Thursday, October 13, 2016

A Belated Thanksgiving Re-cap

Good morning folks!

Wow.  Thursday already.  Normally I complain about short weeks dragging on, but this one is definitely flying!

This past weekend was Thanksgiving for those of us up here North of the border, and I thoroughly enjoyed my laid-back, relaxing weekend.  Friday evening, I had full intentions of going to Book Club, but some last-minute plans altered my course.  Instead, I went to a restaurant in Stittsville called Next with friends.  Brenda, Sue, Doug, and I had won gift cards for this place at a curling bonspiel last winter, and we had vowed to all go for dinner together to use them.  The gang decided Friday was the day!  Doug and I had joked all week that we were going on a "date" Friday night, so needless to say I had a good laugh when he arrived at my place Friday like this:

No, Dougie!  No room at the Inn!! hahahahaha!!!

As for dinner... it was a completely different and new experience, amazing food and company, and we even had a personal table visit from their world-renowned chef.  Pretty cool!

I pegged Saturday as my "lazy day".  It started out dreary and rainy, which was perfect for the kind of day I had planned.  I did a quick workout, lazed and caught up on some PVR'd shows over coffee, then gave my house a quick top-to-bottom cleaning.  By afternoon, I had two loaves of my favourite pumpkin bread in the oven, and my house smelled delicious!  Then I settled in for a movie marathon.  Remember all those "weird" movies I bought a few weeks ago from Amazon?  This was the day to watch them.  I wanted to "proof" Ernest Scared Stupid to make sure it was OK for today's generation of children (not too scary, not too gross, etc. - when we were kids our parents let us watch anything, - I saw Dirty Dancing when I was four or five years old! - but not so much with today's kids, I've learned! haha!) - so I checked it out, and it gets my stamp of approval (although it IS pretty stupid).

I took a break for supper, which Mom joined me for, and then we went for ice cream, as it was the last weekend to get ice cream for the season.  When I returned home, I decided to hit the Gene Wilder films I'd purchased - first, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, then Young Frankenstein.  I admit I kinda dozed off during both, so I guess I didn't find them riveting, but at least now I can say I've seen Gene Wilder act, right? ;)  I ended the night doing something I hadn't done in a long time - watching an old VHS tape in bed (my only VCR is in my room).  I decided to watch Cocktail, which really and truly never gets old.
"Flat beer from rusty pipes.  If you only knew how I missed it."
"Couglin's Law: Anything else is always something better."
"Beer is for breakfast around here.  Drink or be gone!"
"Couglin's Law:  Bury the dead, they stink up the joint."
"The luck is gone, the brain is shot, but the liquor we still got".
...Most quotable movie ever!!

Sunday we went to church, which was decorated beautifully for Thanksgiving, and it was a lovely service with lots of people out.  Then right after church, we picked up my friend Laura and we went on a photo safari up into the hills of Ladysmith.  My mom acted as tour guide, allowing us to hop out and take photos whenever something caught our eye. I really enjoyed the drive, seeing old family homesteads, churches, schools my grandmother used to teach at, hearing the little tidbits of history and storytelling that my mom remembers.  It wasn't the best day for photos, as the leaves weren't quite at their peak colours yet, and we were dealing with fickle sunlight for most of the day, but otherwise, a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon. (and no, no pics uploaded yet...)

That night, the Jays were back in action, so all I did was lie on the couch, drink beer, eat chips, and watch the Jays!  It was an awesome game, and once again ended in dramatic fashion in extra innings - this time, Sexy Josh the hero as Russell Martin hit into what looked like a sure double-play that the Rangers mis-played, and Josh ended up stealing home in the aftermath.  That finish meant the Jays swept the series 3-0. WOOOOO!!!  Off to the ALCS we go!!!


Monday was finally my turkey day, and I was oh-so-excited.  I've been daydreaming about Thanksgiving dinner for at least a month now.  I was READY!!  But first, I made a trip to Norway Bay to take some family photos for my friend Sara, and had a little visit with them, which was really nice.  When I got home, I packed up my contributions to dinner (I got off easy with an appetizer, pickles and cheese, and buns) and headed up to Mom's.  I loved stepping into the house and smelling that turkey... mmmmm... nothing quite like that moment!!  YUM!   Shortly after, the rest of the gang arrived, and we spent a relaxing afternoon visiting, taking photos, and just hanging out.  Truly made my heart happy!  And of course, dinner was everything I had dreamed of.  SO good.  I went back for seconds just because I didn't want it to be over yet.


And that was Thanksgiving 2016!  As I said, this week has zipped by quickly, and now I'm looking forward to Saturday, because it's Car Rally Time!  One of my favourite days of the year.  Can't wait!!!

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