Thankful Thursday-August 8th, 2013

Today is actually August 9th, 2013...it seems Blogger ATE my original Thankful Thursday post! I set it up to auto-post and when I checked today: IT WAS GONE! I am sorry about the late re-entry!

     This is the second installment of my Thankful Thursday series for the month of August. I was nervous about last week's post but got really positive feedback so I know I am doing the right thing! This week was a really rough week and I had to dig deep into myself to find something to be thankful for. Have you ever had one of those weeks? You know you have things to be thankful for but time, stress, bad things, your own inner voice-all conspire to make you blind to the good aspects of your life. That was how it was for me this week as well. So here it goes:

• My family. I know that I was thankful for them last week and you may think it is cheating to name them again but I really am thankful for them. The support and love they give me pulls me through my darkest times and makes me grateful to have been born into such a great group of people. I never want them to think I do not love them or appreciate them. From a simple cup of coffee to a phone call that brings me to tears with laughter--I appreciate all they do for me both little and big. Thank you everyone!
• A baby's coo. 8 weeks ago my newest great-nephew was born: Tyler Wade. Yesterday I saw him for the first time in a couple of weeks. Oh how beautiful he has become! He smiles and coos! Already! 8 weeks ago he was in-utero, floating around in flotsam and jetsam, unable to do anything, and now he smiles and coos: AMAZING!
• A new kitten. I was not happy to come home last Monday to see that my 11 year old niece had found a newborn kitten in our pantry. She and my brother decided that the kitten would be better off being taken care of by people instead of her mommy kitty (who was nowhere to be found). I do not agree with animals being taken from the wild and taken care of by people who think they know better than the animals mother. However, this kitten has become a great source of joy in my home. She is so sweet, playful, and beautiful. She has quickly moved our home around to fit in and even the dog (who no one likes-see last Thankful Thursday) loves the kitten. If only she would stop using the bathroom on ME!

Alice the kitten....isn't she adorable?

• Laughter. Sometimes I get so wrapped inside my own head, deeply entrenched in the grip of anxiety, that it gets lonely and dark. On the outside I smile and talk, joke around, and try to pretend everything is "normal." BUT it gets difficult on some days and I want to hide, disappear, and shut the feelings away. The only thing that combats these feelings is laughter. In my family there is no shortage of this! Thank goodness! If you get more than one of us together laughter will overcome us and brighten even the darkest moods. Here is a true example: My great-nephew needed to go to the emergency room (he is ok) and my niece (his mother) asked me to watch her two oldest children-8 year old Carmen and 5 year old, Taylin. No problem...emergencies are emergencies! Carmen and I were talking and she went to sit on my coffee table when I said: "Watch out, Carmen! Don't sit on the house phone!" She looked confused and said: "The what?" "The house phone,' I said, 'Its on the table." She looked even more confused and said: "The house phone? WHAT is that?" She then proceeded to pick up my house phone and ask if she could play games on it! I laughed as I realized that at 8 years old she did not know what a home phone was...only cell phones! I am still laughing at her innocence, her confused look, and the look of disappointment when I explained that you can only make PHONE CALLS ON THE PHONE!
  
  
  So this concludes the 2nd installment of Thankful Thursdays...what have you been thankful for this week? If, like me, you had a rough week please feel free to use my Thankful Thursday to help overcome any obstacles...I do not mind sharing! Also, if you have any 8 year old children around you and need a smile....explain to them about house phones over cell phones! The look on their faces is priceless!! :) Until next week....

First Thankful Thursday- August 1st, 2013

     Today is my first installment of Thankful Thursday and I am kind of nervous! But here is goes...
This week I am thankful for:

• My family! I have a great family! We are always there for each other through the good and the bad. They are the best friends I could ever ask for. Seriously. I would be nothing and no one without the support of my family. 
• The sound of a gaggle of kids yelling my name! This week Beth (my niece) stopped by unexpectedly, normally unexpected guests throw my anxiety into overdrive, but she brought with her 5 of my great-nieces/nephews! As they exited the car they all cheered: "AUNT CATHY!" like I was the highlight of their day! Then the kids, 8 years old to 23 months old, all ran up to me and hugged me! It was the sweetest thing! 
• My dog. A lot of people hate my dog. I have had him since he was 6 weeks old and he is turning 13-14 years old. He is a grumpy old man but, and in all fairness, was a grumpy puppy-to everyone BUT me! He is the sweetest thing really. He barks and tries to intimidate everyone but that is because he is small (he is a MIN PIN/POM mix) plus he has a little vision issue because of his age. The other day I was feeling crappy (not physical but emotionally and mentally) and my dog crawled on my lap and hugged me. He put his head back on my chest and just laid there. Tell me how can people hate a dog that hugs?

Isn't he adorable?

• Knitting. Without knitting I do not think I could make it through the week. It calms me, soothes me, challenges me, and flexes my mental acuity. Not to mention that I get to create lovely items for friends and family. This week is all about my nieces, Brie's, soon-to-be born son. The shower is on August 11th so I am in the process of making gifts. So far I have made an afghan and a baby hat (check back later for a blog post...and for a sneak peek...check Instagram!) and am in the process of a pillow (for decorative purposes!) and maybe something else...

    Phew...I did it! I finished my first Thankful Thursday! It was not as bad as I thought! Check back next Thursday for another installment!!! What are you thankful for?

The Baby Shower

The Mommy-to-be looking beautiful!!

The baby shower was a success! And all my knitty pink and brown? My NIECE loved it!!! Ok, so let me start at the beginning...

Of course, I slept in and everyone was mildly freaking out because I had the KEY (yes, the KEY-all caps for being a pain in the ....well a pain!) Anyway, set up did not take long because there were not a lot of decorations. Not having a lot of decorations is something new for me. The last few baby showers I "helped" throw I drove myself crazy with decorations (one niece had handmade ABC blocks) but this was actually a great change of pace. Of course, not everything went smoothly because shortly after I arrived I realized that the KEY did not work for the kitchen so....we could not get to the sink or the ice machine! It was ok though because at least the bathrooms were unlocked and there was a water fountain. It was not long before the guests started to arrive or so I thought but really it was the baby's daddy's family with MORE food. Oh, I made these great BLT tomato bowls (recipe at the bottom of post!) There was all kinds of food! Little sandwiches, vegetable trays, a watermelon full of fruit that was shaped like a baby carriage....the mommy-to-be was happy as a lark to see all the food!

<---Cake by Grandma

It was great seeing all the generations together at the baby shower. The mommy-to-be was surrounded by her great-grandmother, her grandmother, her mother, her aunts (that's me! and some other aunts), her sisters (well, two out of 4-one was sick and the other is a Marine serving in Afghanistan), her cousins, her nieces and nephews, and her best friend! And that was just the mommy-to-be's side! THE GIFTS!! Oh, she got tons of gifts including a crib and a stroller...but that's the important stuff (well, not to me!) My pink and brown knitty stuff that was the highlight! I found a really cute pink milk crate and filled it with tissue paper. Then I added the cardigan, the blanket, the booties, the 2 bibs, some diaper wipes, lotion, powder, and a few other things. It weighed a ton! I was so happy when she picked up blanket and put it on her tummy!

Overall, the shower was great! Despite all the problems with the key and being locked out of the kitchen and me having to wait 4 hours outside in the heat (and then 2 more hours to return the key) it was well worth it! The mommy and daddy-to-be got everything they needed to complete their nursery! She is 34 weeks as of yesterday so it will not be long before I am writing about the birth of Kylie Rose!

Here is the recipe!!!!

**BLT Tomato Bowls**

Ingredients: Roma tomatoes, lettuce, bacon bits/crumbles, croutons, and ranch dressing

1. Cut Roma tomatoes in half and scoop out insides.

2. Fill Roma tomatoes with lettuce and top with bacon bits/crumbles. and croutons. Add ranch dressing.

3. Chill and serve!