Thanksgiving A-Z

A is for Addie.

Addie was so excited to host our Thanksgiving morning festivities. She has cable this year, so we were actually able to watch the Thanksgiving Day parade on tv like we did when we were young. She made monkey bread for all of us and Mama helped make eggs and tempeh bacon.  The kids played and the grown ups had mimosas and Dolly and her family showed up with baskets of walnuts for the kids to crack, and we had a super cozy gathering, just the way the day should begin.

B is for Beanie. 

On Monday before Thanksgiving, we took her to the vet. She had been super sick over the weekend, and we thought she was dying. Her health has never been super strong; she's 14.5 years old,  very shy, with a chronic upper respiratory infection. She was so bony, hadn't been eating or cleaning herself, and was just resting in one place all the time. Worst of all, I saw drips of brownish blood underneath where she was laying. I thought surely her systems were failing and we were losing her. Lo and behold, when we got to the vet, he found a huge abscess in her lower jaw that was dripping pus and blood, not allowing her to eat or lick herself, and causing her great pain. He lanced it for drainage, gave her a big shot of antibiotics, gave her IV fluids, and of course sent her home with more antibiotics and pain meds. She also had some bloodwork done to rule out kidney failure. We brought her home and she immediately started feeling better! By that night, she'd eaten half a can of her restorative food. This week she has steadily improved. She has the sweetest disposition and I'm just so grateful to see her feeling so much better.

and for Books.

My girls will always take a time out to read together. It's always the most appealing option for how to spend their time, and I'm so proud and grateful for that. 

C is for champagne

and cats.

One of the pure joys of my life. After all the devastating photos of the animals affected by the Camp Fire, I've been feeling so grateful for my healthy, comfortable, lucky kitties. They're going into snuggly mode, for which I'm annually so grateful.

D is for Darin.

My heart. My weird wizard.
Sometimes I just suddenly realize how lucky I am to have a partner with whom I consistently enjoy building life, someone who inspires and encourages and loves grandly and makes me laugh. 

E is for Emily.

We headed up to Em's brunch after the parade morning at Ade's. Emily lives in a mountain cottage with her boyfriend Christian, and they had prepared so many delicious treats: berry scones, pumpkin muffins, mini spinach quiches, elderberry lemonade, spiced cider mimosas. A bunch of friends and family were coming and going all morning and into the afternoon, and the vibe was cheery and cozy. The girls ran around playing with the wildest joy from the moment we arrived.  It's so nice to see how families can still blossom after divorce. Even though she's technically my ex-sister-in-law, she is family. Em is my niece's mother and my daughters' aunt; we love each other forever, and we are all comfortable around each other. This is something she and Joey have consciously worked very hard to build, based on constant open communication and genuine respect, and it's something I cherish and admire.

Being the cutest hostess. 

F is for Friends

During the three days surrounding Thanksgiving, we got to hang out with so many friends! The night before, Doniella made an incredible pecan pie; Rebecca brought warm spinach dip and we had wine down at Volution, Zack's gallery. This is where Mikie and Marisa showed up, and where we all watched the big screen version of some western video game Zack plays, and the girls chased Marisa around everywhere, and we all laughed a lot.

Grateful that the holidays give us a chance to catch up with beloved friends we don't see enough, like Katie and her marvelous babe, Lorelei.

Joey with Maya, Adam, Brett at Em's.

G is for games

two rounds of Secret Hitler that is! We can't stop. Our whole family is pretty obsessed with that game, thanks to Mikie and Marisa for introducing it a few years ago. Marisa has the best poker face, see below, and created quite an upset as she and Darin formed a terrible fascist alignment we never saw coming. YIKES!

and G is for Gunne Sax, which I wear every year!

 H is for our house

We now officially own our house! We closed escrow last month, and begin repairs and remodels in the near future! There will be a lot of changes, but this will always truly be our home. Could not be more thankful for that unexpected development this past year. It was hard for me to picture us as homeowners in California; it seemed so unrealistic.  Needless to say, to have the opportunity to create our dream home right here on the little patch of land we love, means the world to us.

and our health!

"I love to frolic!" shouts Tootie.

I is for insects

Scout and Polly "rescued" this rain beetle, and I was impressed with their utter nonchalance about holding and caring for such a guy. Love these brave little explorers beyond words.

and India!

India is where the little Beatty family, Matt and Amy and kids, spent an unforgettable Thanksgiving this year.  We missed them, but I'm so inspired by them and the adventurous life that they have created, and I can't wait to see them over Christmas and hear all about it! I seriously kind of live vicariously through them when they travel, and I feel grateful and lucky for that. What lucky kids, who are on Instagram, so I get to see some of their travels through their own eyes! Pure magic. 

J is for Joey

my hilarious and considerate and devoted little brother! Here he is probably making fun of something about the parade. 

and Jack.

my mom's husband, whose quiet presence and immense support are so important. An artist, a builder, a thinker and a do-er, he has made such a lovely little life with Marmy!

K is for kids!

The BEST! The very most biggest wondrous thing I'm grateful for at Thanksgiving and every single day.

L is for Lucy

I mean, look at this sweet girl! I learned from my dear friend CarolAnn that six is the age of social awareness. I can see it all the time; she's blooming with care, consideration, and compassion. She loves her friends and cousins and family, and she loves to help. She sees what others are doing; she learns about the world around her and is interested and empathetic. For a girl that's always been a free spirit and super independent, this is an attribute that I'm so appreciating seeing blossom. My vibrant, creative, lively little spirit. I am eternally grateful for her, and that she made me a mother after all those years.

and love.

The cozy scene at Addie's Thanksgiving morning.

M is for Mikie and Marisa

Marisa is so incredible with my girls. Like Mikie, she has abundant energy and playfulness, and really gets to know them and BE with them at their level. Most adults don't do this, which is totally fine and I understand, but how incredible it makes it to have Marisa in my life! I love her so.

Mikie: ever jolly, hilarious, exuberant. Such a treat when he's in town.

Toots wearing Marisa's things and feeling pretty cute about it!

N is for Nana.

Mama does so much for all of us. We couldn't be luckier to have her. She made so much food for Thanksgiving, from stuffing to cranberry sauce with walnuts, to pecan pie; she reads to the kids, washes dishes, sends home leftovers carefully parcelled, shows enthusiasm for any conversation, movie, or song, and can get pretty silly too. What a joy she is!

O is for outside.

So nice to take some time outside on Thanksgiving. At this point we were at home and it was just us and Joey and Scout. After Darin rode the girls around on his bike. Tootie and I took time on the swing together. We got going pretty high (ewven though my weight makes it almost touch the ground, haha) and I'd push off the jungle gym with my feet so we'd go flying! She snuggled under my shawl to stay warm. It was a moment of pure bliss.

P is for Polly! (and play)

Polly is so busy busy busy these days that I barely got a picture of her on Thanksgiving because she was too excited and she'd never stand still! She lives in a world of her imagination a lot of the time, with babies, animals, trips, rescues, and dramatic scenarios. She's always the helper: dressing a baby in warm jammies and rocking her, or taping up a doggie's leg that got "in an accident" and nursing it back to health. She builds shelters and carriers and can make anything be anything. Pure pretendland. She and Scout play so deeply together, fully and utterly immersed in their imaginative world, that it's an honor to just watch. Polly is my loveygirl who wants to snuggle a cat first thing when she wakes up and routinely kisses me on the arm just to show a burst of love. She gets insanely excited about toys and sincerely enjoys them, especially dolls of all sorts. Besides being my hilarious little jokester, she also is sensitive, compassionate, and a storyteller. She's also mercurial and learning boundaries for her outbursts. She's almost five! So much is changing all the time, and I am along for the beautiful ride and so incredibly thankful for her. 

Q is for quiet time. 

When we got home from our morning's activities, we had some down time to color and do crafts.

I also had some quiet time when I took the chance at Emily and Christian's house to walk around their mountainy neighborhood for a few minutes by myself and enjoy the trees and the sunlight peeking through the rain. 

R is for RAIN!!!!

Need I say more! We have waited and waited and waited for this rain. We had one brief spell of rain in early October that did nothing for our parched land. We had been waiting for real rain since May. It was a pure balm to the soul, and so perfect that it came for Thanksgiving.

S is for Scouty!

The little songstress!
Here Scouty shows off a picture that Lucy made her for Thanksgiving. These cousins together, oh man, they're so sweet. 

T is for table,

We got our new table on Monday night, just in time for the festivities this week! We had a rain check on it since last week, when World Market ran out due to their big furniture sale. So on Monday when it came in, my dad met the girls and I at Costco for some shopping, then a quick dinner and over to World Market to pick up the table; this whole process took forever and Pops helped them load it up in his truck and bring it home, bench too; those boxes were HEAVY as hell. The girls getting so wild and out of control, running amok, sneaking away, spilling drinks, shouting, fighting and crying, as we left bedtime way behind in the dust. We came the back way home on country roads, following Pops in his truck so he could go nice and slow; I followed right behind with the girls finally falling asleep. It was 10:00 when we got home and luckily Darin was able to set up the table then next morning before work.

and trees,

When walking around the neighborhood admiring the woodsy setting, I had the chance to talk to Em's neighbor about this bright red tree, which is a flame amur Japanese maple from the local nursery. Now that we're homeowners, we've been working hard on cleaning up our yard, and I'm hoping to plant some new trees, so I get all excited to learn the different types.

And our town!

U is for Utah!

The sprightliest elf! He and Toots are besties who see each other at school every day now too and give each other the biggest hugs. On his way to our house for dinner later, he told his mom he "couldn't wait to see his darling cousins." 

V is for vegetarian feast!

Three tofurkeys, one gluten-free Quorn roast, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, brussel sprouts, kale salad, cranberries, veggie gravy, and rolls! Plus two pies and homemade whipped cream for dessert. Who could ask for anything more?

W is for wild!

As the grown ups played games later, the kids watched Rudolph and stayed up way too late till the true crazies began!

 X is for Mix! Tootie gave me this one :)

She definitely helps with all the mixing!

 Y is for yard.

Our favorite place to be. 

Z is for zoom! (Lucy gave me that one too.)

The girls chased Darin around the backyard as he gave rides on his bike, shrieking with laughter.

 Not only did the kids zoom around, but the day zoomed by, and in fact I can't believe it's already time to go back to school tomorrow. But with the cozy season finally here, schoolwork and grading papers is so much more inviting and I look forward to every single moment of the next month. 

I could not be more grateful for each aspect of my life right now. I send out love and wellness and joy to anyone reading this, straight from my heart to yours, like a damn cheerful CareBear. xoxoxoxo