November 25, 2005
A Mushy Post
I had a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope the rest of you did as well. If mushy posts vex you don't read this one, because it's as mushy a one as I've ever left here.
First of all, thanks, Lisa for the wonderful meal, as always your cooking is amazing. Mom, thank you too for providing it. Dad, thank you for the ride.
I have a list of thanks, for small things, and big things too, too many to just sit and list to each and every one of you. But I am thankful for you. I am probably the luckiest woman I know. I have a wonderful healthy family. Beautiful friends. I'm blessed with material things as well. We're not rich. We're not wealthy. Not in the money sense, but as the cliche goes, we are rich in love. Go on, roll your eyes, we are.
All year long, when one of us weren't feeling well.. or were in some spot of troubled times, or just feeling low, the rest flock around like a bunch of mother hens, hovering, scooping the one lagging into the fold, keeping him or her warm, and safe. God we've had our trials, but not one of us can honestly say we went through them alone.
We have so much that we don't even realize we possess, I'm the worlds worse for not seeing what I have... until I see someone else with so much less. I grumble if Mikyla's coat doesn't look just right.. until I see a little girl who has no coat. I get annoyed when Mik's shoes look scuffed and then I see another little girl wearing flip flops on an 18 degree night. I grumble if Mallory has another cold, but then I'm reminded that another little one has been in the hospital with something much worse, and orange juice and a hug isn't going to help that child.
I sigh with frustration when I think members of my family are doing this wrong, or not doing that enough.. then I look around and see someone else just like me, with no family at all. I glare at dad for scaring me in the car but I got to see my dad today. Unlike so many others who could only visit a grave to place flowers.
I'm so selfish in so many ways. I just want to let you all know that I love you very much. Very much. Without you, I'm nothing, and I would have nothing.
Thanks for a remarkably wonderful Thanksgiving.
Joel didn't eat much but he was just happy to be there!
Sarah put Maegan in the hall in her little jumping thing and something in the bathroom kept her attention as raptly as if they were standing there playing with her.
Mikyla, that kid is something else. Before dinner she came into the kitchen where I was, and tugged on my shirt and had me bend so she could whisper in my ear. She said, mammy, do you like turkey legs? I said sure, they're good, why? She said, well mammy, there's only 2 of them. I looked at her and she was wearing her worried look. I said well that's plenty isn't it? She said well you like 'em mammy, so I'm gonna get one and save for you so you'll be sure to get one. Again, she reminded me there's only 2. I chuckled and said ok well you be sure to save one for me honey. She went about her business, and I went about mine, and in a while I heard her asking Lisa if it would be okay for her to have a leg. She went on just as if she just LOVED turkey legs, and would just die if she couldn't have one of them. Lisa got tickled and cut off one of the legs and put on Mik's plate, knowing full well she wasn't going to eat it. But.. since Mik was so adament about it, she got one. I went in there and sat down by her, and she grinned and said she was going to pretend to eat it, and then when no one was looking she was gonna sneak it to me so I'd be sure to have me a turkey leg. (I like breast, but hey, this was one hard earned Turkey leg) So...anyway, she scored me a turkey leg.. I got a kick out of that.
Mallory is a really good eater. She said she likes Thanksgiving almost as good as Christmas!
Dad ate better than I've seen him eat in a looong time!
Shannon was visiting at Lisa's when we got back from Brenda's house. She's pretty, isn't she?
I didn't eat a terribly huge amount, not an unreasonable amount, anyway.. but for some reason, after I ate, my tummy began to swell. I'm not talking about, wow, I should unbutton my pants full, I mean it began to swell and in 5 minutes I looked 9 months pregnant. I was sitting there and moaned a time or two, feeling like that lil girl in the Chocolate Factory, and I told mom, 'something's happening to me mom...something's wrong..'.. she laughed looking and said yeah you ate too much. I tried to explain that I hadn't, that something was wrong.. and as we talked, my tummy just grew and grew and grew.. and I was getting worried. I looked down, amazed at what was happening, and mikyla pointed and laughed, and told everyone I was "pregnernt". (I denied this and mightily so) Lisa laughed, (hyenas, the lot of 'em) and said she thought she knew what happened. I said oh please, enlighten me, I'm in agony over here..
She said that at the start, she'd had 2 big kettles of mashed potatos... but as time went on, she was afraid they'd get cold, so she kept reheating them. As she did this, she said that the potatos 'evaporated' and what had been in 2 pots originally, had dwindled down to 1 pot. Her theory was, that as she'd watched me eat more mashed potatos than anything else.. that once they'd gotten in my tummy, they rehydrated and thus the swelling.
*laughs*
She called for Sarah to bring the Pepto Bismol, which Sarah did.. but.. looking at that little medicine cup of pink liquid, my overgrown tummy lurched, and I knew if I put that in my mouth there'd be a problem.
Mikyla saw my expression and came to my rescue. Sarah told me sternly to "take my medicine".. and I said, I can't, oh no I can't take that, really.. Sarah walked away to check on Maegan, calling over her shoulder, "When you're done with that, you need 1 more dose." No way, no way could I take 1 mecicine cup full, much less 2. Mikyla slipped her hand over to mine and smiled and whispered that she'd take care of it.. and she did. She sneaked it to the bathroom and poured it into the sink and when Sarah came with the 2nd dose, Mik took that one too and disposed of it. Have I ever mentioned to any of you that the child is an angel?
I wont mention Mom's own very swollen stomach, I'd never embarrass her on this journal. I won't laugh either. I won't! I WON'T!!
So here I sit... hours later.. writing the most mushy post of my life. Tummy distended, so full I can't lean back even now. I need to get to bed. I think I can waddle over to it and just.. fall over. I truly have the figure of an Oompaloompa. *laughs* EGADS I love Thanksgiving!!
NICK!! I just noticed that we can't see you in any of the pics I took.. Your hat is in the way, or you hid behind someone else. What's up with that?!