Thursday Thirteen #4

It was raining today during the drive to work, so traffic was even more congested than normal. Knowing I had a list to post today, I had the ingenious idea to post thirteen things I saw people doing while driving:

1. Smoking

2. Talking on cell phone and/or text messaging (nearly everyone)

3. Flossing (blah!)

4. Jotting notes / writing

5. Praying the rosary (honestly, the guy behind me was... I felt very safe)

6. Dusting the dashboard

7. Shaving with electric shaver (I've seen this guy before. He should ride with the flosser).

8. Singing

9. Reading newspaper/ magazine/ book

10. Drinking coffee

11. Turning around to talk to their children in the back seat

12. Digging in purse/bag

13. Putting on all types of make-up

And me, what was I doing?
#2 at times
#8 but only in my head
#9- hey, how's a busy gal supposed to keep up with all those magazines to which she subscribes?
#10 - a sip now and then
#12 - often
#13 - applying my final coat of under-eye concealer. I'm a mother to a teething infant don't 'cha know.

Until next time (mastering the art of multi-tasking-driving),
Jill

Use up Those Thanksgiving Leftovers

Yum! This recipe is a keeper, let me tell you. I made it yesterday and every last morsel was gone. We saw a version of this on the Food Network, but I put my own spin on it and here's what I came up with:

Brown one pound of hot sausage in a large skillet. Drain and return to skillet. Add 1 cup chopped onion and 1 chopped green pepper. Add one bag of hashbrowns from the refrigerated section of the grocery store....not frozen. Let them brown for about 5-10 minutes. Then begin adding appropriate leftovers. I used 2 cups diced turkey, 2 cups dressing/stuffing, and even a little bit of mashed potatoes. If you have lots of mashed potatoes left, you can skip the hashbrowns. Let this all cook together in the skillet for about 15 minutes. Cover with gravy and serve. For a true "hash" style dish, top with a poached egg. Delicious. Or, as they say here in the south, "So good it will make your tongue slap your brain".

Until next time,
Jill

From Our Home to Yours...Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, the leftovers are in the 'fridge, the dishwasher is on its second round....this time the "pots n' pans" setting, and we've settled in for some football-watching. One thing I wanted to do today was start a Thanksgiving tradition. With no extended family nearby, it's just us.... no special dish made by Grandma, no carving of the turkey by Grandfather. I decided it would nice if we would each write five things we are thankful for and keep the lists from year to year in a "Thanksgiving" scrapbook. Here are this year's:

Bayley is thankful for family, friends, our house, his bed, and food. He added nature and God after returning from a last-minute trip to the grocery store with his dad.

Kendra is thankful for friends, food, tubaware (Tupperware), utensils and her bed.

I am thankful for our beautiful backyard and the little buches of colorful leaves that still cling to some of the branches. I thankful for all of the things my mom taught me about cooking and baking. I use those skills and great recipes on this day. I am thankful that the kids asked for ham as well as turkey. They were very enthusiastic about the meal today. I am thankful that we have email and a phone so we can reach out to family far away. And I am thankful for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I watch it every single year.

Doug is thankful for God's love. He's thankful for our home and beautiful yard and for the colors of the season. He's thankful for sparkling grape juice (a hit with the kids) and he's very thankful that the grocery store is open on Thanksgiving because we always need something at the last minute.

I'd love to hear what you're thankful for this year.

Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours!

Until next time,

Jill

A Milestone and Murphy's Law

Our weekend was one of those wonderful, wacky, quirky but totally loveable ones. I thought to myself several times that Murphy's Law was in full swing.

Saturday was picture day for our Christmas card. The photographer was scheduled to arrive at 10am. Adam, who has slept through the night only twice in his life and it hasn't been any time within the last 2 months, woke up at 5:45 Saturday morning. I shuffled downstairs with him and automatically began chores in the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee. At 6:00 Kendra and Bayley appeared and thus began our day. Adam was cranky, whiney and obviously still sleepy. So, I sat down with him in the living room with a bottle (him) and a cup of coffee (me) and he fell asleep about 7:15. And he slept, and he slept and he slept. Doug left to do a couple errands and still Adam slept. At 9:00 am I was still sitting in the living room with my precious son, all the while thinking that the big photo op was only 1 hour away and I had yet to shower.

We were still primping and buttoning the last button as the photographer arrived, but we were good to go. Adam was rested and would be very cooperative, as he usually is....or so I thought.
He cried in nearly every setting, no matter if I was holding him or Doug. Sitting alone or with K&B was totally out of the question, and no amount of funny faces and sounds would make him act like the little Adam we know. We did get a slight smile now and then, but for the most part....we didn't.

But Saturday was also a glorious day in many ways. Our backyard is a beautiful valley of colorful trees and the leaves fell all day long.... gold and red raindrops.....

We ate potato soup and grilled cheese....


Amidst the wacky and unexpected there is my life, and I love it. It is as glorious as the leaves.


The milestone occured Monday, on my birthday. Adam moved to his big boy car seat, facing forward. He was so amazed looking around as the world passed by in the car in a whole new way.






Until next time (counting my blessings),

Jill

39 and Not Holding

Today is my 39th birthday. That of the "I will never have another birthday again, at least not one that adds any years to my age" proclomation. After all, 40 is a milestone few people relish. I, however, feel differently. I can't wait to turn 40. There is a saying that goes, "A woman isn't really a woman until she's 40" and I have to agree. She's probably MORE of a woman at 50, 60, 70.......

This is my first birthday as a mother. The coming year will be filled with so much joy; so many milestones. I will never wish to be 30 again, or 25 or even 20.

I want to keep on adding on the years, to celebrate them with my family, who is now one more member strong.

PS- My sweet husband took the day off today, as did I, and we went to the new aquarium here in Atlanta, then to lunch, then got massages. Ahhhhhh...

PSS- Happy birthday today, too, to my dear friend Kathy.

Until next time (this is the first day of my 40th year),
Jill

Thursday Thirteen #3

Thirteen things I know now that I wish I new then....


1. Popularity is relative, and fleeting.

2. Morals and values are what really count.

3. You really do use algebra in real life. (i.e. If your destination is 10 miles from home and you can only drive 30 miles per hour because of heavy traffic and have to be there in 15 minutes, what time will you arrive?)

4. Brothers really aren't that bad.

5. Moms really do know something.

6. All the good men aren't taken

7. What you know is a lot more reliable than who you know

8. The people you associate with and the books you read determine a lot about the kind of life you'll lead

9. God is good and gracious, even when it seems like He isn't

10. Hard work builds character

11. It is much harder to be kind that it is to be be right

12. Admitting you are wrong is not admitting that you are weak

13. Regularly putting money away in savings, no matter how small the amount, is a very good thing. I recently read that a teenager at age 16 can save $2,000 a year for 5 years in an IRA account and then stop contributing and they will have $1 million by the time they are 60. On the other hand, if you wait until you are 40, you must invest $2000 every month for twenty years to hope to retire with $1 million.

Thursday Thirteen #2

Thirteen things I used this morning getting ready for work (and dare I say this is not everything!)

1. Shampoo

2. Conditioner

3. Razor and shave cream

4. Soap

5. Comb and brush

6. Hairdryer

7. Flat Iron

8. Make-up

9. Deodorant

10. Hairspray

11. Perfume

12. Body Lotion

13. Face Lotion


Until next time,
Jill

For the Love of Books!

I love books and reading. I have loved them ever since I can remember. When I was growing up I rode my purple-bike-with-the-white-seat to the library every Saturday. It was an old brick building with really cool wooden bookcases inside. It smelled good and I loved it. Marian Hardman was the first librarian I can remember. She also lived in the house at the end of our block. I loved Library in Elementary School (yes, it was a subject). We got to spend 30 minutes picking out books and then reading if we so desired. I spent the entire 30 minutes picking out books. I had enough time to read otherwise and wanted to have as many books as possible. I love having stacks of books around the house, and I do. I have a stack by my bed right now. Most nights I intend to read a little, and sometimes I am just too sleepy, but I have been trying to be more intentional about reading at least a little each day. In my List of 50 Things I mentioned that I keep a list of books I've read. It gives me a sense of accomplishment. My brother Jon does it now, too. The first book I remember reading was Charlotte's Web, before I started kindergarten. There have been stretches of time, espeically since I had my baby, that I have not read as much as I'd like. But, my love of books and reading has never faded.

I was tagged to answer these questions about books. I'd love to hear your answers, too!

1. One book that changed your life: Charlotte's Web since it was the first book I remember reading. I remember having to drag my finger along each line because it was a "chapter" book. I was so extremely fascinated with that little group of animals in the barnyard.

2. One book that you've read more than once: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

3. One book you'd want on a desert island: The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

4. One book that made you laugh: Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs. Life is stranger than fiction...'tis true. And, it has now been made into a movie.

5. One book that made you cry: One of my most recent reads, Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocost by Immaculee Ilibagiza. The human spirit is a beautiful thing. But, the tear-jerker of all time is Before and After Zachariah by Fern Kupfer. She was an English professor at Iowa State and I took a writing class from her. She was also very good friends with Jane Smiley, another ISU prof from who I took a writing class. Jane won the Pulitzer Prize for A Thousand Acres. She now lives on a horse ranch in Texas.

6. One book that you wish had been written: The Life and Times of the Norwood Party of Five. The next great American novel, no doubt!

7. One book you wish had never been written: I don't wish this at all. There are several I would never consider reading, but I love the fact that living in this country allows us the freedom to read what we choose.

8. One book you are currently reading: The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion. By the way - check out my sidebar wherein I list the books I've recently read. I love seeing what other people read and have found several great books that I might never have read if they were not recommended by someone.

9. One book you've been meaning to read: I have a list of nearly fifty books I want to read. Aside from that, I've always thought I should read more of the classics.

Works for Me Wednesday

In an effort to get some more visitors to my blog, I have been visiting lots of other blogs to see what's going on in the bigger BlogWorld. I have found some really neat things, once of which is Works for Me Wednesdays. Everyone can use a helpful hint or two, and WFMW is great. And, feel free to leave a helpful hint here at Party of Five.... we can all use the help!

Here's a WFMW hint from me:

With my time more and more limited these days and the holidays right around the corner, I have become quite fond of on-line shopping. I recently joined www.ebates.com, which is a great site for discounts, free shipping, and much, much more from over 800 online stores. It's free to sign-up, and right now they are giving $5 cash back bonus bucks to you if you sign up, and to me if you give my email address as a referral (jillianinc@yahoo.com). GO AHEAD! You have nothing to lose and lots of to save when shopping online.

Until next time,

Jill