A lesson learned...

Thanksgiving is normally a day of excess. Excess in football, excess in grub. I was a bad corgidogmama. Little Addie ate way too much turkey. She upchucked and groaned all evening. She had the dry heaves. Finally, after several hours her belly emptied, she licked a rolaid, and all was quiet at the front.
The next day, Jim dug out the carpet cleaner machine that has been living in our cellar for ten years. Unused. Until Black Friday. The bedroom, and living room was a puked on zone, and had to be cleaned.
Jim groaned and needed a rolaid of his own after that ordeal.
I swear, on my two corgi kids heads, that I will never, ever, feed them human food to such excess again.
The problem was this. They had about a half cup of turkey/gravy when we had our meal. Oh...and then the dogs helped with the dishes.
Then....stupidly, I fed them their regular amount of chow at their normal supper time. BIG MISTAKE.
I was in a turkey induced coma. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

An Alternative?

Following the roasting of, and deboning of, and the clean-up of a twenty-one pounder last night for the soup supper use....it all came back to me, just how much work this whole turkey thing is.
Not sure doing it again on Thursday is so appealing.
However, it did make the house smell great.
It did drive the corgi kids nuts.
Oops, several pieces did fall on the floor for them.
And, my mom and I had to taste it as well. One bite....honest!
Needed salt. Have never made a fresh turkey before.
Where were the salty additives that give so much flavor and tasty chemical zip?
First they take away our red dye and msg. Sheesh....it's a commie plot!

Give a dog a bone...

One of my favorite places to monitor shop on Etsy, is High Priestess of Chaos. She's from Maine, and speaks my language. She's a sick and twisted sista. And, doggone it, I like twisted people! Go visit and see her wares if you'd like.



Got a chuckle last night. Jim called to say that he was pulling a load of 44,000 pounds of Milk Bone dog biscuits. Isn't that a hoot? Bet dogs had their noses up all along the Indiana/Illinois toll road! They are faves of our two piglets...I mean corgis.

Josh and I are working at the fellowship of churches soup supper Tuesday night. Only they won't be serving soup that night. It's going to be a full-fledged turkey extravaganza. Will roast a twenty one pounder, fresh turkey this weekend, to deliver deboned, for the dinner. Our church had a freezer full of donated birds to prepare for the dinner. We'll go help serve and clean up. Should be a fun way to contribute to our little community.

Today, a 68 year old fella, came to the library to work on his resume' and send it to job prospects he found on craigslist. He said that he still owes 80,000 on his home, and at 68, he's trying to figure out the workings of a computer. He needed a LOT of help. Times are really bad. We're living in situations that at 40, we never dreamed we'd be in. All we can do I guess, is to be thankful, and pray a lot, and try to help each other through this rotten time.

Sure hope that we'll come out of it. More households have been touched by this down turn than we realize. What do you think? Will 2011 be our bouncing back year, or another year of depressed finances and futures? Does anyone have full time work with benefits any more? Not in our neck of the woods. Very slim pickings and at minimum wages.
Still...we have more than other countries.
Still, the majority of us have family and friends to brighten our days.
We need to reach out, and touch some lives if we are living in blessings.
Spread it all around.
I'm not talking money, guess I'm talking time, kindness, maybe a bag of food, a ride to the store. Making ourselves slow down enough to notice if someone is having a bad day, or is experiencing pain of some kind. Two minutes to stop and speak and pat an arm.
Actions truly do speak louder than words. Let's all give it a whirl. I double dog dare ya!

~Dumb Broads~

Egad.........I'm not ready! Are you? Found a Butterball for a buck a pound at Aldi's and made room in the freezer. Want gravy, want sweet taters with that crunchy good topping, dressing, and real whipped cream for the pie.

There's a whole lot of cleaning to be done. Did the pilgrims get this excited and stressed on that very first T-day? Did they sweep their dirt floors with a corn husk broom? Sheesh, why do we women do this to ourselves?

We're nuts that's why. Sermon over. Amen. Really..........!

Newsy November...

The eleventh month seems to be flying by. Somehow, a turkey needs to fit into cramped freezer space in the bottom of the fridge. Family is coming which means deep cleaning. Mama, bro and sis-in-law head south the day after turkey day so time needs to be spent together to say goodbyes. Sigh...when, and how does all this get done?

Emmy Lulu had a nice surprise the other day. Those of you who are regulars know that in Chapel Hill my grand baby resides, and she'll be four in early February. She found out that she'll be a big sister in May. Lord willin' and the creek don't rise that is. My own baby-girl isn't so lucky at pregnancy. She's had her share of heartbreak. Too many times. We are all cautiously hopeful.
She's three months now. Em told her parents that she wanted a girl...no boys! Frankly, she'll be thrilled to have a baby in the house as she loves dolls.



Jim's brother from Texas, and his sis from Colorado will be visiting the first weekend in December. His cousin will join us from North Carolina on turkey day as will my MIL. Son Josh and his dad will fly down to NC to be with my daughter and family T-day. The second weekend in December, I fly with cookie cutters and apron packed in my carry on to bake cookies with April and Emmy over a long weekend.
Lots to do in the next few weeks. Why does it seem that November and December are always in fast forward mode?

First Snow!

Each year we mark the calendar to commemorate the first snow of the season. Yesterday was the day. Yikers....totally unexpected! It was enough to cover rooftops and the ground in a matter of minutes. Luckily, it didn't take long to melt, but it entertained the dogs, and a few stunned humans in the household. I covered the roses, thinking that Mother Nature was sending a kick in butt reminder to do so.

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods.
Thanks to Penniwig for this timely jpg offering today!

Growing Pains?

We all have a favorite month, or season. October is mine. Today we said goodbye. November has arrived. Earlier this month, I became 59. Somehow, saying "pushin' 60" sounds more vibrant and zesty, don't you think?
It took this long, it seems, for me to finally figure out...that happiness comes from within, and if mama ain't happy, then SHE better do something about it. Many of us wait...and wait, on others, to complete us. Trust me...it's not gonna happen! Do you feel that acceptance of people or a situation is resignation, giving up... or growth?

Many of you are smarter than the old dog mama writing this. It hit me, this month, that life was passing by, and my wait and see attitude, was ridiculous. I was waiting...waiting for the right time to act, or for people to change, or was blaming, and often practiced other unattractive, negative, passive-aggressive behaviors. While the true way to create change was... Duh... to change myself!

Today, after attending church with Josh, I made dinner for the family members who live in town...because I like to cook. Then, I raked the yard, smelling the autumn scents and listening to the rustle of leaves. The sky was the exact same color as a blue jay. The sun shone, the corgi kids and my MIL's golden retriever were all outside enjoying the day with me.
The air was crisp. I was getting exercise, and it felt good. The dogs and I circled a cedar-scented fire in the fire pit as we relaxed and soaked in the soft afternoon rays. The fire's heat on my knees and feet felt wonderful.
The bird feeders were filled again after a summer of the birds fending for themselves. Three pairs of cardinals and a dozen wrens celebrated the banquet. It was a darn nice day.

Contentment goes a long way.I gave it to myself. No demands were put upon
on anyone else by going outside, and entertaining myself, There is a danger to this... this going your own way, and not being demanding. People do require a certain amount of attention in a relationship. Over time, that lack can chip away at feelings. But...I'll think about that later, fiddle dee dee. For now, letting go is very freeing. I think, that now, at pushin' 60....this old gal, just might be growing up. Consider me, these days, a work in progress. Baby steps.