Hello and All

Hey, folks. We've been laying low, as you may have noticed. Mainly this is due to two consecutive colds that ravaged our family. And I mean literally consecutive: we were well for about 6 days, then BAM, another cold. How is that even fair?

Anyway, Happy [belated] Thanksgiving! My turkey turned out fine. You may have noticed, via Twitter, that I was slightly nervous. You should know that I have prepared very little "grown-up" meat in my time. By "grown-up," I mean like whole birds, steaks, roasts, etc. In fact, I've never prepared a roast or a steak or a whole chicken. But this year I volunteered to make the turkey, and I think my mom was more than happy to pass over her roasting pan and hand off that duty.

I don't fix much meat because a) we don't eat much (we fast a lot as Orthodox, plus we have issues with factory-farmed meat), and b) I get all weebly when I have to prepare it. Poultry is the worst. I mean, yesterday I had to brave neck skin, gizzards, and puny little turkey wings, and I about lost it when my husband wandered in and said, "Hey, I think you can see where they plucked the feathers!"

YES, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT TIDBIT.

But! I made it! And I even ate a little bit--a very little bit. Like a bite.

We celebrated at my parents' house with them, my sister and her husband and their Baby Goddess, and another couple, some friends. And we are cherishing our time off from school and work, cherishing our loooong weekend together, cherishing the fact that Black Friday shopping makes us all want to puke and run away simultaneously. (Today, instead of shopping, the kids and I are going back over to my parents' while my husband rips up the linoleum in our entryway and tiles it. He is my hero!)

So that is our brief and picture-less update. I hope it will satisfy for the time being!

ps: Yesterday my children unhooked about 30 crystals from a chandelier hanging in my parents' bedroom. The children were supposed to be sleeping in my parents' bed--they have handled this task brilliantly in the past, without incident--but apparently said bed is just tall enough for a 3-year-old to reach the tantalizing crystals. So. That was fun.