Best. Thanksgiving. Ever.

Blessed.

I don't use that word much. But this year? I felt truly blessed. I mean, it could have been the gallon of sangria that I drank over the four days that I was at my parents' house, but I think the feeling of loving the whole world was present before the sangria. The sangria just helped me express it. (Over and over and over.)

I'm not exaggerating about the sangria.

In a fit of insanity on their parts, two friends agreed to accompany me to the parental homestead for the Thanksgiving feast. We all fit into one car (with the dog) despite the best efforts of one of us (who shall remain nameless) who brought a suitcase the size of Rhode Island.) We played Rock Band. And ate pie. One of us shot a crossbow. One of us made fudge. One of us made a perfect apple pie. We helped with Christmas decorations. We played Mexican train dominoes. And we laughed. And laughed. And then laughed some more.

The toast that I gave on Thanksgiving went something like, "To good friends and loving family who, in the best of both worlds, are one and the same."

I am so lucky to be surrounded by so many people that I love and who love me in return. It made for a perfect weekend.

I will do my best to post more details in the upcoming days. Don't think that the Rhode Island-sized suitcase is getting off THAT easily.

Gratitude

Thank you, IUPUI, for taking the majority of my salary each month and forcing me to subsist on a diet of ramen noodles and parmesan cheese. I'll remember you when I'm making scads of money, um....running a low cost animal clinic. Yeah.

Thanks to the boy for putting up with me for over five years (!!!) and still making me laugh on a regular basis. (when he's not making me cry...or want to throttle him...) And thanks again for taking out my trash last night because you know I always forget, and there was no more room in my trash can for another week's worth of refuse. I love how you randomly notice and do things like that.

Thanks to you, Casey for FINALLY chilling out this year. I loved the puppy years, but something tells me that the dog years will be that much better.

Thanks to my mother for only being slightly frosty after I explained that I would not be heading to the homestead for Thanksgiving. I need to relax, mom. I haven't said much (because what's the use in complaining really) but what I'm doing is tough. And while I can handle it, it's only by the skin of my teeth. So I'm tired. I need to sleep and catch up on things at home. The thought of four! whole! days! with no school and no work makes me happier than anything else could right now. Thank you for giving me that gift. I am more grateful for you and dad than I could ever express, and I can't wait to see you at Christmastime.

Thanks to the friends that I won't get to see this holiday season. You guys crack me up on a regular basis. I love each and every one of you, and the worst part of being so busy lately is the lack of time I get to spend with you or talking to you.

Specific thanks to Candy for organizing a weight loss challenge that spurred me to lose 10lbs. I truly appreciate you giving me motivation when I had none but needed it badly. FYI, after the dinner we ate today I'm going to need you to go ahead and organize another one. kthxbai.

Thank you, cuz. You rock. We played Rock Band to celebrate turkey day and I totally thought of you guys.

Thanks, z. There really aren't words. (Seriously still can't believe that you know how to cook turkey. It was fantastic btw.)

I'm going to go ahead and give a tentative early thanks to my organic chem professor for passing me this semester. (ohpleasepleaseplease)

Thanks, Minnesota for beating Butler's basketball team today. Best we get any losses over with early in the season. Hopefully this will be our only one. (and then maybe my bracket picks won't be so ridiculous.)

Thank you for every blog comment that you leave. I love the interaction and that I can keep you entertained. Keep 'em coming and I promise to do my best to write regularly.

What are you thankful for? Leave me a comment. Real or facetious, I would love to know.

PS. It was Casey's birthday yesterday. She turned four. I think I'll keep her. Look at that picture again. She's so cute. In fact, I think I'll keep both of them.

Gobble Gobble

Well, another Thanksgiving came and went. I am grateful for so many things that my poor tryptophan addled brain can't possibly come up with a list. Friends, family, dogs, health, (lack of) wealth. The list goes on and on. I am especially grateful for this fabulous Thanksgiving break.

I went to my parents house where I did the following (in no particular order):

1) Ate a LOT of turkey
2) Watched a Dog Whisperer Marathon
3) Watched Notting Hill
4) Watched a Deadliest Catch Marathon
5) Watched three episodes (per night) of the best network show on air
6) Went bowling
7) Dug through the remnants of my youth
8) Watched part of Bring it On (hangs head in shame)
9) Watched The Karate Kid

Basically, my time was divided like this.

I did not think that I missed Cable TV. I thought the antenna fixed it. Apparently I do not know myself very well. (But I DO know myself well enough to say that I don't miss it enough to re-add it to the budget)

It was a very good weekend.

However, when digging through the remnants of my youth (which included, but was not limited to, old journals (that should come with a warning label that reads "DO NOT READ,") old yearbooks, pictures, certificates for monumental achievements) I not only felt the need to contact people from my past that I have no business contacting, I was once again horrified by the amount of weight that I have gained in the past year. Luckily, this horror was overshadowed by the weight my father has gained in the past year. (Whew. That was a close one.)

I have not yet come to terms with the idea that my parents will not always be around. However, I have come to terms with the fact that they are getting older, and massive weight gains for someone who is older (and has high cholesterol) doesn't seem like a recipe for success. I mentioned it to my mother who immediately agreed that since retirement, my father has gained significant weight. So I set about finding a tactful way to motivate my father to lose weight.

Which is how I became involved in a friendly family competition. One month, highest percentage of weight loss wins. What does the winner get? Respect. (Oh yes, and money.)

Before you are fooled by the "friendly" part, let me explain that my mother took over (somehow. I'm hazy on the details) and not only made the three of us (wait, when was she invited again?) weigh-in in front of each other (horrifying) but also recorded what we were wearing to ensure that the final weigh-in would also be fair. My mother is not the competitive one.

So this morning, I set about to get up early and do the horrifying workout video that's been masquerading as a coaster in my house for the last month.

Of course, I didn't actually use the video, but I definitely thought about it. Ultimately, I got up and let the dogs sneak into the bed for that extra hour of snuggle time instead. That seemed healthier.

I'm sure this competition will turn out to be a great idea. I'll keep you updated.

I'm a Turkey

So, I obviously gave up on the daily blogging. As my friend Kat(i)e so wisely realized when I told her my plan to blog every day, I just don't have the time. (I know I should be disturbed that my friends see my life so much more clearly than I do...but I've always had too much on my plate at once. Always. Perhaps I should learn to bite off no more than I can chew, huh?)

I'm off to the parent's house this evening. Casey has had three days straight of daycare, and currently looks like this picture. At least, she should look like that. Last night she had enough energy to wrestle with Tyson and break a coaster. (Of course, I wasn't home, and the boyfriend swears he "only took his eyes off of them for a minute." Then he mentioned that he had to use the restroom, and that was why they were unsupervised. Which is when the scenario became crystal clear. I don't know what men do in the bathroom, ladies, but I'm sure he was in there long enough for the dogs to get up to all SORTS of mischief. But I digress...) I swear my dog has enough energy to power a small city. And she's almost two - shouldn't this "puppy" stage be ending soon?! (FYI her birthday is November 25th. Feel free to send cards and doggie biscuits.)

So we're off to visit the grandparents. Casey is not only tired out, she's getting a bath today. The grandparents are under the impression that Casey is not only well behaved, but also "never smells like dog." Uh huh. We'd like to keep that illusion going for as long as possible. I figure it ensures she's always welcome in their house.

Thanksgiving has an uncharted dynamic this year. I'm not sure how it works in other families, but in mine, holidays are strictly for family. Since my little brother got married in June, this is the first official holiday with a new member of the family. I'm interested to see how it goes, but most importantly, interested to see if I still get first dibs on my childhood bedroom (the room that currently has the only queen size bed on the second floor...) I mean, it is my room, but then again, putting my little bro and wife in a full size bed doesn't really seem fair, now does it? Does that seem like something I would do?? (I'm currently supressing the evil grin.)

Seriously though, the little brother is staying at my parent's house, but eating Thanksgiving dinner at his wife's parent's house. I think my mom is having a little bit of trouble with this empty nest thing, seeing as how she's about a half step away from inviting strangers on the street over for Thanksgiving dinner. Hmmm...

But in the grand tradition begun last year, I thought I would list the things that I am most thankful for this year.

1) A cat who helps me teach my boyfriend to put his clothes where they should be.

2) A dog who reminds me every day that no matter how yesterday ended, I should be ecstatic to see the people I love in the morning.

3) Good hair. It's one thing about my appearance that I don't have to obsess about.

4) The Packers' season. Because, I mean, who saw THAT coming?

5) A budget that allowed me to buy a new car this year. Heated seats are da bomb!

6) The spa gift certificate that the boyfriend gave me for Christmas last year which I miraculously didn't forget about, and will use on December 1st :-)

7) My parents. Without my interesting, dynamic, caring, supportive, fun loving, and slightly dysfunctional family, I would be just another pretty face...

8) Fantasy Football. Because humility is a lesson you just can't learn too often.

9) My friends. Because my friends are better than your friends.

10) My boyfriend. Because he's teaching me patience, and patience is a virtue. Right?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I hope you get to spend it with people you care about.

Love to eat Turkey....

So, in honor of the upcoming holiday, I thought I would post a list of what I'm thankful for. Why not? The list is pretty extensive, so consider this just a snapshot :-)

1) Coca-Cola. Who drinks Diet? And those people who say they prefer Diet to regular are lying to you and themselves. You should not associated with those people. Who knows what else they're lying about?

2) Stretch Jeans. Carrie posted that on my site, but it's true. If it weren't for stretch denim...well, let's just say I would be a lot less comfortable.

3) Sunglasses. Not only do they protect your eyes from the glare (which could give you wrinkles, and this is apparently something I should worry about in my advanced age), but if you buy really big ones, you have no problem appearing sober.

4) Botox. If it weren't for women who were originally really pretty using Botox to mess up their looks, well, what would we 'normal' women have to be catty about?

5) Monthly flea medication. An airtight alibi when friends and neighbors point fingers at you and your pet for the fleas in their homes.

6) MySpace. I mean, if it weren't for MySpace, how on earth would we be able to spy on people we hate? (or have the unique pleasure of saying, "I have a tracker on my site, and someone I've never met in my life is checking my site frequently...stalker.")

7) Shark Week on the Discovery Channel. For making me aware that Bull Sharks can swim in fresh water and thus ensuring that I will never get into another fresh water river with murky water.

8) Shoelaces. Because without them, we would all have to wear the velcro tennis shoes that my dad wears....and then I wouldn't be able to make fun of him for wearing said velcro shoes.

9) Younger siblings. Without them, there would be no possibility of a direct relation who's younger than yourself getting engaged and thus increasing the pressure from your parents to get engaged yourself by about a thousandfold.

10) Younger siblings. Without my little brother getting married soon, I'm sure the pressure on me to have children would be unbelievable. As it stands, they're willing to leave me alone since he offers hope of both grandchildren, and a future to our unique last name.

11) Credit Cards. Without these trusting souls giving me access to more money than I have at the moment, I would not be able to feed my travel addiction. Of course, I would also be able to afford food....but that's beside the point.

12) Meter Maids. Without them, I wouldn't have 5 unpaid parking tickets against me.

13) The Feminine Mystique. Without it, I wouldn't have 12 warnings for speeding.

14) Puppies. Without my puppy (whom I refer to as my parents' "grand-dog-ter" [ba-dum ching]) they would be more likely to disregard my whole "I'm not having kids" stance. As it stands, my mother has already refered to Casey has her grandchild once....(point for me!!!)

15) Being 50% Hispanic. I mean, without that Peruvian influence from my mother, I wouldn't have found my wonderful therapist

16) Being 50% Italian. Without this heritage, I would be able to eat anything I want and not have to worry about my weight. I mean, who doesn't love a slow metabolism?

17) Driving an aging car. Will it make it to my next destination? What's that new rattling sound? Low tire pressure again? The constant excitement is invigorating.

Seriously, I'm most grateful for my family (even if you're far away and I never get to see you) and friends (both new and old). I hope you all have a fabulous Thanksgiving and that you get to spend it with people that you love.