A Happy Thanksgiving

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. Thanksgiving 2008 was a success. We celebrated with about 20 people. I generally prefer a more intimate Thanksgiving dinner around the table with the china and some candles in lieu of paper plates and a television, but we still had a good time.

Wednesday we got off early and headed home for the yearly cook-a-thon. Everyone pitched in this year. This may be my favorite part about Thanksgiving. We crank up the Christmas music and go to work making some of the most delectable treats. It is great family time, and gets us all in the mood for the holidays. Our menu this year included: turkey, ham, cheese ball, white chocolate raspberry cheesecake, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and of course a pumpkin pie. We were up till about midnight. Chris and I finished the night off with a Thanksgiving episode of Friends.
Thanksgiving day we enjoyed a plentiful amount of food and some good wines. Chris was in good spirits after the Cowboys won their game. Of course I was thrilled as well (can you hear the sarcasm dripping?)


Here are some pictures from the day. Our family always seems to have more desserts than main dishes.


Micah is very excited about his first Thanksgiving, if only he could tear into a turkey leg.

Here we are enjoying a very competitive game of Candy Land.

Awesome dad doing the dishes
I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving. We have so much to be thankful for!

A Grateful Heart

A few weeks ago Chris and I were at Tom Thumb doing our weekly grocery shopping. We were looking for a particular item, but realized the usual spot had been replaced by frozen turkeys. I looked around only to find two large freezers and a section of the designated poultry area full of more turkeys. As I looked at mountains of turkeys it hit me like a ton of bricks, we are so blessed in this country. Despite the economic woes we still go to our grocery stores which are conveniently located close to home and find them well stocked with everything we need. I do not mean to trvialize the hard times of many in this country. It is not easy to lose a home or a job, but many are very fortunate that this country offers options to those who have fallen upon hard times. We have all grown accustomed to a very high standard of living, and forget that doing without the 50 inch 1080p lcd is not necessarily poverty. I often find myself complaining about wanting new furniture or needing a vacation. Then I read about food riots in third world countries and diseases that threaten the very existence of tribes and people groups, and I am humbled by all that I have been given.

In these times of great uncertainty it is imperative to step back and account for all of the blessings in our lives. All of the stuff we collect is not bad, but without a grateful heart it is just clutter. I have been given a roof above my head, food to feed my children, a job, and family. I am grateful.

Washer Woes

Life may actually be easier with an old fashioned washboard right about now. What's a little manual labor when you don't have to deal with parts and mechanics? What, you may ask, has caused my sudden hatred for the washing machine? Let me start from the beginning.

It started out as a relaxing Saturday evening. Chris and I sat down to watch a movie. The kids were asleep, and I decided to take advantage of the time to do a couple of loads of laundry. I started with the babies clothes which washed without a hitch. Unwittingly I decided to start another load. Our movie ended at about midnight and we were both ready to get some sleep. I stopped at the laundry room to switch my load to the dryer and find that my clothes are sitting in the tub full of water. The spin cycle is frozen. Chris thought maybe the drum was just off balance so he proceeded to remove some clothing to try and redistribute the weight. After removing everything we realize this machine is not going to budge. So at 1am we start to manually scoop out water. We then have a whole load of sopping wet clothes to deal with. We took them to the tub and wrung everything out as much as possible, not wanting to kill our dryer as well. We hang up about half of the clothes and after letting the washer rest we are able to get it to drain the remaining water at the bottom and start the spin cycle. We were so relieved and finally went to bed at 2.

This would be a great way to end the story, but alas there was more fun to be had. Last night I decided to do abother load believing the problem was fixed. I tried to do a smaller load just to test. Well the washer fills up and begins to agitate, but it will no longer drain. We can even move it to the spin cycle, but the water just splashes around without draining. Now we start to wonder if something is clogging the drain. Chris ends up pulling everything out of the wall and inspecting all of the hoses. After a couple more hours of troubleshooting we are left with nothing, but another sopping pile of wet clothes. If I had started out with the washboard I would have been done by now!

As a last resort my dad is coming over to look at it tonight. He is pretty handy with the tools so he can tell us whether or not it is fixable. At this point if it costs too much to fix I could buy another used one for the same price, but we shall see. It is more of an annoyance than anything. Our laundry room is on the second floor, so it is a hassle if the washer has to be moved out. Such is life,but in a world with so many problems, I'm pretty lucky that right now my washer is my biggest woe.

No More Hernia

Three months ago today, my sweet baby Micah was born. To celebrate today he had his inguinal hernia repaired. Our day started off at 5 am. I am seeing a medical trend here, they like to get us in early. I already felt horrible because Micah could not have any formula after midnight. He ate his last bottle around 9pm last night. I knew he would wake up in the wee hours of the morning ready to eat again. Fortunately he drank some pedialite and went to sleep. We all got up groggy and hungry, but we had to be at the surgery center by 6:30. I wasn't sure what kind of time frame we would be looking at. We came prepared for the long haul. My little man was absolutely wonderful in spite of the circumstances. When I was done filling out paperwork, I came to the back room where Chris had taken Micah. He was smiling and cooing at the nurses. He was just plain adorbale in his little Cook's Children's t-shirt and socks. I forgot my camera so no pictures. When they came to take him back he looked upset and stared at us wondering why we were not going with him as he was wheeled down the hall. We both went to the waiting room and started crying. It actually went by faster than I thought it would, but my heart goes out to all of the people who have children who require a lot of surgery and hospital visits. It is so hard to release your child's care into the hands of others. The doctor came out about 45 minutes later informing us everything had went well. Of course we were told Micah would have to refrain from horeseback riding and driving for at least 6 weeks! We haven't told Micah yet. Twenty minutes later we were brought back to the recovery room. He was hungry, but other than that he was his usual self. We were released by 9:30. A three hour turnaround is not bad. Micah is resting close to daddy now. Thank God for His graciousness and protection.

Mid-Week Update

I had full intentions of writing a piece or updating on a daily basis. I really don't want to be a rambler. I have not had any strokes of genius that had to be penned, or typed to be more literal. So here is a quick update for the week. Tomorrow is Micah's surgery. Please keep him in your prayers. The surgery is minor, but it will be very disorienting to his schedule not to eat when he is hungry, and waking up in a strange place. Also pray for Chris and I that we don't worry too much. Of course we are parents so that is second nature. The week has been fairly mundane for us personally although Chris' sister had to have emergency gall bladder surgery yesterday. We have had our fair share of family medical issues as of late. I am ready for a new year and a fresh start.

With the surgery behind us I look forward to spending the holidays with my family. We had our annual Thanksgiving luncheon at work which was yummy, but it left me ready to take a nap. It has me in the mood for next week when I will get off Wednesday and spend the evening cooking all of my favorite traditional dishes. Kaylie has shown a penchant for cooking so I know I will have a lot of help. I have mentioned it before, but I will say it again. I love traditions and the way they bring families together. I have already gathered so many precious memories with Kaylie in the three short years she has been with us. I can't wait for all the memories we will make with Micah as well.

I have added the West Africa Shea blog to the blogs I follow. If you have a moment check it out. It is dedicated to our West Africa Women't Initiative. It has not been updated in awhile, but I am about to start posting frequent updates on the happenings in West Africa and what we can do to help empower the women of those countries.

Bail Me Out of Here!!!

This whole economic bailout thing has me reeling. I feel like I got into a taxi cab and was told we would head to one destination at a set cost, but now I am stuck in the back while my driver takes me on the longest route possible stopping at all lights. Hey buddy is that meter still running?

Shabbat Shalom!

It is Friday, and what a wonderful day it is. On my way to work this morning I was meditating on the goodness of God that is displayed in the simplicity of the weekend. I read a book once by a women name Bonnie Wilks, I believe it was called The Gift of the Sabbath. It traced the roots of the Jewish sabbath. Ultimately she related that many people get bogged down believing a day of rest is to be riddled with things one cannot do. God's true intentions were the exact opposite. He is our Creator, and He knows that we are easily distracted and weighed down by the cares of this world He loves us so much, He set aside a time for us to come together and rest in His peace and and marvel at His goodness in our lives. My family does not celebrate the traditional Jewish shabbat meal, although I believe it is a wonderful tradition and know many people who do. We do come together as a family for a meal. We talk, laugh, and eat good food.

I will admit that many times I allow myself to be distracted by "things" instead of resting on this day. It is so important to remember that God did not design us to be 24/7 workaholics. He desires us to step back from our business and our need to aquire things and enjoy the nourishment of His life being delivered to us.