the needles, I'm doing a sample knit for Knit Picks. Getting ready to block and happy to have it that far. On the loom, I'm re-knitting a couple of my designs for an up-coming loom knit book in colors preferred by the publisher.

Of course, I'm already making plans for what I want to work on after the deadlines are met. I think I'll plan it around this yarn...
...which is already in my stash. See? I am still sticking with that yarn diet!

Wednesday Wisdom

No chaos, no creation. Evidence: the kitchen at mealtime.
Mason Cooley

Looking around my house, I must be very creative.

Knit Purl Gurl WEBS Giveaway

I love my bamboo knitting needles. I started buying them 20 plus years ago and am still knitting with them...except for 1 poor needle that Elvis "borrowed" for a chew toy (he was thoroughly yelled at for that)

Anyway, Webs Yarn Store has interchangeable bamboo circs for sale. AND Knit Purl Gurl is giving us a chance to win a set.

In case you missed the link above...here it is again. Enter...go ahead, I dare you.