Is it worth it?

I was reading this story on the AOL welcoming page and it just sickened me. Is a new television or the latest game system really worth a human life? These people were acting like barbarians and it bothers me on a multitude of levels that this actually happened. Thus why I stay home on Black Friday!

There is not one single solitary "thing" on this earth that would cause me to stand outside a Walmart store and then rush the doors when they opened. Nothing! It grieves me that there are people who will do that.

Oh, it will take a while for my mind to fully accept this.

Thanksgiving

Cornucopia

We had a nice Thanksgiving. We had the four of us and my parents here. I ended up taking a plate of food to my brother in the evening since he had to work. He works the night shift at the hospital as a Respiratory Therapist.

Since our kitchen is still a work in progress our menu wasn't as big as it has been in years past. But, we still had an abundant amount of food.

I roasted a turkey in my new oven. I used the convection roast feature and it produced a moist, golden brown turkey that could have graced any magazine cover. ;0) We had oyster stuffing, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, green bean bundles, mashed potatoes, cooked carrots, and homemade rolls. For dessert we had pumpkin pie, chocolate pie, chocolate mint pie, and a sugar free lemon pie for my mom who is diabetic. Also for my mom we used splenda brand brown sugar for the green bundles.

All in all it was a nice day spent with my parents. Once they left I took food to my brother and visited him for about an hour or so before he went to work. My oldest daughter and I went. We took our toy poodle to meet his new doberman puppy! His name is Titan and he is soooo cute! His coat is as smooth as silk. He is very nippy, though. My brother will have to break that habit before he gets too much bigger! :0) Gabbie (our poodle) established her dominance right away by barking and backing the puppy into a corner! We allowed her to do that so he will not bully her or possibly hurt her when he is a grown doberman! Once they established who was who and who was in charge (Gabbie ;0)) they played with each other. There's just something relaxing about watching dogs romp around and play together.

After we got home from my brothers house we were going to watch Fred Clause. We put it in and started it, but everyone was too exhausted to watch it. Dh always gets up on Black Friday and heads out to hunt all the bargains. Me? No thanks. I stay in bed! LOL

Youngest daughter had to get up at 3:30 to be at work by 5:30! She is working at Bath and Body Works in the mall. I feel bad for her trying to fight all that traffic to get out of the mall when she gets off at 3:00!

My mother-in-law had to have emergency open heart surgery on Wednesday. It was really a shock that they did a major surgery like that the day before Thanksgiving. It wasn't a scheduled operation. The doctor said if they hadn't found her blockages and she had a heart attack she would have surely died. By the time any lifesaving measures were taken, it would have been too late! Praise the Lord they found out!

We will be leaving on Sunday to go to Maine to see her. It's a 15 plus hour drive when the traffic isn't bad. I'm hoping it's not longer since we are traveling on a holiday weekend.

Here in a bit I will be starting clean up from yesterday and maybe putting out a few Christmas things before we leave on Sunday. I have laundry to do and packing to start. I keep waiting for a few days where we can let down and relax, but it isn't happening anytime soon! Probably not until after Christmas now!

I hope you all had a special time with your families yesterday. I also hope you will enjoy the upcoming CHRISTmas season. Don't get so bogged down with the commercialism that you forget what Christmas is really about. Don't get so busy that you forget to enjoy your family. Don't miss the forest for the trees! :0)
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Some Thanksgiving Recipes

Sweet Potato Casserole

• 4 or 5 sweet potatoes baked and peeled
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 to 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• nutmeg

Topping

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup butter

Mash sweet potatoes and add brown sugar, milk, eggs, and nutmeg. Mix well and put into a casserole. For topping mix all ingredients together with a fork and sprinkle on top of casserole. Bake in a 400 degree over for 25 minutes or until topping is bubbly. You can also add nuts to the topping.

Oyster Stuffing

• 1 container of oysters (size depends on how much stuffing you are making)
• 1 Bag of seasoned stuffing bread crumbs
• 2 cans of chicken broth (or homemade if you have it)
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 or 3 ribs of celery chopped

Saute onion and celery until translucent. Mix oysters (with juice), bread crumbs, broth, onions and celery and place into a buttered casserole dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Green Bean Bundles

• 3 cans of whole green beans
• 1 pound package of bacon
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Cut bacon in half and wrap bacon around 5 or 6 green beans, securing with a tooth pick. Place bundles in a casserole or baking dish. Melt butter and add brown sugar and garlic. Cook until thick and bubbly. Pour brown sugar mixture over green bean bundles. Bake in 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until bacon is done.

God working through my dreams?

I've always been one to have strange dreams. And when I say strange, I mean it! LOL I even went through a period of time where I just dreaded going to sleep because I knew that I would dream. I just wanted some peaceful, dream-free sleep!

Last night I had the strangest dream! I dreamed I was in an unknown place with some friends. There were friends that I used to work with and students that I've had. In my dream there was also a boy I went to school with who passed away several years ago. (I've been out of school for 22 years!)

Well, we were at a ball game or something? I can't really remember. Anyway, someone kept blowing a whistle. It was so annoying and it was driving me crazy. All through my dream I just kept wanting this whistle to stop blowing. Finally, I knew who was blowing the whistle and I made it through a maze of corridors and rooms to find a girl blowing the whistle. I don't know who the girl was.

I asked her to stop blowing the whistle and she said, "No!" I told her she didn't have to stop blowing it completely, but could she stop blowing it so much? Again, she said, "No!" Then, she reached out and grabbed me! We struggled for a while and, in my dream, I was able to restrain her.

In my dream I was thinking, "I showed her! She thought she was going to get me, but I overpowered her. I'm holding her and she can't get away." Then, it hit me (I'm still dreaming) as long as I'm having to hold on to her to keep her from hurting me, then I don't have her, she has me.

Crazy, huh?

After I woke up this morning I thought of our worry and problems being much like "the girl" in my dream. As long as we hold on to worry, especially over things that we can't control, then we aren't controlling the situation, but rather, it's controlling us.

I couldn't resist!

I had to put up just a couple of pictures. We've progressed even further since these were taken. It's coming together!

Is it too early for bed?

It's 6:11 pm.

I love fall and winter. Really, I do. But, this business of getting dark at 5:15 is killing me! I'm pretty sure I shouldn't be ready for bed at 6:00! But, let's face it, I'm getting older and when it's dark out I'm ready for bed! LOL

I went through a spell a while back where I was up at the crack of dawn, stayed up all day and couldn't fall asleep at night. That was just a few weeks ago. Now... I drag myself out of bed at 6:00 am, drown myself in coffee, if it's a work day I go to work, if not I try to get a few things done around here. Then at 6:00 pm I'm ready for bed!

Being in the 20's and 30's for temps doesn't help. Tomorrow it isn't supposed to get out of the 20's! What?!!??

Plan for tomorrow:

• Get up (yeah, I have to plan that! LOL)
• Get coffee
• Do my devotions
• Get to work (try to be quick at work tomorrow so I can get home early)
• Do some work in the kitchen (2nd coat of primer and maybe start painting)
• Try to get some work done in the bathroom (did I mention the insanity of having 2 projects going? We're remodeling the kitchen and removing wallpaper and painting in the bathroom)
• Hopefully I'll have a lot accomplished early enough to be in bed early with my book!

I hope you all are finding ways to stay warm! I recommend a nice cozy blanket, a hot drink, and a good book!

P.S. I'm hoping to put some recent pictures of my kitchen on my blog soon! The difference is amazing!

Snow overnight!

We got a little snow overnight! It's not too much, maybe an inch or two, but it's still snow! LOL It's been a while since we've had snow this early in the season.

I would love to see a big snow this year! Maybe 2 or 3 feet! Oh, if you live where you get lots of snow don't be angry with me for saying that! ;0)

I would like to see a huge snow and be able to hunker down with my family for a few days. The kind of snow that keeps people in their homes snuggled up with their families. The kind of snow that would close the dentist office that my daughter works in. One where we could all be home and not have the need to go anywhere.

I would bake some cookies and make some comfort food. Maybe a beef stew with some homemade bread to go with it. The smell of baking bread on a cold day is just therapeutic!

We would have candles lit. A soothing scent. Maybe even turn on a kerosene lantern. Just because I like them. ;0) The house would be all cozy.

After making a delicious meal and getting the kitchen all sparkly clean I would get on the couch with my favorite blanket and a good book. My daughters, who love to read also, would be right there with me. Occasionally something would pop into our minds that we want to talk about. A story about something that happened at church or work. Maybe a piece of news we didn't know. "Did you know that _________ is going to have a baby?" That would spark a few minutes of chit-chat before we settled back down into our books.

My husband would be downstairs playing with the wood stove. Or outside chopping wood. He likes to "tinker" on snow days. Doing a bit of this or a bit of that. Keeping watch over the fire and making sure there's plenty of wood to keep the stove running. He may be in the basement working on a project that's been forgotten, or he's been unable to attend because of time.

Every now and then he would come into the living room and hear us talking and ask what we're talking about. We would fill him in on the story. A conversation would ensue discussing how so and so is related or how they know each other.

In the evening we would settle down for a good movie. My oldest daughter, who is still reading, would interrupt the movie every now and then and ask what's going on because she's not paying attention. Her sister, who is reading and watching the movie, will say, "Pay attention!" LOL

Snow days are slow and relaxing. The pace isn't rushed and hectic. There's no urgency, no time table. We just putter and enjoy the day.

Oh, please let us get some snow this year! LOL

Stop saying that!!

I don't normally talk about controversial things on this blog, but I have to say something.

There is no such thing as a pregnant man!!

I've seen this all over the news today. "Pregnant man expecting again" UGH!!

If you are born with ovaries and a uterus then you are a WOMAN!! This woman who is trying to change her God given gender is making a mockery of motherhood. She is not a man, she is a woman trying to be a man, but she is still a woman!

Ok, I feel better now!

Still struggling with schedules

I've always been a "fly by the seat of my pants" kind of person. I've tried to fight it, wasting sheets and sheets of paper writing lists and schedules that never come to fruition. Oh, I want them to. It's my plan for them to work. They just never do.

Recently I started a very part-time job. I'm a Hearing Screener for newborns at the hospital. I work about 3 or so hours a day and 3 days a week. It's a very nice job. The pay is good, the benefits are good (I'm talking sweet baby benefits, not insurance! LOL), and the hours are wonderful. I still feel like I'm able to put the time into my home that I need to while still getting out a little and earning a little extra money. The extra money definitely isn't a bad thing in this economy!

My problem is, and always has been, all the hours in a day I seem to waste away. I have got to find a schedule that works for me. I used to think as long as I got everything done it didn't matter if I washed on Monday, cleaned on Tuesday, cooked on Wednesday, etc. And, if I got everything finished, it wouldn't matter. The problem is I don't get everything done.

I've researched blog after blog and web site after web site trying to find a schedule that looks appealing. I'm still looking. ;-)

I know for sure I need a schedule. Because of my drift with the wind personality I do much better when I have a definite plan for the day. Some members in my household have even accused me of being controlling! The shock! LOL

So, I know I don't have a thousand followers here, but thanks to Sitemeter I do know I have a few followers! ;-) If you read here and you have a schedule that works (or at least a plan), please share it!

If I get any closer to an epiphany I'll be sure to share! LOL

Can it be possible?

Our counter tops are supposed to be installed on Wednesday. Hubby is also working on getting the top cabinets installed! I think I'm beginning to see the end of the tunnel! YAY!! This has been a very long process and I'll be so happy to have it over with! It's not easy to live without a kitchen, although we've managed!

I'm currently thinking about Thanksgiving and what I'll prepare for our dinner that day. My menu usually doesn't change too much, but I'd like to try something new this year.

My menu generally looks something like this:

• Turkey
• Stuffing
• Mashed potatoes
• Glazed carrots
• Green beans
• Sweet potatoes (sometimes baked, boiled, candied, or made into casserole)
• Corn
• Deviled eggs
• Homemade yeast rolls
• Pumpkin Pie (although, last year on my quest for something different I made a pumpkin cheese cake! YUM!)
• Chocolate pie
• Some kind of sugar free dessert for my mom who is diabetic.

If my family arrives well before dinner I will sometimes have an appetizer.

What are your Thanksgiving favorites? Do you have that one special recipe that you make year after year?