Turkey, Potatoes and Gravy...oh my!

Thanksgiving was wonderful! This is the first year I was lucky to enjoy 2 Thanksgiving dinners! Yes 2 days full of turkey, mashed potatoes, veggies and pie. Thursday I enjoyed it with my parents and sister. Then today I enjoyed it with Nana (Sara's dad's family who we are still close to--just not him.) Today brought back many memories. First of all I was reminded just how dee-lic-cious Nana's cooking is. Especially the strawberry salad (with pretzels and whipped cream) and the oreo cake. MMMMMM!!! Secondly, it brought back memories of high school. My SIL is 15 and is dating her first boyfriend for several months now...maybe 5 or 6 months? He was over for dinner today too. Just watching them together reminded me of when I was her age and first started dating Sara's dad. In fact, I am the age Nana was when I first met them. It seems ages ago! But just seeing SIL with her BF...I can't believe how grown up she is. I remember the day she was born. Nana is my second mother and I am so thankful I have her in my life still. I am also thankful for Sara and Joe, my job, my home, my parents, my sister, my nephew and my soon-to-be niece. What are you thankful for this year?

Happy Turkey Day!

I wasn't dreaming

This morning started off like all weekday mornings. Alarm goes off at 6am and the snooze button is pushed. 9 minutes later it goes off again and I let it continue going off since it's just the radio. A few minutes later I drag myself out of bed and head towards Sara's room. To my surprise I open my bedroom door and who do I see walking out of her room into the kitchen? Yes Sara! I turned back to Joe to ask him if I was still asleep. This NEVER happens. Sara will lay in bed until she has 5 minutes to be ready to walk out the door. Which drives me insane so some mornings aren't too happy. On the weekends it's the same thing trying to get her up if needed even at 9am or 10am! So I pinched myself and it hurt. Yes I was awake and not dreaming this.

Ok, so I'm fully awake now with this shock of Sara being up AND dressed before I even got out of bed. Then shock #2 comes: "mom, what would you like for breakfast?" I thought I was going to faint. My child is awake, dressed and asking her mother what she can make her for breakfast at 6:15am. So she made oatmeal for me and Joe.

Shock #3: she washed the dishes without anyone telling her too!! And she even squeezed in time for her own breakfast! So I told her on our way to school how proud I was of her for what she did and she has earned her keep for another month. lol. Now how can I convince a 13yo that this is what you should do EVERY morning??

Happy Friday!!

"I rescued a human today"

"Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid. As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them. As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life. She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well. Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I
would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one." ~the dogs at The Humane Society

Today was my and Sara's weekly visit to our Humane Society. I absolutely LOVE volunteering there. This past weekend was the pet expo and 114 pets were adopted. The kennel was almost empty tonight! What a great sight it was. But more will be on their way there awaiting for their new home. The above poem was in our volunteer newsletter and it brought a tear to my eye. Yes I'm a softy, a big softy. I hope that anyone out there who wants to get a pet for their children or family will think adoption first. Just say no to puppy mills!

OMG...

...am I cold!!! I was cold all night and now I'm sitting here at work all bundled up. My jacket is zipped, my hood is on and I need to find the *&$#@ plug for my little heater. It was 40 degrees when I left my house this morning. Suppose to reach low to mid 60's today. Which being a Floridian is still freezing. (Yes, all your Northerners go ahead a laugh. It's ok. Really.) But I will admit it's kinda, just a little bit kinda, nice to have the cold weather. But I do miss my shorts and tshirts. They have been replaced by long pants and heavy sweatshirts. Which I like the sweats too.

Happy cold Wednesday!!

Rainbow Roses

What you see to the right are real roses. They are called tinted roses. They are actually hand died the rainbow colors. Aren't they the coolest roses you have ever seen? These are fresh from the farm in Ecuador. Since work has been getting in the way of my daily blogging I figured I'd bring the good part of work to my blog. So if you need any flowers, contact me. I am the connection for your floral needs.

New Look

I'm sitting here at work playing on my blog. Don't we all do that? ;-) I decided it was time for a new look. So to go with the season here it is!

I've been lacking on my blogging because general life has gotten in the way. I will try not to abandon it for too long. I miss it!

The Good Ol' Days

I've had a busy weekend and I'm sad that tomorrow is Monday and back to the normal routine called work. Friday I chaperoned on Sara's school field trip to Kennedy Space Center. Was fun. Saturday I drove an hour and half to visit my friend who had her first baby 3 weeks ago. He was sooo little! I don't remember Sara being that little so I asked her how much he weighed and he was 7 lbs something. Well that totally explained why I don't remember Sara that little becuz she popped out at 9 lbs! Ow! Can you believe I delivered a 9 lb baby naturally? I am woman!

My next stop in the same area an hour and half away from home was to see my BFF of 21 years. She was at a resort with her BF, his son and her parents. From 6th grade thru 12th grade her parents were my second set of parents. We were always together. Her home was mine and my home was hers. It was GREAT seeing her and her family since now that we have those adult responsibilites we don't get to see each other often. And it's been years since I've seen her parents. We talked and talked and talked and talked. Her mom finally talked me into staying overnight. So finally at 12:30am I agreed. An hour and half drive at night would not be too safe. Joe was not happy since he wanted me home before dark. Since he wasn't answering my calls I knew he wasn't happy. I finally got home this morning at 9:30am but he was out golfing and since he got home I'm getting the silent treatment. Oh well. I really don't care. Sara (my BFF--can you see where I got my daughter's name? :-) has been there thru thick and thin for 21 years and since it averages I only see her once a year, it's worth this silent treatment I will get for a day or two.

Being with her and her family brought back so many memories. It was almost like we were back in junior high taking a family vacation. Her dad making silly jokes; her mom laughing with us; her dad making sure we eat. lol. We both even slept on the pull out couch bed, talking and giggling half the night. Other than knowing Joe was upset, I was able to put all my adult responsibilities aside and enjoy being "young" again. Ah...to be 13 again...

Socks!

With all the political talk going on I decided to stay away from it on my blog. So today I'm focused on my socks! But before that I will say I haven't forgotten about my blog or my dear followers. Work has been busy which is cutting into my blog time. So here are today's socks. Just some colorful stripes and dots. Happy Wednesday!

Breast Cancer Walk

Today I brought my Girl Scouts to the 3 day breast cancer walk where we volunteered. This is our 3rd year volunteering there and the girls had a great time. They were even asking how old they need to be to actually walk the 60 mile, 3 day walk! (They need to be 16 so we still have a few more years.) Here's a few pictures:


My friend Tara walked in the walk. This is her 3rd year walking it. She is truly amazing as are all the people who walk in this event.

Halloween

I made it thru another Halloween. We went to my sister's for trick-or-treating. Sara's dracula costume turned into an Evil Lil Red Riding Hood. See:

Yes that is a dog in the basket. That is my sister's Yorkie. Yes Sara carried her the entire time. Every house the people would "ooooo" and "aaaaa" over Jayden then they would "ooooo" and "aaaaa" over the dog. LOL. Here's a few other pictures:





Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!