A Crazy Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving Break has been interesting in many ways. Of course we were excited to have the "holiday" from school, but we started it out with sick kiddos. In fact, Beth came home from her field trip the middle of last week and was sick that very night. Not too surprising given that she was only a person away from the little girl who spent the first night up and down losing her stomach even when there couldn't possibly have been anything left to lose. And, we had ridden down (and then back cause we'd already been exposed) with a boy who had been sick the following night. (That doesn't mention the other boy who was sick during the day at the trip) - and then there something like 24 third and fourth graders out the next day sick. Yes, the flu was already going around, and it hit those classes hard (that's about half of them).

Anyway - Beth got it that night and spent two days down. Then Gabi was up in the middle of the night Saturday and Peter joined her Sunday morning. Needless to say, they did not attend church that morning - and seeing as I was covering in one class and was the only member of our Relief Society Presidency able to be there during Relief Society - and since Bob had meetings in the morning - we did the tag team approach for the day. I was already feeling off my game, but by the time I got home I packed it in for bed, still managed to get up and begin to eat dinner, didn't get all the way through,and then, just as Bob left for another meeting Sunday night, it hit me. And hard. For the next few hours I was up and down and not so pleasant - and I kept thinking, here we go, I'm going be as bad as that poor little girl - instead of being hit hard and fast and then just being tuckered. Well, things stabilized between nine and ten and I finally fell asleep. Was some what functional on Monday, but if up too long I would feel awful again and spent most of the day sleeping. But I did manage to get some little bits of food and liquid down and by Tuesday I was more or less fine.

Then Wednesday hit - it was time to get ready for Thanksgiving and I'd already lost the weekend and part of the week and the house was letting me know it. So we tried to attack part of that all the while trying to be smart and bake up what we could for Thanksgiving then instead of doing it all on Thursday. (Yes, I really have been known to do that)

Each kid had their job to help me with a certain part. Gabi made a chococlate pie, from scratch - it was amazing. A great recipe we got from some friends we'd had for dinner a few weeks ago. And Beth made an apple pie - though the crust wasn't being as cooperative as I would have liked and I had to take over that. I'm not sure if that's because I wasn't monitoring every little thing that went in and when because I was washing as we went, or if it was just being a pain - pie crust does that some times.

Then the boys were mad because we hadn't gotten to theirs yet - but I had to wait for the pumpkin to cool so we could use it - seeing as it was pumpkin we'd harvested from the garden earlier and I had to cook it that morning. But then Peter made pumpkin bread (which finally came out the way it was supposed to - I have struggled for years with this... we used a different recipe this year... it's perfect) and Jeremy did Pumpkin Pie.

Well, in the middle of the Pumpkin Bread baking, I hear this pop and loud sizzle and turn to see my oven is glowing a dangerous shade of red. I yelp, race over and turn it off, swing open the door and there, on the bottom of the left hand back bend of the bottom element is a wonderful melted spot where the dear electricity was now able to come straight through, while still running the rest of the element hot - not in a safe way, and probably not again once I'd already turned it off. It was the exact same place that the last element had burned out - about a year ago... of course, this was also an older element. Needless to say, Bob is buying a new element and will install it this weekend.

But what about the pumpkin bread - which is, at this point, half baked - and the pumpkin pie which has yet to go in the oven? Well - here the blessing in all the chaos - we walked that stuff across the road and borrowed the in-law's ovens. Thank heavens for that (though I did have some others offer to help us out should we need it after they heard). Thanksgiving day baking - you know, rolls, and casserole, and such - were also done across the road. Quite the adventures back and forth.

But we had a nice meal, the kids had even cleaned up the main section of the house and their rooms were also clean - and so when dinner was done, and Jacob down for a nap, we spent the rest of the evening planning games and reading - and it was well past nine when we realized we really ought to get the kids to bed. Needless to say, it was a great nap time for all - save Bob (who took one yesterday) today.

Oh - and let's not forget all this flu we started with - yeah, well, Jacob's version (I hope) was in the form of the runs - and it was all over the house at various different times. I really don't like cleaning up carpet - and especially multiple times in the same day. He's not 100 percent yet, though things are looking on the up side there. And then Bob came home from doing some work - not feeling so great - and low and behold - it's got him too. The only one I haven't mentioned is Jeremy - but I'm pretty sure we're in the clear there only because he was hit just a week and half or so before Beth.

If we're lucky - this will have worked its way through before schools starts back up and we won't have to deal with it over the next holiday.

But adventures and all - it's been a good Thanksgiving - made all the better from the time we've had to spend with out children - to enjoy being a family - and making memories. And we're sure to remember it and talk about how we nearly blew up the house with the oven while making Pumpking Bread for years to come.

Love My Jacob

I have pictures coming - I really do - I promise. But since I have to download them - yes, everything from August till now - I thought I'd share this little piece of fun.

The beginning of the week was spent with Beth on her field trip to Sutter's Fort - which you will hear more about later. In order for me to attend the three day trip, Jacob had to stay home - first with Daddy (and Grandma and Grandpa - who helped out a bunch) and then with my really good friend (whose daughter is one of Jacob's favorite friends).

On my ride home, I found myself thinking about my reunion with my little man. He's been in the habit of saying "I so happy you miss me" which comes from when he would tell me he missed me and then I would tell him I missed him and that I was happy he missed me because it let me know he loves me. So then he started saying "I so happy you miss me" whenever I could get home from wherever I was. I love it!

So I was daydreaming about that. But that is not the actual welcome I received this time. Oh, he missed me and was happy to see me - and snuggled, and cuddled, and loved, and hugged, and wouldn't let go, or would come back within a minute to snuggle some more.

When I did pick him up, my friend told me how she'd had him in the store earlier and that he was looking around and then stuck his lip out in a pout. When she asked him what was wrong he said, "I think my mommy is missing."

Later that night, when I asked if he missed me, he said, "I miss you into town."

He's been my little snuggle bug, and doesn't want me to go anywhere without him. But that's okay - because right now, I just love having him so close!

And I love that he misses me when I'm gone. And that he can tell me!