Happy Thanksgiving

It is here! Happy Thanksgiving. I am grateful for SO MANY things this year. My husband, my boy, my family and friends....
I am also grateful that all I have to worry about this morning is making apple crisp. Despite the fact that one day I would like to host Thanksgiving at my home, I am very relieved to not be stressed out today.
I am grateful my husband and I are not stuck in the snow on the mountain while his family enjoys dinner at the cabin and we savor one granola bar. True story folks. Our first Thanksgiving married we excitedly decided to go up to J's dads cabin and went four wheelin in the Bronco while the turkey was cooking. My husband was a little too daring, we got stuck. We would shovel ourselves out with an ice scraper, drive one wheel turn and get stuck again. It was getting dark before his dad found us.
I am grateful that I can hear my husband in the kitchen explaining to our 10 month old why we should always celebrate Thanksgiving...so cute!
I am grateful for big eyes that light up and my boy loving to give me "kisses" already.
I am grateful for a mirror that I can slant at just the right angle to convince myself that it is ok to indulge a little more!
I am grateful for Victoria Secret boyfriend fit sweats... so comfy. My poor husband has already learned not to get excited when I come home with a bag from Victoria Secret.
I am grateful for the internet but miss the dewey decimal system and hours in the library... I am a true nerd at heart.
I am grateful for books and Ruth Finch who let me come shop at her closing book store the other day and pick out anything I wanted....for free! A bookworms' dream:)
I am grateful for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints... the gospel has blessed my life immeasurably.

Black Friday

Well, Thanksgiving is around the corner and with that comes the dreaded Black Friday.
I know that for many people this is an exciting tradition that they look forward to. I absolutely do not get it! I mean, is there any sale good enough to get up out of bed before the sun comes up, wait in long lines, be pushed, shoved and elbowed for a sale?

I always thought it was called "Black Friday" because working in retail we "blacked out" from the day after Thanksgiving through Christmas as days that could be requested off. However, here is what Wikipedia says:

JANUARY 1966 -- "Black Friday" is the name which the Philadelphia Police Department has given to the Friday following Thanksgiving Day. It is not a term of endearment to them. "Black Friday" officially opens the Christmas shopping season in center city, and it usually brings massive traffic jams and over-crowded sidewalks as the downtown stores are mobbed from opening to closing.

I think having had a history of having to work retail those days for years and years and years makes me passionate about the fact that I will not face those crowds if I do not have to!

So, for my little bit of rebellion I like my Black Friday tradition of not having to work and instead seeing a matinee right in the middle of the day! Much more relaxing:)

Annoying Music

I do not know how to take the annoying song off of my Slide Show and I do not know how it got there!

So, feel free to mute your computer when you pull up my blog!

You would never know I am married to a computer whiz but I can not figure out the simplest things sometimes!

Thanksgiving

It is almost here! Seriously, can you believe it?
I am so grateful for so many things this year! Truly my life could not have been more blessed than having a terrific husband (really, he is pretty perfect), my adorable wonderful ever entertaining son, and incredible friends and family!
Well, where much is given, much is expected.
Unfortunately there are a lot of people who are struggling at this time of year. I challenge each person to do something a little out of your comfort zone this year to benefit someone else. Whether it is your financial comfort zone, stretching your time, or just doing a little more, I challenge you to pray to be the answer to someone's prayer. I know you will be blessed.
Check out this website if you are prompted to give a Thanksgiving gift that keeps on giving. It helps an international family or community become self sufficient.
http://www.heifer.org/

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Christmas Tags

My mom and I spent some time making Christmas tags while she was here. These are fun because they are quick and easy... I tend to have a short attention span with crafts. One of my friends wanted pics for a Christmas tag exchange so I thought I would throw them up on the blog. These pics do not do justice to the glitter and 3-Dness of it all:)

My mom and I each made a few of each and then shared them. I love the idea of a Christmas tag exchange though. How fun!

An Ode to an Amazing Woman

My mom turns 50 year old today! Happy Birthday Mom! She just left last night from a visit here for an extended birthday weekend. We had SO MUCH fun!
For her birthday, I put together a scrapbook of the 50 greatest things about her and had people from the family send in their comments. It was very touching to read what everyone had to say. There was definitely a theme around her selflessness, dedication to her family, empathy, love of children, optimistic attitude toward life...and her HUGE heart. Her life is truly one to celebrate!
I am going to take a personal moment about why my mom is so great. First of all while most people groan about their 30, 40 and 50th birthdays... I have always heard my mom say "My life just keeps getting better"... she never feels old or acts old.
My mom had me at sixteen years of age. That is far less shocking than the childhood she had already endured. She married my dad and he joined the military...moving us from Ohio to Washington state. Three years later my brother was born... and my dad left, returning to Ohio.
We were across the United States, my mom was 19 with two children and nobody to turn to. No job and no education. But we made it. She worked hard, she got her GED and has since taken college courses in Early Education. Our life did not get easier for a long long time. But I remember my childhood as most children...filled with laughter and love.
My mom taught me a few things during my growing years. She told me over and over again my life did not have to be like hers. I could do anything I wanted. She never complained about my dad to me. She never acted like a victim.
She had to go on state aid for a short period of time. I will always remember it because I was 5 and she told me that she did not like how people talked to her when she went to pick up her check. She felt they looked down on her. The problem was that if she worked she could not afford childcare. So she got a job as waitress and often brought us with her. We loved it! We played Ms Pacman and ate maraschino cherries. The restaurant she worked at had tons and tons of old books as decor. I think that is where I developed my love for books.. I started reading anything I could get my hands on.
I believed my mom when she told me I could be anything I wanted. I wanted to be the first woman President, then a lawyer, a psychologist and a writer. I went to college and started on my career.
This year I realized something. What I want to be most is a mom just like her.
Happy Birthday to my mom and my best friend! I love you!

Lil' Stinker