Busy hands

Thanksgiving break was wonderful. The weather turned cold but the sun shone brightly most of the long weekend giving us the illusion of warmth. We stayed busy and enjoyed some family down time.


We enjoyed playing games and cards.

Three of the kids picked up Latch Hook Kits. Remember those? They are an enjoyable activity. They have been busy working on their projects.

Madeleine got two new Christmas books from Nana Boo and she loved playing on Nana's grand piano when we visited. I enjoy hearing the Christmas Carols as I work around the house.

Indoor basketball play breaks out often in Mitchell's room...it sounds like elephants stampeding with the jumps and shouts that come from upstairs.


Everyone is out the door this morning and it is a bit TOO quiet for me. Hope you all have a great Monday.

Best wishes to each of you.

Dear friends and family,
I wish you all a blessed Thanksgiving! I have SO much for which to be thankful! ALL OF YOU that faithfully visit The Glen are dear to me!
I pray your Thanksgiving will be filled with good things.
XOXO
Jill



For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

~photo from Google Images. (A FAVORITE of mine!)

J-O-Y

Ever have one of those days when you get up and everything is right in the world? Let me re-phrase that...with everything that is WRONG in the world I decide to choose JOY. Thanksgiving is just three days away I am filled with gratitude over the many blessings in my life.

We celebrated Nate's 17th birthday. So C-R-A-Z-Y that he is THAT old!

My Nana Boo always wears beautiful jewelry...some precious but mostly costume pieces. I wore this necklace that Nana gave me today and thought it quite stylish considering that it is sixty plus years old.

I love to browse and find treasures at second hand shops. You just NEVER know what amazing trinket, book or scarf you will find! I found these sassy shoes (brand new!) and LOVE THEM! I just love the squared toes and buckles!

We had the most AMAZING fall weather today. I decided to SEIZE the day and try a photo shoot with the kiddos to do a card for Christmas mailing. They HATE the dressing up photos so I thought I would just take some casual snaps. I heard the COLLECTIVE GROAN when they all got wind of my idea. A bit of resistance from the Fab Five so I did what any good parent SHOULD do and placed those unruly kids under arrest!

The kids are ridiculously silly and I took about two dozen photos that make me smile every time I look at them.

I choose joy.

Cravin' Cupcakes

My week's posts seem to have a "FOOD" theme and I think I must be gettin' ready to hibernate. There is a buzz about town that there is a new bakery near us called Gigi's Cupcakes. Cupcakes are so en vogue right now. I have never heard of Gigi's but I did what any decent person WOULD do and googled it. I am NOT a cake lover but if it is homemade OR gourmet I will NOT say no. Have you heard of this newer, small business - now turned chain? The flavors and photography are amazingly appealing. I imagine I should do a field trip and take the kids to sample these cupcakes and expose them to a small business done right? Right?

The Tophat Cupcake

The Classic Red Velvet Cupcake

Peanut Butter Cupcake


Happy Weekend to all.

The ultimate comfort food.

I was inspired as I listened to the radio the other day when the discussion was about one's "earliest food memory." A food or meal that you remember that brings back memories of time spent someWHERE special or with someONE special or...in some cases, maybe NOT so special.

As I look back on my childhood I realize the wonderful existence that I had as a child. In winter, my mother would wake my brother and I for school. We would sit at our counter and breakfast would be waiting for us. What ever we were eating that day would be accompanied with a glass of orange juice and a vitamin sitting alongside it. A special breakfast my mother prepared was Chocolate Oatmeal. My mother did not make it often but when she did we always enjoyed it. As I talked about it at my recent family reunion my aunts told me that my Mamaw would make Chocolate Oatmeal for them as well.

I ALWAYS prefer Hershey's brand cocoa...I think its the best. This also may be the reason I am so VERY fond of No Bake Chocolate Cookies.

What is your earliest food memory?

The beauty of autumn continues...

Every year we spend time at Jenny Wiley State Park. A beautiful 1,100 acre park sitting on Dewey Lake. Jenny Wiley has quite a tragic story. She was born in Pennsylvania and later witnessed the murders of her brother and children and was captured by Indians. She was held captive in Kentucky. When she escaped she was reunited with her husband but returned to Kentucky and made her home in Johnson County. She died in 1831. Her grave site is a part of this beautiful park.

Elk were introduced to Johnson County beginning in 1997 as a restoration project from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Prior to the release, elk had been gone from Kentucky for nearly 150 years. The herds are plentiful now and the lodge that we visit has impressive Wall Mount Elk Heads.

I love the mountains of Kentucky and the color of the foliage and the beauty of the water as we travel the winding roads but my family adores lunch at the lodge which highlights, FRIED catfish, FRIED pork chops and FRIED apple pies...one visit a year is probably all we could handle!

~google images

Sunday Snapshot

Madeleine was born in Hunan Province. People like to say that girls born there are "spicy" like the food. Yet Madeleine is a rule follower, efficient and practical in the way she approaches everything. She works diligently at the tasks at hand and finishes what she starts. She is pensive and quiet amongst those she is unsure and LOUD and boisterous when in the company of those she loves. She is NOT quick to ask for things and would not want to be considered selfish. Despite her oftentimes demure demeanor the TRUTH is that she DOES indeed have a SPICY side. She moves and talks with great assurance, she loves BRIGHT colors and patterns and if it has sequins or glitter, it will be her first choice. She begged to cut and color her hair when she was only SIX years old. We compromised on a sassy haircut. Recently, she grew her bangs out and Cousin Beppie fixed her up with a new haircut and a handful of colored extensions.





Oh, how I love this SPICY girl and how she KNOWS what she wants with SUCH confidence!

Lest we forget...

A Veteran is someone, who at one point in their life, wrote a blank check payable to the United States of America for an amount up to, and including, their life.


Image from Examiner.com

Wednesday WHIMZY

I work hard to try to feed my family HEALTHY food. Sometimes we have to break out and eat some JUNK! Once a year we go to Kentucky with my extended family and one of our "traditions" is to eat a LOADED hot dog from Dairy Qu*en. They are AMAZING!


Only a couple more days until I order up!
I am ready for a ROAD TRIP!

Farewell to Flip Flops

I love you so dearly Flip Flops
So many colors Flip Flops
So easy to find you Flip Flops
No need for socks oh Flip Flops
With cold weather nigh now Flip Flops
I bid you farewell dear Flip Flops


The sun is shining brilliantly here today but I believe the "nip" is here to stay...must break out the socks and shoes. ((sigh))



When I was little we always wore Flip Flops but we called them Thongs...my kids think that is VERY funny.
Image by Google.

Flashback Friday

The image below greeted me on my computer screen today. Seems that my old teen crush David Cassidy got into some trouble. What a mug shot. OY.

THIS is the poster that graced my closet door in the 70's...wasn't he dreamy?? (Hard to put that mug shot outta your head huh?) Oh David, David, David.

And those that are David fans or even Partridge Family fans will appreciate listening to a little Flashback Friday song. One of my favorites!
Have a great weekend!



Flashback Friday photo from ym360.com

Death leaves a heartache no one can heal,
Love leaves a memory no one can steal.

~author unknown

Dear Mr. Orthodontist,

I have visited you every six weeks for more than nine years and although I find you and your staff to be friendly, kind and professional I am now weary of coming to your office. Furthermore, I find that when I look at the money paid to you for FOUR children to have orthodontic treatment I would like for you to hand me the keys to your luxury SUV that currently sits in the parking lot. And, in your opinion, what are the odds that my fifth child will also be coming to visit you every six weeks when he gets to be the age of adult teeth coming in to his darling little mouth??? I like to think/hope that at least ONE of my children would have a naturally AMAZING and STRAIGHT smile.

Okay, I will suck it up and appreciate the now aligned, healthy growing teeth of my children and count it a blessing since they only have ONE set of teeth coming to them!

Sincerely,
Jill

P.S. Are you QUITE SURE you don't want to do a MULTI-KID discount???