On the menu...

Thanksgiving really started today because we can't just limit my favorite holiday to one day! This evening I went grocery shopping for my final supplies. Ryan came along for moral support because I was afraid the grocery store would be a madhouse. We lucked out - it wasn't so bad, and we ran into an old friend to boot. We were super excited to use our "turkey bucks" that we had been saving. Our 13 lb. turkey only cost us $2.50! Plus it was fun to spend the "mad money" my mom sent us for Thanksgiving. Sometimes I don't mind that she still thinks of me as a college student who needs to get a small check in the mail every once in a while!

So here is our menu.

Thanksgiving meal
- Turkey
- Mashed potatoes
- Rosemary yams
- Stuffing - except I'm not using sourdough bread (yuck)
- Green bean casserole
- Rolls
- Salad
- Blueberry pie - uh oh. Major dilemma. I can't find this recipe! Wish me luck. There are no substitutions!
- Pumpkin pie (recipe from the back of the Libby's can)

No longer do I try to accomplish cooking a menu like this all in one day. It is spread out over three days, so that I can enjoy each dish and not get stressed out!

And then, if all goes as planned (pssst, it never does)...

On the agenda
- Hang out with Ryan, Nita, Beth, Pennie, Brenda, Doug, Hunter, Garrett, and hopefully Santosh
- Watch football (if we get an antenna in time)
- Play games like Quiddler and dominoes
- Make the boys do the dishes and don't take no for an answer
- Call the kids
- Call other family
- Rest my poor feet, which will be tired from standing in the kitchen all day
- Eat pie and turkey leftovers and drink tasty wine in the evening

And then on Friday...
- Put up the Christmas tree, but
- Don't decorate it other than with the lights, because we'll be putting on the ornaments with Nathan and Abby
- Eat more leftovers - probably turkey tetrazzini
- Go shopping... if Nita and Beth want to. Usually I'm more of a lazy internet shopper. I'm not a big fan of crowds unless they are family! But I'm willing to brave the crowds (especially if they involve being at Michael's or Robert's) for my lady relatives.

Oh, and backing up... yesterday we (I) shampooed our carpet in the front room so it would be all ready for the Christmas tree.

I may have to leave Ryan with a Honey Do list when I go to work tomorrow. Items may or may not include cleaning the guest bathroom, vacuuming, and changing the sheets on Abby's bed. But don't tell Ryan. He'll find out soon enough!

Doesn't this sound nice? I think so! Let the party begin!

Upcoming Thanksgiving

Did you know that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday? I may have mentioned it a time or two. It's such a great day. You get to spend time with loved ones, cook delicious dishes, and enjoy them in the company of your favorite people.

There was a time that I cooked Thanksgiving every year for my loved ones. I really enjoyed those days spent cooking, eating pie, doing puzzles, playing Quiddler... it was great fun. When I got divorced, those times ended. It was one of the hardest things of that first year of being single again. I missed it greatly.

The last Thanksgiving meal I cooked was in 2004. Since then, I have been with the Lytles, or with my mom, or with my cousins, or with the Boyles. I haven't had to lift a finger. While I have had very nice Thanksgivings for the last 4 years, I have dearly missed my time in the kitchen with my roasting pan, a turkey, yams, potatoes, and pie crust.

This year, I am terribly excited to dust off my kitchen tools and get back to work! Ryan and I (well, let's be honest, it will pretty much be me) will be cooking Thanksgiving dinner for Ryan's brother Doug, his wife Brenda, and two of their kids, Hunter and Garrett. Also joining us will be Ryan's sister Anita and her daughter Beth.

Ah hah! A new crowd to cook for! And new menu requests: berry pies!

I will rise to this challenge with great joy. I think I may also break out the puzzles and Quiddler.

I can hardly wait!

Waiting

Today I was supposed to have my surgery, but just last week I learned that my employer is changing health insurance this January. By waiting until 2010, we can save about $1K out-of-pocket on the surgery. Yes, you read that right – we will save $1,000 (that we don't have). Common sense told us to wait, and so we are.

You know, I'm not really a big fan of waiting. I've waited long enough. But my grandmother said that patience is a virtue, and Gramma was always right, so I will keep cultivating my patience.

Are you kidding me?

I went to the grocery store yesterday. Everywhere I turned, delicious goodies were beckoning to me! Begging to jump into my cart! Tantalizing me with their sweet promises of melting on my tongue and tickling my tummy!

Almond Roca for $4.99? Are you kidding me? That is my very favorite!

Russell Stover make such great Christmas gifts... especially to ourselves...

Planters nuts... mmmm.... I have my mom to thank for this obsession.

Chocolate oranges! 2 for $5.00! Seriously, I am expected to resist this?

Bite-sized candy bars in Christmas wrappers - these would be perfect for the candy bowl on my desk... and for my mouth only!

Lindt's chocolate - thank heaven you can buy this in the US now, and for so cheap, too! And just look at those darling chocolate Santas. Come on, now! Are these companies marketing directly to me?

Somehow I made it out of the grocery store without buying any of this candy. I believe I have developed a new super power.

Immortal

Apparently Mickey Mouse is not the only immortal mouse out there.

Now, I know I said I had set out and baited two mouse traps last night... but mouse terror kept me from sleep and I couldn't help but get up and set up two more traps. Obsessive? Yes. Determined to kill all mice and keep my house sanitary? Absolutely!

I set up two kinds of traps: First, I set up some traditional wooden cheapie mouse traps (25¢ each).

Next, I set up some fancy and expensive mouse traps ($3.50 each).

As I went back upstairs, I wondered what would happen. I hardly slept a wink, thinking every little sound was scurrying mice feet and every little thing that touched me was mice teeth.

But when I got up this morning, one of the Ortho traps had, indeed, captured a mouse. This was cause for great celebration! I love dead mice! Well, not that I love seeing them... but a dead mouse is better than a live one...

I gingerly peeked into the trap to see the condition of the mouse. It was completely flattened, just as flat as a pancake! I fairly howled with glee! All the other traps looked untouched. I threw the mouse, trap and all, into the trash. I drove to work on a cloud of victory. The mouse had been vanquished!

When I came home for lunch, I just had to show Ryan the flattened mouse. (I had just changed the trash liner so it was the only thing in the trash.) Gleefully we both peered into the trap at the flattened mouse. Flat as a pancake, indeed! Ryan suggested we dump the mouse out, take the liner out to the trash dumpster, and re-use the trap since it had been so successful.

Brave now that the mouse was dead, I opened the trap door of the Ortho Home Defense Max and dumped the mouse out.

You know how in the Roadrunner cartoons, when the wiley coyote gets completely flattened by something like a boulder, he lies there in his flat state for a minute, and then he suddenly springs back into his full shape? That is exactly what this immortal mouse did!

That. Damn. Mouse. Sprang. Back. To. Life. !!!!!

Naturally I was quite startled. Shrieking involuntarily, I slammed the lid back on the garbage can. I manically clutched at Ryan's arm and insisted he would have to kill the mouse before it chewed its way out of the trash can and took over our home!

Instead, Ryan let the poor mouse (who was apparently completely unharmed) out into the back yard, where it made a mad dash for freedom before being scooped up into Carmen's eager mouth.

Hooray!

But the story's not over yet. Carmen trotted around the yard for a good 15 minutes with that mouse in her mouth. It was as if it were a great prize! The tail dangled from the side of her mouth and Carmen looked suspiciously around her, guarding her prize, watchful of other dogs (Dizzy) or people (Ryan and me) who might try to take it away.

Eventually she ate it. Apparently it was delicious. She has been hunting ever since for another mouse.

The End.

I hope.

Berserk!

So.

I may have gone just a little bit berserk tonight.

But hear me out! There was a mouse in our house!

A few weeks ago we found a mouse in the pantry. I opened the pantry door and the little brown terror went scurrying between my feet and under the stove. I screamed bloody murder, which brought Ryan and the dogs running to see what was up. Ryan went straight to the store to buy traps while I hid upstairs from the mouse.

Carmen and Dizzy chased the mouse around, eventually tag-teaming it. Carmen caught it, brought it to her favorite place to eat treats, and opened her mouth. The mouse ran out! More chasing, more craziness, and eventually Dizzy caught it in her jaws of steel. Goodbye, mousie!

We set out the traps. The next day we caught one more in the pantry and one more in the garage. Ryan and I did a very thorough cleaning of the pantry. And that was the end of the mice...

...until today. (Cue ominous music!)

When I came home for lunch today and opened the pantry, I immediately saw the work of another mouse. That little bugger had explored every shelf in there! His little mouse poops and pees and nibbles were everywhere! Imagine my dismay - I was practically retching with disgust! So... I bought more traps. I baited them again. And while I was removing everything from the pantry again (and we have a small food storage in there so it's not an easy, quick task), that damn mouse ran practically through my fingers!

I screamed. And screamed. And screamed!

The dogs were alarmed. Carmen was shaking from my screams. She ran and jumped on Ryan's lap!

But Ryan... Ryan was laughing. He said, "Call Dizzy over! She'll eat that mouse!"

And she did. The mouse is dead. D.E.A.D. Dead!

That's when I went even more berserk. I meticulously wiped down every single box, can, bag, and bottle in the pantry with Chlorox wipes. I scrubbed every inch of every shelf. I put everything back in very neatly with the labels all facing me (man! but it looks good!) and then I scrubbed the counters where the mousey food had been resting.

It took me a good 2 ½ hours. Now I have a spotless kitchen and a reorganized pantry!

The two traps are still baited. They'd better catch all remaining mice (though hopefully there are none) or I may completely lose it the next time I see a mouse!

Busy and Random

Today was my day off. It was rather busy - the busiest day off I have had in a long time! I have so many thoughts bouncing around my head that I'll just have to share them in this random way.**

House
Ryan and I refinanced our house. We got 4.875% interest on our 30 year mortgage! We happened to lock on just the right day. We went to a title company and signed away our lives this morning. It almost feels like shaking hands with the devil! We also got my new legal name on there, as well as Ryan himself! I decided that if I die, he really should get to keep the place.

Haircut
I got my hair cut today. I considered cutting it short, but in the end, she only cut half an inch off. Abby's voice was echoing in my ears: "Don't cut it, Kate! You will regret it and be sad!"

Doctor
I love, love, love my new doctor. He is awesome. Long story short, some undesirable things have taken up residence in my uterus that need to be removed. They are making things uninhabitable for babies. I called today and I scheduled my surgery for November 16. It should be relatively "easy" (ha ha), it should be a short recovery, and it should improve our chances. Believe it or not, I am excited to go under the knife.

Shopping
I went shopping today... Kohl's is having a sale. All of my clothes seem frightfully out of style. I scored some cute stuff that actually looks good on me, plus it was cheap! Hooray! Bonus: I found something super cute for Abby for Christmas. I could tell you what it is, but I'd have to kill you.

French Dip
I made the most delicious French Dip sandwiches for dinner. You really must try this recipe! After just a few bites, Ryan and I thought we had died and gone to heaven. Ryan declared it "company worthy." High praise, indeed! This means it is my new "company dinner." Who likes French dip?

Christmas
I feel like Christmas is almost upon us already! Usually I put away all thoughts of holidays until after Thanksgiving; however, this year with our extreme budgeting, we have been buying and planning things here and there so we are not hit all at once with holiday expenses. I am getting close to being done with Christmas cards. We are about half done buying gifts for the kids. We are getting together the schedule for when the kids are here (woo hoo!). I feel so Christmasy that I keep looking outside to see if it is snowing. No such luck... yet!

Daylight savings
Whose idea was this daylight savings hoo ha, anyway? It is messing me all up. But as you know, I don't like going to sleep at night, anyway. It is always such a battle. There are so many things to think about when I turn out the lights!

Goodnight
It is time for me to close the laptop, close my eyes, and try to sleep. Goodnight, friends of the blog!


**Random style dedicated to Penny and Julee!