Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving was absolutely wonderful around here.  The weather was glorious, the food was fattening, the dogs were cute, the couch was comfortable.  I had the whole week off (!), and enjoyed every single minute of it.  This past weekend, Chloe and I trekked down to Orlando to visit with our family down there where we ate and were spoiled rotten.

The week was happy and full and fun and relaxing and exactly what I needed.  Miss Chloe was an absolute delight, and I was very sad to see her go today.  Our human child will be very luck to have such a fun, cool aunt.

Here's what our holiday looked like, in way, way too many pictures.

 Well, hello there, 75 degrees!

Pumpkin crunch at Back in the Day.  I want to go to there.  For serious.

Torturing Reilly.

 Bought this table at a thrift store for $10.  Definitely thought it was smaller than it was.  The guys at the store didn't have any rope to tie it in my car, so they tied ties together.  So for $10, I got a table and four ties.  Score!

 Mmmmmmm, Vinnie's.  

 Chloe hearts crumbly pie crust ice cream topping.  She tried to take it with us to see Breaking Dawn.  Yes, we went to see Breaking Dawn.  In other news, I hate Bella.  And Edward and Jacob are both gross.

 Thanksgiving morning pumpkin pancakes with cranberries.

Angry Birds break.

 I'm obsessed with this cranberry apple casserole.

 Totes slept in that shirt and wore it all Thanksgiving day.  

 Dog plates.

Chloe became obsessed with making sweater skirts using old sweaters and this tutorial.

 Watching skydivers in Florida.

 Grandma and Darcey.

 "This is how the queen waves."

Chloe also became obsessed with marshmallowing.  After we made a batch of peppermint at Grandma's, I talked her through making another batch of vanilla once we got back home.  You know what I always say: "Give a girl a marshmallow, and you feed her for a day.  Teach a girl to marshmallow and you feed her for a lifetime."

So it's back to real life now.  Fortunately, I really like my real life (even if I do have to be at work at 7:00).  Also, fortunately, Christmas vacation starts on the 16th.  Fourteen school days and counting. . .

Love and Marriage: Grandpa B and Grandma Carol Edition

Well, our Thanksgiving has been absolutely wonderful, and I'm trying to soak up the last couple of hours of sister time (Chloe and Matt are currently discussing zombies and predicting who will bite it on tonight's episode of The Walking Dead).

I'll fill you in on more later (food galore! shopping! adventure!), but I just couldn't wait to show you the greatest thing that has ever been: Grandpa B on his new three-wheeled bicycle.

I can't wait to retire.

And I needed to share this gem.

[After dinner, with the kitchen full of dishes, Grandpa B walks to the dishwasher and opens it.]

Grandpa B: Um, Grandma, are these dishes clean or dirty?

Grandma Carol: Clean.

Grandpa B: Oh, shit.

[Closes dishwasher and walks away.]

Thanksgiving Recap

My, what a wonderful Thanksgiving we just had.  This year we decided to do a friends Thanksgiving, so we trekked up to Hugh and Cassie's house for the meal.  I was very excited about the trip because we hadn't seen Hugh since July, because I had hosted Thanksgiving for the last six years and was happy to have a break, and because Cassie is the best cook I know in real life.  This year--instead of hosting a bevy of family members--we were in charge of only two things: bringing booze and making pumpkin cheesecake ice cream.

And then I forgot to bring the ice cream maker.  Seriously.  It was the one thing that I was responsible for.  Fortunately, Cassie was making three desserts, so it's not like I ruined the only Thanksgiving dessert like my friend Rachel did that one time.

The visit was delightful.  We talked and laughed and ate, and then we talked and laughed and ate and drank.  And then we drank some more and talked more loudly. 

The meal was the best Thanksgiving meal I'd ever had, and Hugh and Cassie introduced us to my new favorite beverage, the French 75.  (a.k.a. "Danger Drink")

Here's how sublime the visit was--the dogs even got along (which was a first).  They were basically BFFs.

Fletcher and Mitchell protecting the world from joggers and mailmen.

We spent the next day remembering the amazing meal, talking cameras (Hugh has recommended to me a dream camera), eating leftovers, and taking each others' Christmas card photo pictures (What a great time for me to get some kind of poison ivy rash ON MY FACE!  I will be sporting a hat in our pictures.)

Here are way more pictures from the visit than you probably want to see.

Gratitude

You know what I'm thankful for?

1. Thanksgiving break.  Now that's meta.
2. Dogs.  I really can't say enough about how cute they are.
3. Matt.  I really can't say enough about how awesome he is. 
4. Friends.  Oh man, I've got some good ones.  I don't have all that many, mostly because I kind of hate most people, but the ones I do have are dynamite.
5. Family.  Well, some of them, at least.  (Not the cousin who stabbed a cop with a broken beer bottle--or the serial killer cousin--or--shoot!--I was supposed to save that stuff for the book!)
6. Books.  I don't read enough of them, but boy are they fantastic. 
7. Food.  Duh. 
8. Wine.  Double duh. 
9. Freedom.  And the right to vote.  Duh.
10. The internet.  I am an addict.
11. My mother and father-in-law.  I couldn't have asked for better ones.
12. Having a job.  Yeah, even though, on occasion, it might make me want to pull out my own hair and scream and cry in a corner--I know I'm fortunate to have one.  And, you know, teenagers can be pretty funny sometimes.
13. Down comforters.  Ahhh. . .heaven.
14. Sunglasses.  How did people in olden times even live without these?  They must've had really bad wrinkles!
15. TV.  And DVR.  I LOVE TV and I don't care who knows it!  I love good TV and I love crappy TV and I love watching the news and I love watching re-runs of Roseanne and The Golden Girls.  Judge away. 
16. Teachers (specifically, my old ones).  It's on my worst days at work that I realize just how awesome they were and are.
17. Burt's Bees.
18. Martha Stewart.  See #4.
19. Cell phones.  So what if I get brain cancer? 
20. Friends.  Oh how I long to know what's come of my friend Ross.

What's at the top of your list?

Gonna Have Some Fun, Show You How It's Done. . .

I was going to title this post "Happy Friday" or "TGIF" or something like that, but last week I did a "Happy Friday" post and Matt said that was a lame name and I was all "Whatev!" and then he just rolled his eyes at me and shook his head shrugged his shoulders in that way that lets me know that he may or may not be second guessing his decision to marry someone who says things like "Whatev!"

Last Friday was a very happy Friday, and this one is, too.  Here's why today is awesome.

1. I went to bed super early last night (11:00) without doing several of the items on my to-do list, and I don't even care.  I mean, if I really want to walk through the house without my feet turning black, I can just wear flip-flops.  And I'd rather be well-rested than clean anyway.
2. I am wearing my favorite black sweater.
3. My hair has been really cooperative today.
4. I read about this awesome owl calendar generator.  I kind of want to make one for everyone I know.
5. Every one of my eleventh graders that took the graduation writing test passed!  Today's class was fun (but not terribly productive, what with all of the whooping and hollering).  Even more fun was the game I played with each of them as I passed back the scores, looking sad and disheartened, telling them that I hated to have to be the one to tell them this, letting out long, sad sighs.  They'd be all, "I failed?" and I'd be all "Well, look at the score."  And then they would, and they'd jump and scream.  It was a good day to be a teacher.
6. Found a recipe for Butterbeer.  Does anyone know where I can find butter extract?
7. As of 10:28 this morning, Iris and Opal have a new sister! (Whose name has yet to be determined)
8. Only two more school days until Thanksgivpalooza.  Thanklicious.  Thankseat-a-thon.  I'm pumped.  Time to do some stretching.  (Let me explain to you how the human body works.) 
9. Matt just brought me a bean burrito from Taco Bell.
10. There's a box of wine in the refrigerator.

This and That

1. Getting super pumped about Thanksgiving.  We're headed to the White Hot Household for the feast and festivities.  Check out the menu that Cassie has planned.  But let me warn you first: you will be jealous.  (Only six more school days until Thanksgiving fun!)

2. My friend wanted me to take her Nikon D40 and figure out how to use it so that I can show her how to use it.  Uh, okay!  So I have in my possession a fancy camera, and a crazy lens baby, and I've been doing some experimenting.   Do you think she'll notice if I accidentally forget to return it?  What if I return to her a hunk of chocolate that's shaped like a camera?

Clearly, I have a lot of learning to do.

3.  I can't wait to finish watching It's Complicated on HBO.  I was watching it the other night, but movie narcolepsy set in and I didn't finish.  If I had to have an ex-husband, I would love nothing more than for him to be Alec Baldwin.  Matt said that he wouldn't like that because Alec Baldwin is so manly and he would be intimidating.  I guess it's good that I don't have an ex-husband. 

4.  Yesterday I went with my friend to the Flannery O'Connor Childhood Home to listen to a lecture about the origins of Southern cookin'.  It was pretty cool, and I learned a lot.  One of the most interesting parts, to me, was the part where the lecturer, Tim Rutherford, explained how the Moon Pie came to be.  Apparently, it was a last-ditch effort of the Chattanooga Cracker Company to remain relevant, and the pies were shaped to fit into miners' lunchboxes perfectly.  Plus, he brought some Moon Pies to share with us.  Would you believe that I'd never had one?  Also, would you believe that I'd never, in my seven years of living in Savannah, been to Flannery's old house?  I've been missing out!

5.  Joy had her baby!

6.  Target's Christmas stuff this year is wanting.  But I did find these cute little ornaments that look like they're handmade even though I'm sure they're not. 

7.  My fantasy football team, the East Dillon Lions, is in a 4-way tie for first place!  Last night I beat Cris's team, which was formerly in first place all by itself.  I think that the reason that I won was because of the coaching skills of the handsome Eric Taylor.  I also won, I believe, because I have lions and she has gorillaz (yes, with a z), and apparently lions are more ferocious.  Also, because I have a husband who takes care of all of that fantasy football stuff for me and lets me take all of the credit.  Of course, I should be keeping my mouth shut, because last time I bragged about my team, I lost two games in a row.  Roar!

8.  I've been trying to be a more healthy eater, in theory at least.  Matt just suggested traveling to Mexico for margaritas and a burrito especial.  And when someone recommends margaritas and burritos, you never say no.  At least I don't.

Gratitude

I don't have to talk to a teenager again until Monday. 

Thank you, veterans.