Thankful anyway

It was not the trip I had planned, to drive 13 hours so I could lay in bed next to my husband, both shivering and coughing for 3 straight days. Beautiful weather, lovely hills, and the flu. Our stomach muscles ache from coughing, heads still ache and stomachs still churn, 8 days later. Ugh, H1N1 sucks. I almost cracked on day 6, fighting the urge to cry like a baby all day. It didn't help that I missed my Dad something fierce, he seemed so present in those hills he loved. Childhood memories flitted through my mind and welled my eyes with tears, which thankfully hid among the sneezes and runny nose.

No, it was not the trip I had planned, but I will count my blessings:

Our kids are old enough to take care of themselves and the dog, allowing us the luxury of our weak, sickly states, and they're either immune, or have already caught it this year, hidden among the littany of sick days this fall.
We were able to make the return drive safely, taking turns while the kids slept, read or pinched each other out of boredom. We show no signs of pneumonia or further complications, despite our lingering symptoms. And best of all, I can stop obsessing and worrying about the lack of vaccines, and the chance that we might get sick. We did, and here we are. One less catastrophe looming in my little worry filled world.

No, it wasn't the Thanksgiving vacation we were looking forward to, but we have much to be thankful for.  Sunshine and scenery, and snow that passed us by, and mostly, each other, in sickness and in health.

Color Change

I'm leaving this:

For this:

And this:

Ah, blue hills and green valleys. Two adults, two kids and a giant slobbery dog hitting the road, through five states to a new state of mind, hopefully relaxed. No school, no work, no schedules, no worries! (no internet either, egads!) But.

I love a road trip! I already have the scenic rest stops picked, a friend to see on the way and nothing but quiet for the Thanksgiving week. I will take time to be very, very thankful.

And I will try not to eat too much Kentucky Derby Pie! Warm. With ice cream. Sorry.

 Kentucky Derby Pie

Ingredients
1 single Pie Crust

3 eggs; slightly beaten

3/4 c light corn syrup

3 tb sugar

3 tb butter; softened

3 tb Brown Sugar - Lantic

1 ts vanilla

1/8 ts salt

1/2 c chopped pecans; finely chopped

1/3 c bourbon

6 oz semisweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 c pecan halves


Instructions

Prepare Pastry for single-crust pie. On a lightly floured surface,

roll dough to a 12-inch circle. Line a 9 inch pie plate with pasty.

Trim to 1/2 inch beyond edge; fold under extra pastry and flute edge.

Do not prick pastry. For filling, in a large mixing bowl combine eggs,

corn syrup, granulated sugar, brown sugar, butter, vanilla and salt;

mix well. Stir in chopped pecans and bourbon. Pat chocolate peices

lightly onto bottom of pastry shell. Pour filling atop chocolate

pieces. Arrange pecan halves atop filling. Bake in a 350 oven about 1

hour or till a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. (Cover

edges of pie loosely with foil the last 30 minutes to prevent

overbrowning.)

((I'm way too lazy for that last step, I just let it get crunchy and give the crust to the dog!))

Gray Day

Gray Day...Everything is gray.

I watch. But nothing moves today.

- Dr. Seuss  My Many Colored Days

And Yet...

Take time to stop and smell the catmint.

Click any photo to enlarge - the green bee face is amazing close up.

All photos surprisingly taken today, November 14, in my yard.

The bees are loving these late blooming catmint.

Noel is enjoying the sunshine and the show.

Me too.

Veteran's Day

PBS POV is airing a documentary tonight in honor of Veteran's Day.

The Way We Get By

If you have a tv, the time or the inclination, you should watch it.

The trailer leaves me in pieces:





For several years I coordinated a used book sale with our elementary school. One of the charities we gave extra books to was Operation Paperback, started ten years ago by a military wife whose husband asked her to send books to him overseas. It is an amazing charity, as rewarding as any I've ever supported. It is very personal and challenging to find specific requests and send them directly to servicemen and women, and even more humbling to receive the emails and letters of thanks, to really understand what a book can mean to someone living in a war zone. Some read to escape and destress on their downtime, others want textbooks to help plan for a life when they return home, while others collect children's books to start local libraries in needy communities. A thing of beauty.

Anyway, Operation Paperback is promoting this very touching documentary about elderly troop greeters in Bangor Maine.

It is very sobering to remember how long we have been at war and how far off peace can seem sometimes.



Hope you have a safe and peaceful Veteran's Day!