Thanksgiving Weekend

. . . and BELIEVE ME, one does need an entire weekend!!

Wednesday at work, we had a YUMMY potluck lunch, and after that MY weekend began! I have to use up all my vacation days, before December 29th, so . . . what can you do???

Anyhoo . . . my sister, Karalee and I went shopping that night, with a friend of ours (waving at you, Alex!!), and what the HECK were we thinking????? Ya, the grocery store was a madhouse, and somebody (okay, it was me!!) didn't think about getting everything else first, and then the ice cream last! That was an adventure, though, so why not??

Thanksgiving morning, after sleeping in, (delightful!!) I got to be a mechanic's helper! Ever try to make pie crust AND hold the lamp, at the same time? Okay, neither did I, but I was a little stressed about it, for a little while! I wanted my French Silk Pie to be PERFECT!!!

I made tacos for lunch . . . my brother, Bart, and his son, Matt, came over from California, so I invited them, along with Karalee and her kids, to come over for lunch. Chase was the only taker! So, the boys and I enjoyed tacos and conversation, and then it was back to work!

I made a fruit salad and green bean casserole, and the French Silk Pie. Karalee had made some comment about keeping the mash potatoes warm in the crock pot, and then I thought, "Hey, why couldn't that work for the green bean casserole???" So, I mixed the beans with the soup, garlic and milk, and put it in the crock pot. (Ask anyone . . . I LOVE my Crock pot!!!!) Then, all I had to do, once I arrived at Karalee's house was put them in the casserole dish, and distribute the onion thingys over the top. . . . YUM!

Anyway, I'm sharing some photos . . . making Maddy proud! I will list commentary, under the photos . . . I KNOW you are holding your breath with anticipation! LOL

Okay, my cute SIL, Diane, does such a good job with creative projects, to keep her 3 VERY energetic children busy! For Family Home Evening, last Monday, they made these cute turkeys, to be the centerpieces on Thanksgiving, after they had a lesson about Thanksgiving. How cute are those faces???


The name cards are also something that Diane came up with . . . the kids had a great time getting all messy with paint, while we waited for the turkey to finish up. Okay, I will admit it . . . I had fun too! I DID take photos of the actual process, but didn't want to bore you all with the details! LOL

Please notice the BEAUTIFUL relish tray! Again, Diane! Next time that girl tries to tell me that she's not creative or crafty, I will have one thing to say to her, "Relish tray!!" I did discover that day, though, that she comes by it naturally, because her dad is something of a food artist, also.

I also warned Diane that she will NEVER be without the relish tray assignment, from this day forward! And she was so generous with olives and YUMMY ranch dressing . . . she truly rocked the relish tray!!

And, finally, the photo of the beverage assortment that we had on Thanksgiving. I scored at Food City - 10 2 liter bottles of soda for $9.50! Woo hoo!

Anyway, that isn't why I am posting this photo! Instead, I want to tell you about Theron . . . he's the little guy, in the photo of the kids above. He "loves" everything right now! And, he is fascinated, and suddenly very thirsty, whenever he sees anyone with a soda. (which, regretably, in my family, someone always has one!)

So, on Thanksgiving, all the soda was assembled on the high bartop counter, at my sister's house. And Theron stops and stares up in awe, at the very colorful (and obviously plentiful!) array of beverages.

He said, "Look at dat soda!"

Then he said, with a sigh, "I LOVE soda!"

His cute little 2 year old brain . . .

Later, as we were having pie, he was eating pumpkin pie. He held his spoon in his left hand, as he scooped up his next bite with the fingers of his right hand.

He looks up at me, mouth full of pie and whipped cream and says, "I LOVE punkin' pie!"

He's just soooooooooooo cute! Before he turned 2, he couldn't formulate sentences well, and was a little hard to understand. But, then his birthday happened and suddenly you can't keep him quiet, and he is much easier to understand. And also, more inclined to temper tantrums, but that's another story! LOL

So, the holiday season is officially underway . . . Hold on to your seats!

***Edited for one more cute Theron story! We're all sitting at the tables, of course we had a kid table!, and suddenly Theron cries out, "That's di-gusting!!" Apparently he had mashed potatoes on his fingers, and didn't like that! He is VERY texture sensitive! But dang, he makes me laugh!

(You should hear him say, "That's Alicious!" . . . . instead of "delicious"!)

The Spirit of Christmas, Take 2

Last year, my co-workers and I made a FABULOUS Christmas happen, for a friend and her family. It was a great experience, and it was so touching to see those happy little faces soak in the joy that Christmas is, as they watched the gifts pile up beneath their tree.


This year, all of us are a little more lean in the wallet, and we haven't made any plans to play Santa again. So, I want to appeal to my friends, family and anyone else who cares to participate, after reading this entry.

I have a friend that is a single mom. She is working hard to financially support her son, who is serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She is coming up short for her Christmas plans, for him, because she is struggling, as it is, to support him in his everyday expenses.

I told her that I would like to help. She is very humble and gracious, and said, "I think we'll be okay!" But, I don't want to settle for that answer!

I remember how it feels to be away from family at Christmas! My wish is to make this Christmas a good one for that missionary, and maybe even help his mom out! I'm thinking gift cards for WalMart - that way he can buy food or socks or gloves or batteries for his alarm clock, whatever he wants!

I am not setting any sort of limit, because my own donation will be meager but from the heart! If you would like to help this young man and his family, and feel that joy that is found this time of year, please email me. I would LOVE to be a part of another Christmas miracle, that comes when many hearts and hands pull together!

Please leave your email address in a comment, if you would like to participate! Remember that "many hands make light work", so if we all pitch in, even a little bit, we can make a BIG difference in the life of another! I look forward to hearing from you! Thank you for listening! ♥

November birthdays rock!

Right, Maddy??

I hope that you had a great Birthday weekend! Happy Birthday to you!

Twilight Hits the Big Screen

Don't worry, no spoilers here!!

I saw this movie "Twilight" this past weekend. It was good . . . that part wasn't a surprise! I have to say, originally, Edward was a disappointment, because apparently the gorgeous guy in my head has a lot more "wow" power than this actor. But, as the story went on, he grew on me!

I will say this - there were 2 six-year old little girls in the row in front of us, to see this movie. I don't know any six year olds who would be able to follow this story, but, whatever! The only thing about that is . . . one of the previews that they showed was SO disturbing that I was closing my eyes for most of it! My friend, Nancy, said she started praying after the first 30 seconds, because of the evil that she felt. SCARY!!! I can tell you that there probably wasn't anything nightmare-inspiring about "Twilight", but that preview was enough to give ME nightmares, and I am quite a few years older than 6!!!!

Maybe they got some complaints, because my sister said that when she went to the same theater on Saturday night, that preview wasn't shown. Who knows! I don't really get into the horror genre, so I can't be . . . appreciative, I guess is the word, of the gory, scary, violent crap that is a horror preview! Obviously not a lot of thought went into placing that preview. Yes, "Twilight" does deal with vampires, but NO!!! "Twilight" is NOT about scary, violent vampires. In my mind, NOT the same as a horror film!!

SOME IDIOT KEPT TAKING PHOTOS WITH THEIR DIGITAL CAMERA! THAT'S ANNOYING! PEOPLE, HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF THE INTERNET? THEY ACTUALLY PUT PICTURES ON THERE, THAT YOU CAN PRINT OUT, OF THE CHARACTERS FROM MOVIES!!

Anyway, it was good . . . and it was cool to see the author, Stephenie Meyer, doin' a little cameo!

Golden Birthday!!

Today is Kayla's 19th Birthday, on November 19th . . . that is what it means to have a golden birthday, to have your age be the same number as the date you were born.

Happy Birthday, Lollipop! I can still remember so well the day that you were born! We were all so excited for you to arrive, even though your mom totally ditched Grammy and Grumpy's 25th anniversary party to be in labor! (The enitre time we were planning the party, I told her that she was going to have you that day . . . and I was right!)

I hope that the next 19 years of your life bring you the joys and accomplishments that you want and deserve! I love you! ♥

Part 2 about the Chu

So, I finally got my photos of my cute pup loaded onto my computer. Unfortunately, she is no longer my pup! (As previously mentioned, our rental agreement says "NO PETS!")

So, we were going along, looking for her former owners. Even thought we found them, but, no. So, Jorge and I talked about keeping her, but finding a different place to live. In the meantime, if anything came up, she could live at Grammy and Grumpy's house.

But then . . . I was speaking to the landlord, about a different matter. Then he said, "your neighbors want a dog." "oh?" I replied.

"I reminded them that we don't allow pets here, " he said. "And then they said, 'Well, the Zapatas have a chihuahua!"

I quickly began to explain, "we found her . . . we're looking for her owner . . . we're trying to find her a new home . . . "
His response, "So, she doesn't live there anymore??"

"well, we are trying to find . . ."

" SHE DOESN'T LIVE THERE ANYMORE???"

"no, she doesn't live here anymore!"

Then, the search was on for a new home. Suddenly Jorge decided he wanted to GIVE her to my parents, but they aren't so much the dog grandparents. (As my dog-crazy sister reminded me more than once!) So, I started talking to people that I know.

Sure enough, Saturday morning, my visiting teacher's daughter, Deana, called me up. "Are you still trying to find a home for your puppy??"

"yes we are!"

"Are you home, can we come and see her?" And an hour later, we had no dog in our apartment. I will admit that I got choked up . . . I get attached easily! And she was my walking buddy at night. . .

But, she has moved on to a bigger and better life, and now, her name is Tizzy! It's cute, don't you think?

Life as we know it

By "we" I mean employees at my job. On October 31, 2008 we were all given a letter, announcing the closing of the company. We were all told that we would be employed, should we choose to, until December 29, 2008.
Now, this was a LITTLE bit of a surprise, because while we knew that the Memphis location was closing as of November 7, 2008, we had been told that some investors were going to buy us out, and keep most of us gainfully employed. Then, on Halloween, we got that scary letter!
So then, 3 days letter, the rumor mill was rumbling again, "the buyers are back on board"; "we're gonna be a new company" and so on. I'm hearing about things that I, as the Human Resources Administrator, have not even heard from the prospective buyers, and I can't do anything to dispell the rumors.
To sum this all up, I'm a tad frustrated! If we are going to close (which after a weekend to wrap my brain around, I was almost perfectly fine with finding a new job!) then bring it on! Let me box up my endless amount of files and prepare them to ship to Memphis. I understand very well that I will probably be the last one out the door - that's the nature of my job! But this not knowing and being too busy to focus on finding something else, just in case they decide they don't want me, either, that is enough to drive me CRAZY!!!!!!
Having no information, and nothing to calm the masses with, is only throwing us all into a state of "Well, I'm not hanging around to find out!" And that, my friends, IS NO WAY TO INCREASE EMPLOYEE MORALE!
Let that be a lesson for ya! :)

And, just to end on a more cheerful note . . . scrappy things are happening in my neck of the woods! I'm lovin' that! Photos later!

Another year older . . .

. . . and deeper in debt" So the song goes! Wish it weren't true for me! LOL

So, it doesn't matter HOW old I get, the world (and people in it!) never cease to amaze me! I am amazed that people have opened their minds enough to elect a man of color to be the president. For me, although he wasn't my choice, this is HUGE, because even 20 years ago, when I lived in South Carolina, there were still 2 sides of every little town, the white side and the black side, and the two DID NOT mix.

I just hope that this can help us all to look past skin color and religious differences and choice of cothes to want to unite in ideals, morals, values and support of the Constitution of the United States of America.

So, as I usually do, I took the day off for my birthday. I didn't do anything too exciting - the whole point is that I didn't HAVE to do anything! Jorge and I went to Dunkin Donuts for breakfast, because I apparently share my day with "National Doughnut Day". When I heard that on the news yesterday morning, and as the rumbly in my tumbly grew louder, we made the "snap" decision to have some for breakfast. YUMMY!! And, they have a seasonal doughnut . . . Pumpkin! Even better!

Then we ran some errands, had some lunch at Matta's Grill, and then I took a nap, when Jorge went to work. Ah, the decadance! Then my friend, Nancy, and I went to Cold Stone Creamery for my free birthday ice cream. (Yep, there's lots of stuff that you can get for free on your birthday . . . check it out online!) Then it was scrappin' time! My favorite! Woo hoo!

The only bad part? I have to go to bed early, to be at work early, tomorrow! That's the bummer of middle of the week birthdays! Oh well, next year it will be Thursday, and maybe I'll take Thursday AND Friday, and go to Disneyland!

I've Got ONE Thing to Say Today . . .

VOTE!!!
It doesn't matter how popular or unpopular your favorite candidate is . . . JUST USE YOUR POWER TO VOTE! It is important to make your vote count!
And, remember, he who does NOT vote has nothing over those who CANNOT vote. In other words, if you don't vote, you can't complain about the outcome!
I'm out!