Saturday, November 2, 2013

Ten Things of Thankful: Week 22

1. I am thankful for this week’s CYT Showcase. My 12yo took a costume design class during the previous session of CYT (and if you’ve never heard of CYT, I HIGHLY encourage that you look it up. In fact, I will include a link to it HERE.) And while the showcase was enjoyable and I enjoyed seeing the kiddos perform, and listening to my son and his class describe what they had learned about costume design, I am mostly thankful that this means that CYT is finished for a few weeks (he may take a class beginning at the end of November, depending on when his basketball team practices…we are still waiting for that info…but I digress.)

2. I am thankful for a night this week when we were all at home with nowhere to be…and nothing that HAD to be done. After soccer season and CYT, it has come as a welcome change.

3. Wait! I forgot! Make that TWO night as listed above. TWO. During the week, no less. That’s the next item of thankfulness.

4. I am thankful for Halloween being postponed. At first, I was not happy because I just wanted to check it off the list. And I was kind of irritated that the horrible storms the weather forecasters had predicted (which totally shocked me because the forecasters are NEVER wrong!) didn’t arrive until 9:45 that evening, which would have easily allowed for trick-or-treaters to go out and safely be at home before the storm put a damper on things. But, I will confess, holding off until Friday made the weather slightly cooler but no breeze and clear skies. And no threat of a storm, which would make for a more relaxed evening.

5. I am thankful that we all made it home form trick-or-treating, including Indy. He was the Headless Horseman's trusty steed. Doesn't he look trusty?



6. Plus, I am also thankful that being at home on Halloween night afforded us the opportunity to introduce our children to such delights as “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” and “Ghostbusters”. Yes, I said “Ghostbusters”.  If you haven’t watched it for a while, I recommend you revisit it. Much funnier than I remembered. AND very 80’s cheesy. And MOSTLY family-friendly.

7. I am thankful for roasted pumpkin seeds. This needs no explanation, does it? I have included the before and after photos for your enjoyment. They were DIVINE. And BTW this haul of seeds came from just one pumpkin…we are to the point where one is sufficient for us. None of us are too much into the carving…we’re just after the seeds. Don’t judge.

Before
After

8. I am thankful for a recent discussion on cursive writing, and the fact that I held my tongue…at least for a while. I was mostly a witness to the conversation, but it was one in which the others present were discussing the importance of cursive writing, and how horrible it is that schools aren’t teaching it anymore, and (this was THE BEST comment) what would we do if all of a sudden every computer in the world crashed?!? Mr. Always Random wisely pointed out that reading and writing in cursive would be the LEAST of our concerns if every computer in the world crashed. Then the same individual who commented about the world’s computers THEN continued (because one ridiculous comment wasn’t enough?) and said, “Well, I’m glad these boys know how to write in cursive.” I was thankful I had held my tongue up to that point, because then I could see the look on her face when I informed her that no, my 10yo only knows how to sign his name; I didn’t teach him to write in cursive. Her jaw dropped. And maybe that was slightly mean of me, but I kind of enjoyed it. And yes…you might want to stand back, lest the lightning strike me.

9. I am thankful for Home Ec on Fridays at the PBA. Now, I don’t officially call it that, but that is officially what it is. We strip beds, wash sheets and remake the beds; we gather, wash and rehang the bathtowels; we wash and fold all clothing which needs it; we vacuum, dust, clean kitchen counters, steam mop, scrub bathrooms, empty and reload the dishwasher; set the table for meals; clear the table; make salads…anything that needs to be done. The PBA do these things, people. And really, not just on Fridays…most days in fact. Again…this is the PBA I’m talking about. And if they were not homeschooled, I would be doing these things all by my lonesome. And they wouldn’t know how to do these things either. And their wives would not be very happy with me. I’m all about making those DILs happy…specifically with me.

10. I am thankful for the opportunity to attend a 40th Birthday party for one sweet friend…which was turned out to also a surprise marriage vow renewal ceremony for the birthday girl and her hubby of 20 years. What a blessing to be there with them for that. And if that were not enough, after that party, I got to go out to coffee for another friend’s birthday. All kinds of opportunities to celebrate my lovely friends!

What are you thankful for today?




27 comments:

  1. Oh how I love the doggy costume! And roasted pumpkin seeds! I laughed at the cursive writing comments it made me think of standing at Plymouth Rock and people asking why it didn't have the year Columbus landed carved into it! I think people just get hit with the stupid stick in a rather sudden and unexpected way before they can even formulate a correct or intelligent thought... Well, I like to give em the benefit of the doubt but some just don't deserve it! But if I haven't been struck by lightning I don't think you have to worry!

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    1. Thanks...Indy tolerated it well, even through the whole neighborhood for trick-or-treating. I thought FOR SURE it would be coming up by the time we got to the end of our street!

      Yes, you can't fix stupid. And most of the time I think if people would simply PAUSE before opening their mouths, they would seem much less stupid...maybe the filter would kick in and they wouldn't say what they were thinking. Then again...maybe not.

      Perhaps it best the two of us not get together, as the lightning may SURELY strike. ;)

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  2. Remember Y2K and how there was that big push to make sure that everyone could read and write cursive before Jan. 1? LOL

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    1. Yes, it's all coming back to me now...maybe that's where she got it...LOL

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  3. I love pumpkin seeds! And I had a teacher who used to be very strict about our cursive writing! A great list of thankfuls.....thanks for sharing it with us!

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  4. The headless horseman outfit is amazing! And the pumpkin seeds - do you eat them whole? Coat them with any seasoning? I may need a recipe here, as I have a pumpkin sat on my balcony, which needs getting into, and I'd hate to miss out on a treat!

    Glad you were able to jump in with the backchat about cursive writing. Good for you for standing up for your ideals.

    Your #10 sounds GORGEOUS :) What a fun thing to have been part of.

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    1. Thanks for the kind words...it's not like I made it or anything. I bought it a couple years ago AFTER Halloween on clearance. That's how I roll. :)

      It's not so much that I am opposed to cursive...it's that I didn't find it to be personally necessary for that particular child. Other children, that is fine. My 12yo knows it...but he was in public school for second grade when it's taught. :)

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  5. That is so super sweet that it was a marriage renewal in addition to a birthday party. Adorable!

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  6. Every single stinkin' year, as we carve all of our pumpkins, I say, "We should figure out how to roast these. I hear they are good." We have never, ever roasted pumpkin seeds. And I could have simply asked you all this time.
    I would appreciate the PBA having a Home Ec class at my house. Any day. :)

    I was actually thrilled that trick-or-treating was postponed. We wouldn't have had the time to carve pumpkins otherwise. And it was ridiculously windy on Thursday. The poor kids wearing capes would have blown away!

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    1. I can't believe you didn't ask me...if nothing else, you HAD to know that I would Google it for you. ;)

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  7. I love the headless horseman costume and the picture of your pumpkin seeds reminds me that mine are all clean in a tupperware at home waiting to be roasted - so I should do that - YUM!

    I hadn't known what CYT was - so clicked. What a great program - you are lucky to have something like that for your kids. As for two days with now plans - wahoo! I movie night with my girls on Friday night - gloriously relaxing (Little Mermaid and some Barbie thing).

    As for Ghostbusters - I can't wait to show that one to my girls (4 and 1 so still a wee bit young) - as for mostly family friendly - ah yes! We have a family legend about my little brother at 5 greeting my grandmother as a "prehistoric b*tch" because the term popped up in the movie; he asked what it meant; and my parents glossed over it with something to the effect of - had to do with the monster being an older woman, but don't use it. This of course meant he had to try it out, given his understanding based on the movie and what my parents had said. So along came family dinner and a good example of, "be careful what you tell kids!" My granny took it pretty well, once explained, all things considered...

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    1. I would love to get my hands on another pumpkin just for more seeds. It is my second-favorite part of Halloween, after all the candy of course. :)

      We are so blessed to have this great opportunity close by.

      Oh my! Yes, the girls are a little young...and even with a 10 & 12yo we still had a tiny bit of editing to do. Those 80's movies will get you sometimes! LOVE the story about your brother...too funny. And just goes to show that kids DO listen to what their parents tell them! :)

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  8. cursive writing/ that is the yellow-pad-dotted-line-in-between-solid-line-Lindy-pen-writing paper, isn't? yo… Sister Mary Cletus… I remember the number of times I got my hand hit with 'the Ruler' (who makes 2 foot Rulers anymore?? she had one, better leverage and follow-through, compared to the puny 1 foot rulers)
    I look back and am grateful that for all the difficulty I had learning 'penmanship' at least I wasn't left-handed! lol

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    1. Yes, I know it would be fabulous if he had nice penmanship, and I know there's some truth to be found in what it can do for the brain, but this kid is already so quick and clever that I'm not sure I want to tempt fate and make him any more so. He already keeps us on our toes! :)

      And yes, I always felt sorry for the left-hand kiddos...the teacher was never as patient with them, poor dears.

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  9. I love being home for an evening with nothing that must be done, the pumpkin seeds sound wonderful, and I am delighted with a mother teaching sons domestic skills, so they can take care of themselves and lend a helping hand when they are grown! All kinds of positives in this post, right down to a lovely finale birthday/vow renewal celebration. Happy times to leave you smiling!

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    1. Yes, lots to be thankful for this week...every week really if I stop and ponder it! So thankful to Lizzi for putting this hop together and keeping it going! Makes me pause and consider the blessings around me all the time. :)

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  10. Ah, Indy. I really need to look into some costuming for my puppers next year. They will love it, I'm sure. In fact, I overheard them talking how jealous they were about all of Indy--particularly the Mary Magdeline one. ;)

    Chris and I almost watched Ghostbusters with the kids last night. Is it appropriate all the way through? See..there are movies from the 80's that I remember watching and then start watching with the kids and realize that I forgot about all the sex scenes or language in it. I didn't take the time to look up Ghostbusters on IMDB (my source for looking up parental content...that site as well as PluggedIn) Anyhooo... we ended up watching Forrest Gump....we both have seen it so many times, we knew which parts to tell the kids to "look up!" and then fast forward through. :)

    Sounds like that party was a great time!! How fun!

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    1. Yes, I understand COMPLETELY what you are talking about with 80's movies. There are just a couple scenes which I would deem inappropriate but they are pretty brief. There is a small bit of language too but not much at all...at least in the version we saw. We were actually watching it on Comedy Central (I think) so I didn't expect that it would be edited, but I think a couple words were. All that to say...you MIGHT want to watch it ahead before you let Miss Gillian watch it especially.

      Funny that you mention Forrest Gump b/c Mr. Always Random had that on last night right at the beginning of the movie and I said, "They are NOT watching this"...not because it isn't a fabulous movie, but because I haven't seen it quite enough to remember where I need to skip ahead... :)

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    2. I forgot to mention two words of advice for doggie costumes: Target Clearance...

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    3. I bet I was watching Ghostbusters same time as you then. I was flipping channels and it was on, I kept it on for a little while before switching it. And I think it was on Comedy Central (which, yes, does not always 'edit' their movies to my liking).

      It was kind of funny watching Forrest Gump. We have seen it SO many times. Chris had the remote control and so when I knew a scene was coming up, I would shoot Chris a "look" to make sure he had his finger 'on the button'! And he always did and would give me knowing nod. It was so funny how we knew exactly what was coming up. There was one F-bomb we both forgot about... I'm sure for my boys that goes right over their heads (as I am sure they hear it at school on a daily basis), but I'm not sure how shocked Gillian was by it. Chris apologized right as soon as it was out. phew! It's a really great movie (with all sorts of allegories), but ...yes, for 'older' children for sure. Have you ever used IMDB.com or PluggedIn sites for parental content? I do all the time.

      Ah, yes... Target...and this time of year would be the time to find the clearance stuff wouldn't it? Sadly, the nearest Target is an hour away... I'll be there on Nov 19 (WHEN EVAN GETS HIS BRACES OFF!!! woot! woot!) so maybe I can stop by a Target and see what's left by then. ;) Thanks for the tip!

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    4. See, further evidence that you need to move here. I have a Target not quite 5 minutes from my house...

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  11. Indy is such a good sport. I bought a Halloween collar-type thing for the new kitten, and she was less than thrilled.

    The only time I tried to eat roasted pumpkin seeds, I thought it was a lot like eating a piece of roasted and salted bark.

    My house is available for Home Ec Fridays, if you are interested in a field trip.

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    1. Well, I must admit that this is the most accepting that Indy's ever been of the costumes. He's never tolerated them well in the past (and believe me, I tried...) but this year he didn't seem to mind at all.

      I can see that...lots of butter and salt are the keys to successful pumpkin seed roasting.

      We would LOVE a field trip...you let us know when! ;)

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  12. Oh dear, some people have issues.. Writing in coursive?? seriously? Love your response though ;-) Oh, and your dog's costume, great!!! So funny. Hope you get to go out for trick-or-treating soon. Enjoy the roasted pumpkin seeds in the meantime.

    Have a wonderful new week!

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