wait, it's NEXT WEEK?!

 oops.  I thought there were still a few weeks until Thanksgiving.  I suppose I should go buy a turkey while they are 58 cents a pound!  Perhaps two, because having a turkey in the freezer is like having money in the bank, it brings a feeling of contentment, hope of a rich cozy meal.  

Our menu includes mashies, gravy, sweet potato casserole (oh, what a horribly wonderful dish this is:  boiled and mashed s. potatoes, with butter and brown sugar and then mini marshmallows and pecans added to the top, browned up in the oven, oh dear.  oh dear.), stuffing (my favorite, with lots of chopped onions, celery, maybe an apple or two, some pecans maybe, lots of butter, some drippings from the turkey...oh dear again, so good!), roasted Brussel sprouts and diced squash with some raisins and an apple or two, brown and serve rolls...

Then:  pie.  We have a game of Scattergories, and year ago we'd gather around the table, and make our own categories.  One was Famous Pies.  Here's an example:

1.  Things from Vietnam

2. Ice Cream Flavors

3.  Sh***y Countries

4.  Things that aren't real

5.  Cars

6.  best/worst times to f&rt

7.  Mythical creatures

8.  Characters from Arthur

9.  Famous Pies

ect.  Not always politically correct, sometimes absurd, but oh dear, the laughing and silliness that went on, we still have the game with all the sheets of made up categories, and it's now a family heirloom.  One was "Things that make Mariel mad", and "Things Aunt Cheryl hates".  

Anyway.  Tangent.  The pies...Wednesday before Thanksgiving is Pie Day.  This year, we are only having 14 adults, four children, and two babies here for dinner, unless Suzanne and Zech come too, haven't heard back.  So we'll make a variety of pies, have to survey and decide what we want.  Camille makes a wonderful lemon meringue, I make some pretty good apple and pumpkin, we all like blueberry, and Paul loves a chocolate.  Grace is bringing a genuine homemade southern pecan pie.  

As a mom of many kids, I have learned a few things, like to never tell anyone when you're bringing one of them to their driver's test, in case they fail.  Keep in mind that I have gone to more of these tests than the number of children I have who drive, which is 14 so far btw, because they don't always pass the first time, which means they're grumpy to ME for the afternoon.  So these events are not fun for Mom.  For one thing, I'm never sure to pray that they do pass, ha, or that they fail, because once they have their license, it becomes a whole new ballgame of when to let them take the car.  (We had one particularly unfortunate experience when my child had to parallel park.  I happened to be waiting on a bench across the road, hated watching, but this kid backed up next to the car, did a perfect parallel park, but kept inching forward and bam, lightly hit the car in front..which turned out to be the driving instructor's car.  of course it was!). (yeah, automatic failure.)(this child of mine was in a mighty bad mood, did NOT see the humor in it until years later, and I still don't dare mention his/her name on this blog in relation to this hilariously devastating incident)

Oh, can someone please invent the bottomless cup of coffee?  I sit here blogging, taking sips and drinks, and when I pick up the cup and it's empty, what the heck?  

Our washing machine is all taken apart, waiting for it's shiny new part to come in the mail.  Paul had to take the dryer off of it, and set the dryer to perch two kitchen stools, so you can barely get around the washer to get to it, if you decide to wash a load at the laundry mat or at Emily's house.  The whole laundry room is rather inaccessible right now, waiting for the shiny new part.  It's beyond me how he can take it apart and figure it out.  He's not always right the first time, like last month when the washer poured water all over the floor, leaking down to the utility room, and he replaced the wrong thing, it was a little gasket that was the problem, not the door seal.  We found that out the HARD WAY, as we were astonished that water was pouring out after it was all fixed.

Yesterday we went to Costco, I needed parchment paper, and we came home with croissants, turkey lunch meat, a five pound bag of frozen pierogis, seltzer, a huge-0 bag of Christmas blend Starbucks whole bean coffee, and whole peppercorns for Paul's Christmas present. 

Jamison and Rhys like looking at the Christmas stuff.

This candle...is it big enough?  

Here is some excellent, exciting, and amazing news:  plane tickets!!!!!  Norway!!!!  I am going to a sisters' conference in Norway, in March!  I am SO excited.  Emily's going too, and Sonja.  I know, Norway in March, brr, but oh it's an amazing time.  

Ah well.  I think I'll mosey over to the store and get that turkey now...I have things to do in the afternoon, which I cannot mention ha, but won't have time then to go to the store because there is Activity Club tonight, and I have to get some toys gathered up to bring.  I also have to get a snack for the group that Jonathan helps with...so bye for now.