A Quiet Hodgepodge

 

Joyce asks the questions, and we provide the answers. See how others answered at From This Side of the Pond.

1. Talking turkey...are you cooking the turkey this year? Does ham belong on a Thanksgiving day menu? When it comes to gravy do you pour it over your whole plate, skip it altogether, or land somewhere in between? Cranberries-homemade or jelled right out of the can? Do you look forward more to the main course, the savory sides, or the desserts? 

No turkey cooking for me this year. OS & YS won't be here, so it's just MS & me. 1 of my sisters invited us to her house for dinner so all I have to do is show up!

I'll usually use gravy over the turkey or mashed potatoes...sometimes. YS makes a good cranberry sauce that I've also made. Super easy and really good. The sides are what makes Thanksgiving for me...and the desserts. It's not Thanksgiving without pecan pie!

2. Holiday movies...tell us your favorite and what it is about the film that makes you love it. Is it the film itself or a memory it stirs? 

I have 2 of them: Family Stone and The Holiday. I'll watch them multiple times during the season, although I only braved Family Stone once last year. If you've seen the movie and know about my life, you'll know why. If you haven't seen the movie, definitely watch it!

3. A favorite way to give back and help others? 

I tend to take the easy way out and donate money.

4. Name a place or setting you encountered this month that made you feel grateful. 

Krakow, Poland. More specifically, the Divine Mercy Basilica and the convent of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy where St. Faustina lived. 

I'm saving any explanations to a future post, but let me just say that I am so grateful that I was able to go on this Pilgrimage and sit in front of the original Holy Picture of the Merciful Jesus.

5. Knowing what you know today, if you could redo yesterday what would you do differently? 

No, I would not. It's time to look at the present; not the past or the future, but the here and now.

6. Spill your own random thought here. 

2 of the 3 "boys" are in NC for Thanksgiving Weekend. OS works for a ski resort and they were able to open a few days ago since conditions were good for making snow as well as having some natural snow, so he's a little busy. YS & his fiance are spending time with her family in NC, so I'm keeping the grand-dog. She has calmed down quite a bit over the past year and is such a sweet, smart girl.

She has learned that she can hold 2 balls in her mouth at one time. This is her favorite past-time!

A couple of weeks ago, we had a get-together to celebrate CH. He didn't want to have receiving of friends at his funeral, but said he wanted us to get together with close friends and family a year after his death. His brother suggested a place that CH loved and the owner graciously allowed us to gather at his place. Everyone brought something to eat, and we sat around and remembered him. There were a few tears, but mostly laughter, which is just the way he would have wanted it.