Part 1: Who wants more turkey?

I love Thanksgiving!!!

It's a fairly low stress holiday and then there's the food.

This year was no different. Dinner at Jen and Tom's. Michael and I, Doug Cindy and the kids, Tom's parents and grandmother.

I got off work at 1:30 on Wednesday and headed to the grocery store for "last minute stuff" and then to Jen's. She and I were going to do some prep for Thanksgiving dinner and then just chill.

I was going to spend the night to eliminate some driving back and forth.

By the time I arrived, Jen had most of the cooking done and we headed out to rent movies for an evening of "vegging".

Movie one was "The Ugly Truth". An ok movie, but not one I'd want to see again.

We headed to bed fairly early and I read and played on the computer.

I awoke to footsteps downstairs, Tom was home, so I headed down to join the fun.

First up was getting the tables set up and putting on tablecloths.

Next was getting the turkey in the oven.

After the turkey was safely cooking away, we sat down to watch some recorded "So You Think You Can Dance".

Next up was the Green Beans. This is a tradition that Jen loves and was started by my Mom, years ago.

Tom browning the onions and bacon for the beans.

Then we watched some more "So You Think You Can Dance" and after awhile I headed back upstairs to get dressed. (So far I'd spent the morning in my jammies.)

While I was upstairs I heard some commotion from the kitchen and then I heard, OWW,OWW, OWW. (Coming from Jen). I headed back downstairs to see this.

Yep, that's blood. Jen cut her finger pretty good on the slicer and as is tradition, a picture had to be taken. Does this seem a little goulish???? Well, that's us..............

Potatoes were next up. Jen was trying a new recipe. It looked really pretty in the pan, but (and don't tell Jen this)I really didn't enjoy them. Sorry Jen!! I love that you like to try new things.

Tom made some rockin' homemade sourdough bread.

Jen and Cindy carved the Turkey, which was delicious by the way.

Here's the whole spread.

Here's the whole gang.

And you have to have desert.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of "Who wants more Turkey"

:-)

Sunday Funnies # 12, You're not a monk...........

Don't shoot me for this one. It's all Tom's (Hill that is) fault!!!!
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A man is driving down the road and breaks down near a monastery. He goes to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night?

The monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner, and even fix his car.

As the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound; a sound like no other that he has ever heard.

The next morning, he asks the monks what the sound was, but they say, We can't tell you because you're not a monk.

The man is disappointed but thanks them anyway and goes about his merry way.

Some years later, the same man breaks down in front of the same monastery. The monks again accept him, feed him, and even fix his car..

That night, he hears the same strange mesmerizing sound that he had heard years earlier. The next morning, he asks what the sound was, but the monks reply, We can't tell you because you're not a monk.

The man says, all right, all right. I'm dying to know. If the only way I can find out what that sound was is to become a monk, how do I become a monk? The monks reply, you must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of grass there are and the exact number of sand pebbles. When you find these numbers, you will become a monk.

The man sets about his task. Some forty-five years later, he returns and knocks on the door of the monastery. He says, I have travelled the earth and devoted my life to the task demanded and have found what you had asked for. There are 371,145,236,284,232 blades of grass and 231,281,219,999,129,382 sand pebbles on the earth.

The monks reply, congratulations, you are correct, and you are now considered a monk .

We shall now show you the way to the sound. The monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, the sound is behind that door.

The man reaches for the knob, but the door is locked. He asks, May I have the key ?

The monks give him the key, and he opens the door.

Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone... The man requests the key to the stone door.

The monks give him the key, and he opens it, only to find a door made of ruby. He demands another key from the monks, who provide it. Behind that door is another door, this one made of sapphire.

And so it went on until the man had gone through doors of emerald,...

...silver, topaz, and amethyst.

Finally, the monks say, This is the key to the last door.

The man is relieved to be at the end. He unlocks the door, turns the knob, and behind that door he is astonished to find the source of that strange sound. It is truly an amazing and unbelievable sight....
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Keep going.......
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Don't give up................
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It's worth it..................I promise.
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.....But I can't tell you what it is because you're not a monk.

DON'T SWEAR AT ME; I'M STILL HUNTING FOR THE IDIOT WHO STARTED THIS!

:-)

2 phones??????

Yep, I'm now carrying 2 phones.

I had to get a new work phone and they wouldn't let me use my old phone number. It had to be a "company" number, so, in order to keep my phone number, 2 phones.

Company phone, Blackberry Curve

Personal phone, Blackberry Storm2

I don't carry them both at the same time, that would just be silly, but the second one is always close at hand.

From technology challanged to this.

What next?????

Wait, forget I asked that. I don't want to know.

:-)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!

Too full of turkey to post much, but this about says it all.





HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM ONE TURKEY TO ANOTHER!!!!!!

:-)

Old Photo Wednesday # 14................Let's go for a Swim

These photos were taken almost 30 years ago.

Jen, Cindy, Mo and Josh enjoying the pool at Kraushaar's. Hard to believe they're all grown up, some with kids of their own.

Where does the time go?????

:-)

Three Blind Mice...............

We've been having a minor mouse problem at work and the last one we caught was in a trap by my cubicle.

When I came to work today, these 3 guys were waiting for me.



Now, that kind of mouse problem I can handle!!!1

:-)

I'm still shaking a little!!!!

Why?

Well, I took the plunge today and bought a new camera. My old Cannon (at least 10 years old) finally quit working and I just couldn't be without a camera, especially with the Holidays coming up.

So, Rockbrook Camera and I did a little business and I'm still shaking from writing that check.

It was worth it though. New Cannon Rebel T1i. It's awesome!!!!

My next post should have pictures attached that were taken with it. Right now I'm still practicing.

:-)

Welcome Erik Spencer Berney

I have a new Great Nephew, and he's so cute.

Michael and I went to a "Meet and Greet" on Saturday at my brother-in-law Clyde's house. Clyde is the Grandpa, but he doesn't like being called one. I'm sure he'll get over that.

So, here he is.............Introducing Erik Spencer Berney.



And his Mom and Dad, Jerry and Allie.



Welcome to the family!!! :-)

Sunday Funnies # 11, Dear Diary..................

For all you people that want to retire to a warmer climate................enjoy!!!!

Dear Diary
Just moved to Las Vegas, Nevada! Now this is a state that knows how to live!! Beautiful sunny days and warm balmy evenings. It is beautiful. I've finally found my home. I love it here!!!

June 14th:
Really heating up. Got to 100 today. Not a problem. Live in an air-conditioned home, drive an air-conditioned car. What a pleasure to see the sun everyday like this. I'm turning into a sun worshipper!!!!

June 30th:
Had the backyard landscaped with western plants today. Lots of cactus and rocks. What a breeze to maintain. No more mowing the lawn for me. Another scorcher today, but I love it here.

July 10th:
The temperature hasn't been below 105 all week. How do people get used to this kind of heat? At least, it's kind of windy though. But getting used to the heat is taking longer than I expected.

July 15th:
Fell asleep by the country club pool. (Got 3rd degree burns over 60% of my body). Missed 3 days of work. What a dumb thing to do. I learned my lesson though. Got to respect the ol' sun in a climate like this.

July 20th:
I missed Lomita (my cat) sneaking into the car when I left this morning. By the time I got to the hot car at noon, Lomita had died and swollen up to the size of a shopping bag, then popped like a water balloon. The car now smells like Kibbles and Shits. I learned my lesson though. No more pets in this heat. Good ol' Mr. Sun strikes again.

July 25th:
The wind sucks. It feels like a giant freaking blow dryer!! And it's hot as hell. The home air-conditioner is on the fritz and the AC repairman charged $200 just to drive by and tell me he needed to order parts.

July 30th:
Been sleeping outside on the patio for 3 nights now, $725,000 house and I can't even go inside. Lomita is the lucky one. Why did I ever come here?

Aug. 4th:
It's 115 degrees. Finally got the air-conditioner fixed today. It cost $500 and gets the temperature down to 85. I hate this stupid place.

Aug. 8th:
If another wise ass cracks, 'Hot enough for you today?' I'm going to strangle him... Damn heat. By the time I get to work, the radiator is boiling over, my clothes are soaking wet, and I smell like baked cat!!

Aug. 9th:
Tried to run some errands after work. Wore shorts, and when sat on the seats in the car, I thought my ass was on fire. My skin melted to the seat. I lost 2 layers of flesh and all the hair on the back of my legs and ass . . . Now my car smells like burnt hair, fried ass, and baked cat.

Aug 10th:
The weather report might as well be a damn recording. Hot and sunny. Hot and sunny... Hot and sunny. It's been too hot to do shit for 2 damn months and the weatherman says it might really warm up next week. Doesn't it ever rain in this damn place? Water rationing will be next, so my $1700 worth of cactus will just dry up and blow over. Even the cactus can't live in this damn heat.

Aug. 14th:
Welcome to HELL! Temperature got to 120 today. Cactus are dead. Forgot to crack the window and blew the damn windshield out of the car. The installer came to fix it and guess what he asked me??? "Hot enough for you today?" My sister had to spend $1,500 to bail me out of jail. Freaking desert . What kind of a sick demented idiot would want to live here??

Will write later to let you know how the trial goes.

:-)

Old Photo Wednesday # 13...........Happy Thanksgiving!!

Here's a great Thanksgiving memory for me.

This was taken in St. Louis several years ago. I like it for alot of reasons. We all look so young, it's one of the few pictues I have when Michael had a beard and it brings back happy memories.

This Thanksgiving Linda asked me to bring pies. I had my pies all made (yes, I made them from scratch) and they were sitting on the counter cooling and luckily were covered with towels. Our cat, I don't remember which at the time, decided to walk over them. That Thanksgiving I served pie with little cat pawprints in it. It was GREAT!!!!

I LOVE family memories!!!

:-)

Part 2, Is it over yet?

Sunday started out badly. I woke up with a terrible headache. I had to got back to sleep and try to get rid of it, which meant less time that I could spend with Lauren. Brandon had gone home wth Cindy and Lauren had stayed with me. Well, anyway, it couldn't be helped, I went back to sleep and Lauren went in a watched TV.

She woke me up at 11:00 AM asking for lunch. Thank God I felt better, so she and I headed off to McDonald's and a quick stop at the store.

When we got home it was off to do the things we love to do when we're together. Play games and bake.

We baked first. Our favorite, Chocolate Cupcakes!!!!!

Which, of course, includes licking the bowl!!!!!

Then on the the game playing. Today we decided to play on the computer. She loved playing with my Facebook Zoo and Fish Tank.

This weekend our playing included play with Sugar, the cat. Lauren and Sugar get alot very well and loved played together. Lauren even helped Sugar find her lost toys under the dryer.

Our day together ended all too soon. Michael took Lauren home on his way to work, so she had to leave at 3:30. I can't wait until Thanksgiving, when I get to spend more time with both Brandon and Lauren!!!!

:-)

Is it over yet?................or, boy do my feet hurt!!!!

What a weekend!!!

Got off work on Friday and headed straight for Gretna. Had to pick up Brandon and head to the church in Modale. It's that time of year again. Our church's annual Harvest Dinner. Turkey dinner with all the trimmings for 250 people.

This will be the second year we have been able to hold our annual fundraiser in our own fellowship hall. What a pleasure to have the event in our own building. God is good!!

Friday night is prep night. Setting up tables, peeling potatoes, cleaning the turkeys, wrapping the silverware, etc. Finished up about 8:30 and headed for home. Brandon and I were both beat so we headed straight to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long, long, long day, and it starts early.

8:00 AM finds us back in Modale and ready to go to work. The first order of business is to get the big turkey set up.

That accomplished, it's back to the kitchen.

First up, getting the turkeys in the roasters and cooking.

Then, the stuffing!!!!

Once the stuffing is put together and ready for the oven, it's cooking the eggs for deviled eggs and then lunch!!!

After lunch the main event is picking the turkey meat off the bones. It's a group effort, so it's "all hands on deck" complete with gloves to help protect the hands from the HOT turkeys.

At this point the afternoon becomes sort of a blur.

Making the mashed potatoes. We use only real potatoes for our mashed potatoes. No instant potatoes for us.

Then it's get the corn ready and make the gravy.

And then there were pies. That's always my job. Cutting and serving the pies. This year Cindy and Lauren were my helpers. We had a good time and when it comes right down to it, how could you not have a good time serving pie?!!! Yum!!!!

So, we're ready to go and let the games begin. Here come the people.

By the way, Brandon helped too.

There's nothing like the rush of a successful event. Can't wait until next year.

Come back tomorrow for the conclusion of "Is it over yes?..............or, boy do my feet hurt!!!

:-)