I've Been Thinking...

I have been furiously working on a wholesale order of cotton facial rounds.  Which, except for counting stitches on the initial round, is pretty mindless busy work.  Which leaves plenty of room for the ol brain to go wandering.  That may or may not be a good thing.  Let's take a look at a few of my random thoughts...

Always Remember:
I just read a "fun fact" that sometimes elephants only sleep two hours a day.  Causing me to think that I might, in fact, be an elephant.

photo: publicdomainpictures.net

The Olympics
I enjoyed the Olympics just as much as anyone.   Whole i have my favorites - swimming, diving, gymnastics (anyone else get teary when the womens team won gold?), I watch a wide variety.  Basketball, cycling, track and field, even some taekwondo.

As I pondered the tiny powerhouse that is Simone Biles, whether those Chinese gymnasts could possibly really be over 16 years old, the speed of Usain Bolt, whether the North Korean athletes who didn't win are afraid to go home (Did y'all see that poor girl after the vault competition? She looked miserable! Although, come to think of it, so did her male counterpart who took gold), and what in the world goes on in Ryan Lochte's head - I  also found myself wondering why we don't pay more attention to the "athlon" events.  I mean, these are athletes that have to master several sports in order to win their event - not just one.  That's pretty impressive!!

Wasted Food:
I found this picture on Pinterest the other day:

My first thought was that its a pretty clever idea.  My second thought was how that's a whole lot of wasted pumpkin pie delciousness!   And then I might have spend too long wondering if it is acceptable to eat all the pie parts leftover after you cut out all those circles.  (I did)

What have you been thinking about recently?

Pre-Turkey

It's been a busy, busy day in my kitchen so far this afternoon.  I'm trying to get as much done as possible today.  That way I can relax tomorrow, snuggle on the couch with The Man of the House, and watch some football while the smell of roasting turkey fills the house. 

Pumpkin pies are in the oven.  The house is smelling delicious!  There is something so comforting and homey about the smell of baking cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.  Who needs a Glade plug-in when you can have the smell of baking pie?  Cherry pie will be following closely behind.

Sweet potato casserole is pre-made and in the fridge.  All ready for baking and a topping of toasted marshmallows tomorrow.

Green bean casserole is ready to go.  Thank you Paula Deen!  No more boring, bland green bean casserole around here! 

My mouth is already watering.  And there are over 24 hours until dinner tomorrow!

(Paula Deen's Green Bean Casserole recipe: http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/view2/green_bean_casserole)

Thanksgiving Isn't Just A Day

My head is already spinning with thoughts of turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pie.  Oh, the pumpkin pie.  Mmmmm...  Oops, sorry.  I got distracted.  It's just that it's that time of year again.  When food and feasting becomes a big focus for many of us.  

We spend days, or weeks, planning.  Will we stay home, or visit friends or family?   What will we prepare? 

We  spend hours, or days, preparing.  Baking, boiling, roasting, mixing, blending, mashing.

Me?  I even spend time thinking about the leftovers.  The turkey sandwiches.  The way that pumpkin pie always seems to taste even better the day after Thanksgiving day.  I'm almost as excited about the leftovers as I am about the initial meal.

It's easy to get completely wrapped up in the yummy-ness of the holiday.  And just focus our thoughts and attentions to the meal.   Which - let's face it - is pretty darn good stuff!   But I don't want to forget the other good stuff.   The "thanks giving" part.  I want to be grateful.  I want to look at my life and realize the many blessings I have been given.  The people I love.  The people that love me, surround me, support me, and cherish me.   The "stuff" I have, which is far beyond meeting just the basic needs of life.

I want to take a while to indulge myself in all that I have been given and really appreciate it.  In that vein of thinking - many of my posts for the next week will be just that.  A celebration of the many things I have to be thankful for. 

“Thanksgiving was never meant to be shut up in a single day” - Robert Caspar Lintner