New Disney unusuals, family survival mode & babies everywhere.... {Thankful Thursday #

This week I am Thankful for:

Veggie sandwich at work
We have these "classes" or "workshops" at work every now & then to teach you something, or discuss different topics or what's going on in the community. They have some really interesting workshops.  I ended up going to one this past week & they serve lunch too - let me tell you - it was the most incredible veggie sandwich I have ever had.  & it came with fruit & pasta salad & a ginger snap cookie. ... can I tell you again how much I love my job.

News of twins
We found out this week that our middle daughter is having twin boys.  It's a complicated relationship between her & Ricky - but she has worked so hard to have these babies - SO HARD.... & even if the relationship is a little rough around the edges right now for her & her dad, Ricky & I are both so excited for her & her husband having these twins.  They are going to be gorgeous babies.... & we're praying for them & the whole family & the surrogate that is carrying them.  Just praying for so much in this area of our lives.  & if anything, the main thing is that these babies are healthy!  So excited for this little family & all the love that's going to be poured into these two little guys.

Another Grandbuddy
& on that note, we also found out that we're having another grandbuddy.  If you dont know what I'm talking about - ask - I feel like I've explained it so much, everyone knows :) .... but we found out a few weeks ago about the news & it was finally announced to the world.  So grandbabies & grandbuddies EVERYWHERE.

Leave work early
Our work let us go early from work on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Say it with me everyone.... I love my job.

Best pumpkin pie ever
Ricky isn't a huge pumpkin pie person & he even said this was the best pie he's ever tasted that I made. He even ate like 3/4 of a pie himself.  That's the highest compliment.

Beautiful Thanksgiving day
I love when Thanksgiving is sunny & warm.  & it truly was.  I know dad sent that weather for us.  I actually stopped on the drive back to my brother's house & just took in the view, the warm day & the sun shining... & I felt my daddy nearer at that moment than any other time of the holiday.

Family togetherness
I was feeling so blah & bummed about Thanksgiving.. but getting together with family - & laughing together & sharing life together - its the best way to survive, isn't it?

Long weekend
... because what's better than a 4 day weekend?

Mammogram on Saturday
That was so nice to know they schedule on the weekend now & I didnt have to worry about trying to figure out how to do it with work.

Walking in sunshine
This is probably one of the last warm days we'll get so I took advantage of it on Saturday & went walking in the park. It was crazy to see all the damage done by the ice storm there. SO many trees broken in half. ... I feel ya trees... I feel ya.

Sweet potato quinoa chili
One of the best things I make. I put it on Saturday morning before I went for my mammogram & I forgot how delicious it was.  & the leftovers are even better.

Hat fit
My friend that I serve with in HSM, she had text me & asked me to make this pixie hat for her daughter. I literally made it in a 6 hour stretch sitting on the couch & I was so thankful it fit her perfectly & looked even more adorable than I could imagine on her!!!!!

Tree up
After all the emotion & all the drama of lights out & just not sure if I even wanted  to put up a tree this year... I'm glad it's up & lit up (what lights are left).  It just feels homey & warm now in my living room.

New Disney ornaments
These are our ornaments that we got on our anniversary - our tradition that we do every year. I love unusual Disney characters that you dont see often. Sven & Baymax make me super happy this year.

What are you Thankful For this week?

Currently

Excited for:
I can't wait to see Dumplin' on Netflix! They did so well with To All the Boys I've Loved .... & Jennifer Aniston? Come on - this is going to be great. It's one of my favorite books.  I've actually got Puddin' - the follow up book - checked out at my house. I need to read it before I have to turn it back in.

Wearing
I got a new winter coat. I love my one Ricky got me last year but I found one on Black Friday for half off & couldnt pass it up. It's a little longer. & I love the color of it. Camo Green. With a big furry hood. It's funny too because a co-worker came in on Monday with the exact same coat.  I tell her we are not officially twins.

Cyber Monday
Anyone else find any deals?  I walked away from Cyber Monday with the Kristin Hannah book The Great Alone & some highlighters for my Bible from The Daily Grace Co (I've been loving them lately)... & also got the Body Boss workout plan. I've been eyeing it for awhile but its been too expensive, but it was only $39.90 on Monday.  Anxious to see how it works.

Freaking out
The flu is already running around. NOOOOO!!!!!! They just showed a map & Kentucky is already in a higher risk category than the rest of the country.  Time for me to start freaking out & using gallons of hand sanitizer & drink Elderberry like its grape juice. Heck, I'll even drink the hand sanitizer if it keeps me flu-free

Watching
I just finished watching the show on A&E about the Clinton Affair. I remember that whole mess with Monica - but man, watching it back - how unfairly was she treated?  All the women involved in telling their stories about him.  I have felt so bad for Monica Lewinsky for years - she totally got a raw deal of the way people reacted to her while Bill Clinton walked away with seemingly no hardships against him. Granted, we dont know what goes on behind closed doors - but we can all agree that Monica's life had to be affected more negatively than his over it.  No 50 / 50 her.  .... but I'm so glad to see she's making a good name for herself in speaking engagements & her work in Vanity Fair. She seems like a very intelligent & put together woman.  I found the whole series interesting.  Not sure if its out there on some sort of On Demand - but if you lived during that era, I think you'd enjoy it.

Listening 
Time to break out out the Christmas music!  I get torn between two favorites - Josh Groban's Noel - & Casting Crowns Peace on Earth.  Casting Crown's I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day is probably my favorite Christmas song... I get chills listening to it every time. 

Reading
I am so intrigued by this book that I'm reading on Netgalley... Waisted. It's got touches of Biggest Loser, but warped up a little.... & it just resonates with me how these women feel in their weight struggles. I'm hoping to finish it up this weekend.

Enjoying
Christmas lights on the tree.  There is just nothing so warm & homey as that. I still dont understand why we cant have that up all winter long to get through the dreary of the season. Though - let's remind everyone - it usually is all of Winter my tree is up, so what am I talking about ;)

The weekend we survived Thanksgiving....

Let the holidays begin.... 

& for us, let the survival begin.

It all just feels so "off"... but we're determined to make it through.

Actually, I am surprised that we all made it through as well as we did.

Now, that doesnt mean it wasn't hard.  I know I thought of dad no less than 100 times this weekend.... & I know my mom had a really hard time - as expected.  But we got together & we survived!  

We even had lots of laughter... lots of talk about my butt & upcoming surgery, which is perfect dinner conversation.... & lots of me stuffing my face with the broccoli cheese casserole.

Which by the way - here it is in all of its glory. 

It's funny because I started digging in & was like, "WAIT - I gotta take a picture of it"... & yes, I can easily - EASILY - eat the entire dish.

But let me back up.....

Thursday, we started out with mine & Ricky's tradition - going through the sales ads in the middle of the floor. We've always done it every year since we've been married.  He goes for Best Buy ads, I go for Michael's ads, & we both fight over Target ads.

I was super excited this year because there was a MASSIVE crossword puzzle in the paper too.  It made my nerd-word-heart so happy... & made me feel really old because I couldnt see the numbers in the puzzle - so I had to keep a magnifying glass near.  Geez.... a stab to the ego.

I started making my pumpkin pies & then watched the Macy's Day Parade. It's funny because later, my brother said he couldnt stand watching it because of all the Broadway stuff. I told him, that's when I sit & watch it - & when the parade actually begins, I'll just catch it passing by the TV.  We always have been total opposites so that doesnt surprise me one bit.

I loaded up the pies & we headed to my brother's....

They always do such a good job of making lots of yummies....I was in charge of pies... & Redi-whip because Thanksgiving pie just isnt the same without it.

We ended up leaving fairly early because mom just wasn't feeling like being out too long - & Tony & Juli wanted to hit up a early bird sale & Ricky & I wanted to venture  out too.

My brother & SIL got exactly what they wanted super fast.... & Ricky & I? Screwed up everything. We had gone out to look for a new Christmas tree we liked (I'm SUPER picky about trees) & got there & found out the sale for the tree wasn't till the next day. Sigh.... just our luck.

We did shop around a little bi & then Ricky was hungry & of course, options are limited - so we headed to Waffle House... which is what we did last year - my first trip ever there.  Well, this may be the last. HAHA.

It was so GROSS.  The place was filthy - I mean, it was so bad, I walked back out to my car & got my Lysol wipes because I didnt even want to sit down in the booth, nor touch the table or menu. & yes, I'll remind you that I'm a huge germaphobe - & it was a good reminder for me to just keep my Lysol wipes in my purse.

Ricky even said his food tasted disgusting.  My hash browns? I had ordered cheese on top of it & just had to laugh when I saw the one square of cheese slapped on top. 

But we definitely made a memory going there....

& then we headed to Target - & was shocked how easily it was to get through. Granted, they had been open for a few hours, but there wasn't even any lines to check out.  I picked up 2 little things & then we just headed home.

Black Friday - you can count on Ricky to go shopping at 4:00am... me? You'll find me tucked away in bed.  He called me to see if I was up at 6am & I was like, "Yep, I'll be right down & meet you"... & then fell asleep. Oops.  But I got another wake up call at 6:30 for a check-in of where I was at. Had I left yet?.... I was like, "Walking out right now" haha - But I am pretty good at getting out of the house quickly.... so while Ricky was waiting in line, I ran into Starbucks - a good excuse to delay my arrival... & then we got to do some Black Friday shopping together. - to which I still didnt get anything, except yarn.  Because that's what's important to me on a sale day.

We didnt even stay out too long & got home & enjoyed the warmer day.  

The dogs made out for Black Friday!

Saturday, I headed out to get a mammogram - who knew they schedule on Saturday now!!! - & then just didnt want to do anything. I just was in a bad mood. I was all tore up about putting up my Christmas tree. I'd want it up & then Ricky was busy & couldnt get it out & then I was like, FORGET IT - I dont want Christmas anyways.... & then the next hour I was begging for the tree.  It was a topsy turvy of roller coaster emotion.  In the end, I just sat & knitted all day & watched Christmas movies on Netflix.

Sunday, was HSM - one of the most incredible messages I've ever heard - & then Ricky & I went out to lunch - complete with dessert....

& then we finally went home to get the tree up.  & to find that we have so many lights out on the tree. I about cried. Actually, I did cry.  

I'm just so BLAH about the holidays anyways so any little thing is going to push me over the edge.

I just decided to make Christmas simple. I didnt put up half of my decorations around the house. Left the garland in the tote. Cut out a lot of little Disney things I sit around on tables.... & you know what? I think I like it better. Ricky even said it looks nicer just having minimal stuff out. It makes you really appreciate it.

We still have 2 Nativity sets out - our Mickey & Minnie figures - & our tree is overflowing with Disney ornaments - just no bows this year... & I am SOOOO thankful to not have to deal with the bows.

So yeah.... we survived the kick off of the holidays..... that's just what you do, isn't it? Life continues on.... 

We thought of dad a lot - spoke of him often - laughed at things he did last Thanksgiving ... & I ate his share of broccoli casserole. I'm a good daughter like that.

How was your Thanksgiving?

Did you Black Friday Shop?

Or even Cyber Monday shop... since I'm slacking here a day late....

Yellow machines, bracelet making dates & when your neighbor is welding a chainsaw..... {Thankful Thursday #197}

I think I started Thankful Thursday because I always knew Thanksgiving was on Thursday... so the perfect day to really focus on what we're grateful for.

& that makes Thanksgiving like the SUPER BOWL of Thankfulness - doesnt it? 

I mean, people who never give 2 thoughts about gratitude, tend to find something to be grateful for on this day of all days.

So of course, I am going to give thanks for all the BIG things we over look....

I am so grateful for every day I wake up.... for a home that keeps me safe.... for family, totally including my dogs.... for all my sweet precious friend, totally including my amazing blog fiends I've made through the years....for my church & church family.... for my job.... most importantly, for my God & for the salvation we have through Jesus.

There's so much to be grateful for.... every year, every single day.... every single hour. 

It's just about looking for it.

May today & every day, you find new things you've never noticed before to have a heart of gratitude about.

... & now, back to the regular scheduled Thankful post ... 

This week I am thankfor for:

Bed early
Some days, you just gotta give up on the world & head into the comfort of the bed, with pillows & warm blankets as medicine for the soul.

HSM canceled
That may sound really strange, but I am so grateful that they ended up cancling our home group when the ice storm came in earlier than expected. We meet up at a home that is about 40 minutes away & I would have been on dark, country roads around 10pm - & the storm started around 6:45 - so I can imagine what it would have been like at 10pm.  Glad everyone was tucked in at home staying safe.

Chainsaw neighbor
Man... these titles are just confusing, huh?.... but trying to get out of our road the day after that ice storm was a NIGHTMARE.  Literally, there are only 3 ways to get out of our street.  2 of them was completely blocked with down trees.  The 3rd was 'iffy' - & honestly, I wouldnt have been able to get through if I was on my own.... but I was behind my next door neighbor who had brought a chain saw with him - so he was able to cut away from trees blocking the road.  SUCCESS on getting through!

Panera for breakfast
I've talked about Panera being in my work building for lunch many a time, but let me tell you - when you dont have electricity to make anything for breakfast, I was so glad to get to my desk & order from the 1st floor.  The best tasting breakfast sandwich ever!!!

HSM Coffee Date
Since we had to miss our small group, I was glad the girls actually got the plan to meet for coffee & chat.  I loved it especially because there was lights & heat there.  I didnt want to leave to go home to my cold, dark home!  Plus, always spending time with these girls is just the best.

Making bracelets together

GENERATOR!!!!
Thank you Lord for our generator. We've  never had to use it before & we werent even sure how it worked - but Ricky got it figured out & we had heat in our bedroom - & a light & a way to charge our phones.   I dont know what we would have done without it.

That yellow baby... I would hug it...
if it wasn't spewing carbon monoxide

5th row tickets!!!!!!!
I was so excited when I saw Steven Curtis Chapman was coming to Louisville.  He honestly NEVER COMES HERE!  It has seriously been 5 years since he was here. Thanks Timehop for letting me know that.  So I was right on it when tickets were released.  I actually could have gotten front row - but sometimes, I feel like I dont see the big picture being too close - so I got 5th row back  - on the end. I'm a big weirdo about being IN an aisle - but these two seats on the end? They have nothing in front of them (its the way the aisles are made up - its not a handicap area... didnt want anyone thinking I was like excited to take advantage of a handicap wheelchair area).... but now, I'm excited to finally see my guy!  I keep seeing so many people who have seen him in concert lately & they say its great.  Do I expect anything less?  No way.

POWER!!!!!
I honestly reacted like I won that big powerball lottery jackpot when our power came back on after 60 hours.  THE BEST FEELING EVER to be able to turn on a light switch. & to wake up to a hot cup of coffee & watch the news from bed.  Man oh man... a slice of heaven.

Offers & prayers
I have to say, I was so touched by the people who offered for us to come over & sleep in their warm house, or a warm meal, or a place to take a bath.... seriously, some of the offers were from people I would have never thought would open up their homes like they did.... but man, it just touched my heart something crazy. & the messages I got of prayers of heat & comfort - meant the world!!!!  When people care, it touches the heart like nothing else.

Warmer day!
After all the ice & the horrible storm, I honestly could not have been happier when a few days later, it was in the 50's. Melt away ice - melt away.

What are you thankful for this week?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!!!

Wednesday Medley

Getting one step closer to Thanksgiving! YAHOO...

& by YAHOO - I mean a day off work! 

& watching the Macy's Day Parade... & hopefully getting my tree up.

Just a side note - OF COURSE Thankful Thursday is going to be up tomorrow - the BIGGEST day of the year to be Thankful... so I know a lot of people wont be around blog-land on a holiday, but just wanted anyone to know it will be there if you still want to link up with me & really express how thankful you are this year.

Onto The Wednesday Medley with my friend Terri

________________

1.    What’s your favorite Thanksgiving food?

I know most of you can answer this for me at this point...

my brother's broccoli cheese casserole.  

I feel at this point, I need to take pictures of it with my good camera & do a post in dedication to it all on its own.

Except I eat it way too fast :) 

2.   What’s the happiest Thanksgiving memory of your childhood?

I can remember going to my grandmother's house with all my cousins... & my grandmother's famous & DELICIOUS dumplin's ... they were the best thing in the world. 

When she passed, no one has been able to make them like she used to. We always said she messed the recipe up on purpose so we would always just want & crave - & miss - her dumplin's... man, do I ever. - though now that I think about it, I probably couldnt eat them. I think they were made with chicken - or with chicken stock. 

ahhh - boo... that just made me sad.

3.   Who is the most consistently grateful person you know?

Oh gosh - its hard to say one person
... I feel like I have some sisters in Christ that are great in showing gratitude in all things
.. & I have some INCREDIBLE HSM girls that are just always shining thankfulness

Such good people who love the Lord & take to heart on giving thanks in all circumstances....

4.   If you could thank one person today—near or far, living or dead—for their influence on your life, who would that person be?

Of course, with this being the first Thanksgiving without my daddy, I have to say him.

My daddy made me so much the person I am... 

I always say my parents raised me in church, taught me about the Lord & to try & be the best person I can be living for Him.

I see my daddy's influence now more than ever with him not being near me any longer.

Even in little things... the way I see the world, the way I treat others....

oh how I miss my daddy!

5.   Who’s one person you’ve never thanked for their contribution to your life, but would like to?

Gosh - this one is hard.

I think back to grandparents... but hope I did let them know I appreciated them.

...& I think back to teachers that I had that influenced me & taught me & inspired me

... & I think to leaders in the church or lead bible studies, or who spoke up in a study or in a small group who added so much to my spiritual life. 

... all the youth kids that have come through my life throughout the past 16 years & how much they have taught me & touched my heart.

... heck, I even think about my pets I've had through the years - they've added to my life.

No way I can pick just one

6.   Tell us something random about your Thanksgiving week.

So this is my last full week before the dreaded medical stuff starts.
Next week, I have pre-op stuff & a final consult with my surgeon before the big cuts happen...
I'm a nervous wreck... & will be trying to get through this week & the holiday with as much appreciation of life as ever.

The weekend that most trees were going up while trees around us were going down......

What a weekend..... I felt like I was tapping into my inner Laura Ingalls. Except I totally failed & never want to do this again.

Most of you know what I'm talking about because when I'm grumpy & want to complain, I'm all over social media - isn't that what its for?

So yeah.... an ice storm came through on Wednesday night & we lost our power at 2am that night.... & 60 hours later, we have lights. 60 LONG HOURS... & whose counting? Me - that's who. I was counting every last long eternal minute.

Thursday night was miserable.... we slept in the cold. It was decent under all the blankets & all the layers of clothes I had on, but having to get ready for work in the dark, & having to get out from under those warm blankets - & let's talk about the worst part- sitting on an ice cold toilet seat - HELLLOOOOO.... that was miserable.

& it was awful when you get off work & come home & its already dark out. So when you come into a house with no electricity, it makes the darkness even more awful.

Friday, Ricky got a generator hooked up.  We had hooked up into it one lamp in our kitchen, one heater for the bedroom & of course, our phones & tablets charged up.  At least we were warm Friday night.  Actually - HOT!  Close up a bedroom with a space heater & dogs wrapped around your head, & it gets warm really quick.  I tucked into bed Friday night with my Kindle & just glad it was the weekend & I didnt have to go to work second guessing if my make up was even on right & if my socks matched.

The bad thing for me, Saturday, Ricky had to work.... so I was alone in the house all by myself.

Ricky had found one little TV that got a local station - that basically only shows old TV shows from the 50's & 60's... I was happy for any kind of entertainment. My morning was full of Beverly Hillbillies & Green Acres.  I actually did laugh at some of it.....

All the flashlights on the dresser :) haha

I ventured into the cold house & waited for some day light to do some house cleaning. & then I found out, its not easy to clean the house in the dark.  Day light isn't enough light to see if you're swiping all the dust.

I called it quits & just sat by the window & worked on some Bible Journaling. If you are alone in quiet & need some help, Jesus is where you need to go.... & exactly what I did.

All the cords from the generator on the table... where we plugged in our phones to charge up

I even reached out to the women leaders in my HSM group & asked them to start praying.  Because we were hearing that we were in such a small area of outages that we would be last to get repaired - & it could be Monday or Tuesday. WE NEED GOD POWER HERE!!!!! 

Still waiting on Ricky to get home, I was trying to figure out what else to do to waste some time... & you know I have plenty of yarn laying around, so I started a new project.

& FINALLY - Ricky got home....

He dug out another generator that we had & he was going to try & hook us up some more power for another heater....

except he couldnt get it going.  At least the sun finally came out & it felt decent.

I ventured out to see some of the damage around us.  This tree is in the fenced in area of our back yard.

You can see another broken tree in the tree covered area of our property.  I actually wanted to take my camera back into the woods & show even more trees down. It was crazy how much was destroyed with this small ice storm.

Winter, I hate you. Already.

We walked the dogs a little bit to get their energy burned off because they were feeling the stress from us, I think.... & we went to check in with our neighbors how they were doing. Just as miserable as we were....

& we came home & I told Ricky I was going to take a nap... .because after all, I had no coffee maker.  SO SAD...

Candles in memory of my coffee pot

Laying on the couch, getting ready to doze off, around 2pm .... BEEP!  Our house alarm went off.

Can I tell you, I have not felt that much happiness in a long time. I literally took off running.  Why? I have no idea.  But I ran outside & started screaming & raising my hands & screaming, "THANK YOU GOD!" "PRAISE THE LORD"  "THANK YOU JESUS" .... I didnt go as far as Ricky Bobby & jerk off all my clothes thinking an invisible fire was on me - but it was close.

At this point, we didnt know what to do with ourselves.... what DO you do first after not having electricity for 3 days?  You'd think I'd finally start on laundry, or clean the stuff I couldnt see before. Nope. We were like, Let's go eat!!!!

Basically because we didnt have food any more.  We had to throw away everything in the refrigerator & the freezer.  That was a little depressing with a lot of stuff I just bought....

This is stuff we stopped & got after we went out to eat.... coffee creamer was top on the list
& a Starbucks iced coffee #priorities

But it's the cleanest my fridge & freezer has been since we got it.

& you know, sometimes you need a fresh start.  We found stuff at the bottom of our freezer that I'm not even sure when it was bought.

We even got dessert to celebrate our power being back on. 

Chocolate Chip Pecan Pie

I know - I know... its kind of sad how horrible I make it sound & how much I complained - when so many live in even worse conditions daily & think nothing of it - or people who have no home to even have shelter. 

It's been a big wide eye perspective shift.

That night, my hot shower felt like heaven... & my hot coffee in bed the next morning took on a whole new feeling of blessings.

Sunday was all about church & thanking my sweet church family for praying us through the power outage... & ordering more groceries to refill my fridge.... & helping mom order her groceries.

It did break my heart to go to my mom's & seeing all the trees down in her area too.  She had some big limbs down - one even put a hole in her garage roof & there's huge limbs all over the porch... & the worse part?  My dad's covered wagon got destroyed.

He built this handicap ramp for my mom & of course put his touch on it.  He worked so hard to get vines to grow underneath of it on a trellis & wanted nothing more than flowers & squash growing on it - he would take the squash & dry them out & paint them for fall..... & now, its squashed.

I know my brother can fix it - but it just wont be the same.... but nothing is anyways, is it?

So this was definitely a memorable weekend.... I had intentions to get my tree up, but that was the last on the list to worry about... especially with trees DOWN everywhere. 

& here we go into the kickoff of the holidays.  One where I am VERY Thankful for the blessings we have!

How was your weekend?

Did the ice storm reach you?

What's the longest you've gone without power?