Blessed #8

My husband and his fam are off to the traditional Fort Duschene Thanksgiving Powwow and also, as tradition would have it, they are not expecting me to attend. I am off to shop. I was lucky enough to book enough sittings to save Black Friday money. I may leave at 2:30 so I can be at Old Navy when it opens. It's all up in the air. Tomorrow is the only day of the year that I am nothing but materialistic.

My tummy's materialistic too. We're going to eat iguana meat at Beto's for breakfast (Diane said she'd never been there a few years back for this reason. Of course they'd serve iguana meat. It's much more economical than beef, pork or chicken). We immediately made that another of our holiday traditions.

On the list:
-scooters (since Toys R Us solved the problem of me having all of the scooters I need by misplacing 1/2 of my order)
-2 Pre-owned Nintendo DS Lites
-whatever else tickles my fancy and fits into the budget

If you're going too, what are you doing reading this? GET OUT THERE AND SHOP! If you're not, don't judge.

Blessed #7 (Lucky)

Le Menu

(Because anything French is Fancy)

Roast Turkey with Rosemary and Sage Butter

Citrus and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

Creamed Potatoes

Corn Bread and Herb Stuffing with Gizzards and Egg (I know, super fancy)

Sweet Potatoe Casserole with Candied Pecan Streusal

Collard Greens With Bacon

Mixed Greens with Strawberries and Herb Garlic Brie (just for moi)

Fried Cornbread

Desserts

Banana Pudding

Pumpkin Pie

Pecan Pie

Happy Thanksgiving!

The big Indian and I are in full Thanksgiving-prep mode. He has yet to clean off his desk and we have to gut the living room to serve dinner because in the 1940's everyone was a midget and therefore dining rooms needed to be no bigger than 6x8.

I've painted the window frame in our bedroom and the wall behind our bed where I spackled around the too big holes for the sconces many moons ago. I'm making new bedroom curtains and pillows tonite. Very important for hosting Thanksgiving dinner. I also painted the baseboards in the hallway downstairs because they attract grime impervious to cleaning solution and Thanksgiving partygoers would lose their appetites if they travelled their before dinner.

Nevermind that the people coming for dinner are here at least twice weekly and hold handrum practice in our bedroom.

Blessed #6

I had another post up because I thought I ought to post something this week.

It was really stupid (that's a bad word at our house so don't tell my kids I posted it).

I needed to be reminded of how great my friends are and how blessed I am that I've had so many close friends. It was pretty silly.

I am in sort of funk ever since some folks on Facebook blacked out their names on me.

They were mad that I didn't agree politically. One put "Oh good grief" as a comment and just like that, we were estranged.

Then the other one followed and she wasn't even part of our conversation. The first one must have told her friend not to like me.

I don't know these people, which I think makes it worse that they want nothing to do with me.

Then Chloe ran across the street to try to make a new friend while I was blowing leaves and the lady holding the dog that Chloe was so anxious to get to know proceeded to scream louder than the leaf blower and kick the dickens out of her in front of her mom, Olivia.

Liv said, "You know what I wanted to do Mama? I wanted to tell her, 'Do you like me to kick your dog?' and then I'd still kick it."

A friend of mine posted, "likes people. Almost 99% of the time." Yup.

I'm still feeling funky, but today I feel blessed that wasn't on the list of people that a former boss of mine hired some inmates to murder.

And because I am going to see a silly movie at midnight with some people who would never blackout their names on Facebook.

Blessed #5

I am so thankful to be able to hang out at home with the chittlins while Jason is off hunting bacon.

We have a sort of educational system here that we call

Home Schooling.

However, my kids are not homeschoolers as this educational video will point out.

Blessed #4

Happy Veteran's Day!

Thank God today that there are people willing to stand in harm's way to defend our way of life.

Agency and freedom are blessings worth fighting for.

I am so proud of our family who serve/have served...

Major Dan R. Christensen, U.S. Army, Retired

Major C. Colton Christensen, U.S. Air Force

Captain Lisa H. Christensen, U.S. Air Force

Grandpa Dan

Uncle David

Grandpa Henry

Ryan Christensen

Preston Higgs

blessed #3

I don't know who you are or what posessed you to dismiss this incredible fixture, but tonite, to you I am entirely grateful.

Seconds before I left my parents' home my dad casually produced this masterpiece. She's so fabulous I'll have to give her a name.

Franny.

Who gets rid of this stuff?

Are you high?

My dad used to frequent the Logan Deseret Industries when I was growing up. I literally hid under the dash until we were at least 50 feet clear of the driveway. Now I daresay I go more often than he does to thrift stores. At least 85% of my children's clothes and shoes are secondhand. This is my little way of giving back to the environment by recycling. LOL. LOL again, with my mouth really wide open. Really, I'm just both cheap and vain(ish).

Blessed #2

{Please take for granted that these are in no particular order

as my mind is no longer in any particular order

and I'm currently rebelling against my anal retentiveness (and doing a particularly fabulous job),

and therefore will not post anything with any forethought. Also take for granted that my husband is right up there at the top, but I will not post any patronizingly gushy entry re: him. So until he does something silly or incredibly fascinating I cannot write about the big indian.}

Demae Dressing

disregard the crumbs on the shelf. My battle with retentiveness works in all aspects of mother and wifehood.

I'm rather embarrassed that I don't have a photo of my beloved sushi/noodles joint on Center St. in Provo.

But I think they should be even more embarrassed that they have no presence on the web and therefore I couldn't even pirate one.

However, this dressing has my blessing. And more importantly carb and protein loading Liv's.

This girl can eat her weight in salad as long as I've splashed it with Demae Salad Dressing (and the slivers of carrot and cabbage are large enough to remove with fork tines).

Order Udon noodles. They are to DIE for!

Blessed

Every post in November will focus on our blessings.

This a.m. I got a text from Sarah that I must visit a particular url. It brought back the sweetest memories.

To have been given 4 babies.

Our birth stories are different, but oh so special.

Liv: 4 years of marriage, 2.5 years of "trying", 5 months of paper work, 1 last interview, 2 days 'til birth, 2 more 'til "delivery"

8 months later...

Isaac: "come pick up your son!"

18 months later...

Georgia: 2 months of paperwork, 3 weeks of waiting, birthmother phone call, 2 weeks 'til birth, 18 hour drive, Christmas Eve introduction.

3.5 years later...

2 months of paperwork, 3 months of delays, 2 weeks of waiting, 1 phone call during class, 8 hours later in our arms.

It is so exciting and divine much like this...

She does such a wonderful job of capturing the intensity and exhiliration. Grandma's face is the face of all adoptive grandmas, I swear!

All Hallows

Banana chocolate chip pancakes in spooky shapes.

And then a whole lot of getting ready.

Liv

a.k.a Sherlock Holmes

Always wants to be a princess. Last year Jason teased her about wearing make-up and she wanted nothing to do with it this year. When I put my make-up on she said it made her stomach tickle. She hates Ghostbusters and the ghosts on the new Scooby Doo movie.

I kept saying, "LIv! Look at mE!" She'd say, "I am!" and then I remembered her wandering eye, poor dear. When she gets tired or looks at something really close-up her left eye heads west.

Chloe was Watson.

Her "mushstash" kept tickling.

Isaac

Wolfman or the Geico Caveman

Easiest costume ever and he got the most compliments.

He really got into character. Spirit gum is friendly to apply, not so much to remove. We had to wash his face with alcohol.

This kid got so much candy his bag broke!

George

Masquerade Princess

Step 1

"This is the best day of my life!" she said.

Mae

The King

uhh uu uhh!

That's all I have to say.

The Whole Lot of Us

And HAPPY BIRTHDAY to new baby Sloan Boone!

Good work Aunt Cissy!