Happy Friday friends! Today’s post title is “a few things” and, by that, I mean a very few things. Not much to blog about today; however, I have been away from the internet longer than I intended and wanted to post quickly to say hello to my blog friends! I was away last weekend and when I returned, each day had unexpected obligations and changes to the daily routine…all of which kept me off the computer. I am looking forward to catching up with everyone today and throughout the weekend. In the meantime, here are just a few things on my mind:
1 – Girls Trip. It was a great weekend. The drive was great. I did not realize how quick (and how pleasant) the trip from here to the North Carolina mountains actually was….why have I been flying? We filled the weekend with girl chatter, shopping, trying new restaurants and plenty of laughs. We even watched a Christmas movie. Believe it or not, I watched White Christmas for the first time ever. Can check that box. I also bought a new wreath and door mat for the front door. I guess that means I have officially started my Christmas shopping.
2 – Christmas shopping. Actually, we have purchased gifts for about half of our gift list. That is not saying as much as it sounds because our “needs to be shopped for” list is very small. Not only is my family (and extended family) small but just about everyone is an adult now. The gift exchanging changes and evolves…and, well, we just don’t have to shop for very many. I hear some of my friends talking about all the buying (and wrapping…and mailing) they need to get done and….I can honestly say I am grateful for my small family.
3 – Thanksgiving. Enough of the Christmas chatter. There are quite a few houses on our street that are completely decorated for Christmas. I, on the other hand, am enjoying my Thanksgiving things. A few pilgrims here and few more other there:) I like my pilgrim collection and each year I hope to add to it; however, pilgrims are hard to find!! I’m always looking but rarely have an success. I even had a hard time finding a new Thanksgiving mug. I only found one this year and it was not for me. So, no new mug. I am looking forward to setting the table this year with my grandma’s dishes. I cannot count how many times I ate off these dishes when I was a girl but, these days, they are rarely used. Most years, we go out to dinner for Thanksgiving. This year, though, we have decided to try something different. Sometimes change can be fun….and sometimes, it can be a bust. Fingers crossed for feasting at home!
4 – Eating out for the holidays. The topic of Thanksgiving dinner came up this week with a group of ladies. What is your favorite dish, etc.? When it was my turn to share and I said we typically eat out, the reaction was the same as I have gotten many times (just about all the time) – silence. A bit of a sigh. And then, “oh really.” I honestly think people feel sorry for us because “we have to eat out” for Thanksgiving dinner. I guess only the lonely (with nowhere else to go) choose to let someone else do the cooking. And the clean-up on Thanksgiving. Rather funny actually. We always look forward to it and have, truthfully, been to some beautiful restaurants. But I guess, for many, it just is not a “real” Thanksgiving unless there is a football game playing in the background (ugh!) and/or the meal includes enough leftovers for another full meal. Or two.
5 – Turkey. Interestingly, no one in my family likes turkey. Or even ham. That is one tricky part to eating out for the holiday. Every restaurant pretty much has a fixed menu on Thanksgiving. Yes, it includes turkey. And you pay for the turkey whether or not you like the turkey. Same goes for the brussel sprouts! Making dinner at home this year, I can be much more selective (and creative) with the menu. All that to say, what is a must have on your Thanksgiving menu??
6 – Spam. On a completely different note, I have been inundated with spam comments lately. Honestly, this has not really been a problem for me but the past week was ridiculous. Just wondering if I did something that opened the “wrong” door….or if others have noticed an increased problem. Anyone have suggestions for how to cut the spam off at the knees??
7 – Rain and other Gratitude thoughts. I will end on the topic of weather. We got rain yesterday. I honestly cannot remember the last time it rained. But I know it has been far too long. It has made for a lovely autumn…but we do need rain. I’m sure yesterday’s rain was a proverbial drop in the bucket but I’m grateful for it. I’m also thankful for: safety on the highway, Lena who taught for me on Sunday while I was away, a fun group of ladies who are patiently teaching me to crochet (I finished my first (very small) project!), a husband who encourages me to get away and visit my friends when I am able, a reliable furnace (the overnight temperatures dramatically dropped this week), really sweet neighbors, and our silly grandpup!!
Have a great weekend ahead, friends. As always, I so appreciate your dropping by!!
Enjoyed your just a few things which delightfully consisted of seven things and not three or four :). Glad to hear that your trip went really well. Sounds like a great getaway. Good luck with the Thanksgiving meal! We pretty much always only have turkey, mashed potatoes and pie- the other dishes and desserts change from year to year based on what sounds good and/or what others want to contribute to the meal. I have not spam problems recently- sounds annoying. Yah to crocheting! Hopefully soon you will share your creation (by share I mean, pictorially) with the internet! Have a great weekend :).
Such a lovely read. Thank you Jennifer. Those are beautiful decorations on your mantle. Have a great weekend 🙂
Jennifer, hi! I think eating out for Thanksgiving (or any other occasion!) is lovely! Yes, it’s different than eating at home but sometimes it’s the best thing to do for all kinds of reasons. We’ll be at my daughter’s this year and all I have to do is sit in the car for 10 hours each way and bring all the fixins for stuffing. And then lend a hand here and there and enjoy watching all the comings and goings.
However you celebrate, I hope it’ll be a special one for you.
Such beautiful light casting shadows in your photo. I too have been inundated with spam just recently, all American stuff too even though I’m in the UK. I need to get my skates on where Christmas shopping is concerned, I haven’t done much at all yet, though we have a small family too so I don’t buy all that much.
My family is very small – most have passed so I only have my two sons left. This year we’ll have TG at our place. We’ve always had it at home but there was one year, we had it on the Monday before to head down to Southern California. The actual day of Thanksgiving we went with my mother and father in law who were traveling with us and we all went to a Denny’s. It was so fun! I had a grand slam breakfast!
When one son was deployed over Christmas, there was just three of us since my oldest son had just passed. We went out to eat at a 4 star restaurant and it was memorable. Who cares what others think! I’m always open to new traditions.
Spam: I’m on Blogger and recently had to change my settings to prevent spam and very mean comments about my faith.
That sounds like a fabulous girls’ trip! I find that our gift list gets smaller and smaller each year too and that is not a bad thing at all.
I hope your Thanksgiving meal goes off great! I grew up eating Thanksgiving at restaurants but since I didn’t like turkey, stuffing, gravy or mashed potatoes I don’t have great memories of those meals. LOL I do eat all those foods now (minus the gravy-ick) but do prefer the quiet of just the family at home. I wouldn’t be opposed to eating out though! We are not a football family so our TV is usually off but I do try to get everyone to pitch in with making the actual meal or doing the clean up since I refuse to do both.
I have noticed a slight uptick in spam comments lately and I am working hard to report them all to blogger under the comments section and am hopeful that will help cut back on them.
Sounds like a great weekend and an awesome movie to watch. Glad you got some Christmas shopping done. Yes, it is too early for Christmas decorations outside and hope your Thanksgiving goes well. I like the green bean casserole. I know there is going to be a turkey at my sons house brought by someone else. He is making steaks. Not getting spam but there is an issue which several of us are having with everyone’s comments being a no-reply. It is hard to reply, takes a lot more time. Glad you got some rain. Nice that you learned to crochet. We are thinking about putting our heat on today. It’s cold here.
Brussel sprouts for Thanksgiving? Now, that is something I didn’t know about. My husband isn’t crazy about turkey either… we really don’t know what we are doing. I enjoyed your post, wishing you a beautiful day, my friend (and yes on the SPAM, same here, sigh).
Hello! I, too, have been absent from here, and I always feel like I miss things! Welcome home. Your Thanksgiving decor is beautiful. Thanksgiving will be smaller for us this year. Rhett and Kyrstin will go to Pennsylvania, and Peyton and Chris will still be there. That leaves Steve and I, Madison and Nicolas, and Flynn. I am honestly ok with it. I thought I would be much sadder, but I believe God gives you grace when you need it. I am happy they are happy. And as special as it is, I think it is also just a day, and we can get together for a good meal another time. Have a cozy afternoon!
What fun to have a girls weekend away. Nice to figure out that you don’t have to fly, too. These days there is so many hours added when you fly even a short distance. Our very first Thanksgiving together we ate at a restaurant because both of our families traveled away. It was a new experience for both of us. Our must have at Thanksgiving is yams/sweet potatoes with the marshmallows on top. I suppose it’s a casserole of sorts. Since we only have turkey once a year we do look forward to it. What’s on your menu? Have a nice new week, Jennifer.