You have GOT to be kidding ...

Our traditional Thanksgiving consists of a 3 1/2 hour drive to the top of a mountain in upstate New York. We typically load the car after my husband gets home from work on Wednesday and we head back to PA on Saturday or Sunday. We stay at my in-laws' which is a wonderful treat as my father-in-law is a little like Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor and my mother-in-law could give Martha Stewart a run for her money anyday...seriously! The kids love being with Grandma and Grandpa, my husband gets to maliciously kill fluffy woodland animals that were probably Bambi's friends hunt with his dad and I don't have to cook or clean! This year was different due to our dog's unfortunate run-in with a Ford F350! Morgan is doing much better (thank you for all your prayers) but was in no shape to make the trip and was still uneasy about what was going on so we didn't feel comfortable taking her back to the vet to leave her for the weekend. We just stayed in PA. This, of course, meant NO potty stops, backseat whining, leaky diapers, drive-thrus or any of the things I DETEST about making that trip. But, it meant something else. Something I thought I could pull off... THANKSGIVING DINNER! How hard could it be, though? Ya get a turkey, make some stuffing, some veggies, make some mashed potatoes and a WOWEE dessert. Easy. Now, please keep in mind that my newly injured 85 lb dog needs round-the-clock care as she cannot stand. You can't pee and poop very neatly while lying down. Darned dog won't use the bedpan! Don't blame her, I never could either!! (Don't email me! I SWEAR I DIDN'T try to get her onto a bedpan!) She also can't eat laying down unless we hold her bowls for her. This means that about 5-7 times a day I have to convince her to drag herself to a new comforter on a new piece of indoor/outdoor carpet when she makes a mess. I have to throw the comforter in the washer and take the dirty indoor/outdoor carpet outside into the driveway and hose it down then hang it to dry. FIVE TO SEVEN TIMES A DAY... So, making a Thanksgiving feast shouldn't be an issue at all! What was I thinking? I went and got all my loot at WalMart Wednesday night...turkey, stove-top, potatoes, frozen corn, pumpkin pie, banana cream pie, port win cheese ball and dates. So, no, I didn't make anything from scratch except the mashed potatoes. I was busy talking to my mom when I added the milk so they were more like potato soup than the mashed variety. Great. The only thing I COULD mess up, I did! Or so I thought... Then as we sat down to eat, my husband uttered something about the turkey that made me want to SPIT! I was so proud of that turkey. An amazing little thing it was. I found it with all the other turkeys in the meat section. It was in a bag that was ready for the roasting pan! In big letters on the side it said, "NO NECK, NO GIBLETS! JUST PLACE IN PAN AND COOK!" JACKPOT! I have a strong aversion to touching raw meat! Deep down, I have a strong aversion to EATING MEAT but I do it so my diet doesn't consist of peanut butter and cheese. So, this bird that I didn't have to touch was like a bra that makes my boobs look like Halle Berry's, like concealer that covers my PMS weight gain that seems to only happen in the bags under my eyes, like a body suit that takes my "fluffy" body and turns me into the likes of Lauren Conrad from The Hills! It was sheer perfection....until my husband uttered those words...forkful of juicy meat stuffed into his mouth. He chews...eyebrows twist...chew...twist... Him: "THIS IS CHICKEN!" Me: "Shut up!" (snort!) Him: "No, it is. Taste it!" Me: "I am not that stupid! It's a turkey. I bought it! It was laying there with all its other headless turkey friends!" Him: "TASTE IT!" Chew...twist...chew... Me: "YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!" We dug the bag out of the trash to settle it...NO WHERE ON THE BAG did it say WHAT KIND of BIRD was IN the bag!!! Seriously! No where! Not even in the ingredients! But it was most definitely, a FREAKING CHICKEN!! Here I was, thinking "giblets" were specific to turkeys...had NO idea that chickens had them, too! Maybe it was all worth it though...no one will TRUST me to make the Thanksgiving Turkey again! *grins* Not as dumb as they think, huh?!!!

KA-BOOM!

Wow! What a weekend! It was awesome! Sorry I didn't update throughout but every time I sat down I fell asleep, that's how event-filled our weekend was! Nothing better than a long weekend filled with FRIENDS and FAMILY! Throw in some FIREWORKS and VOILA, perfection!

But, before I tell you about my weekend, I have this illustration FOR SALE...

It's on 8 1/2 x 11" cardstock and is done in Prismacolor Pencils and ink. We are again raising money for another it's 4 the kids child. Her name is Jessica and she is 9. Her family's story breaks my heart but her smile melts it. Her family is in need and we are reaching out to raise some much needed support. So, please email this link to whoever you think would throw in a couple bids to raise money for them. I will donate ALL of the proceeds from THIS auction instead of my usual 50%. Place your bids in the comments!

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So, our weekend in a nutshell (ha ha, Mimi!)...

Friday started with... Oh, oh, oh...WAIT, I GOT NEW HAIR THURSDAY NIGHT!!! LOOK!

OK, so anyway.... Friday morning me and my girls (yes, Giggy, Goose and Bob...and a couple more crazies) went knock-off purse shopping! There is a place about 20 minutes from here that is a flea market on CRACK and there are TONS of booths with Louis Vuitton, Coach, Kate Spade, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Prada...you name it! So, in the rain, we went... like we were on safari searching for the elusive purse. I think we all sort of hope that a REAL one will get thrown in the mix and we will walk away paying $25 for an authentic PRADA BAG! Although, when the dye comes off on your hands or you see a woman scraping imperfections off each purse she takes out of the over-sized garbage bag...reality sets in. But it makes for a fun outing! So there!

Came home, made some broccoli salad and headed off to Giggy's for a picnic. Poor Giggy, it rained so there were WAY TOO MANY people running in and out of her house but she was a good sport about it and we all had a great time together. However, I left early and brought the baby home for bed. The older two and Daddy stayed for what I thought was a quick romp on a waterslide...instead, I find out the next day, they were PLAYING WITH FIREWORKS! I don't know about you, but I planned to let my children mature to adulthood before giving them a 2000 degree metal stick that spews hot sparks. Call me crazy. Well, Daddy broke them in and they apparently burned over 100 molten sticks into oblivion! Ugh.

Saturday we got up and headed to HANDS ON HOUSE in Lancaster. We had a lot of fun there watching the kids get to touch everything and play with all the displays and exhibits. It's so nice to take them all somewhere and not have to say, "PLEASE don't touch. Hands on your belly. STOP IT!!!" every three and a half seconds. They had so much fun! It was a little young for our older two - which they knew - but they were good sports and helped my little guy to have a memorable time. We knew it was time to leave though when he started ricocheting to and from displays like a little pinball. So, we headed to lunch! BIG SALAD at Ruby Tuesdays! That, in itself, would make my day!!

Hubby took the boys to the pool later that day and then we got ready for Sunday's picnic. Well, that was my intention...I really just made a simple dinner, got the kids to bed early and surfed the net. I am working on a new project so I did a little research!

Sunday it was off to church and then home for lunch, baby's nap and chopping fruits and veggies. It was actually just an excuse to get the whole family together because my "fake brother" and his fiancee were in from Boston. They are that childless couple that just ADORES anyone's kids. You know the kind that will roll around in the sandbox or get all sweaty playing badminton for hours in the hot sun. The kids just love them! Then it was lots of food and off to see fireworks. My youngest had never seen them and just sat in my dad's lap and giggled like someone was tickling the SNOT out of him! It was hysterical!

So, that about wraps it up...you add to all of that the mounds of leftovers and the fact that I won't have to cook for months and you get ME DOING THE HAPPY DANCE!

I have some more NAMESAKES to work on this week and I am wracking my brain trying to figure out how to get them into the hands of some celebrities - wouldn't that be cool? Man-oh-man could I raise a lot of money for cancer families if I was selling to all the preggo celebs! When I was getting my hair done I saw a story on Trista and Ryan from The Bachelorette and she ad given him what looked like a sort-of-NAMESAKE of the word DADDY for Father's Day...that's when it HIT ME! Hmmmmmm. I will have to think on this one. Any celebs out there who are closet readers of MY SEMBLANCE, (yeah, right) please contact me!

Thanks for reading! Thanks for always spreading the word for my cancer kids. Thanks for sticking around!

PEACE!

A reason to celebrate...

Well, you will all be thrilled to know that my dear dog, Morgan, has a head the size of my mini-van tire because of all of your "she's soooo cute" comments. Of course, I read them to her and now she thinks she is the spit! (in dog lingo spit is way cooler than the word that rhymes with it!)

Did you know there is a holiday almost everyday? Like an honest-to-goodness, someone-actually-filled-out-paperwork-for-this kind of holiday!

So, HAPPY LEARN WHAT YOUR NAME MEANS DAY!!!

Mine means, "Who Resembles God"

Thank you, thank you very much. But what do you do on that holiday? Are there streamers and plates with my name on them in the LEARN WHAT YOUR NAME MEANS PARTY STORE? Who comes up with this stuff?

I did my column for our paper today and I was searching for ridiculous holiday for March to illustrate a point and OH MY GOODNESS are there some!

Monday we missed the fan fare for WHAT IF CATS AND DOGS HAD OPPOSABLE THUMBS DAY! I kid you not!

Tomorrow is NAME TAGDAY! I dare you! (If you do, send me a picture and I will send you a prize!!)

March 9th is GET OVER IT DAY! There is an actual website for this! You are supposed to type in what you need to get over and then you can watch it go up into flames! I am afraid I would set my laptop on fire if I tried to get over everything all at once! Actually, I am not the type of person to hold onto things that aggravate me but there are a handful of things that I TRY to let go and get over but can't!

In my column I wrote this, "It’s fun to look at the lists of crazy holidays we never knew existed. But, what if we all added one more holiday to our list of reasons to celebrate? A holiday that we honored everyday. One that has been taught since time began. I vote that in the Tri-County area and throughout our country everyday is Treat Others the Way You Want to Be Treated Day! Hold a door, pay someone else’s toll, lend an ear, contact an old friend, forgive an enemy, say “I love you,” give an unexpected compliment, buy your mom flowers, leave a big tip, smile more, give an extra hug, slow down, let your guard down and have a really, really good day. Happy TOTWYWTBT Day!"

On that note, please remember Mimi this week.

March 4th, 2007 is the date that Julian had his first horrific headache that caused them to take him in for tests. If you haven't checked out his carepage in a while, you need to (click on VISIT and then the page is called JuliansWorld - type it with no spaces)...in honor of TOTWYWTBT DAY, send her a happy message letting her know you are praying for her. It's a really tough week for their family!