Thanksgiving Tornado

I would be lying to say my Thanksgiving day was uneventful. Maggie, a friend of mine, faced the gloomy prospect of spending Thanksgiving at home alone with her little girl because her husband had to work that day. Of course, my mother and I never like to see anyone alone for the holidays so we invited Maggie and Grace over.

Grace, aged 2, was very excited to come over. Why? The bunny rabbit. (Every time I'd watch Grace I would tell her about my old rabbit Dumpling.) The moment Grace walked in the door she laid eyes on bunny and did not leave her alone for the rest of the day. Every five minutes Grace asked to feed the rabbit, and Dumpling was a very happy fat bunny. In this picture you can see Dumpling eating treat #1 - celery. Four more treats followed.

Then Grace discovered David's chinchilla. She could not pronounce "chin-chilla" at the time, so the name "chilla" sufficed. The name stuck and we now call Mr. Chin "chilla" (amongst many other names such as "Mr. Diddles," "Dinky," and "Squirrelly Dude") .

Mom and I also pulled out my dusty, old dollhouse from the coat closet for Grace to play with. Tiny furniture, plates, lamps, blankets, trinkets, and headless dolls soon scattered the living room floor. It looked like a gruesome crime scene. I felt the need to pull out my notebook and interview witnesses.

"Ma'am, did you see the perpetrater of this crime? Do you know who murdered this family of dolls?"

(I was the one who beheaded the dolls -- none of my dolls kept their heads. When I was a little girl, almost every one of my dolls had either lost their heads or possessed a very unattractive "hair cut.")

While we adults enjoyed our dinner, Grace sat and watched Monsters Inc. ... at least for a while, but being the busy-body that she is, Grace decided that the rabbit needed some more company.

Then Maggie attempted to put Grace down for a nap in Mom's room. That did not work, as Grace was jumping on the bed and screaming with delight, then running up and down the hall chased by yours truly. (I'm not much help when it comes to nap time.)

I imagine that Maggie and Grace were tired when they left our house that night (I can say without a doubt everyone in our house was tired). It was fun and I would do it again.

Why I Don't Cook

It has been a long-standing tradition in my family to prepare most of our food the day before Thanksgiving. Mom enlisted my help today, though I dare say she is sorry she did.

My assignment: southern home-style grits. My mission: to successfully cook them.

Hurried and impatient, I quickly glanced over the recipe. "Preheat oven to 350 F." Simple enough. However simple, I forgot to check the oven for ONBT (obejcts not belonging there). "Boil grits in 6 cups of water." Oh look, there's already a pot boiling for me. Mom must have done it. How nice. I dumped the grits in and retrieved the remaining ingredients.

*SNIFF* What's that smell? My brother, Jeremy, whirled around and uttered a "@%$%^$^" as he flew to the smoking oven. Oops. Apparently Dad had left the pumpkin-cranberry bread in the oven. Mom returned from her five-minute absence to bewail the loss of our breakfast and gave me a lecture (for the 100th time) about checking the oven before turning it on. I returned to the grits with my tail tucked between my legs.

"Is the water for my sweet potatoes boiling yet?" Mom questioned. Oops again.

"That water?" I pointed sheepishly to my boiling grits. Mom rolled her eyes. "I'll clean the pot for you," I offered.

The grits were done and I added the remaining ingredients.

"Wait! Which cheese is that?" Mom asked as I dumped 1 pound of cheddar into the pot. "That's the wrong cheese! You were supposed to use the processed cheese." Oops again and again.

Mom helped me finish for fear I should burn something, or use something I wasn't supposed to, or add the wrong ingredient.

"Can I help cook anything else?" I asked, trying to make amends.

"No!" Mom, Dad, and Jer shouted in unison.

Barbra Streisand Video

First of all, I want you to know I am not necessarily endorsing Barbra Streisand. I do not share her political views, but I love her music. That woman has an amazing voice!

Anyway, I found this original video of one of her early performances in the 1960s. Thought I might post it.

Click here to watch. Windows Media Player required.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

I found my life's song...

"Legacy"
By Nicole Nordeman

I don't mind if you've got something nice to say about me
And I enjoy an accolade like the rest.
You could take my picture and hang it in a gallery
Of all the who's who and so-n-so's that used to be the best
At such 'n such... it wouldn't matter much.

I won't lie, it feels all right to see your name in lights.
We all need an "Atta boy" or "Atta girl,"
But in the end I'd like to hang my hat on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world.

Chorus:
I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love?
Did I point to You enough to make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering;
A child of mercy and grace who blessed Your name unapologetically...
And leave that kind of legacy.

I don't have to look too far or too long awhile
To make a lengthy list of all that I enjoy.
It's an accumulating trinket and a treasure pile
Where moth and rust, thieves and such will soon destroy.

Chorus

Not well traveled, not well read, not well-to-do or well bred,
Just want to hear instead, "Well done good and faithful one."

Chorus

Bird Flu Shots??

And I thought getting my flu vaccination was a big pain...

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/16/international/asia/16flu.html?th&emc=th

Singing Mice

Check out these articles on singing mice. Kinda cute.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051101/ap_on_sc/singing_mice

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4395664.stm