Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

We aren't out shopping today . . . but we ARE delving into Christmas.  Greg is putting up outside lights, and I'm working on our card.  This week, my focus will be on finishing preparations for our co-op's Christmas party.  I guess it's about time to change colors on here from brown and green to red and green!

We celebrated Thanksgiving twice!  We had friends over for the traditional feast a couple weeks ago.  It was our first time to host a Thanksgiving meal in 15 years of marriage.  It went pretty well!  The only problem was that the turkey was cold by the time we sat down.  I have a few ideas to remedy that in the future.  Anyway, we had a great time with our company, and the meal was delicious.

Our leftovers were long gone by yesterday evening when we joined Greg's parents at a restaurant.  Note to self: do not eat a restaurant's Thanksgiving meal just after their buffet has ended.  You might get dried out leftovers!  The turkey and ham were perfect, but the stuffing was awful, the veggies undercooked, and I think they forgot to add seasoning to the potatoes.  And this was a place that usually serves up fantastic food.  At least the appetizers, bread, salad, and dessert were terrific!

Can you tell food is important to me?  Lol!  I haven't even mentioned anything I'm thankful for!  Well, I AM thankful, and not just for food!  I am thankful for all of our blessings!  I'm thankful for my family, friends, and home.  I'm thankful for the freedom and peace we enjoy living in this country.  I'm thankful for my computer, my camera, and all our modern conveniences.  Most of all, I am thankful for my Lord and Savior, Jesus!!   =)

Halloween 2014

We broke out of tradition this Halloween and spent the evening at my uncle's house rather than staying home.  We still dressed up, still answered the door to trick-or-treaters, and still hung out with friends, but we did it all at a different house!  We have been getting fewer and fewer kids each year and were looking forward to going somewhere with more action.

Kylen playing piano in costume while waiting for us to leave.

It was a lot of fun!  The evening started out pretty tame.  We managed to miss the excitement of greeting everyone by about 15 minutes.  My uncle's family had just left with their friends to go around the neighborhood.  Two of my cousins and my aunt's mom were there, so we chatted.  Kylen bided his time by eating and trying on a few masks from their collection.  They had a crockpot of potato soup, biscuits, cupcakes, and an assortment of snacks.

After my uncle's family and friends got back, things got more exciting.  We took a group shot.  Greg, Kylen, and I went with a gangsta' theme.

They had a bubblegum blowing contest.

Earlier in the day, my aunt and uncle had given a science demonstration at a couple of schools.  They did one for us right there on their kitchen counter.  It was possibly the coolest science demo I've ever seen.  Dry ice gas and dish soap combine to make huge bubbles.  They can be held too!

Some friends of ours arrived just in time for the demo.  We enjoyed introducing them to my uncle's family and welcoming them into the fun.  A little later, we played Family Feud followed by several rounds of  Murderer.  It was past midnight before we said our farewells and headed home with our heads full of happy memories.

Ain't That the Truth!

Love this page from my daily ME calendar.  It says, "Too many people go through life running from something that isn't after them."  Lol!  The picture is perfect!!!

October Sunset

Kylen alerted me to an incredible sunset one evening, possibly the most spectacular I've ever seen, just outside our front door.  Wish I was faster at setting up the tripod, it might have turned out better.  But this gives you some idea.  Gone after just a few minutes . . .

Fall Bugs

Early in October, the bugs were thick for several days.  Kylen went on a bike ride and lived to regret it.  I got a knock at the door, and he was standing there, saying he thought I might want to get a picture.  He was covered, from his legs and arms to his face and clothes.  At one point he urged me to hurry, as the bugs were tickling.  Ick!!!  Now that's what I call tough.  No way could I stand there and have my picture taken with bugs plastered all over me.

October Update

It's been awhile, hasn't it?!  How time does fly during heavy schooling!  October, like September, revolved around books and co-op, with little time for anything else!

Kylen enjoyed getting back into guitar - more than I thought he would - and looks forward to practicing each day.  He liked his volleyball co-op class and playing games with friends during study hall.  Unfortunately, volunteering at the library was taking a toll on our schedule, so he had his last day in mid-October.  But he enjoyed his three months there, and we are thankful for the experience.  He has been able to do some volunteering at the Union Gospel Mission (UGM), although we are finding that many of their needs are during the day, when Greg is at work.  I'm not sure we'd be able to squeeze much more into our schedule right now, so that is probably for the best.  I'm sure God will put the time they spend there to good use.  Case in point, Greg has been going to a weekly men's Bible study he was introduced to through a gentleman he met there!

The apples class I co-taught at co-op was well received.  I hope to post about it . . . although I haven't even finished the post about the chocolate class I taught last spring!!  Sigh . . .   ;-)

I developed a new symptom in late October and won't go into details, but I saw an ob/gyn yesterday.  She thinks it is an infection, and I'm on antibiotics.  I hope she's right and that this is not a new direction my illness is going!  I had two very miserable weeks and am still needing to minimize sitting.  Prayers are appreciated!

I think the highlight of the month was going to my uncle's house on Halloween.  Good friends of ours were able to join us, and we all had a lot of fun.  I will try to do a post on it while catching up a bit.  I'm currently focusing much of my attention on planning our co-op's annual Christmas party, and Greg and Kylen have quite a bit of UGM training this month.  We also have a couple of Thanksgiving gatherings and an outing or two planned, which we are looking forward to.  God is good!!!