Happy Thanksgiving

Here is the table we (Megan and I) set on Wednesday evening. We had 15 people for the Thanksgiving feast. My nieces and nephew stayed overnight with my parents Wednesday night. Just one last trip to the grocery store and we were set. Thursday morning I got up about 6:30 and made some muffins for breakfast (don't think that's too big a deal, because it's a package that you just add milk and bake them - easy but yummy!). Then I stuffed and seasoned the turkey and put it in the oven.

Oma, Opa, six kids, Jon and I went to church at 9:30. It's always a nice Mass. I think it's better than normal because it's not a holy day of obligation. People go just because they want to be there.

My aunt and uncle arrived about 11:00. They come out almost every year for Thanksgiving and stay for the whole weekend. They are a lot of fun. Karli helped me peel potatoes and Nate peeled the cucumbers. My brother and sister-in-law arrived after running in the Turkey Trot. Jon's cousin, Frankie, joined us, too.

Everything for the meal came together beautifully and we all ate WAY too much (as usual).

My cousin Selvan and his wife Sue joined us Friday for the weekend also. Friday and Saturday the guys took part in the annual St. Sausage Day weekend. They started preparing the venison, pork and seasonings about 10:00 Friday morning. By 7:30 all five of them were in the bag and most were already out for the count. Saturday they finished packaging the sausage.

Sunday morning we finished up the visiting with a breakfast of sausage (obviously) and eggs before the guests hit the road. It is always fun to have visitors.

After breakfast we all headed up to the barn to get the Christmas decorations out. Jon and I weren't really looking forward to the task, but decided we'd better get it started. It went very smoothly. It's great that the kids are getting big enough to help a lot. Jon took tree decorations out of the box, I untangled the little ornament hangers, and the kids hung up all of the ornaments. The tree turned out really nice.
(I took two pictures because I wasn't sure you could see both the lights and the ornaments.)

Having the kids do the tree made it easier for Jon and me to set out all of the little knick-knacks around the house. The kids each have a little tree in their rooms and a tiny nativity set. We have my mom's handpainted nativity set in the living room and another set that was given to me as a gift on display on the piano.

So many trinkets in our decorations box have memories and meanings. It really reminds me how thankful I am for good friends, great family and wonderful health in my life.

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving weekend as much as I did.

Another two months in the life of us...

In September we all started Sunday School.This year Jon and I decided to teach 3^rd grade (Karli’s class).We have about 15 kids in the class and usually 10 show up. So far it has been good for us and the kids seem to be enjoying it.

Our monster concert went very well. It went very quickly through all of the songs. There didn’t seem to be any mix ups or major problems. They had a good turn out and we knew several other musicians who played. I will definitely take part again next year. I’ll think about who I’m going to recruit for a partner…

One afternoon in October we headed out for our annual trip to Papa’s Pumpkin Patch. Dave and Colleen and their family do such an awesome job out there. It keeps getting bigger each year.

October 20, Jon and I were both instructed to call in for jury duty. What are the odds of us both getting called in the same pool? (Jon bought a lottery ticket, just in case) Anyway, he didn’t have to report at all – he just called in twice. I was selected to show up in the courtroom on Tuesday. I have made it that far two or three other times in my life, but have always been excused from the jury. Guess what? This WAS my lucky turn! I was chosen as Juror #5 in a case. We got through the judge’s questions and the lawyers’ questions, then took a break. After the break, they told us who was staying to serve on the jury and who could leave. The trial ended up going through Wednesday afternoon. Then the jury had to come up with our decision. It was already after 5:00 on Weds so we decided to go home and finish on Thursday morning. When we were all refreshed, we came to a fairly quick conclusion and were done by 10:00 am.

The case involved a crash between a pickup and a semi truck with a hay trailer. The pickup driver (we’ll call him Jim) claimed the semi driver (we’ll call him Bob) was totally at fault and that the crash resulted in bag injuries for Jim. The jury decided that we didn’t have enough evidence to prove that Jim’s injuries were directly from the crash so the case was completely thrown out. It was a very interesting process. I am glad it wasn’t a criminal case where we had to decide someone’s fate.

Then that Thursday my mom, the girls and I drove to St. Cloud, MN, to see my sister and her family. My niece, Sarah, is getting married next summer so we got to help do some wedding planning. We picked out centerpieces for the reception. We also got to see Sarah’s dress, the bridesmaids’ dresses, and the bouquets. It was a fun trip!

Halloween was a fun night for us. Megan was a devil, Karli was Dorothy, Nate was a ninja, Jon was Fred Flintsone and I wore a shirt that said, “Go Ceiling!” and “#1 Fan.” Get it? I was a ceiling fan! Awwwwww, groan. I know. I love it! We walked around our old neighborhood in town since our current neighborhood is not so fun. We the kids made a haul with lots of good candy. We stopped by Governor Hoeven’s house again this year. I think it is so cool that he and his wife hand out candy themselves each year. What other state is safe enough for that to happen?

Saturday, November 1, we attended our school’s Spooghetti Supper. They serve spaghetti, salad, breadsticks, and ice cream. It gives the kids a chance to wear their costumes so their friends can see since they can’t wear them to school. We also worked a shift and helped serve the food. We all had a great time.

Last week we all survived the blizzard here. We closed our office early on Thursday and opened late on Friday. They closed the public schools for the first time in at least 10 years!

My cousin Scott, his son Hayden, and Scott’s friend were stranded in Bismarck on their way to Medora for hunting. They were watching the road report constantly waiting for the interstate to open up. When it did at about 9:30 am, they were packed and leaving within about five minutes. I haven’t heard how their hunt turned out. Hopefully they all could fill their tags.

Jon, my dad, my brother, and my nephew went hunting last weekend, too. They got a buck on Friday afternoon, a doe Saturday morning, and the last doe Saturday afternoon. Nate was able to go along Saturday afternoon so he got to see how that whole process works. He was pretty impressed with it and had a lot of fun. Only six more years until he can take hunter safety and then another two years and he can get his own license.

Yesterday the girls and I had been shopping and stopped at McDonald’s for lunch. While eating my burger and fries, I realized my tooth broke. It was a crown that has caused me problems for about three years. The nerves were exposed, but the dentist was able to seal it up temporarily. I scheduled the crown replacement for November 25 since I am out of town next week. I called in this morning to ask if they could call if a cancellation occurs. They were able to fit me in tomorrow afternoon at 2:00. I’m sure glad I called! I’ll keep you posted.

Next week I am heading to Dallas for a training. This is for a program we use at work to contact our members and ask them to send emails to their legislators. We can use it for the federal or state levels. I will leave on Wednesday and return Friday afternoon. I’ve never been to Texas, so I’m looking forward to it.

That brings you up to date. Thanks for sticking with me.