Oh, what a wonderful couple of weeks it’s been! I’m delighted to share a few highlights…and umm, shadows? Oh, I love myself some puns.

Highs:

–Hosting my very 1st Thanksgiving meal and having most of my immediate family and some of Rich’s be able to join us and spend the holiday together. Everything turned out nicely!

–Hanging out my my awesome niece for several days. Oh, and her parents.

Oh, c’mon…you know it’s funny.

–Cornbread. Not that sweet Yankee cornbread. Salty, buttermilky, made in a cast iron skillet so the outside is cruncy, cornbread.
–Our woodstove. And Starbucks holiday drinks. And coziness.
–Making homemade sushi with the hubs. We rock.

–Nutella. Seriously, how did I have a childhood without this stuff? I never even heard of it before I came to PA, and I never had such a delectable cup of hot cocoa as I did the other day, made with this amazing stuff.

Lows:

–Having our dishwasher break. 3 days before Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving that was going to be at our house….we had to go old school on those dishes.
–Having our stove play a trick on us and almost breaking. 2 days before Thanksgiving. Thankful that it was just a cord….because although my husband wanted to deep fry the turkey, I wanted to have something on the table besides a deep-fried turkey.
–Walking past the basement and hearing water running…when I wasn’t doing a load of laundry. Oh, awesome….half of our basement floor had water on it. Long story short, my husband saved us hundreds of dollars by renting a snake and not calling the plumbers. I’m thankful to have a man who’s willing to quite literally go through crap to take care of us.
–Black licorice and the smell of smoke on someone’s clothes who has just smoked in their car with the windows up because it’s cold. Both things give me a headache.
–Trying to snag one last piece of my Grandma’s amazing raspberry pie and discovering that the boys (my hubby and brother-in-law) had eaten the last of it! Oh, Scott and Rich, the raspberry pie war is ON.

PS…Still looking for a gift idea for someone on your list? Check out my nature album on Facebook and contact me if you’re interested in any framed prints, metal prints, or gallery wraps. There’s still time to order before Christmas!

Highs:

-My husband’s first CD with his band being released! Ah, I just can’t say how excited I am for them. God has given them all amazing talent, and has inspired my husband to write these beautiful worship songs AND has provided the means to get it recorded and released! It was a long process and a lot of hard work, so I am SO proud and excited for all of them!

-Seeing pictures of my awesome niece on Facebook! It’s hard to be away from my family, but I get to see bits and pieces of my niece growing, learning, and changing because of technology.

-Working with teenagers. They’re just awesome. My heart hurts when people don’t take the time to get to know them but judge them instead. I know so many amazing young people that are not only going to do great things in the future–they’re doing them already! They’re becoming the people God wants them to be, and they’re so passionate and full of life, yet facing so many difficult things. I feel blessed that they let me into their lives.

-Getting organized and getting things accomplished. We’ve been planning house projects at weekly “family meetings” (just the two of us!), and it’s been great to see some of those crossed off the list. Last week: cleaning out the garage!

-Going to the library and getting a good mystery novel again. It’s been a long time.

Lamesauce:

-Not being able to stay in my jammies and read during the rainy, dark mornings we’ve had.

-A dog that loves trash. Adores it. Fancies it. Is head over heals for it. Oh, this is probably the most frustrating thing ever…and it’s officially time to get a new kind of trash can. (Maybe THIS is why people like those tiny dogs–they can’t reach the trash!).

-Leaving my cell phone at a friend’s. For a week. : / But look! I’m still alive!

-Cups with pointy bottoms. I don’t have to say anything more about this, as I’m sure you’ve all experienced this water cooler annoyance. Today, I pondered who invented such a thing and actually thought it was a good idea.