Wrap up and starting over

As November comes to a close it's time to wrap up my Thankful for series. Today I am thankful for the good health of my family including Buddie and my friends.

With everything going on I forgot to mention that my mom got the results of her genetic testing. We are so thankful that she was negative on all the tests. She will be doing all the follow up that the doctors want.

Today we took Buddie to Dr. Andy - he loves going there and we love that it's so easy to get him there. Bud's had a spot on one foot for a couple of weeks and over the holiday weekend I realized it's growing quickly and feels like a hard lump. Boyd was able to get an appointment today and I got off work early and met them at the vets office - yes I'm a paranoid Momma. Dr. Andy said the spot is just something that happens with dogs and he's probably got a mild infection and with some antibiotics he'll be good as new. Hopefully he hasn't done too much damage and the hair will grow back. darn puppy!

Dr. Andy said Buddie is looking great - holding that 55 lbs. We are so thankful for Buddie and what a great dog he's become. We are so proud!


And now we are starting the Christmas season. To kick things off, here's what I created with all those great Christmas ball ornaments...



My inspiration was the Country Living mag and Pottery Barn - of course they were smart and used plastic or shatter proof orns. I only lost 4. :)

We still have a few more things we want to do out front and I need to decide if the wreath on the sled needs orns too.

With Christmas coming I'm going to do an online version of my December Daily album. I also have the assignments from my Holiday's in Hand class so I'm looking forward to the daily challenges and getting into the holiday spirit.

Hope to see you back here tomorrow for my December Daily kick off.

Sunday night

Another week is poised to start and here's a recap of last week....

My final trial run of the Thanksgiving dinner layout. I labeled all the bowls so on Thursday people would know what to put where.


We expanded the table and the orange tablecloth was too small so it's football time.


My table and impatient mother - foods on the table so it's time to eat.


Our menu and the little hot drink station.


My favorite decorations from the year...


I love having this mirror in the living room and always struggle where to put my picture strip and this seems perfect.


This is one of my fav fall decs - sorry for the tag



The weekend after Thanksgiving means only one thing...Christmas time!

I picked up a bunch of ball ornaments....


... tune in tomorrow to see what some of these turned into. ;)

Saturday night

Who would believe it's already Saturday. Feels like it's just the start of a vacation not the end. :(

Mom and I spent the day shopping again in Waterloo. I finished shopping for my secret sister and got a couple of great things for my house. :) And we ate at Olive Garden, I don't know the last time I ate there and it was awesome!

Tonight I made up the treat bags for sorority - that was not fun. Had a great plan to iron the ribbon on the bag and then disaster struck when the iron melted the handle. grrr. So I had to sit down and sew - I actually think that may have been easier.

Then I packed up the Thanksgiving/Fall decorations and pulled out some of Christmas decs that were out on the shelves. I so wanted to get the trees up today but I ran out of time and Boyd still needs to dust them. And then there's the front door decs that still need to get done. Started to add the lights and realized only half the strand was lite. :( Bummer!

Now it's late and time for bed. :)

Black Friday = Red & Green day

This morning I was not expecting to get up and go shopping. Then I talked to my mom and we decided there were a few deals to good to pass up. We ended up going to Walgreens here in town and they were already sold out of the trees Mom wanted. :( I got lucky and found some Christmas tins that will work out perfectly for the treats I need to provide on Tuesday.

We decided that we wanted to stay in town - and hit the local dollar store to pick up a few more things for my treats. Then Mom wanted to hit the local thrift shop.

I decided that I truly love thrifting! They were having a Black Friday special - all Christmas ball ornaments, Christmas lights, Christmas garlands and Christmas mugs were half off. Woot!

The other day I decided I wanted to put garland and ball ornaments around the front door and for the last few weeks I've been eyeing the ball ornament wreaths that have been popular for the last few years. I was so happy to find a great selection of ball ornaments. I got all the ornaments I needed for the front door and wreath - 117 ornaments for 3.25!

Plus I found two other boxes of ball ornmanents, one for thanksgiving and one just cause they are cool for 75 cents. On top of all that I got three garlands for 65 cents.

I can't wait to decorate for the holidays!

This afternoon mom came over to help me make my treats and she helped me to glue all the ornament hooks on. And we got the garland around the front door - tomorrow I need to add the lights and the ornaments. Now I'm off to find that picture of the front door that was my inspiration for this crazy idea.....

Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful for a wonderful family, a wonderful meal and a great day together.

Now I'm tired and want to sleep for a few days. I had a great time cooking and getting everything together. Hope to add some pictures some time this weekend. Tonight I'm settling in to watch a good movie and probably fall asleep in the recliner.

I hope that everyone had a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving: Day 24

Today I am thankful for my coworkers.

Some people say that they are our work family. Somedays I agree, the company I'm with now the people are a little more closed and they are finally opening up to me. Guess it helps when I stop to chat instead of just going to work and doing my job and not really talking to anyone.

Today I was shocked when a lady who I respect gave me a hug and wished me a Happy Thanksgiving after I wished her a Happy Thanksgiving. She's in another department and I've recently started going to lunch with her a couple of times a week. No matter what kind of day she's having she'll usually smile and tell me hello and ask how I'm doing. I like that!

Plus I was very thankful for my coworker Jay - he's in IT and I'm in IS, anyways he's been there forever and he got me some boards I can use as table extensions. WOOT! I asked what I owed him for going to the mill to get the boards & everything and he said nothing, it's scrap wood so it would have been thrown away.


I am also thankful for my friend Janiece, she challenged me to do 10 mins of cleaning a day and we will be accountable to each other. Plus she talked her mom into doing it too. I can't believe how clean our house is tonight and I'm hopeful that we can keep it this way with team work and 10 mins a day.

I want to wish all my family and friends safe travels or safe cooking depending on what they are doing tomorrow!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving: Day 23

Today I am thankful for surprises.

My husband loves to surprise me and after all these years I still have no idea what to expect. It can be anything from a pack of gum to a fresh water pearl necklace. And it's one of the many reasons why I love him.

Last night he told me tomorrow I have a surprise for you. I asked if it was a puppy (his coworker has 2 black lab babies), he laughed and said no. He made another comment and I cautiously tried to guess what it could be.

Next thing I know he's telling me "The surprise is ready. Buddie and I need to go pick it up." So I'm thinking he's going to surprise me with a pop. He warned me that I couldn't look out the front window when I heard him coming home and that I wasn't allowed in the garage until he came and go me.

He took me down to our garden room and told me to close my eyes as he led me into the garage.

I opened my eyes and saw a 4 foot snowman and little Christmas tree. I love it!

Boyd's old high school classmate and mom's neighbor got it at a White Elephant Christmas party last year and didn't really like it but felt he had to have it out last year. This year he wanted it gone and I was the lucky recipient.

Now to figure out the perfect home. The snowman is felt so we don't really want to put it outside. Hmmmmm I wonder if I have a short string of lights for the little tree.

Thanksgiving: Day 22

Today I am thankful that we are hosting Thanksgiving this year.

I try my best to be a good house keeper and well things get the best of me. When I host events we do major cleaning and picking up. And this time rather than dumping everything in the spare room I'm trying to put things where they go. Yet again I'm making the pledge to myself and my husband, to keep my home picked up and to put things away when I'm done with them.

Does anyone else have this problem? Any tried and true ideas for getting better at this? Fly lady doesn't work for me.

~Karen

Thanksgiving: Day 20 & 21

Today I am thankful for the weekend.

Totally forgot to post yesterday - oops!

Saturday was a good day, slept in, went through some boxes in the garage and collected stuff for donation. That got me close enough to the tree for our bedroom and it was calling to be setup. By that time the fog had lifted and Mom and I headed into town. After 5 hours of shopping I was tired and ready to come home for a nap.

Today was one of those good days where time seems to stop. I accomplished so much and I'm proud of what I completed today. Just wish the clock would slow down during the evening hours. Sunday nights go so fast. Lots of cleaning, laundry, baking and cooking happened along with surfing the net, watching football and watching the ABC Family Christmas movie marathon - I love this time of year!

Now it's late and the clean sheets & Christmas comforter are calling.

Thanksgiving: Day 19

Today I am very thankful that it's Friday!

This was one long and crazy work week. People decided they could change some things and didn't need to tell the IS department. Unfortunately their changes wouldn't work without the help of IS updating their system. Most of Wed, Thur and this morning are a blur.

No big plans for our weekend. I need to get my new dishes washed for the big Thanksgiving dinner and I need to get all the chairs rounded up. I'm thinking I might make the time to put up the tree in our bedroom. I meant to get started decorating a lot earlier and it just never worked out.

The weekend is supposed to be fairly nice, I'm hoping to spend sometime outside too.

Thanksgiving: Day 18

Today I am thankful for my marriage and how well Boyd and I work together.

He surprised me by taking me to work today. It's been along time since we've done that. I enjoy being able to sit back and watch the scenery while he does the driving. Today I saw three deer eating in a park by our house. I leave for work around 6 so it's still pretty dark but they were illuminated by a street light. It was a little foggy and drizzling a bit so they looked gray and almost glittery.

And after work it was the simple case of running errands and him being patient enough to wait for me. He said he enjoys being able to people watch. I like knowing that he's waiting for me and I can share my treasures when I get to the car.

Of course we had to go to the local thrift shop because it's half price Thursday. And I found 2 Pfaltzgraff Snow Village plates for 1.50 each. I'm so excited we have everyday Christmas plates and I'm well on my way to an eclectic Christmas table. Plus I scored a blue glass with a white Christmas scene and it was only 50 cents. It's going to be a great glass for our bathroom. They still have the three Holly Hobby glasses and someday I might get two.

I also got a great gift for Boyd but Shhh don't tell. =) I can't wait to surprise him. I love sneaking stuff in the car when he's there.

There were also several treasures that I left in the store. I'm starting to be intrigued by primitive decorating. I think several aspects would fit in great with my western stuff and help make it a little more girly. I just need to give myself so boundaries. Just cause something is prim doesn't mean I NEED it.

Thanksgiving: Day 17

Today I am thankful for naps.

I got home from going out with Mom, sat down in the recliner, jumped online and promptly fell asleep. Boyd worked late and when he got home he woke me up enough to get me to bed.

Mom and I went to a church potluck. It was interesting. Everyone brought a dish from the church cookbook or one they wished would have made it. Because I went with my mom we sat at the table with her friends. While I enjoyed listening to their conversations, I was definitely out of place.

Thanksgiving: Day 16

Today I am thankful that my town has a walk in clinic.


Tonight as I was watching TV and playing with Buddie my right eye started itching and it felt like there was something in it. I tried to flush it several times with no luck. I tried to peek under the lids and didn't see anything. Then it started to get really red and swollen.

Luckily Boyd got home from work about that time and took one look at me and we both said "I think I/you need to go to the dr."

The dr looked at it and found an eye lash and flushed it a little bit. Did a check for scratches and found none. Sent me home with a stern warning of no rubbing or picking at it. Warm wash cloth and lots of drops.

The numbing drops are starting to wear off and it still feels like there's something in there. So far I'm doing pretty good with the warning. Only rubbing was to gently wipe out a little gunk in the corner.

It wouldn't be so bad but the lower lid is twitching along with the gritty feeling and it's making me a little batty. I can't wait to go to bed. =)

~ Karen

P.S. I created a new blog, BlumenChristmas, it's in my profile it's for all my Christmas ramblings. Since I've starting having a Rudy day and with the class I'm taking I wanted to make a separate space for all the info.

Holidays in Hand: Day 1

I'm taking an online class called Holidays In Hand from Jessica Sprague (see the clicky to the right). It's a class to help me tell my stories of the holidays both past and present. So along with my Thanksgiving posts I'm going to add some posts for my class.

Day 1: Refocus on Holiday Values

What are my holiday values or intentions? What matters most to me?

I love Christmas, the sights, the sounds, the colors. I love it all and I want to surround myself with it. Which is why I have a tree in most every room of my house!

To me the holidays are about creating a warm and cozy home. Pulling out the boxes of ornaments, some that have been passed down to me from my mom or the new ones I picked up last year. I really want to create a small album with all my favorite ornaments and the stories that go along with them.

But what are my values? And what kind of goals can I create based on those values or intentions?


I think I'm going to like this class. Assignment 1 is Write your values & goals this is something I'm going to need to think about. Assignment 2 is to commit to 20 mins everyday working on this. That is something I need right now. 20 mins for me to do something creative. I've been missing that.


Values and Goals....

Thanksgiving: Day 15

Today I am thankful for my mom.

I am so happy that we live in the same city as her and that we have been here for her. For serious issues or simple things, even when it gets on my nerves I do enjoy helping her out.

I love that Buddie loves her and is very excited when she comes to visit or we just drive past her house to check on things. When she's over he will lay at her feet and just gaze at her. Mom says she doesn't like him but in the last 3 years he's grown on her. She will pat him on the head and shhh she lets him into her house to visit her but don't tell my brother.

Mom's always there for me. Tonight she shared her malt-o-meal, I had a craving and knew I wouldn't eat a whole box so I was hoping she had some she would share. She did and I came home with a bag full of stuff.

By the way the ice creamy malt-o-meal was the perfect ending to a cold and dreary day. Oh and Mom gets on my nerves because we're a lot alike. We both tend to want things right away and don't want to wait.

Love you Mom!

Thanksgiving: Day 14

Today I am thankful for our home.



It's hard to believe that we have lived here for 5 years. We took possession on Nov 5, 2004 at 6 PM and did a lot of wall paper stripping and painting. I don't remember when we officially moved - I keep thinking it was Thanksgiving week but I know we hosted Thanksgiving with my family at Noon. (I know that happened because it's in my scrapbook. =) I cooked my first turkey which was an experience. And after lunch we headed to CR to be with Boyd's family. I think that's the only time we've attempted both families in the same day. It was just too much at least that year with the move and everything.

Looking at the pictures in our 2004 album I can't believe how much our house has become a home. We upgraded the plastic green lawn chairs at the dining table for real chairs. We've added so much furniture - a lot was given to us by family and some we've purchased. Of course I've had fun decorating. I love pulling out my holiday decorations and thinking of different places and ways to use them.

I will say after 5 years I am still in love with our wall colors. People told me that the colors I was using were too bold and I would be tired of them within a year. I think all of those people have all white walls. Most of the main level is Behr Arizona Tan my brother calls it Harvest Gold. The kitchen is Liberty - it's a great Blue color. I know at some point the colors will be old but until then I'll enjoy them.

We still have a wish list on what we want to do inside the house. Some things are new additions and others have been there since we moved in. Who knows what we will actually accomplish, all I know if this will always be our first home and it will always hold a special place in my heart.

~ Karen

Thanksgiving: Day 13

Today I am thankful for my extended family.

Today we celebrated Christmas with the Big O family. After two years of trying to celebrate in December with snow storms brewing and lots of years trying to plan around last minute Christmas plans, my mom decided to celebrate early.

My Mom is one of 9 siblings. Five of those siblings still live in Iowa all within a half an hour of where they grew up. There are 12 nieces and nephews (not counting spouses) and all but one of us still live in Iowa, with the majority living within a half hour of the family farm.

There were 24 of us in attendance today. A pretty good turn out considering several of the families are still busy with the harvest. Lots of great food - turkey, ham, cheesy hash browns, corn, lots of salads and desserts. Two plate minimum. =) Plus the extra dessert plate.

Best of all, my mom was one of the hostesses this year and we got a lot of leftovers. =) Ham, turkey and a whole pan of cheesy hash browns - Boyd loves those.

Honestly, I didn't mind celebrating earlier. It's a great kick off to the holiday season. Plus no more last minute trying to fit in the family party. The only down side is not collecting all the Christmas cards. We got 3 today all from aunts & uncles.

Thanksgiving: Day 12

Today I am thankful for the sunrise.

Since the time change I get to see the sunrise most mornings unless of course I'm running late and then the sun is mostly up. =) I enjoy watching the bold strokes of the sunrise appear.

Today was a pink and purple majestic morning. It just felt like something wonderful was going to happen today! It's the first time this fall I've noticed these colors in the morning sky.

Usually I see a bright orange on the horizon with the peachy and pink streaks expanding up the sky line. I like the mornings when I see the big orange circle coming up over the horizon. It reminds me of the California sun, which on some mornings brings a Beach Boys song to mind but that's a topic for a different day.

Definitions:
California sun - The CA license plate kind of sun. Plus the sun always seemed bigger in CA.

Thanksgiving: Day 11

Today I am thankful that I have a job and that my husband has a job. That they are flexible enough that we feel comfortable taking a sick day. And for me that I can do some work from home if I need to.

I wish that I did not have to see the economy in the state that it's in. Knowing that a there are a lot of people without jobs and knowing what they are going through because I was in their shoes in Jan 2008 - July 2008. Here's hoping that things take a solid turn towards recovery.

Thanksgiving: Day 10

Today I am thankful for all the veterans!

We are thinking about all our family and friends who have been in or are in the military with a very thankful heart. Boyd's Dad Bud, his Uncles Russell, and Irv, BIL Dale, half brother Gig, and nephew Darrick. Karen's Grandpa Butts (Edward), Uncles Dean, Gaylen, Eugene, Delbert, Jack, and John, cousin David. Friends Bill D, Martha, and Smoke.

A special prayer for those who lost their lives in service, especially Boyd's uncle Russell who lost his life in WWII.

Thanksgiving: Day 9

Today I am thankful for my sorority sisters.

We had a great meeting tonight - sharing, caring, laughing, learning and dessert. Plus I stayed to visit with my Flamingo friend. She brought me home at 11:30 on a school night! We have a great visit and she reminded me that I need to call her more often.

I'm already thinking that my flamingo friend and I need to do a few of these things ...
* a Saturday trip to a great crafty store
* a beading party
* a cookie exchange
* a holiday coffee at my house - I have issues opening my home to friends and I don't know why.
* making a gingerbread house
* just getting together to visit.

Thanksgiving: Day 8

Today I am thankful for my friends. The ones I've had forever and the ones I've just met. Thank you for the comments on my blog and a special thanks to my friend Linda who found another pumpkin plate so I now have a total of 8. =)

Yes it's all about the dishes.

Thanksgiving: Day 7

Thankful my boys were home today to take care of me.

I woke up from my morning nap and found Buddie on his bed in our room. He is usually on the bed with me and must have known Momma didn't feel good. He stayed by my side for most of the day.

I was feeling a little better this afternoon and made a run to the store. That was a mistake. I got home feeling drained and headed back to bed.

Lucky for me I found the Prince & Me movie marathon on the ABC Family channel. Cute movies that don't require my full attention and I can laugh a little. Those are the best kind when you're not feeling the best.

Thanksgiving: Day 6

Thankful for our wonderful neighbors.

I've had a busy day. Started out deep cleaning our bedroom, first half of the bath room and vacuuming the bedroom, bathroom and hallway. Which means I've stuck to my Christmas cleaning plans. Yeah me!

Then I started on a marathon of laundry. 4 loads of sheets and comforters - the stock pile got a bit smaller. Plus two loads of our clothes.

We watched a disappointing Iowa game. They came out of the gates and it looked like a great game. But it really hurts when the starting QB is injured early in the game. Our second string is a red shirt freshman and he looked it. Knowing we have a difficult game next week I'm hoping they can blow off their first loss in 13 games.

Before the game was even over I was out getting setup to put up the rest of the Christmas lights on the back garage. It was 70 something out and it was wonderful! I had to talk Boyd into helping me - I didn't feel comfortable going up the ladder by myself. Next thing I know the neighbor two houses down came up with Buddies bud, Charlie. He was offering to put up the lights for me. I told him I was ok and continued working. Once I rounded the corner, next thing I knew he was standing on the ground putting up more hooks and Boyd was following hanging up the lights. :) Team work at its best.

Oh and just so you know my hubby is afraid of heights. Usually anything over the third rung and it's up to me. It's ok as long as the ladder isn't fully extended and I don't have to get off.

After a quick afternoon nap, I'm feeling like Boyd did last week. No fever that I can tell but feeling pretty yucky. Hope it passes quickly...next week is very busy.

Thanksgiving: Day 5

Today I am thankful for....I can't decide.

* I was awake at 3:30 AM and left for work at 5:30 AM and stopped at another Wal-Mart and found my pumpkin plates. Only 7 and they were $2 each so I'm over my budget by $5. DH said he'd chip in a 5 spot. Gotta love that!
* I stayed awake and functional at work. Fridays are always slow so it made for an interesting afternoon. It helped that I was done at 3:30.
* I got a turkey for 60 cents a pound. 2 stores and I couldn't find the 40 cents per pound. Oh well maybe another day.
* I had a safe trip home in the non typical 30 miles of bumper to bumper traffic.
* Coming home to my boys. I love when they welcome me home with open arms and puppy kisses.

TGIF!

Thanksgiving: Day 4

Today I am thankful for store sales.

This year we are hosting Thanksgiving and I decided I wanted a "pretty" table. And of course I didn't have 'anything' that would work - hehehehe. And I was doing this on a budget $20-25 for plates, glasses, cups, and serving pieces. I knew it would be a challenge but I was hoping my mom could help me out. :)

Earlier this week I stopped at Mom's house and searched her plate cupboard for the wood grain plates I was sure she had. Unfortunately my memory was bigger than reality. She has one dinner plate. :( So I knew I had to hit the stores and that $20-25 budget would make things tight.

I've been frequenting the local thrift store and knew they didn't have any plates that would fit the bill. Given my love of dishes I didn't look at serving pieces too closely. I wanted to save my budget for plates.

Yesterday I hit the local Goodwill stores and didn't find anything that hit me as right. On the drive home I decided that I would settle for my Fiesta dishes and some new pumpkin dessert plates that I was hoping to find at the local Wal-Mart.

Today after work I decided to go to Target. Yesterday I had a nagging thought that I should go there and it got to late and I was starving so I headed home. I was shocked to find most all of the store ready for Christmas. I was hoping that home end cap would be filled with wonderful thanksgiving table options.

So I started searching for the clearance section and hoped that I could find a little something. Imagine my surprise when I found a set of 4 chargers in the 70s avocado/Grinch green and the price a whopping 1.48.

I wandered over to the holiday section by foods and found all of halloween on sale for 75% off. I found a wonderful orangish table cloth for 3.24.

Grand total at Target:
2 sets of Chargers = 2.96
1 table cloth = 3.25

and the total is 6.21

Plus I found a great Christmas present for my hard to buy for mom. =)

Tonight was date night with my mom so I hurried home from shopping. - all the while kicking myself that I didn't have time to go to the big Target. Can you believe I STILL haven't been there? It opened this spring or summer. sigh!

Mom told me that she remembered some glasses that she had that she thought were a fall color. So we went out for supper and then went looking through her cabinets for the mysterious glasses. We were out of luck so we headed for the basement where I found not only the glasses in GREEN that I was pretty sure matched my chargers but the giant turkey platter I'd given my mom several years ago. She happily sent them all home with me. Along with all the character glasses we found.

As we were going through things my mom mentioned that the local thrift store had half off dishes today. After leaving mom's I was just too tired and headed home for a little quality time with Boyd before he went to bed. We chatted and he played a recording of his 3 favorite performers from Oprah today. As he was going to bed he said Honey why don't you go to the thrift store. I know you really want to go.

He didn't have to tell me twice. I tucked Boyd and Buddie in and headed out. I wasn't positive the store would be open but I knew I had to try. Luck was on my side they were open for 30 mins.

At my new favorite local thrift store I found 5 great pieces
* gravy boat = 1
* big clear glass = 1.50
* clear glass footed bowl = 1.50
* clear glass flowered bowl (I love it) = 1
* one fallish china type bowl = 1

for a total of $6 - love half price sales I never would have spent $12 for all that!

Thanksgiving overall total = 12.21

Then I decided to make the dreaded trip to Wal-Mart. It's out on the edge of town and I just don't like driving all the way out there. Once I was there I was happy to find a set of four cloth napkins for $1. And no little pumpkin dessert plates. They did have some fall leaf plates but they were $2 each.

So a total of $2

Thanksgiving overall total 14.21

Woo Hoo! I've made some great progress and I'm under $15 dollars spent. yeah me! And there's still Mom's brown dishes to go through to see if I can borrow some for the day. =)

And after all of that here is my current Thanksgiving table.


And on a side note I remembered that my sister-in-law has a box of White China with gold trim waiting for me. Can't wait to get those and see how they look on my table.

Now tomorrow I need to get to the Big Wal Mart and Target on the way to or the way home from work. And there's always KMart.

Cross your fingers that I can find those pumpkin plates. They will be THE perfect addition.

P.S. sorry for the long post I'm super excited today!

Thanksgiving: Day 3

Today I am thankful for my husband. He made a very hard decision earlier this week and now it's like a huge weight is off his shoulders. Which caused him to be a bundle of Energy today. I'm shocked at everything he accomplished. =)

Love you honey!

Thanksgiving: Day 2

Today I am thankful for my ability to vote for my government. Both local and federal.

We are electing a new mayor and several council members. I'm excited about the options available for mayor and think any of them could do a great job.

Thanksgiving: Day 1

Today I am thankful for the wonderful weather. Driving to work in the early morning light, mostly sunny day and a very sunny drive home. DH and I took Buddie for a short walk and I was shocked at how cold it was by 5 PM.