My family's Thanksgiving dinner went over very well. I confess after cooking I didn't particularily want to eat the stuff but as I was tired of messing in it but the rest of my family chowed down and all said it was really good. They all came back for left overs twice last night so I think it must have been good. The kids loved the new baked Macaroni and Cheese dish I fixed them and the baked beans went over really well. (I dare not tell them I season them by smell since I hate the taste myself) But it works :)
We ate and then played with the kids and watched a bit of tv for a while before everyone went to looking for a place to grab a nap before the party.
The birthday party was a fun too with way too much cake/ice cream and screaming kids! lol But the boys (my 7 &8 year old nephews, whose birthday's were being celebrated) loved the presents I got them (nerf blasters) one each and the fight was on immediately. Their parents shot me the dirtiest looks when they opened them up and that was as much fun as watching the kids go wild over them. (score) lol
I've still got a fridge full of food and as usual I just want a good greasy cheeseburger myself!
The best thing about it was when my oldest brother sat eating the baked dressing, I made as close to Mom's as I could and said "if Mom was here to argue with it'd be just as if she wasn't gone" I knew then I'd got it right. :)
There were some flubs of course I was off on my time schedule by 1/2 hour since I only have a single oven and had to bake things in shifts plus it took me a bit longer to slice the ham than I counted on and we managed to burn the bottom of the rolls so nothing new there! lol The derby pie wasn't burnt and it tasted awesome! All in all it was a really good day.
Some of ya'll know my family isn't eating our Thanksgiving dinner until today since due to working Friday we couldn't all be together until today and it was worth waiting for to be as close to a family as we can this year.
I'm chief cook and bottle washer this year and so I've been up since 5 getting it started. I have the turkey breast cooking in the nesco and the ham is wrapped and baking in the oven. I've got the rolls out rising and the corn from my aunt's garden thawing. I've got 2 or 3 other small jobs done and actually need to wait a little bit before doing more or it'll be done too early.
This is where my mom and I always fussed, she was one who wanted to keep on cooking right through until it was all done and the calling and harrassing the family until they would have to come out early, no matter what time she'd said dinner would be ready. lol Always made my brothers crazy since they rarely got to sleep in and always tried. Of course she never made the calls herself that was my or my sister's duty. Our brother's didn't mind their language or tone when we woke them early and aggraviated them to come on and eat early. lol It always took several calls and by the 3rd one we were making Mom talk to them herself as our ear's were burned enough.
Me, now I like to pace it out and have it done as planned for noon. My brother called last night and said they'd not be here until this morning which I had already suspected, he's just getting over major surgery and back to work but moving gingerly so I didn't figure he'd be up to a 5 hour drive after working all day. He was upset since it meant his wife wouldn't be here to help me with the cooking so I had to sooth him over that, when in truth I hadn't figured her into my time schedule.
Yep I approach cooking a big meal with a schedule laid out in my head and a list to check off as the major jobs are done, otherwise I always forget something important until we're sitting down to eat.
So things are on schedule this morning and it's nice and quiet just me and the new Nickleback CD while I get it underway.
So while everything's good I keep finding myself wanting to ask Mom about this or that and missing her but in a good way. We always had such fun fussing and fighting while we cooked.
Hopefully I'll come close to how her dinners tasted and then we'll sit around and talk about eating too much as we always have done before.
Goodness save us we're all going to the birthday party of my 2 nephews then at 4 today at the local skating rink with way too many kids hopped up on cake and ice cream! If I survive the dinner the party will kill me for sure. :)
COMMENTS
I hope it is a good one for you all. :)
Lists are life savers lol...enjoy your day.
it sounds like you have a wonderful and busy day planned. you seem pretty well organized, i hope you are dancing and singing to the Nickleback as you listen. and when you have those moments of "mom what do i need to do?"
voice them, say them out loud. you will feel better and she will answer somehow.
Mmmm ham. :) Good luck sis and enjoy!
Was checking out Power Punks and it looks like it could turn into a very fun place to play. The only real problem I can see to all these new toys is not having enough time in the day to play with them all. I can forsee serious sleep depravation episodes in all our futures!
Yesterday was a wash as far as getting any work done for the holiday. Had a meeting at my nephew's school at 10am which didn't get started until nearly 10:30 due to a prior meeting running late. All the school representatives where there with their completed assessments of my 4 year old nephews results. Everyone's test results were consistant with the things we know or have experienced with Adam so they were not blowing smoke but it still hurt when they issued the Educational Disposition of Autism about him. My sister started crying even though we fully expected this to happen.
I love her dearly and she cannot help being so darn emotional just as I can't help my complete impatience and abhorrence of breaking down in a situation like that (aren't we opposites). All it did was make them all stop going over the test results and their meanings and what it meant for Adam's educationaly curriculum while they started reassuring her it wasn't that bad.
I'm sure I came off as the cold hearted bitch because I took hold of my sisters arm and pulled her around and told her to stop it this wasn't unexpected and if it gets him the help he needs to catch up with other kids his age so once he hits 1st grade he's on their level, it's fine. What they don't know is that she depends on me to be that way or she'll fall to pieces. I'm the perfect bad guy :)
But the final results are all that matter we got the topic back to Adam's results and needs and how to take care of it. Along with attending pre-school he's getting speech therapy and occupational therapy and will also be tested for physical therapy now that the OT worker noticied one leg seems weaker than the other.
I hate that he's being given a label at all but in 3 years the tests all have to be re-done and after all that help there could be significant changes, that's what I believe and refuse to think otherwise. They all said his intelligence was good going so far as to say he's starting to identify words on his own to read off paper or even the computer screen.
If tricky is any sign of intelligence the boy has it in spades for he's slick as a weasel when he wants to be.
After that nearly 2 hour meeting we brought Adam from school since he was having a bellyache and I took him home until his Mom got off work then we took him back to the doctors. Two hours later we finally drug home a bit after 6pm, wore out and hungry.
I sat down and called Rat and managed to catch her for a change and we talked a long time and oh man did she make me laugh. I love her weird sense of humor and I think I make her laugh a bit too.
Later I got online and caught up with Birdie and got to chat with her a while too. For a sucky day it ended on a good note at least.
Now school is out here so I've got both kids today and I can't imagine how I'll get anything done but I'm going to try at least. lol
COMMENTS
Being the one to hold it all together isn't a bad thing. Somebody's gotta do it. I'm the same way with my sister and it sucks sometimes, but if we both fell apart in times of need, we'd get no where.
You hang in there and I hope your nephew gets all the help he needs. Encourage him all you can. He'll get frustrated and he'll need that strength of yours to pull him through.
School's out here too. It's 10:45 and I've already gotten 4 calls from the house. Mind you, mine are 19, 17 and 10. It never ends! lol
I understand how hard but necessary it is to be the rock that all others use for support and foundation. It is a blessing that you have the strength and patience to fill this role that is needed by your family.
hugs my dear friend
Michael
There are some days it's just so very difficult to find something positive to say to others...
COMMENTS
That is when you call me so we can have a bitch session. ;)
For about the last 3 months the local water company has been in the process of installing new lines on the small street I live on less than a mile long but with several junctions so they had to tear up the road in a couple of places too.
During this 3 months they have repeatedly closed down the roadway so that those of us who live here have to drive completely around it to get home. This would be fine if they were actually getting the job done but 75% of the time they are just standing around "discussing" the job at hand. So it's still unfinished and every time it rains we have a mud slick on the road from where they dug up but didn't re-seed or put hay down. It's slick as ice sometimes out there.
Then last night I noticed flasing lights outside and looked out the door to see police cars sitting blocking the street and a side-street by me. I opened the door and could see water gushing everywhere. Their handiwork didn't hold and the water main burst flooding the roads around here.
The water company came rushing back out and then proceeded to work until 2 or 3 am with a jackhammer and digging equipment. But they finally got the water to stop pouring out but half the neighborhood has no water today. They are showing no signs of coming back today so I suspect they'll wait until tomorrow.
That is not going to go over well with the folks who need to clean up tonight and in the morning for school and work. I have a feeling the water company are going to get their ears burned up and the utility commission may too. There were already too many upset about the mud and on-going road closure that were unnecessary if they had just done the job in the week it should have taken back in September.
It'll be interesting to see how much higher the water bill gets next month too! I do believe they'll pass the charges on to those of us living out here, don't you?
In the meantime I have a new respect for those who suffer respiratory illnesses for this trouble breathing stuff is for the birds. I am better today finally feeling human again now I'll see how long it takes for my sense of smell and taste to come back. I hope it does by Thanksgiving since I season many foods by smell instead of taste. :)
Well crapola! It's friday and instead of getting ready to go out with my girlfriends I'm stuck in here still trying to get over this virus. Both kids went down with it too so today I felt like total crap and got to try and care for them. My neice isn't so bad at 11years old she's easy to care for but the 4year old refuses to take medicine (yes I have tried every way to get it in him) So I'm worn out, feel bad and depressed since I don't get to go have any fun or I'll make Rat and Birdie sick as a dog too. What a way to start the weekend! I'd ask what else can go wrong but I'm afraid of the answer o-0
COMMENTS
Well just know I will have great food in your place- maybe beef roast, or catfish. Chicken stripes. Hmmm just don't know.
*evil smile*
You get better now. We might go Sunday morning if you get better.
Oh oh they do an awesome omlet *gets excited*
Hope you feel better soon.
Yea we did kind of chow down....:) Feel better soon sis.
Ended up at the doctor's office afterall today. The weather around here has had everyone's allergies and sinus' going crazy. Mine finally ended up in my lungs and I got to go drop my trousers at the doctors office. The antibiotic was one of those really big, think, yellow concoctions that took forever to get and hurt like no bodies business. The other one was easy in comparison but got more painful later on.
But the upside of a very sore tookis is that my head is much clearer and I feel semi human again. Yipee Now to get back up to working status for the holiday. ;)
The worst part is that Rat won't chance coming near me until I get over this for she could end up with it or taking it in on her Mom. :( Even Birdie will only talk to me on the phone or pc now. I feel so abandoned and alone.....*cries then starts snickering*
COMMENTS
Hey- can you wipe the house down and move it into your bedroom so I can watch True Blood laying on your couch?
Hahahhhaa
Sorry I mean *snickering*
darn it my butt hurts too much to laugh!
Darn straight.....not catching nuttin over the holidays.
I'll always talk to you.
Took my neice to her first band concert tonight since my sister couldn't get off work. All these kids just started learning a few months ago so it was fun a bit loud and with a lot of off moments. But they tried hard and you couldn't help but be proud of them all for being brave enough to get up there in front of everyone and try.
I dropped her off home and came to my own where I got out of my clothes and into my nice shabby pj's then headed to the living room for a pop and some computer time.
I just get comfortable and turn on the computer and start to log into VR when the doorbell rings.
Okay it's 9:30 PM and most everyone I know is either home getting the kids in bed or curled up getting warm in their own homes so I have no ideal who it could be. I went to the door flipping on the light and could only see the outline of a man outside but I can tell he's wearing a hat and it's not a ballcap or stetson so I get worried that it's bad news.
I jerked open the door forgetting what I was wearing or rather not wearing my robe and there stood a young state trooper. I had no ideal who he was but he says "is this the E******* residence?" It is, I confirm and he hands me a white business size envelope, I look and it has my name typewritten on the front. Then he says it's my invitation to the police christmas party and they wanted to make sure I got it since they hadn't heard from me yet. lol
I had thought to miss it this year with all that's going on here but looks like I might just ought to show up after all. I always have a good time so it won't be a hardship.
He went on to introduce himself and said he came on in 05, I laughed and said I went off in 04, he said must be nice and I grinned and promised him it was very very nice.
He laughed and we chatted for a few minutes standing in the cold him in uniform and me half dressed. ah lords what a stupid thing to do but I got to tell you he looked fine in the grey and black uniform. lol
I'm awfully glad it wasn't bad news too :)
COMMENTS
Wow con..... really glad it was not bad news as well. AND YES you SHOULD go to the party.!!!
Make Rat do the makeup too!
Damn it- you was to tell him the Exxxxxx moved and send him my way. ;)
Ohhhhh I get to do the makeup!!!
*rat jumps up and down* Yeah!!!
I got a couple of letters Sat from my insurance company one approving the next spinal injection test that I had scheduled for this Wed. The other one said they wanted to use 10 shots this time and their medical review doctor claimed that was probably over-medicating and unnecessary. The first test used 8 shots and while there was a little relief in my neck my spine from mid shoulder down swelled up and I was nearly bedridden for a week. I thought about it and I just don't feel the relief warrants it at this time. So I cancelled the next set of tests and will see how I feel after the holidays. I may reconsider the proceedure but I'm actually thinking I'd rather go see a specialist on the spinal problems instead of a pain management specialist. I won't have to manage the pain if I can find out how to stop hurting the discs.
This is going to be a hard holiday for us and I just don't feel it's the time I want to add extra pain or stress.
I want to help my family enjoy the holidays especially the kids and if they have a good time the rest of us enjoy ourselves a little at least. It's difficult to resist being happy when 4 little kids are having a blast all around you. It'll be noisy and loud and silly and just what family gatherings should be in my family at least. We are not a quiet bunch so why should the kids be either. lol
COMMENTS
Pain management old school style- bourbon or whiskey. But then again that is treating the symptoms and not the cause. Good luck talking with a specialist and I hope you feel better :)
I have spent some time reading journals today and I had missed it even more than I knew but I did run across one reoccuring theme...seems an awful lot of folks are having trouble sleeping these days.
Made me feel guilty since I slept like a newborn baby last night and didn't even take a muscle relaxer or pain pill. Just wrapped up in my soft clean blanket (did laundry yesterday) and turned out the lights I don't remember much after that until the alarm clock went off this morning. I briefly considered tossing it down the hallway but I've had this good old clock about 15 years now and it's got me up on time for the good reasons and the bad so faithfully I don't want to break it. lol
So 7Am and I'm up, dressed and out the door feeling pretty darn good since I slept so well. I had a bunch of errands to run and shopping to do so I was out until noon and am now sitting enjoying a diet pepsi and a bologna sandwhich woo hoo it's a good day. Sorry ya'll that cannot sleep I hope you catch up tonight.
COMMENTS
I have noticed that too..and alot of illness. I hope everyone starts to feeling and sleeping better.
glad you are feeling better:)
Have no guilt, sweetest of dreams. :)
Michael
I know what my problem is.. too much caffein. I'm cutting it out! You have no idea how jealous I am that you sleep all night long!
I'm really enjoying the Sci-Fi section and all the different groups that are there and available for us to pursue our varied and different interests. But I am quickly discovering that it would be way too easy to spread out too much and so not really enjoy myself. I want to have the time to enjoy the groups I'm a part of and so will probably not join any others at least until I have got a handle on the ones I'm in now.
I still want to spend most of my time on VR for it is where I fell in love with an online community and this group of people. Even the odd folks that I don't understand entertain me for the most part. I would never want to lose that fun.
COMMENTS
Yup VR is where its at, SciFi is a place for SciFi folk *nods wisely*
Indeed!
I got next to nothing accomplished today. A few of the kids presents wrapped before they find them on me. If I get them wrapped they won't even try to peek but if they can find them in a closet or drawer unwrapped, it's fair game to them. lol
I'm fighting off a virus I do think since had a fever and body aches along with chills all day. I ended up sleeping most of the evening and yet I'm still feeling very tired and sleepy. Guess I'll have an early night and hopefully sleep the rest of it off.
Tomorrow I have got to get some things done, it's starting to bug me that they are still hanging over my head. Feels like a sword at times.
Yesterday was a most worrisome day as things just didn't go well all morning. Nothing major just annoying. But I talked to Birdie and Rat and we made plans to have dinner together so I knew it would get better at least. Then late afternoon I got a call from my eldest brother who lives about 6hours away and he was on the way to the hospital. He'd finally gone to a new doctor with pain in his side and this one didn't put it down to scar tissue from an old injury and ordered a ct scan. 30 minutes after the scan my brother gets a call to head for the hosp for emergency surgery, seems he had a ruptured appendix.
But he swore he felt fine and would have his wife call me as soon as it was over and for me to tell his son (who has the other side of the duplex with me) as he didn't want to scare him or have him hit the road that way. My job was to inform him and keep him calm. lol I did it.
A couple hours later while I'm waiting for my friends to come inside the restuarant I get a call but instead of it being all over he's just going into surgery and the news is worse. The surgeon has done more tests and says there a lot of infection inside him and he's not sure how much more damage may be there. But they're just getting ready to take him to surgery and warns they may have to do more than a small incision.
They left it up to me whether to tell this to my nephew and I chose not to for a while at least.
Several hours later Vicky called and he came through the surgery though they had him on a respirator and in ICU for the night at least. He is on massive antibiotics because he was totally eat up with infection inside. I won't go into the details cause it's kinda sickening but the doctors cannot figure out how he has stood the pain all these years. (I could tell real tales here about temper and hatefulness) lol Maybe he'll turn over a new leaf now.
But by this morning he has regained consciousness and tried to pull out the breathing tubes so they had to load him up with morphine and start weaning him off the respirator. He'll be moved to a regular room sometime today but will be in hospital for at least a week and then a long recovery due to the incision splitting him wide open.
There's no reason for us to try and go over there since it'd just put extra pressure on Vicky to host company when she just wants to be with Mike at the hospital. So we'll spend lots of time on the phone this week I suspect.
The very best news was that absolutely no sign of cancer was found which had been a big concern of Mike's since he's at the age our father was when he died of stomach cancer. Yipee for that at least.
I spent the night doing a lot of talking to the Goddess and God and plenty of praying too. I may look pretty wiped out today but I feel awfully happy inside. Mike and I may clash quite often, he being the oldest son and me the oldest daughter plus he's right wing conservative Republican and I'm liberal Democrat so we've had some good debates there but I know we love each other and that's all that really matters. I'm not sure I could take it if something happened to him this soon after Mom. Thank goodness I don't have to find out.
COMMENTS
I am so very glad to hear that he will get out of this, and that they have finally found what has made him feel so ill for so long. *hugs*
Great news sis. Glad he is getting better. :) And you was not the only one who talked to the ones above.
Hugs....:)
*more hugs*
Thanks you guys, thoughts, prayers and hugs are very very appreciated.
Adds a *hug* to the rest.
I have you and all who are precious to you always in my prayers to the Goddess.
Hugs
Michael
I just went over and changed my profile look on the Sci-Fi site. It's so easy a child could do it, the only problem I see is there's so many options and ways to make it look that I'll be trying different things out over and over.
Thanks Cancer, it's perfect for us coding dunces :)
I'll be cooking our family holiday meals here at my place this year. It's where we are most comfortable even though Mom won't be here this time. It doesn't hurt that I'm probably the only one that has a chance of fixing it like she would have done. I have her recipes and have been doing most of the cooking *with her supervision* for the last 5 years now.
I do not think I'll cook as much as she usually wanted since there will be fewer of us as along with Mom gone, my brother Jim is still refusing to have anything to do with the rest of the family so he and his wife and baby girl will not be here.
Yes that hurts a lot since she's a beautiful little redheaded girl that looks so much like my Mom it's hard to see her pictures. Her mom has managed to sneak a few pictures online to my sister and I from her work email account.
All this because the other 3 children in our family want to move my father to rest next to our mom. Neither of them were ever married to anyone else and my father was courting my mom again when he was hit with a fast and painful cancer over 20 years ago. Mom never remarried or even looked at another man well other than fellows on tv and she had her favorites there. lol But my brother Jim doesn't want Dad moved because he's in a family cementary with my grandfather, who was Jim's great hero.
Mom always insisted we not wreck his image of him by letting him know the truth of that drunk, abusive bastard. He beat and mistreated my grandmother most of her life, he tried to rape my mother and I have my own reasons for hating that alcoholic piece of shit. But Jim thinks he was just the greatest grandfather a boy could ever have and maybe that was true as long as you were a boy.
My sister and I desperately want my father moved to rest with Mom along with my eldest brother who actually owns the property where the family cementary sits. He too wants Dad moved and even arranged for us to get 2 plots side by side for them to rest. Jim is swearing he'll make us fight him in court to have it done so right now it's in the hands of Mike's lawyer.
But wow I got off the track sorry...
I've got to find the recipe for mom's ham glaze since that's one I cannot remember between times I bake a ham. I can bake it just fine and I'm roasting a turkey breast since no one here likes the dark meat. I'm doing cornbread dressing and chicken and dumplings with mashed potatos, deviled eggs, green beans and 2 of the bags of frozen cut off corn my aunt Janie brought me right after Mom's funeral. She could barely walk but said Mom had told her how much I loved it but that we hadn't put any up last summer. She brought me 4 bags and stayed for just a few minutes before the pain from her back was too much and she had to be helped to the car. That was the last time I saw her alive as she died suddenly 2 months later. Her other sisters tell me she told them on the day she died she'd seen my Mom outside the door of her hospital room that very morning.
But I'm fixing 2 bags for Thanksgiving and letting everyone know where it came from and then 2 for christmas dinner.
It's been a really hard year on my family and doesn't look to be getting any easier as a couple of my uncles seem to be failing fast. Since most of Mom's family are in their 70's and 80's that just to be expected but that doesn't make it any easier to deal with when you loose them.
Then my friend lost her Dad suddenly this year so there's more pain since he was such a great guy. He could give off a harsh manner if he wanted to but if you had the guts to ignore it and treat him well, you'd never know a finer man. It just figures with the daughters he raised he wouldn't put up with wishy washy chickens. I know that family is going to be hurting this holiday season too and it bothers me a lot.
Not really sure why all this came pouring out this morning, I just started to write a bit about cooking the meal. I guess the other stuff just couldn't wait anymore.
But I've got to get started cleaning the house, cleaning out the fridge and I want to try and clean the carpet if possible.
Since several members of my family that will be eating here have to work Friday and cannot come in from Western KY until after work we've decided to just go out to eat Thursday and then cook our Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday so we can all enjoy it.
After a pitifully awful day, I got a message from Rat saying she was hungry did I want to go eat?
Out at the new Hangar rest at the local airport. We get there and these 2 older ladies are our waitress' aka flight attendants. We had fun with them and while the Rat's spagetti and meatballs was lacking, my peanut butter pie was great. Yep I skipped the entree and went for the desert. I'm so glad I did. We laughed and talked and had such a relaxing time. I've still got a grin on my face. lol Thanks sis!
COMMENTS
Love these nights! :D
Thanks for going with me. :) I just needed your company to put my day on the good side- something lacking till then.
Then you did us both a big favor for mine had been pretty crappy until we got together. :)
COMMENTS
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xxEmaeraldxx
21:05 Nov 30 2008
It sounded like it turned out to be a fabulous day! I sense there is bit-o-rebel in you as I bet you haven't heard the last about those, "nerf blasters" yet! :)
sahahria
21:11 Nov 30 2008
:D I just love hearing about days like this :)
Elemental
22:22 Nov 30 2008
so does that mean I get invited for left overs? :)
LadyChordewa
05:36 Dec 01 2008