Self Portraits

Our school recently hired a new art teacher, so Phoebe and Sophie were invited to add art as an elective. For their first project they each had to decorate a file folder to hold their artwork. It needed to show at least three things about them. I think they both did a great job.

Catchphrase

Topher is full of catchphrases these days, and I think they're all endearing. Here are a few we hear on a daily basis:

• Ta-da!
• Mom, you know what?
• I can want some? (This is used when he's asking for something.)
• I can have some? (See above.)
• Let go me alone.
• I love you so much.
• I want to nuggle you. (Because s-blends are tricky.)
• Oh no! What are we going to do?!
• I cannot believe it!
• Ye-ah!
• Of course!

Falling Leaves

What do you do with all the leaves you've pulled off your thankful tree in order to reclaim all that sticky tack? You have an indoor leaf fight, of course. Don't worry, no Tophers were harmed in the making of this movie.

Indoor Racing

 

Photo credit: Phoebe and Cooper

And Just Like That, It's Christmas

Mutant Turkey

I started preparing our Thanksgiving dinner the Sunday before by making the cranberry sauce. Oh cranberry sauce, you make my house smell like heaven.

Then on Wednesday Bryan prepared the brine and subsequently dunked the bird while I baked the sweet potatoes (pre-candying), made apple pie filling, made way too many crustless pumpkin pies (my favorite after-Thanksgiving breakfast), and made the rolls. They looked so pretty. It wasn't until the following day, shortly before we sat down to eat, that I discovered I'd forgotten to add the salt. Oh well.

Thankfully this year I did not drop the apple pie or shatter the pie dish (both of which happened on Christmas day in 2019, but apparently I never wrote about it since I can't find a blog post on the subject), so we actually got to eat it. We'll see what cooking error I unintentionally commit in 2021!

Each Thanksgiving the kids fight over who gets the drumsticks, so this year Bryan solved that problem  by buying an additional four turkey legs. He didn't tell the kids he had them, he simply asked who wanted a drumstick. Of course they all raised their hands, so Bryan put a drumstick on Sophie's plate, then one on Phoebe's plate, then one on Peter's plate, then one on Cooper's plate, all while the kids' eyes were growing wider and wider. They started asking things like, "How many legs does this turkey have?!" then, after Topher and I had legs too, "It has six legs! It's an insect!" They all thought the joke was hilarious when Bryan revealed why we had so many turkey legs. I had no idea drumsticks could be such a Thanksgiving highlight.

Also, this was the best turkey Bryan has ever made. It never dried out, not even in microwaved leftover form. It was so good my mouth is watering just writing about it.

Of course we also enjoyed pie, five kinds for seven people. The pie is long gone but Topher is still asking for it.

We ended the night with calls to family, which was a perfect way to complete Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Day Parade

We started our Thanksgiving by watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on YouTube. We quickly discovered this was not the best way to watch since they weren't playing the actual music from the parade or showing all of the balloons and floats. While Bryan shifted into tech mode and rigged up our antenna, the kids decided to stage their own Thanksgiving Day Parade. They had a little trouble getting the Grand Marshal to begin (and then I was nearly runover by the aforementioned Grand Marshal) but it went well overall. 

Give Thanks

I've definitely neglected the blog this week while I've contributed to and read posts from the #givethanks challenge on Facebook. For the sake of preserving them in this record, and as a form of counting my blessings, I'm going to copy and paste the posts here.

Saturday: I love the movie White Christmas, it's one of my favorites. Just yesterday, while making dinner, I was belting out the words, "If you're worried and you can't sleep, just count your blessings instead of sheep, and you'll fall asleep counting your blessings." As I sit at my computer, overthinking what to write for a gratitude post, I find that my list of possible post ideas is overwhelming. So tonight I'm thankful for having too many blessings to count them. And for recognizing the gift that that is. #givethanks

Sunday: I love words. I love to write them, read them, speak them, sing them, and even listen to them. I love finding just the right word to express my thoughts. I love hearing them in the language I understand and in those I don't. I love how they can inspire me, make me laugh, bring out my deepest feelings, and draw me closer to those I love. Words are a gift and I'm so thankful for them. #givethanks

Monday: Tonight I am thankful for bedtime; very, very thankful. #givethanks

Tuesday: I'm nearly always cold and have been for as long as I can remember. When our AC died this summer and we were without it for the entire month of June, I finally warmed up in our 90 degree house while the rest of my family melted. I keep myself moving most of the time because it helps me be not quite as cold. All this is to say that I'm so very thankful for warm blankets, cozy socks, big comforters, and a husband that's always a furnace and is willing to hold my freezing cold hands. #givethanks

Wednesday: Someone made the mistake recently of asking me what I'm currently reading. After I finished rattling off my giant list they were mildly speechless. I was raised by bibliophiles, for which I will be forever thankful. We always had books, ready and waiting to be read, and we were unabashedly encouraged to dive right into the those books. Now I'm raising my own book lovers. They jump at the opportunity to go to the library. Birthdays and Christmas (and Easter and Valentine's Day and Halloween and sometimes random days in the summer or any other season) wouldn't be complete without a new book. Given the hectic nature of this season of my life, most of my recent book consumption is by way of audiobook, which I absolutely love. When I meet others that also love books I know I've found my people. I am so thankful for books. #givethanks

Thursday: Each November for the last six years we've had a Thanksgiving Tree. It's taken various forms, from butcher paper on the wall to a cloth tree I found in the dollar aisles at Target. Some years we write many things that we're thankful for on leaves and add them to the tree, some years it's a bit neglected and barren.

This has been a hard year for pretty much everyone, our family included. With stress and anxiety levels increasing throughout 2020, I felt prompted that we needed to increase our focus on gratitude as a family. So right at the beginning of the month I asked Bryan to draw a tree on a spare poster board we had and I ordered some leaf shaped gift tags from Amazon. Throughout the month we've added leaves to our tree.

I'm overwhelmed that during this hard, hard year we have more leaves on our tree than ever before. I'm not always able to see the blessings and the silver linings when I'm in the midst of the storm, but looking for the learning moments and the tender mercies helps heal my heart and mind. I'm thankful for the science and the practice of gratitude. #givethanks

Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum

 

Big Sisters Are Awesome