On Christmas eve we joined my ex in-laws,whom I have remained friendly with, for our annual reunion. There must have been at least 30 or more of us there. My sister-in-law cooks the ham, turkey and lasagna and the rest of us bring the sides and the desserts. A lot of food and we always feel like we should be rolled out in wheelbarrows. After eating we read the Christmas story from the Bible and sing carols. Then the children under 12 go outside and break the pinata which is held on a rod by two of the fathers. We have been doing this for 46 years now. I have been lucky enough to have been at most of them. This is one tradition I hope we can keep doing in some form.

My youngest daughter and I picked up my grandson and his fiancee on Christmas day and walked at the beach. Can you imagine it being warm enough to walk at the beach on Christmas day? We had a very nice time.

Another day we took them to the new Glass Studio at Chrysler Hall in Norfolk. We saw demo of glass making then walked over to the museum and saw all the glass displays and a lot of the art.

Now January is almost over and Mother Nature can’t decide what she wants to be hot or cold so she is giving us a mixture of both. one day in he 30s windy and rainy, the next in the 60s and sunny. I’m wondering what Feb and March will be like

For the first time in years I’ll be cooking for both holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. We normally have a big breakfast, followed by snacking, a movie at the theater and a big dinner.

For Thanksgiving the movie will be Breaking Dawn. I’m really looking forward to it. My youngest daughter will be here this year.

We’ll have sweet rolls for breakfast, courtesy of Pillsbury and bacon. Snacking will be chips and dip, a couple of cheeses and Hickory Farms summer beef sausage. And dinner will be a small turkey or breast, stuffed with our favorite bread stuffing, sweet potato pie, salad and not sure what dessert will be yet. Not that we will need dessert.

Friday we will do the day after shopping, but we will not be out and about at 4 am or even midnite. We did that once and vowed never again.

Sometime over the weekend the fall decorations will come down and the Christmas tree and decorations will go up.

I am really looking forward to the holidays this year!

What are you doing for Thanksgiving?

I said holiday instead of Christmas because this tradition starts with Thanksgiving Day and continues through New Years.

We love to eat, but because of family obligations it was impossible to have OUR holiday meal in the middle of the day. So we would have a big breakfast-eggs, bacon, orange danish, cinnamon rolls and juice. And then we would have snacks during the day and our big meal for dinner.

Our snacks included black olives, pickles, potato chips and dip, crackers, gouda cheese and edam cheese and everone’s favorite, Hickory Farms summer beef sausage, smoky bar and one of their cheese balls.

I had to be the one to slice up the sausage and cheeses. My idea of a slice and the rest of the family’s was two different things, so in order to have enough for everyone I did the slicing. Then it was all plated and served buffet style and left out till early afternoon.

To this day, the Hickory Farms summer beef sausage and smoky bar remain our favorite holiday snack.

What’s yours?

Hickory Farms wants to give one lucky Busy Mommy Media reader the chance to enjoy their high quality food by sending them a “Home for the Holidays” gift box.

http://busymommymedia.com/2010/11/hickory-farms-for-the-holidays-giveaway/

Just a psychological game we play but truly when we do lose something, don’t we always spend time trying to find it.

We left about 5am to beat the Atlanta traffic and it worked. We sailed thru 75, 285 and back to 85 with no problems. It was interesting to see the sunrise. I tried to get pictures but they didn’t come out wonderfully, being in a bouncing truck.

We stopped only when we had to and it took just a little under 12 hrs to reach her in-laws house. The next day we had a couple of great young men to help us unload the truck. Somehow the owner of the house didn’t understand when I said a lot of boxes, probably just a path till I get to sort thru it all and he had a hissy fit, so the next afternoon we were reloading the truck and putting it all in storage.

So then the hunt for a room started. aargghg. Took me a month. and I finally wound up renting a room in a house in Hampton. So here I am in Hampton, close to my youngest daughter and life goes on

Unfortunately we sold the house for about half of the value to one of those investment firms. And I now have 2 more weeks for moving sale and packing. Fortunately I have my friends coming to help me pack.

It’s been a long arduous journey and I will be glad to get a new start on life.

======================

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with
a terminal illness and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting her things ‘in order,’ she contacted her Pastor
and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes. She told him which songs she wanted sung at the
service, what scripture she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried in.
The Pastor’s eyes welled up with tears of joy
as he hugged the young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last times he would see her before her death, but he also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. She had a better grasp of what heaven would be like than many people twice her age, with twice as much experience and knowledge. She KNEW that something better was coming.

At the funeral people were walking by the young
woman’s casket and they saw the cloak she was wearing and the fork placed
in her right hand. Over and over, the Pastor heard the question,
‘What’s with the fork?’ And over and over he smiled.

During his message, the Pastor told the people of
the conversation he had with the young woman shortly before she died. He also told them about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He
told the people how he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they probably would not be able to stop thinking about it either. He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork let it remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to come.

Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed they make you smile and encourage
you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.

Show your friends how much you care. Remember to
always be there for them, even when you need them more. For you never knowwhen it may be their time to ‘Keep your fork.’ Cherish the time you have, and the memories you share

Being friends with someone is not an opportunity but a sweet responsibility.

Everything was in order and the Pastor waspreparing to leave when the
young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her.

‘There’s one more thing,’ she said
excitedly. ‘What’s that?’ came the Pastor’s
reply. ‘This is very important,’ the young woman
continued. ‘I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand.’
The Pastor stood looking at the young woman, not
knowing quite what to say.

That surprises you, doesn’t it?’ the young
woman asked. ‘Well, to be honest, I’m puzzled by the
request,’ said the Pastor. The young woman explained. ‘My grandmother once
told me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to pass along
its message to those I love and those who are in need of
encouragement…In all my years of attending socials and dinners, I
always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, ‘Keep your fork.’ It
was my favorite part because I knew that something
better was coming…like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish
apple pie…Something wonderful and with substance!’

So, I just want people to see me there in that
casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder ‘What’s with
the fork?’ Then I want you to tell them: ‘Keep your fork, the
best is yet to come.’

Don’t forget that till April 30 there’s an $8000 tax credit for new buyers and a $6000 for qualifying residents selling their current homes