Thanksgiving

I left my place around 9:00 Wednesday morning to head north for Thanksgiving.  Originally I had planned on coming up Tuesday night right after work, but it was a pretty intense couple of days at work and I was in need of some down time and also needed to make pumpkin rolls for Thanksgiving.  So I stayed put, and I enjoyed it.  There may have been some Christmas music playing as I was baking... as well as a great conversation with Rico, some texting with Michael, and some facebooking with Jill... didn't I just say I had some down time? There was a lot going on for a while, but things settled and I did have a relaxing night at home.  I got up the next morning at a decent hour and got things packed up and hit the road.  Typically when I travel I feel like I have to get from point A to point B without any other plans... but I was feeling pretty relaxed and decided to take my time.  I stopped at Pier One and looked around, but didn't buy anything except a stand that I will use to display the Santa Slate Mom painted... I got to the lake around 12:15 pm and enjoyed visiting with Dad and Jacey for a while.  Betty was at one of her final radiation treatments and it wasn't long before Dad left to go to a doctor's appointment, leaving Jacey and I to ourselves.  I am really lucky that I am getting the chance to know her more and more.  She is a very smart person who cares so much for her family.  It is nice to chat with her.  I also got to meet her new babies: Octavius and Tuesday.  They are very cute kittens. 

As the afternoon passed the sun began setting and the lake was absolutely beautiful.  It is so peaceful here. 

On Thanksgiving day morning I got up early to go for a walk.  When I had left my place and gotten on the highway I realized pretty quickly that I had forgotten my sneakers and made myself go back for them.  I wanted to do some walking while I was here... it was a nice walk, only went about 1.5 miles, but it was nice to be out in the fresh air... a bit chilly, but nice.  I took some pics, which I will post later.  The pics here are from my phone.

This is a pic of Betty and Dad working together in the kitchen.  I enjoy watching them together.  They are a good fit.  Again I am thankful. 

They were working together to prepare some food for two Thanksgivings... Dad and I would be going to our annual gathering and Betty and Jacey would be going to theirs... I respect that they love spending time together at the holidays but also recognize the importance and value of each other's traditions...
There were 27 people at our gathering yesterday, a pretty small crowd... but what I liked was that I knew, by face, each person...without relying on the name tags we wear each year.  It was nice.  I feel really lucky that the people in my family still value this time and carry on this tradition.  More on that when I am able to post more pictures.  Also hope I remember to write about stopping at my grandmother's house and bringing a few of her things home with me...

Last night was pretty low key and this morning when I woke up, once again, I headed out for a walk.  I went in a different direction... and ended up going up a pretty steep long hill...it was a good workout.  i am contemplating another 100 days of being active... today would be day two in a row... tomorrow will be day three...

 

As the day progressed, Jacey, who loves Christmas, wrapped her presents...yes she is finished with her shopping! And she then wanted to decorate.  She and Betty are so cute... they were Christmas-ing up the joint as Dad and I were kind of each doing our own things... but when it came time to decorating the tree, we all pitched in... Dad thinks that the rest of us bought our singing voices on sale, at Walmart... I think that was his way of saying that our talent is a good deal!!!  Right Dad?

Here's the final product:

 

I admit... it makes me excited to get my tree up... Gonna wait a bit longer... but I am looking forward to it.  Then... I met up with Jill, yes Jill, I am certain it was JILL, and her family, for dinner at a local Chinese place.  I realized on my way there are three Chinese restaurants here... almost as many as the pizza places... all that in a town that has maybe 5 traffic lights... but... I suppose the good news, is that the economy is supporting it.  It was nice to see Jill and her family.  After dinner I gave her a couple of things that my mom had painted... she had mentioned to me once that she didn't have anything that Mom had painted and she wanted something... I remember thinking it was a nice thing for her to say... but didn't realize until yesterday when she sent me a picture of a set pf pilgrims my mom had painted that her mom had bought years ago... and said her mom was going to give them to her... I knew that Dad had a few pieces of slate that Mom had painted, and had planned on choosing one of those for her, but as I was talking about it Betty mentioned there were a few other things around... including a set of wooden bunnies that Mom did... one of her most detailed items... and since I already have a set, Sis had a set at one time, and there are others nearby, and because it was a boy rabbit and a girl rabbit... and jill has one son and one daughter, I thought it was perfect!  So before even seeing them... I told Jill i had something that I wanted her to have, something that Mom painted, and she got emotional, and I think was afraid I was giving her something from my collection.. and didn't want to take something, a part of mom,  away from me... but Jill, I hope you know... that by giving those bunnies to you... knowing how much you appreciate them, because they are done by Mom.... it brings her, in a way, closer to me... Mom loved to be able to use her talents to make things that people loved and appreciated... and when I was looking for gifts for people she would let me choose from some of her crafts... I didn't think to take a picture of them before giving them to Jill... so Jill, if you get a chance, take a picture for me!  Jill, you know I love ya, and I am so glad that you have something Mom made.  

Oh... thought I would share this... my fortune cookie:

As my dad would say: 

'Nuff Said...