Skip to main content

Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Writing

Thanksgiving went pretty well. We went to my mom's house this year. It was quite the gathering. There were 9 adults and 9 children. We had three tables spread throughout the house--the dining room table for the adults, a folding table for the teens, and a picnic table for the little ones. Mom made the turkey and most of the sidedishes and desserts. I brought toss salad and cherry cobbler. and my sister brought the corn.

Mom didn't seem her usual self but I think that might have a lot to do with the stress of raising teenagers. I've heard some pretty interesting (as in disturbing) stories about what she's going through with the oldest girl right now. None of these have been confirmed by my mom but I imagine in time I'll hear all about it. There really wasn't any privacy on Thanksgiving day so we could chat.

I should take my mom out to dinner sometime soon. Just to give her break from the kids.

I would have invited her to go shopping with us on Black Friday but she was babysitting so one of her neighbors could go shopping instead. So it ended up being just me and my sister-in-law Ronnie on Black Friday.

Our first stop was Circuit City. Don't. Ever. Go. There. On. Black. Friday. Never ever in a million years will make that mistake again. It was horrid. Finding the items was easy enough but standing in the checkout line for an hour and a half was beyond ridiculous. Worse was the fact that my poor SIL stood in line that long just learn at the register that the item she had been told to ask the clerk for had been sold out. She stood in line for that long only to end up buying a pack of gum. Seriously.

The rest of the shopping went fairly well. I got most of my holiday purchases taken care of in a few short hours. My children are all but done. I think I have a couple of minor little gifts I need to pick up for those parties where you have to bring a gift for your own kids, but that's it.

I still need to buy a couple of gift certificates for people, though, so I'm not done spending money yet. Much to the hubby's annoyance. He hates this time of the year.

As a final note, I have been working on the Christmas Project. I'm up to 10,000 words! Only 115,000 more to go!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Camping with Little Boys

  Our first travel trailer. I don't remember camping much with my family as a kid. This is likely because we always had the same vacation destination: a family plot in Baldwin, MI. There was no cabin there. Instead, there were two structures: a small, silver camper and an old single-wide trailer. The silver camper is gone but the single-wide still sits there and is used by extended family members to this day.  It wasn't until I was a teenager that my step-mom and dad bought a pop-up trailer and we started camping elsewhere in the state. My memory isn't the greatest, but I'm almost certain they got the pop-up after I started dating Ken. Eventually, my parents upgraded to a fifth wheel that my dad still pulls around to various nearby camping spots. Ken, by contrast, didn't have a set vacation destination growing up. His family camped. They started out with a truck-bed camper, I believe, and eventually upgraded to a fifth wheel.  Ken and I vacationed both in Baldwin an

They saved the finger..

This was supposed to be an easy, carefree weekend.  One of those rare weekends where spontaneity is possible because plans were not made ahead of time.  We could lounge on the couch, work on our hobbies, or even do a little shopping.  And, no, I'm not referring to the necessary evil of grocery shopping, but the much more enjoyable version where you get to buy things that actually make you happy. Because the oldest boy needed some pants and the youngest could use a new pair of shoes, I decided to head into the city to do some shopping at Kohl's.  Of course, my decision to shop there was not quite so altruistic.  Mama needed a new bathing suit! So, I pack the kids up and head into the city.  The youngest picks out his shoes . The oldest tries on a few pairs of jeans and ends up with two in the basket.  Did I mention we have to shop in the men's department now?  That he's wearing size 29?  My baby is growing up! Then it was Mom's turn.  I was looking ove

It Should Be Our 28th Wedding Anniversary

I had to do the math twice. Probably because I'm really bad at math. Today should have been our 28th wedding anniversary. We only made it to 26, which is so impressive when you consider how many marriages end in divorce.  So, because I have no doubt in my mind we would have been married still today had cancer not taken him, I want to honor our special day. So, here's a Happy Should Have Been Anniversary to my hubby in heaven.  Today, as I recognize what should have been and think about what was, I figured I'd share not only some lovely pictures from our wedding day but I'd explain how this widow plans to move through October 15, 2022.  In just a little bit, I'm joining another Millington widow at a Widow's Luncheon, which is being hosted by the Amish Church in Millington. I'm a bit nervous, to be honest, because I don't know what to expect. On my best days, I consider mys