I'm Too Excited to Come Up with a Clever Title! TToT #76

Happy Week of Thanksgiving!

Thankfully, I started this list on Wednesday before we left for Ohio.  I never would have remembered the things that happened earlier in the week.

I am thankful for...

1.  electricity.  We had some serious wind blow through on Monday night and it took out our (and 7500 other families') power for two and a half hours.  Ya'll, it is DARK when there is no power! Two and a half hours is long enough for the temperature in the house to drop to cold levels and the novelty of the dark to wear off.  We were thrilled to bits when those lights popped back on.  (Well, my family was.  I was at the school, where there was power, since I the boys had basketball practice.)

2. the power going out AFTER I finished dinner.  Some boys were in the middle of setting the table and I was pulling the corn bread out of the oven when it went dark.  We were able to eat by the light of the many, many candles I have received from students over the years.

3.  the fact that I have received many candles and that some weren't scented.  I imagine pumpkin spice/sugar cookie/peppermint stick/pine tree/lavender scent might have been a bit overpowering.

4.  Phoenix and Star's hard noggins.  They both took nasty hits to the backs of their heads/necks at their practices on Monday (during the power outage (Phoenix when someone served (badly) and hit Phoenix, and Star when they were having a basketball scrimmage and someone illegally blocked a shot), but only had some soreness by Tuesday morning.

5.  Gordon Food Servie (GFS).  It is a foodservice distributor that has smaller stores where the public can shop.  I was supposed to bring dressing to the 8th grade Thanksgiving feast on Tuesday morning, and I found some already made in the refrigerator section of GFS.  I just had to put it in a pan and heat it up.

6. the respite from the cold we had early in the week.  It actually got up to 50 degrees.  Sure, it rained the entire time, but it gave me the time I needed to wash my filthy fuzzy robe.  I didn't freeze to death while it was in the washing machine and dryer.

7.  my guy.  Well, my three guys.  I always wanted a guy who I could call to fix things around the house.  (Bryan is many things, but a handyman he is not.)  I finally found my dream guys.  It's a father/son/son's best friend team.  They do electric, plumbing, drywalling, painting, roof repairs, and just about anything I can come up with.  They fixed not only the kids' bathroom, but they managed to get the front porch light changed.  It's 30 feet in the air!  We thought we were going to have to rent a cherry picker, but no!  They did it.  And, AND they are the nicest people.  The one guy said he was running out to get a sandwich and asked if I needed anything while I was out.  And, AND, they only charge $35/hour, regardless of what repairs they are doing.  Really, this could count as thankfuls 1-43.

8.  Giant's great hunting abilities.  We have had to buy our fair share of library books that couldn't be found (until the day after we pay for the book).  This time, I wasn't going to pay.  We had one book that had been due June 8.  JUNE!  We had renewed it as many times as we were allowed. I told the kids they didn't have a choice but to find that book.  All the kids were searching the house; under beds, in the mud room cubbies, in backpacks, under couches.  After 30 minutes, Giant found it.  In the basement.  aka the dungeon.  How?  How does a library book make it to the basement???

9. high school friends with whom I still keep in contact.  Two friends from high school and I even went on to room together when we got to college.  I haven't seen either of them for several years, but this Thanksgiving, we were all back in our hometown.  We and our families had a great time catching up again.

10.  the marvelous time we had celebrating both Thanksgiving and my grandma's 90th birthday.  One highlight of the day was the family question/answer/bingo time.  Each Thanksgiving, my grandma brings a bunch of $1 bills and a bingo game.  She plays with all of the grand kids, and the winner of each game wins a dollar.  This year we added a twist.  The winner received a dollar, but also got to ask Grandma a question.  It was a huge hit.  We all got a better idea of what a rebel Grandma was in her younger days.

One of two Bingo tables.  Thanks to my kickin' table decorations, we could play real Bingo with paper cards and daubers.

11.  a compassionate family.  At one point during the festivities, an elderly homeless man walked into the hall.  (Our family has many people.  We can't fit in a person's home anymore, so we rent the FOP hall, which isn't in the wealthiest of areas in town.) Not only did my family welcome him in for a meal, but they gave him some cash and a ride to where he was going.

12. our delay in leaving town today.  We did a few chores around my mother-in-law's house before leaving while she was at work.  She unexpectedly came home for lunch when we were on our way out to the car to leave for good.  Instead of leaving, we took her to lunch.  While at the restaurant, my dad texted me to tell me my sister was in the hospital in labor with her first baby.  I didn't get to stay for the entire labor, so didn't get to meet my new niece, but I did get to run up to my sister's room and give her a few minutes of moral support.

Say a few prayers for my sister and the baby. She just texted me (10 hours later!) and is at 9cm.  So close!

UPDATE:  Baby girl was finally born at 2:30am!  Everyone is happy and healthy.

Ok, only two thankfuls over.  It could have been worse.  You could have had to read 43 thankfuls.

You're welcome.

So, for what did you give thanks this week?

Have a lovely day!

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