Thanksgiving Day 2009

Turkey Time

Nigel, a friend from Scotland
attending his first Thanksgiving!

Christopher and Melissa

Hazie and Piper

Lowell, Nigel, Jen and Hazie

Jen and Hazie

Uncle Chris and Hazie

Aynlsee and Julia

All five Granddaughters in one place!

Pure heaven!

The dinner was phenomenal, thanks Jen and Lowell.
Lowell made the dressing, roasted the turkey, made the pies and
a cheese cake! Jen did all the rest! What a team!

Aunt Missy, Hazie, and Zach

Zack Attack!

Owen

Zach and Chloe Jane

Piper and Connor

Chloe, Owen and Zach

Our niece, Erin, getting her PhD
in Math at the U of U.
So glad she could join us!

We tried the traditional passing of the food but
it really didn't work with 8 kids and 8 adults!

Check out the jello dessert disguised as a "salad"

Erin and Jen

Miss Julia

Hazie in Daddy Indiana Jones Hat.

Jen and Chris wishing their Daddy a Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday Honey!

It was a fantastically wonderful family day.

We missed you Laura, Robert, Spencer and Rossie!

Buried in Blessings

Heading to Our Other Home

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Isn't this just a beautiful collage of autumn scenery? I love it and it reminds me of fall in Utah, our home away from home. We are leaving today and returning on Monday...it will be a very short stay compared to our usual trips there, but of course we want to be with the kids for Thanksgiving if only for a few fun-filled days. We will miss Laura, Robert, Spence and Ross but will see them very soon now. That is so exciting and we are so thankful.

We have some very wonderful new things to celebrate with them. Lowell not only survived the sale of his company but has just become the new manager of the USA division. This is so amazing considering for the last few months everyone in the company was wondering if they'd even have a job at this point and sadly a lot of them don't have one anymore. He and the kids escaped injury this past week when they were in a collision with a school bus. The car was nearly totaled but they are all fine! How's that for a few things to be thankful for?

Our son, Chris, just received notification yesterday of being the recipient of a very large grant from the National Science Foundation being awarded to the University over a five year period because of a proposal he had written and submitted recently. This is a career changing opportunity for him and he is thrilled. (Mom's brag moment here...this is his second grant from them in less than four years.) Also this week they discovered their plumbing system under their house is corroded, completely shot and needs to be replaced. They now have no water in their kitchen or laundry room. Not so perfect timing with Thanksgiving and the rest of the week off for the repairmen, but he recently completed a consulting job that will cover the entire cost of the repair so, what's not to be thankful for there?

Hazel has been sick for a few weeks with her first bad cold and Jen was quite worried about her breathing, but after going to the doctor this week, her worries are relieved as Hazie has no signs of any secondary problems. Again we are thankful.

Our construction has been moving at a snail's pace due to bureaucratic problems with the permits, etc. and then our contractor and friend had a little accident with a nasty wood sliver that was more like a beam of wood. He had his heart set on getting to a certain point by today and had to actually have surgery to get the wood removed from his hand and a 24 hospital stay for IV ABs instead. He was quite worried about the delay and we were quite worried about him. We have lived with a small, inefficient bathroom for a very long time so we are thankful Steve is getting better and we have other options.... like going to Utah, while the work is at a standstill. We are just grateful for Steve's good medical care and that he is recovering from his surgery and serious infection.

I guess my point in writing this post is the fact that not every aspect of our lives needs to be perfect in order to see the blessings we do enjoy from a loving Heavenly Father. Even when some things are perfect there is always opposition in our lives to some degree. It is just part of the plan and we get to choose how we will look at the unfortunate things and discover if we will be able to find the silver lining.

And last and definitely least of the problems, is that the Sears Repairman just left and we need a new washer. I am just happy that the suitcases are packed and full of clean clothes!

This is such a predictable part of life that you can almost make a game of it when the opposition comes~what will you choose? A good attitude or wallowing? Don't you just love that that choice is completely up to us, even when the situation may be out of our hands? I sure do and I am thankful for it! Make it a happy day, no matter what else is going on. Focus on the good stuff, you'll be happier. "As a man thinketh in his heart...so is he."

Pumpkin Pie~Beautiful, Easy and 0 Points

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Click on Pumpkin Pie

Photo Blogging Tips

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If you have read my blog for any length of time you know I love to use photos in my posts. I have finally found a satisfactory way to give attribution to the photographers who post photos on flickr that I often use when I don't have photos of my own to illustration or enhance an idea.

I have read many articles on using other people's photos and the basic thing to remember is that they usually don't mind as long as they are recognized for their work, or given proper attribution as long as you are not using their photo for any commercial gain.

The articles point out that technically you should seek permission to use the photo but I have tried this numerous times and people do not even respond back. They don't seem to care as long as you give attribution. I have tried various ways of doing this, most of them quite tedious, but this method is easy and seems best to me.

This is what I do now:

When I find a photo on flickr.com that I like and that can be uploaded, I go up to the url bar and select the address associated with that photo and then go to edit to copy the url address for that photo while I am still in flickr. (Note often you will find great photos that have a little i in the lower right hand corner. Those are photos that cannot be uploaded. Most on flickr can be though, so keep looking for one that you will be able to use.) On the Mac you can just click and drag them on to your desk top or on a PC just go to file and click on Save as. (The photos with the little i cannot be saved as or dragged onto your desk top, but all the rest can. Often they will allow you to download them in any size you prefer and that is noted directly above the photo)

I then save the image on to my desktop.

Next upload the photo into your text box while composing a post just like you would do for any photo upload.

Under the photo type the word flickr and then select and highlight the word flickr.

Next go to your tool bar above your text posting box for your new post and click on the chain link icon (just above the box next to the text color icon) to link the photo to the url that you copied and is sitting in your edit box waiting to be pasted someplace.

Note that the linking box will come up with the http:// already in it. I delete that from the linking box and then place the cursor at the beginning of the box and paste in the photo link for the photo to be used. I do this because when you paste in the link and the http:// is already on the url you copied, it will then be in your link 2 times and will not work.

If you want to see how this works go up to the flickr photo on this post and click on the word flickr under the photo to find the name of the photographer and the other photos he has downloaded to flickr.

Once you have published your post check it to make sure that the link is working properly. Always do that when you post a link of any kind to your blog.

So I hope that has helped for those who have asked me about it. It seems cumbersome at first but once you have done it a few times it is easy peasy! Most people will appreciate this courtesy.

Are you a Brain Dumper?

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I had never heard of brain dumping until a few weeks ago. I have done it for a long time but just never heard it referred to as that. Anyway, I am an advocate. I have noticed that the more I have swimming around in my head the less efficient and productive I become.

The Wiki definition of Brain Dumping is transferring a large amount of information to another person or on to paper. I think this is a great idea. I notice that when I share a lot of concerns with other people it really relieves my stress. Don't you? Hey....that has always been known as dumping, come to think of it! I guess it is part of our agreement to share our burdens with one another as humans.

But the dumping I am talking about now is the dumping from gray matter to paper. This so helpful. Here are some of the things I dumped on to paper this morning and it feels better than a Calgon bath. In a lot of ways, it is what journaling is about and is very therapeutic.

Things I want and need to do before Thanksgiving related to:

Family stuff, packing, stopping mail and paper, calling neighbors, checking on Hazel who is currently at the doctor for a chest x-ray, checking on Lowell and his car that got hit by a school bus while sitting at an intersection when the driver cut the corner to close (everyone is fine), calling Laura regarding Italy trip, finishing up some church work, making some appointments, etc. etc.

I'd be walking around when this, that and the other thing kept popping into my mind following the self-talk..."don't forget to.."...that gets exhausting and stressful. Once on paper it is like not a concern anymore...I don't have to remember. If I systematically move from one thing to the next I will have plenty of time to do it all and may even maintain my sanity. The important thing is I don't have to keep stopping and asking..."What's next?" Just look and then do the next thing.

Anyway, if you are feeling the stress, do some brain dumping, it really helps. It is a little different than just making a 'To Do' list or time management. It is writing down all your concerns and taking time to deal with each one. As an example when I heard about the bus accident I kept thinking about it until I sat down, thought about it by giving it my full attention, felt the blessing of no injuries and thanked God for that. After that little processing moment I didn't have to keeping returning to the stressful thoughts about it. It was still a bad thing but after I processed it I could view it as a blessing in so many ways. It's more like just hitting the delete button on your stash of worries and concerns.

If it is a task I actually need to accomplish, I like it because once it is dumped on to the paper I don't need to prioritize it...I just have to do it. It is all important and has to be done but once it is down I get to choose my plan of attack on it.

You can find out more about it by Googling GTD which stand for Getting Things Done! And if you all have been hearing about brain dumping for ages...just remember my disclaimer... I do not watch TV, so I am slow to catch on to new things in the pop culture arena! So brain dump away it is a good thing even if you already know about GTD and brain dumping a reminder is good this time of year!

A Simple Woman's Daybook~November 23, 2009

To join in focusing on the simple things and pleasures of your daily life or to read other people's entries, you can click here.

So, For Today...Monday, November 23, 2009

Outside my window...it is dark, cold and damp. It is supposed to be very nice and sunny this week and I am hoping the forecast is correct. I have a way of always running into some kind of bad weather going or coming home from Utah but am hoping to start a new trend this week. Thinking good thoughts about flying in lovely blue skies. It seems I am usually alone...so maybe Jim will be my good luck charm!

I am thinking...it will be so much fun to spend a few days with the kids in Utah. Thanksgiving is a fun time and it is on Jim's birthday this year! The kids and I are getting him an iPhone for his birthday and Christmas combined. I finally had to tell him as I couldn't figure out how to confiscate his old phone for the day without him being suspicious. He is pretty excited about his new phone and we have a personal shopping appointment at Apple tonight. They will spend an hour with us going over all the usage details. Woohoo! Christmas and birthday budgeting comes in so handy right now as we both really need new phones. I am hoping mine can limp along until my birthday!

I am thankful for....all of my friends and especially today for the new friends I have made on the blogs. You have enriched my life immeasurably and I have learned so much from all of you. I feel like I attend University each day with you as my professors!

From the learning room..that there is always something new to learn. Just when I was getting ready to fold the business a Realtor told me she has 2 houses for me in January. Life can be perplexing sometimes?? I am still getting rid of a lot of the inventory regardless.

I am reading...Leadership and Self-Deception. It is an excellent book and I am trying to finish it this week so I can return it to our son.

From the kitchen...The cupboards are bare and I need to do a very small shopping trip today for a few things we need between now and Wednesday when we leave.

I am wondering...about the mayhem at the airport on Wednesday. Yikes! No empty seats on the busiest day of the year for traveling.

I am wearing...white jammies and apparently that is not enough. I am freezing. Socks would help....be right back.

I am hearing...The album entitled The Forgotten Carols by Michael Mc Lean. Beautiful.

I am creating...a Christmas lesson for Church on Dec 6th. I want it all done by the time we leave so I have a lot to do today.

I am going...to actually thread a needle and tack down some pockets on a new sweater I bought.

I am quoting...my mother-in-law...when things get stressful just think..."This too shall pass!"

My spiritual thoughts include...Hasten the day when the Savior returns to the earth to rule and reign.

Around the house...I have a few presents to wrap for Christmas yet but the shopping is finished. The floor heater is removed and the floor beautifully repaired and the new unit is sitting in our dining room. Going in Dec 1st. Yay!

I am hoping...each and every one of you and us stay healthy for the next little season (at the very least) and everyone can enjoy the holidays!

I have been procrastinating..the same old thing~accounting, the never ending record keeping~hate it but it is a necessary evil.

One of my guilty pleasures...Christmas decorations. I love looking at them and cannot wait to go to Utah and browse around all the fun home stores. Since the shopping is done I can just enjoy it without feeling pressure to find gifts. Also I just need to soak it all in as we are not decorating this year before our trip. Our house guests will have to be content to enjoy the left over fall things! They said they'll manage and are just happy to have a place to stay! Good thing.

One of my favorite things..The Holidays~Thanksgiving and Christmas. I am not that into New Year's Eve and Day...by then I am too exhausted to care much. Just want to veg out and relax and enjoy the peace and quiet! We are not much of a bunch of party animals actually.

A few plans for the rest of the week...Get things wrapped up here and get out of dodge.

Here is a picture and thought I am sharing with you...

These are our beloved pilgrims and we have had them for at least 20 years. I love them because back in those days you couldn't find much at all for Thanksgiving in the way of decor and we just love these. Well, I should say I do. Jim, I am not sure?? But what's not to love? Happy Thanksgiving!