Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a happy thanksgiving. May you be spending time with those who are most important to you. I have a houseful, with my in-laws and my sister and her kids. Here are some of the Thanksgiving cards I've made in years past. Everything is Stampin' Up, except the ribbon on the Happy Harvest card and the "Happy Thanksgiving" on the last 2 cards.

Let me know which one(s) you like the best.

A Shameful Finish (AMOT)

Dear Loyal Readers,

There I was, doing so well with A Month of Thanks, and then I crashed and burned. Still, I had more posts in November than I've had in quite awhile.

To finish up the series, I give you a week of thanks:

24: Thanksgiving Day: I am thankful that I live in a land of bounty and that we could share some of our bounty with others.

25: Black Friday: Ever so grateful that I didn't need to be anywhere near a store. We had an uneventful flight home. Thankful also for the chauffeur we hired (he drove our car to and from the airport for us), which made the ride home with tired, hungry children more manageable.

26-27: Thankful for days of rest and recuperation. Saturday, we took care of a bunch of errands (groceries, laundry). On Sunday, the weather was nice, so we went outside to do some long overdue yardwork. We accomplished a lot, but we didn't feel rushed, and it was nice to be home for the weekend after travelling.

28: Thankful for our cats. They're little dogs in cat bodies. They were delighted we were home and cuddly for days after our return. They remind me to slow down and enjoy some affection.

29: Thankful for family, immediate and extended. Mine's a real mixed bag of personalities and disfunctions, but they're mine, and they love me. And I love them.

30: Thankful for my spouse. We met 20 years ago, and it always surprises me that we're not completely sick of each other by now. There were times when I wasn't sure we were going to make it, but we found out how to be a team and have made it work. For this, I am truly and completely grateful.

Crafting Together

Today is my mom's birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom!

It is from my mom and my grandmothers that I learned to craft. I remember making stuff for as long as I can remember. Grandma S. used to knit and crochet. I still have 2 pairs of mittens she knit for me back in the 1980s. She taught me to crochet granny squares. Grandma A. was more into glitter and glue. Over the years, we made a lot of different Christmas ornaments out of all sorts of styrofoam and beads. Mom would sew and crochet mostly. She also did some embroidery.

While none of them were particularly into cross stitching or rubber stamping, it is from them that I learned my love of crafting. I've started doing easy projects with the girls, to get them interested too. To that end, the three of us made these cards. The girls helped stamp the leaves and acorns. L. at first didn't want to share her paper. She wanted to stamp only red leaves on her paper. We finally convinced here to pass the paper around, and so produced the following background paper.

Today, I am thankful for being able to craft, especially with my family.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Campfires (AMOT 22)

Today, I am thankful for campfires (or "fire camps" as the girls call them).

My MIL held a meet-and-greet for us today. Some of the extended family came as well as some of the neighbors. Also included were her beau's kids and grandkids. I wasn't sure how this was going to go, but we all got along and found common ground. It was fun, and the little ones had a grand time meeting all their new "cousins".

In the evening, DH built a campfire (in one of those free-standing fire pit contraptions). I *love* campfires. We even had s'mores. The smell of campfires always brings back memories of my grandparents, Girl Scout camping, and summers with my family. They make me happy, and it was a great way to end the day.

AMOT 21

The girls are having a grand time in SATX visiting my MIL. They're having fun exploring a new house and running around a huge backyard. (We have a narrow yard in DC.) They're also having fun helping with household chores, like sweeping the deck.

Today, we spent most of the afternoon and evening at SeaWorld. This was their first real amusement park. Fortunately, the National Aquarium in Baltimore had given them a glimpse of what this would be like, so it wasn't overwhelming. Plus, there weren't many people at the park today.

Today, I'm thankful that my girls are adaptable. They like exploring. They're open to new things: new places, new foods, new people. They are very much go-with-the-flow kids, except, perhaps, when Mom says "no" to bringing home the Shamu stuffed animal when they're extremely tired at the end of a really long day. I am grateful that they adjust to things very quickly and enjoy new experiences.

Flying (AMOT 20)

Sunday, we took the girls on their first plane rides. It was a direct flight from Dulles to San Antonio, and everything -- and I do mean everything -- went smoothly. It's remarkable. The thing I am most thankful for today is being able to share in such a grand adventure with my daughters and recapture that sense of excitement and wonder that children have.

Gettysburg Address

148 years ago, Abraham Lincoln stood at the cemetery at Gettysburg and gave his most famous speech. 13 years ago, I took my first professional job as an archivist. Among the many experiences I've had, being able to hold this copy of the Gettysburg Address in my hands and share it with visitors to the archives ranks at the top.

I am thankful to be in my profession, which is endlessly fascinating.

AMOT 18

Today I am grateful for search engines. They make finding obscure information and items so much easier.

Charity (AMOT 15-17)

I'm in charge of my office's fall charity campaign this year. It's been a lot of work.

On Tuesday, we had a chili sale. I am thankful for everyone who participated in the event, but most especially for my coworkers who volunteered to cook and serve the chili. Volunteers are awesome!

On Wednesday, several of my coworkers turned in their pledge forms. I am thankful for their generous contributions.

On Thursday, we hosted "Denim Days". My office has a formal dress code, and so this was an easy way to raise a few dollars for charity, by allowing staff to come to work in jeans and pay for the privilege. I am thankful for all the people who got into the spirit of the event and had fun with it. (And nothing can beat a low-cost, low-effort fundraiser!)

AMOT 14

Monday was a beautiful day. The weather was nearly perfect. Two friends and I sat outside for lunch. The temperature dropped at night and was in that perfect range that I call "sleeping weather". I slept so well.

I am thankful for good weather, especially good sleeping weather.

AMOT13 & SBQ

On Sunday, I had three friends over for a crafting afternoon. It was bliss. The project I'm working on at the moment is on Aida with overdyed floss. Today's thanks is for the variety of threads, fabrics, designs, etc., that are available.

Which brings me to the SBQ: what's my favorite thread color? My favorite color family is the pumpkin and terracotta range of oranges. There is something about them that I find warm and soothing. Since I have to pick just one, I would say that WDW Sweet Potato is the best representative of this family for me.
The other thread I find myself using frequently is WDW Cadet Blue.

Refinancing (AMOT 12)

Today, I am grateful that we have a house; we're happy with our house and our neighborhood; we're not underwater with our mortgage; and that we were able to refinance yesterday to even better terms. I know not everyone is so fortunate.

Honoring the Fallen

And now the Torch and Poppy Red
We wear in honor of our dead.
Fear not that ye have died for naught;
We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought
In Flanders Fields.
In Flanders Fields we fought

"We Shall Keep the Faith" by Moina Michael, mother of the Remembrance Poppies distributed by the American Legion Auxiliary.

Catching Up (AMOT 8-10)

I've been in a grouchy mood the past few days. I've run headlong into school and medical bureaucracy over L's asthma medicine. I'm prepping for a big CFC event at work on Tuesday (yes, I'm in charge of my office's CFC this year). The time change has done us no favors. DH and I have been grumbling at each other.

So, time to take a deep breath and be thankful.

AMOT 8 - I'm thankful for old clothes, the ones that are like old friends. The ones you pull out of your closet weekly because they fit well and work for most outside-of-the-house situations. My favorite pants (in 3 different colors), my tall boots, my frumpy but functional coat, my red cable sweater.

AMOT 9 - I was delighted to be able to see the moon and Jupiter for most of my drive (in exceedingly slow traffic) to swim class last night. If one has to be stuck in traffic, it's good to have a nice view. The view was quite amazing. Here's someone else's photo.

AMOT 10 - I'm thankful for good friends. I had lunch with 2 friends today. We're having some friends over for dinner tomorrow night, and more friends are coming over on Sunday for a girls' craft day. It'll be a bit crazy, but it will be nice to see all of them. And to see great friend NJM at all three. I have a lot of wonderful people in my life. I need to remember that more often.

Deanwood (AMOT7)

Today, I am grateful for the Deanwood Recreation Center. How nice it is to be able to go for a swim and visit the public library in the same building.

Weekend Update (AMOT 4-6)

So much for blogging daily. Just one of the joys of having small children, I guess.

Friday - I was thankful for having a functional health care plan. We have a good plan through our employer. My wish is that everyone had access to quality, affordable health care. (Today's visit was routine in nature, not related to my antics on Wednesday.)

Saturday - I am thankful for good babysitters. We have a few that we like and use regularly.

Sunday - I've been known to say in the past that I wish we would stay on Daylight Savings Time all year. I like having the sun available later in the day. This year, for once, I was grateful it ended. Our mornings were getting a bit too dark, and we were having a rough time getting going in the morning. Already I'm feeling the difference.

Telework (AMOT3)

Today I am thankful for telework. It allowed me to stay home and rest my knee (and elbow) while still working.

I'm grateful for telework in general. I don't have a long commute, but teleworking saves me about an hour in prep and travel time, which gives me an hour to do other things without the girls being under foot.

Good Samaritans (AMOT2)

This is not what I intended to write about today, but circumstances intervened.

Today was not my day. I started my day by having to climb 150 stairs up out of the Dupont Circle metro. Ugh. I was at a seminar this morning that went OK. Then it was back to Dupont to go to my office for an all afternoon meeting.

Except, being the klutz that I am, I tripped over the uneven sidewalk just before the metro entrance. I did a full flying eagle face plant into the concrete. Ow, ow, ow.

Before I'd even fully landed, several good samaritans were coming to my aid. A couple of people offered to help me up. Others gathered my belongings that had gone flying, including my lunch. They stood by while I dusted myself off, gathered my addled brain together, and surveyed the damage. My hands were slightly scraped up, and my wrists, arms, and shoulders were jarred a bit, but my right knee bore the brunt of it. Amazingly, my favorite pair of pants survived intact.

I managed to get myself on the metro back to my office and up to our health unit. The kind doctor and nurse took good care of me, both physically and emotionally. The knee is sprained and swollen, but it doesn't appear at this point that there was further damage.

So, today, I am extra thankful for the kind and decent people of DC who, instead of laughing at my flying antics, showed sympathy and aided me when I needed it.

P.S. I think it's kind of cool that today is a palindrome: 11/02/2011.

AMOT1

A Month of Thanks - Things for which I am thankful.

Day 1: I am thankful for friendly neighbors.

Last week, at Diversity Night at the girls' school, several parents went out of their way to say hi and introduce themselves. It really made an impression. Yesterday, during trick-or-treating, I was reminded of what a great neighborhood I live in and what great neighbors I have.