Greetings, friends! It’s Friday AND we’re less than a week away from feasting for Thanksgiving, so I’m feeling good. I am completely infatuated with the trees right now - just oohing and aahing every time I make my daily commute through the display of colors that make thee trees look like they’re on fire. My kids don’t share this same enthusiasm unfortunately, no matter how hard I try. Their loss honestly. I think this (fall to winter) is the most beautiful seasonal transition we have, and it’s got me thinking a lot about how our time is limited with these enchanting leaves, that everything is already preparing for what’s next. Here’s a poem from Mary Oliver that better explains what I mean:
All our leaves are gone now, and I just put the garden to bed this morning - pulled out all the dead plants, spread fireplace ashes and compost and leaves over all the beds, dug up the dahlias, divided some perennials. It was a lot of work. I was hoping to put up the outside Christmas lights today too, but I ran out of time.
My turd this week is that my husband's brother and his family are coming into town the first week of December, even though my MIL told them to maybe wait since they're unvaccinated and Colorado's ICU beds are 95% full. They have a place to stay, but obviously want to spend as much time with us as possible, and refuse to wear masks. And! They object to us wearing masks because it "inhibits natural interaction" and "feels judgy". My husband's family absolutely sucks at handling conflict, as do I, so there's all this emotional labor going on trying to figure out how to manage the whole disaster. I'm so over it, and wish they'd just cancel and come back when it's warm and we can all be outside and avoid the whole conflict. Gah.
My treasure is that we got our very first brand new, expensive couch that we paid for ourselves. We've been married for 21 years, and before this purchase had paid a total of $25 for couches. This is the first one where I've gotten to pick out the style and the fabric and had to wait months for its arrival! I feel like an adult, you guys.
Happy Friday to the best group on the Internet! You have Pie Night Traditions, and it is brilliant. I am totally copying you next year.
Erin - our area is also beautiful this time of year. It almost stops my heart just running errands. Grey, foggy days are the best because the color really stands out. I grew up in a town with the most boring tree canopy. All brown all the time. So I am so glad that my adult years have been in a place with glorious color in the fall. I am on an IG break and have not yet fired up my old blog, so I can't post pictures, but it is stunning.
Just back from my booster, and i tell ya. My appointment was at a small, local pharmacy. I live in a very diverse neighborhood. And when I left the shop the line was out the door and around the building and it was one of the most beautiful things I've seen. All races. All ages. All ability levels. Young men who had driven and were helping their non-english speaking grandmas and grandpas. Old couples holding each other up as they waited their turn. One guy installed himself as door man so wheelchairs could maneuver in more easily. A mish mash of languages. Lots of crinkly, smiling eyes above their masks. Everyone cheering each person as they left the building. "Yay! Good for you! Hope your side effects aren't too bad!" I teared up. It made me feel the same way that watching people go up for communion makes me feel. Gah! That is the good stuff.
Thanksgiving is my fave. We are prepping this weekend, for two, actually. We are not gathering with family, because those relationships are still too painful. But we feel like we need to celebrate anyway. So we are gathering with friends that have also separated from family and that have been extra isolated this year and a half. Thanksgiving is a rough holiday for them even without a pandemic, and I'm hoping we can boost their spirits with pie and a salad. But my husband loves making turkey, so we are making a whole meal and then packing up to go boxes to deliver to a few of our single buds with flowers from my friend who does centerpieces. It is not the usual thanksgiving with everyone gathered, but it has lifted my heart to plan dropoffs and plan fun surprises for people. Tiny bottles of champagne! :D Anyway. A weird, but hopefully still joyous day to look forward to.
Jumping in this afternoon to share a few treasures for the week.
-My second week back at in-person work after having worked from home since 2020, and my first time at a full-time in-person job since before I got pregnant with my oldest...in 2008. The good news is that I am less tired than I was at the end of last week. The bad news is, I am still pretty exhausted. It has actually been kind of nice, and I feel much more of a part of my working team when we can see each other face to face.
- I am going to a latke fry this weekend hosted by Jewish friends that I met during the pandemic (a married couple named Carl and Carli, adorably) and I am so excited to celebrate with them at their annual party, since they didn't host it during 2020, and I didn't know them before.
- I read such a great, weird little under the radar book this week. Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams. A series of connected short stories (the main character features to varying degrees in each story, Olive Kitteridge-style) that deal with how we define happiness and what lengths we will go to to achieve it for ourselves and others. Loved it.
-Finally, I have also been delighting in all of the trees, and in my local group text, we have spent the last three weeks just sending each other out of context pictures of beautiful trees about town. I picked up one of my daughter's friends to give her a ride home last week and asked her what her favorite tree in town was (very much leaning into my new role of Professional Mortifier to a Twelve Year Old) and sweet Kylee introduced me to what she calls "mango trees" - trees that have only started to turn orange at the top and are still green at the bottom. It will be a permanent part of my lexicon now.
Congrats on getting back into the work groove! When I started back full time, I felt like i needed to go to bed at 7:30pm for a month. I love that you are frying latkes with your buddies! How fun that you met them during the pandemic and now get to hang out and celebrate in person.
I haven’t written a comment in a looong time, just flitted about here & there, so I’m glad to dive back in today!
💩my kids are quarantined again because of some anti-vaxx grandparents of a kid at church. I am not thinking Christian thoughts toward the grandparents and that’s all I’ll allow myself to say today.
⭐️/💩My 95 yr old gma is now in a memory care facility instead of my parents’ house and it’s both relief and a different burden for my mom, her only daughter & main caretaker. In my mom’s words, “it’s like sending a toddler to college” but also it’s a full time job for 2-3 trained professionals so my mom was in over her head big time.
⭐️My winter birds are coming to my bird feeders and I am so relieved and happy 😆
⭐️I’m back on a reading streak and I feel so much more like myself. Current reads are anything Agatha Christie (trying to read thru everything she wrote!), Wintering by Katherine May, Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen, & God Has A Name by John Mark Comer (that’s for a church book study but I’ve barely cracked it 😬)
I’ve always wanted to read a few Agatha Christie novels because I loved reading Hound of the Baskervilles by Doyle in high school. I read God Has A Name a couple heads ago and loved it!
Hey, friend of Agatha….you have to read this….I loved imagining what it would be like to be back in her time, traveling to archeological digs. And did you know Agatha has a sense of humor? https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19094020
You know, I actually started that pre-pandemic…and never finished it (before the library started doing auto renewals)😅 Thanks for reminding me, I’ll have to revisit it soon!
Oh man. I'm so sorry about having to quarantine your kids again. :( I hope the care facility does a good job and your mom can find a bit of rest. It is scary and fraught to install parents in those places, but wow, your mom must be so tired. I'm reading through Agatha Christie too! The only trouble is that I am reading it before bed and keep falling asleep. lol. I have to reread things several times. :D
I’m here! It’s Friday! I just had my performance review at work and got a “4 - Surpasses Expectations!” Wahoo!! 🎉🎉 There’s nothing like being at a job that you like, are good at, with people who value you! I’m not sure how to celebrate but I’m going to do something for sure.
Another treasure - I read Rachel Held Evan’s latest book Wholehearted Faith (pulled together from essays written before her death) and gosh, I just freaking love her and miss her. For anyone going through Erin’s dis/entangle study, this book is a good one.
Off to read the comments - happy Thanksgiving all!
👏🎉🥳WOOOOOO Happy Friday Swipes!!!! I finally made it to the comments *on time*
I have been in Oklahoma this week- it is my 49th state to check off my list. I went to Tulsa and planned almost nothing but got a cute AirBnb and packed up my Jeep with my furball and drove the 10 hours to relax, read, and eat for four days. Tulsa is cute- I saw the Golden Driller, the Blue Whale, ate some delicious food, and finished 5 books (let's face it, mostly on the drive!). Finn lived his best life running wild in the large fenced in yard and helped me choose road trip snacks. Have you heard of Casey's General Store?? I made a stop just to check out one of these.
What are your road trip snacks?
📺 Watching and obsessed with American Crime Story: Impeachment. Must listen and watch all the things once I finish this season. I think it's my least favorite of the ACS series, but really enjoying it, especially since I'm discussing with our dear friend Mel.
📚 Started We Were The Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter and this is going to be a good one. WWII historical fiction, but mostly based on her real family's life.
I love that you have a Visit all the States list and are doing it! And a whole vacation for relaxing, reading, and eating for four days sounds dreamy! My roadtrip snacks: doritos or cheesy puffs, coke. I am boring. everyone else has interesting stuff. lol
My go to road trip snacks are the honey bbq frito twists, a coke, and sour gummy worms.
We started watching Impeachment and it was so interesting. I was really young when all of that went down, so I never fully understood what happened or the significance of the blue dress (gag), etc. We fell behind, but I would like to finish at some point.
Love your snack choices. Yes, I was in middle school so didn't understand all the nuances of "sexual relations" - it's been interesting to watch back in 2021.
Alaska! (Hopefully, the best for last?) Love the snack choices. Mine are Mountain Dew (fountain preferably), Snickers or Reeses Outrageous, weird flavor of chips and beef jerkey, oh and NERDS.
Hello little swipes! I've been in the comments last couple weeks, but haven't had the space to right about anything myself. But I'm excited to see you guys today!
I've got a Thanksgiving turd and treasure for ya this week: 🦃
💔 The turd is that my little sister (who is 22 and a single mom) is moving herself and my 3 year-old niece from San Diego, CA (where my parents and most of my family live) to Leesburg, FLORIDA (where she knows absolutely no one). She got into a college there, and while I want to be proud of her for continuing her education, this move is an all-round terrible idea, for so many reasons. I've talked to her a little bit about it over the last few months, but she really has an "I'm leaving, fuck you" attitude and has generally been an asshole to everyone (no matter what we're talking about). I'm at the point where I know my sister is going to do whatever she wants, and okay with that. But mostly I'm grieving the loss of proximity to my niece. She really is the sweetest, funniest, cutest kid who has ever existed - and instead of being 2 hours away, she will be 3,000 miles away. (Aaaand my sister doesn't really like to FaceTime me, so I want to cry at the thought of not even getting to see her on the phone.) My niece is also really close to my parents, so they're taking it pretty hard (and even as a 3-year-old she's very vocal about not wanting to leave, and although I know she can't completely comprehend what's happening, she has got big and real emotions about it). I got to hang out with them last weekend, and today is supposedly moving day. I've been praying a lot about all of this, and trying to not have a lot of anxiety about big questions (like wherever she live? where will she work? where will my niece go to daycare?? - My sister isn't giving any of us these answers, and we don't know if it's because she doesn't have the answers or if she doesn't want to tell us.) I would appreciate a whole lotta prayer and peaceful vibes sent my way today. And that was SO long, so thank you for making it this far. ❤️
🥧 My treasure is that this year we will be spending Thanksgiving with my in-laws for the first time since my husband and I were dating, six years ago! It'll be kind of weird because my in-laws sold their house this summer and are getting ready to travel the U.S. in their very nice 5th-wheel/trailer, And so we will be staying in a three-star hotel that they graciously offered to pay for. 😂 One of my husband's aunts will be hosting the actual day-of event, and I'm trying to figure out what to do, because I love making thanksgiving food but it'll be a little hard to cook this year, not having access to a kitchen for most of the week. Buuut because I work at a college, I do have all of next week off! (🙌🙌) So I think I'm going to make some fun Thanksgiving food just for the two of us to eat early. 😂
Okay friends, thank you for letting this be a place to put all my grief into writing. I sincerely appreciate this incredible group of internet friends that are willing to show up once a week and listen. ❤️❤️❤️
I was put in a similar but not identical situation in dealing with some other people’s terrible moving decisions a few years back, so I know some of how you feel. *hugs*
So sorry Juliana! I’m in a group that prays for our kids(Moms in Prayer) and just want you to know that in situations like these where you have no power of influence, prayer works beautifully in these situations. God wants to answer your prayers for your sis and niece. I will keep them in my prayers, boy do they need them!
Oh man. I'm so sorry about this painful experience with your sister. :( That is so hard! I hope you can get a mailing address soon and be able to send Auntie Care Packages, etc. And I am a big proponent of making a thanksgiving meal even if you aren't hosting. Yummo!
I’m so sorry about your sister’s decisions. My sister in law (husband’s older sister) has a very rocky relationship with my MIL and has done quite a few similar things - moving cross country, real big F U vibes, etc and it’s painful for everyone. Hoping that she’ll relent to FaceTime for you & your sweet niece ❤️
Okay wait, my other treasure is that Taylor Swift and Red are saving my life. That album came out a few months after my first real breakup, and I just have been loving getting to really listen to everything without actually having to feel my own feelings this time around. 😂 And seeing all my friends talk about it is just a joy. ☺️
I have tried the sausage pinwheels and sadly must report that they are Not Good. 0/10 would not recommend. Petition to bring back the sausage wrap rolls!!
Hi Lil Swipes! It has been a week of reflecting, admitting some messy things about my spiritual life, questioning what I'm doing leading youth, listening to a lot of Taylor Swift and crying a lot of tears. Sounds like a good time huh? I paid for Erin's studies and was just not in the place to start so I keep saving each one to an folder in my email. I really hope to get to do Dis/Entangle someday as just by the name I know it would be beneficial. I just am not ready what with personal grief and sitting with my questions and my grief for now. Someone mentioned I'm possibly going through a "dark night of the soul", wondering if it all really matters and isn't God going to do what He wants to do anyway even if I pray?
The leaves are gorgeous here in Missouri...or were. They're all starting to fall now. We had some lovely unseasonably warm temps earlier in the week which is always a delight but makes me miss them even more when I wake up to below freezing temps like today.
I'm enjoying all things Taylor right now. Call me a Swiftie I suppose at 43 years old. It helps that I have two teenage girls who love her as well. :)
With Thanksgiving coming up and we get together with my extended family that my cousins who died were part of. I feel sad so much of the time about them that I have no idea what the day will be like. I imagine there will be tears and laughter both.
That is a lot of stuff to hold. I'm glad Taylor is there for you with her with Sad Girl Autumn vibes. There are layers of grief these days. I hope you have the space to feel all this. Treat yourself tenderly.
I feel you on Dis/Entangle. I started it and I think it would still be really beneficial to finish but I just got so overwhelmed. The good news is that it will hang around, and it will be there when you're ready. I hope Thanksgiving is heartbreakingly beautiful.
My lil swipes! I feel so late to the comments today (curse MST - I feel like I am in a whole other world when you are all starting your days and it's 5 am my time!
Our thanksgiving plan is to have my parents, my brother, one of my best friends and her husband and brother over for dinner. My mom was never an extravagant Thanksgiving person so I am excited to go all out with Alex (my bestie) this year. I bought deep orange candlesticks and we are going to create a beautiful table spread and Alex is bringing a pumpkin so we can write what we're thankful for on it. I am so excited! I told my husband that if he and her husband ever tragically die or run away, I will just marry Alex. She agreed to it.
The main treasure is our financial stability that is unfamiliar to me. After settling into this job and re-learning how to budget with my funky pay schedule, and also getting the much bigger paychecks, it is like a whole new life. We will get all of our Christmas shopping done by Small Shop Saturday. Because we can afford to. Because we have been able to put money away for it. Which we haven't ever been able to do - we have just been barely treading water for so long.
Another treasure is that I am going to be sharing small businesses on my IG stories this week! If you want inspo, follow me @shelbihan and I will be linking to small businesses I love (and not only UT local ones, I have some all over that I like : ) I could go on and on about why I love small business but if you just need a little nudge this season - even buying just one thing on your list from a small business will make a difference.
I'm excited to hear about your weeks and your Thanksgiving plans and just your general merriments. Happy Friday!
My best friend and I regularly send each other listings of tiny cottages that we will buy and live in if something were to ever happen to both of our husbands. We are regularly each other's dates to events our husbands would hate, and 10/10 recommend going to a random wedding/benefit gala/poetry reading with your spiritual spouse.
My friends and i talk about our Old Lady Home that we will have someday. We were all roommates back in the day, so it seems right that we would end up together as widows or whatever.
What a delightful Thanksgiving plan! I'm really looking forward to the small businesses you share because I thought I was ahead on my Christmas shopping and I definitely am not!
Happy Friday, Lil Swipes! Most of the leaves on our trees blew away this week, but what a treat the colors were this fall. Some folks in our neighborhood and around town have an ornamental bush that goes from a lovely green to a blazing red overnight, and it is my favorite.
Our big Thanksgiving tradition is Pie Night. Started by a friend's grandmother who got sick and tired of her kin not eating her pies because they were too full from the Thanksgiving meal, Pie Night is the eve before Thanksgiving. Everyone brings a pie, the host makes a ham with fixings, and then we dig in. Usually, we host one for neighbors and church family and our house is packed to the gills. Pie Night 2020 did not happen, and this year we are not ready for a packed house, so we are doing a small version with some close friends. I am SO EXCITED to make pies, guys.
Treasures this week
1. I started going back to spin classes at my gym, and they are bringing me life. I know Pelaton is all the rage, but for me, there is something about being in the room with the instructor, with all the laser lights and music. It brings me so much joy.
2. I finished Tower of Dawn, book 6 in the Throne of Glass series, and I think it might be my favorite. I still have book 5 and 7 to read, but man oh man, I loved the new characters this book introduced. (Someone on the interwebs suggested reading 6 before 5, so I took their advice. We'll see if it pays off.)
3. Reading aloud with my kids has been turning into my favorite time in our homeschool. We just finished Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman, and it was a hoot. I'm trying to figure out our next read aloud, so if you have any suggestions for boys ages 5, 7, and 9, please share!
4. Hubs and I went out for a celebration dinner with his business partner and wife last night, and I had the most decadent, delicious meal I have had in a while: Crab Ravioli, followed by a chocolate ganache tartlet for dessert. I regret nothing.
5. I think we'll be putting up our Christmas decorations this weekend. I am usually a strict "not until after Thanksgiving" gal, but since we're going out of town for Thanksgiving, I kind of want it done beforehand so we come home to Christmas. I still will not allow Christmas music in my house or ears until Black Friday!
6. A friend of mine mentioned the book Sparketype by Jonathan Fields and an assessment test that goes with it, and I had a fun time taking it and finding my Sparketype https://sparketype.com/ Any kind of personality assessment stuff if my jam, but this one was fun and different because it deals with purpose and work - kinda strenghtfinders meets enneagram.
7. My 7 year old had his first soccer game last weekend, and it was a hoot. He had such a blast. He even scored a goal, and his team won, so he was ecstatic.
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Happy Thanksgiving!
Kids book recs are my jam! At that age, my kids loved Mrs. Pigglewiggle, Beverly Cleary's Henry Huggins series and Ralph the Mouse series, Kate Dicamillo books like Flora and Ulysses and The Tale of Despereaux, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier, and My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George. Oh! The Cricket In Times Square was a winner as well. The great thing about reading aloud is that the five year old can listen to higher level books than he can read!
My kids LOVED Fortunately the Milk! They also had a blast reading the Nanny Piggins books. They are a little tricky to find (I think the author is Australian?) but the ones we read ranked among their very favorites. Also Henry Huggins forever.
Okay, Pie Night sounds amazing and is such a smart idea because I always have room for dessert but no one else does!
Holes by Louis Sachar might be a little old for the 5 year old, but it's such a fun book! Also the Mysterious Benedict Society, although those books are all super long!
Pie Night! You are the 2nd Swipe to have some kind of pie tradition for Thanksgiving Eve. I gotta get on this! This is a great list of treasures. Happy Thanksgiving!
Okay in response to 3) This might be a little young for your 9 year old but I love love loved the Magic Treehouse series when I was 5-7! My first grade teacher used to end each day by reading a chapter from a Magic Treehouse book, and then a few years ago some kids I babysat were reading them and it was so lovely to read through again. And in response to 4) YOU HAD ME AT CHOCOLATE GANACHE TARTLET are you k i d d i n g that sounds delicious
Sorry I’m commenting three times but my brain only works in fits and starts. Honestly my greatest treasure (aside from the tik tok lunch lady and my being a 50 year old woman obsessed with TS drama) is something my daughter told me this morning. I have 3 girls - Maggie, Zoe and Tori. Maggie is in college. Zoe and Tori are twins but Zoe’s in 9th and Tori’s in 8th. Tori has a very rare chromosome disorder so she acts a little younger than she is, but she is totally with it socially and she’s a trip. Anyway, she told me today that they had to write an essay in ELA about their heroes and she wrote it about Maggie, her older sister. My mom heart exploded. Just to hear how Tori sees her older sister and what an impression she’s made on Tori’s life. It’s dear. I cannot.
Y’all, take the wind when you get them. Write them down. Relish them. This is something I will need to come back to on those rough days as a parent.
I am so excited that it's almost Thanksgiving!!! What is y'alls fave thanksgiving food? We always do a fried turkey (the only way I will eat it) and I always make Pineapple Cheese casserole.
I have been hearing so much about supply chain issues and empty shelves, but that has not been a reality where I live, thankfully. I have easily been able to get everything I need at the grocery store. I've already bought all of my Christmas presents and they all came within 1 week of being ordered. I know that just because I haven't experienced it doesn't mean it isn't happening, but I'm wondering how many of you are experiencing these issues?
Hope everyone has a great weekend and good luck to everyone preparing for the big day!
A - I absolutely need to know what this wonder of a pineapple cheese casserole is
B - My favorite Thanksgiving food - is well - all of it? We smoke a turkey (yum!) and make a chorizo stuffing that is amazing and this twice roasted kabocha squash wonder of a dish that makes squash haters turn over a new squash loving leaf! And pumpkin pie with streusel on top! And apple cobbler! Can. not. wait!
I frickin’ love green bean casserole and last year I made one entirely from scratch using Smitten Kitchen’s recipe and I nearly ate a full 10 inch skillet of it by myself. Still love the canned version but hot damn nothing beats SK!
Lauren, What is this pineapple cheese casserole?? I have got to know! 😂
My favorite Thanksgiving food, is actually a new addition as of last year: Bri McKoy's Savory Mashed Sweet Potatoes. Holy cow are they good. Last year, my family was not a big fan that I tried to introduce something new, and my mom and I were the only one that liked them, and I DIDN'T EVEN CARE,
(whoops, hit post too soon 😂), because my mom and I ate all of them and I wasn't even mad. Haha.
Also, I haven't experienced any supply chain issues either. Lauren I think you're in San Diego, right? I wonder if it's different for us on the west coast near really big shipping ports? 🤷🏻♀️
And all of these comments are straight up saving my life this morning. I love hearing about your favorite things Thanksgiving foods!
My favorite Thanksgiving food is dessert. When I'm with my family, we make pumpkin, pecan, apple, and chocolate pies, and I love all of them almost equally!
I have noticed extremely delayed ship times for products to small businesses - like my shop ordered displays in SEPTEMBER and we just got them on Monday. I think the issue might be more to the people who sell products because once they have them in hand, there isn't a huge delay in getting them to customers! At least, that is what I have noticed. Enjoy your fried turkey! Delicious!
Same. Small businesses seem to be doing alright with this sort of thing. FedEx is a little slow, but the other shipping methods have been on time or very close to it.
Have you mentioned pineapple cheese casserole previously? This sounds so familiar! I also think maybe it was you who inspired me to already have gone out and got all my nonperishables? Whoever it was, this was a genius suggestion & has made me feel so relaxed. My favorite Thanksgiving food ... maybe my grandma's sweet potato casserole with pecans on top, that I think of as a better-tasting pumpkin pie, essentially. :)
I love making Thanksgiving food! We have a standard menu that we do every year for everything but the dessert. I don't really care for pumpkin pie, so I make different pumpkiny things. This year I want to try some kind of pumpkin mousse parfait or something.
We keep our gift giving very simple, so we also seem to be getting things in a timely way. I am the most prepared I've ever been this early in the game. It's a little scary, actually.
We just got a new couch that I ordered in July - they told me then that it wouldn't get here until November, and I was amazed that it actually showed up when they said it would! I was fully expecting it to be delayed even more than it was.
I’m so happy for you! The supply chain problem has been such a crapshoot because I haven’t had a lot of problems at all, just those darn couches. I figured I’d be waiting 2-3 months because they’re custom couches, but not 9! 😬
Tell me about your couches! We have looked and looked and looked at secondhand stores, and I think our current plan is holding out for our friend's couch that they say they will sell to us when they find a new couch for themselves. But it's already been six months!! Where did you order a new couch, if you don't mind sharing? I get so nervous about how to tell if they'll hold up.
Me too! I saw the fabric in real life on another couch model so I know it’s going to look good. I’m always a little anxious before I get big stuff though haha.
I have had a hard week and anticipate a hard week. My late sister's birthday would have been this coming Monday, one of the first hard milestones to deal with. But also last week I got the sad news that the sister of a dear friend of mine passed away in a house fire. She was an acquaintance of mine on Facebook and we exchanged a few really nice DMs over the years. Since she had lived only 5 hours from me, I took off work last Friday to drive up for visitation with her family and funeral. I feel like my friend and I are in a sucky club - losing older sisters tragically.
I'm so sorry, Ellen. I read the tribute. What beautiful writing to dedicate to someone. I'm sorry you're in a club that you never wanted the membership for. I think it was very kind of you to go to the visitation for her family, even in the midst of an anniversary approaching that will hold your own grief. Holding big space for you today.
Sending virtual hugs. Those milestone events are so hard. And the sadness colors the festivities. I'm sorry. I hope you have space to rest and take breaks over these holidays and lean into the things that comfort.
All our leaves are gone now, and I just put the garden to bed this morning - pulled out all the dead plants, spread fireplace ashes and compost and leaves over all the beds, dug up the dahlias, divided some perennials. It was a lot of work. I was hoping to put up the outside Christmas lights today too, but I ran out of time.
My turd this week is that my husband's brother and his family are coming into town the first week of December, even though my MIL told them to maybe wait since they're unvaccinated and Colorado's ICU beds are 95% full. They have a place to stay, but obviously want to spend as much time with us as possible, and refuse to wear masks. And! They object to us wearing masks because it "inhibits natural interaction" and "feels judgy". My husband's family absolutely sucks at handling conflict, as do I, so there's all this emotional labor going on trying to figure out how to manage the whole disaster. I'm so over it, and wish they'd just cancel and come back when it's warm and we can all be outside and avoid the whole conflict. Gah.
My treasure is that we got our very first brand new, expensive couch that we paid for ourselves. We've been married for 21 years, and before this purchase had paid a total of $25 for couches. This is the first one where I've gotten to pick out the style and the fabric and had to wait months for its arrival! I feel like an adult, you guys.
Happy Friday to the best group on the Internet! You have Pie Night Traditions, and it is brilliant. I am totally copying you next year.
Erin - our area is also beautiful this time of year. It almost stops my heart just running errands. Grey, foggy days are the best because the color really stands out. I grew up in a town with the most boring tree canopy. All brown all the time. So I am so glad that my adult years have been in a place with glorious color in the fall. I am on an IG break and have not yet fired up my old blog, so I can't post pictures, but it is stunning.
Just back from my booster, and i tell ya. My appointment was at a small, local pharmacy. I live in a very diverse neighborhood. And when I left the shop the line was out the door and around the building and it was one of the most beautiful things I've seen. All races. All ages. All ability levels. Young men who had driven and were helping their non-english speaking grandmas and grandpas. Old couples holding each other up as they waited their turn. One guy installed himself as door man so wheelchairs could maneuver in more easily. A mish mash of languages. Lots of crinkly, smiling eyes above their masks. Everyone cheering each person as they left the building. "Yay! Good for you! Hope your side effects aren't too bad!" I teared up. It made me feel the same way that watching people go up for communion makes me feel. Gah! That is the good stuff.
Thanksgiving is my fave. We are prepping this weekend, for two, actually. We are not gathering with family, because those relationships are still too painful. But we feel like we need to celebrate anyway. So we are gathering with friends that have also separated from family and that have been extra isolated this year and a half. Thanksgiving is a rough holiday for them even without a pandemic, and I'm hoping we can boost their spirits with pie and a salad. But my husband loves making turkey, so we are making a whole meal and then packing up to go boxes to deliver to a few of our single buds with flowers from my friend who does centerpieces. It is not the usual thanksgiving with everyone gathered, but it has lifted my heart to plan dropoffs and plan fun surprises for people. Tiny bottles of champagne! :D Anyway. A weird, but hopefully still joyous day to look forward to.
Oh the cheers! That was just what my heart didn't know it needed today! Yay for boosters!
Mine too. Such a deeply humane and human moment in a sea of people being awful to each other.
Agreed. I have dear friends, who I love, who refuse to get vaccinated and it just about breaks me.
I'm so sorry. That is a heavy thing to carry.
All of that - the booster line, the drop-offs, the Friendsgiving - is beautiful. Thanks for lifting my spirits with your treasures!
❤
I'm tearing up reading about the people cheering for each other. Thank you for sharing that and have a lovely thanksgiving!
You too! (It really was so touching.)
Jumping in this afternoon to share a few treasures for the week.
-My second week back at in-person work after having worked from home since 2020, and my first time at a full-time in-person job since before I got pregnant with my oldest...in 2008. The good news is that I am less tired than I was at the end of last week. The bad news is, I am still pretty exhausted. It has actually been kind of nice, and I feel much more of a part of my working team when we can see each other face to face.
- I am going to a latke fry this weekend hosted by Jewish friends that I met during the pandemic (a married couple named Carl and Carli, adorably) and I am so excited to celebrate with them at their annual party, since they didn't host it during 2020, and I didn't know them before.
- I read such a great, weird little under the radar book this week. Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams. A series of connected short stories (the main character features to varying degrees in each story, Olive Kitteridge-style) that deal with how we define happiness and what lengths we will go to to achieve it for ourselves and others. Loved it.
-Finally, I have also been delighting in all of the trees, and in my local group text, we have spent the last three weeks just sending each other out of context pictures of beautiful trees about town. I picked up one of my daughter's friends to give her a ride home last week and asked her what her favorite tree in town was (very much leaning into my new role of Professional Mortifier to a Twelve Year Old) and sweet Kylee introduced me to what she calls "mango trees" - trees that have only started to turn orange at the top and are still green at the bottom. It will be a permanent part of my lexicon now.
Have a fabulous weekend, lovelies!
Congrats on getting back into the work groove! When I started back full time, I felt like i needed to go to bed at 7:30pm for a month. I love that you are frying latkes with your buddies! How fun that you met them during the pandemic and now get to hang out and celebrate in person.
I haven’t written a comment in a looong time, just flitted about here & there, so I’m glad to dive back in today!
💩my kids are quarantined again because of some anti-vaxx grandparents of a kid at church. I am not thinking Christian thoughts toward the grandparents and that’s all I’ll allow myself to say today.
⭐️/💩My 95 yr old gma is now in a memory care facility instead of my parents’ house and it’s both relief and a different burden for my mom, her only daughter & main caretaker. In my mom’s words, “it’s like sending a toddler to college” but also it’s a full time job for 2-3 trained professionals so my mom was in over her head big time.
⭐️My winter birds are coming to my bird feeders and I am so relieved and happy 😆
⭐️I’m back on a reading streak and I feel so much more like myself. Current reads are anything Agatha Christie (trying to read thru everything she wrote!), Wintering by Katherine May, Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen, & God Has A Name by John Mark Comer (that’s for a church book study but I’ve barely cracked it 😬)
Happy weekend, Swipes ❤️
“Phoebe read a mystery” podcast has read several Agatha Christie’s if you want to listen to some of her work.
I’ve always wanted to read a few Agatha Christie novels because I loved reading Hound of the Baskervilles by Doyle in high school. I read God Has A Name a couple heads ago and loved it!
She was an amazing & crazy-prolific author; the more I read, the more I’m convinced she’s written something for everyone!
A couple years ago…I’m so sad you can’t edit comments here.
Hey, friend of Agatha….you have to read this….I loved imagining what it would be like to be back in her time, traveling to archeological digs. And did you know Agatha has a sense of humor? https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19094020
You know, I actually started that pre-pandemic…and never finished it (before the library started doing auto renewals)😅 Thanks for reminding me, I’ll have to revisit it soon!
Oh man. I'm so sorry about having to quarantine your kids again. :( I hope the care facility does a good job and your mom can find a bit of rest. It is scary and fraught to install parents in those places, but wow, your mom must be so tired. I'm reading through Agatha Christie too! The only trouble is that I am reading it before bed and keep falling asleep. lol. I have to reread things several times. :D
If it makes you feel better, I have to re-read parts in every one so far and I don’t have sleepiness to blame 😄
Ha!
Hello Swipes!
I’m here! It’s Friday! I just had my performance review at work and got a “4 - Surpasses Expectations!” Wahoo!! 🎉🎉 There’s nothing like being at a job that you like, are good at, with people who value you! I’m not sure how to celebrate but I’m going to do something for sure.
Another treasure - I read Rachel Held Evan’s latest book Wholehearted Faith (pulled together from essays written before her death) and gosh, I just freaking love her and miss her. For anyone going through Erin’s dis/entangle study, this book is a good one.
Off to read the comments - happy Thanksgiving all!
Wholehearted Faith is so lovely. I'm trying to pace myself along with the wholehearted faith book club on instagram, but it's so hard!
Just finished disentangle so will read this. Thx Lauren!
👏🎉🥳WOOOOOO Happy Friday Swipes!!!! I finally made it to the comments *on time*
I have been in Oklahoma this week- it is my 49th state to check off my list. I went to Tulsa and planned almost nothing but got a cute AirBnb and packed up my Jeep with my furball and drove the 10 hours to relax, read, and eat for four days. Tulsa is cute- I saw the Golden Driller, the Blue Whale, ate some delicious food, and finished 5 books (let's face it, mostly on the drive!). Finn lived his best life running wild in the large fenced in yard and helped me choose road trip snacks. Have you heard of Casey's General Store?? I made a stop just to check out one of these.
What are your road trip snacks?
📺 Watching and obsessed with American Crime Story: Impeachment. Must listen and watch all the things once I finish this season. I think it's my least favorite of the ACS series, but really enjoying it, especially since I'm discussing with our dear friend Mel.
📚 Started We Were The Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter and this is going to be a good one. WWII historical fiction, but mostly based on her real family's life.
🌸🎤 BRITNEY is FREE!!!!!!!!!!
Have a great week everyone!
The Slow Burn Podcast season they did on the Clinton impeachment was SO GOOD!
Added to the queue! Thanks Anne.
I love that you have a Visit all the States list and are doing it! And a whole vacation for relaxing, reading, and eating for four days sounds dreamy! My roadtrip snacks: doritos or cheesy puffs, coke. I am boring. everyone else has interesting stuff. lol
ooh totally forgot about Doritos!! MUST eat road trip snack. Thanks Dawn, it's been fun to do and hard to believe I'm almost at the end.
My go to road trip snacks are the honey bbq frito twists, a coke, and sour gummy worms.
We started watching Impeachment and it was so interesting. I was really young when all of that went down, so I never fully understood what happened or the significance of the blue dress (gag), etc. We fell behind, but I would like to finish at some point.
Love your snack choices. Yes, I was in middle school so didn't understand all the nuances of "sexual relations" - it's been interesting to watch back in 2021.
The perfect road trip snacks are: traditional chex mix, swedish fish, and a diet pepsi. I will die on this hill.
Your week sounds lovely! What's the one state you have left to visit?
Alaska! (Hopefully, the best for last?) Love the snack choices. Mine are Mountain Dew (fountain preferably), Snickers or Reeses Outrageous, weird flavor of chips and beef jerkey, oh and NERDS.
What a fun birthday trip! Very jealous about the 5 books!
Not my birthday, just checking off US states and needed to burn some PTO. 😉
Well my brain read that wrong - now I see your 49th STATE to visit. Ha! 😆
LOL Birthdays and road trips are equally FUN!
Hello little swipes! I've been in the comments last couple weeks, but haven't had the space to right about anything myself. But I'm excited to see you guys today!
I've got a Thanksgiving turd and treasure for ya this week: 🦃
💔 The turd is that my little sister (who is 22 and a single mom) is moving herself and my 3 year-old niece from San Diego, CA (where my parents and most of my family live) to Leesburg, FLORIDA (where she knows absolutely no one). She got into a college there, and while I want to be proud of her for continuing her education, this move is an all-round terrible idea, for so many reasons. I've talked to her a little bit about it over the last few months, but she really has an "I'm leaving, fuck you" attitude and has generally been an asshole to everyone (no matter what we're talking about). I'm at the point where I know my sister is going to do whatever she wants, and okay with that. But mostly I'm grieving the loss of proximity to my niece. She really is the sweetest, funniest, cutest kid who has ever existed - and instead of being 2 hours away, she will be 3,000 miles away. (Aaaand my sister doesn't really like to FaceTime me, so I want to cry at the thought of not even getting to see her on the phone.) My niece is also really close to my parents, so they're taking it pretty hard (and even as a 3-year-old she's very vocal about not wanting to leave, and although I know she can't completely comprehend what's happening, she has got big and real emotions about it). I got to hang out with them last weekend, and today is supposedly moving day. I've been praying a lot about all of this, and trying to not have a lot of anxiety about big questions (like wherever she live? where will she work? where will my niece go to daycare?? - My sister isn't giving any of us these answers, and we don't know if it's because she doesn't have the answers or if she doesn't want to tell us.) I would appreciate a whole lotta prayer and peaceful vibes sent my way today. And that was SO long, so thank you for making it this far. ❤️
🥧 My treasure is that this year we will be spending Thanksgiving with my in-laws for the first time since my husband and I were dating, six years ago! It'll be kind of weird because my in-laws sold their house this summer and are getting ready to travel the U.S. in their very nice 5th-wheel/trailer, And so we will be staying in a three-star hotel that they graciously offered to pay for. 😂 One of my husband's aunts will be hosting the actual day-of event, and I'm trying to figure out what to do, because I love making thanksgiving food but it'll be a little hard to cook this year, not having access to a kitchen for most of the week. Buuut because I work at a college, I do have all of next week off! (🙌🙌) So I think I'm going to make some fun Thanksgiving food just for the two of us to eat early. 😂
Okay friends, thank you for letting this be a place to put all my grief into writing. I sincerely appreciate this incredible group of internet friends that are willing to show up once a week and listen. ❤️❤️❤️
I was put in a similar but not identical situation in dealing with some other people’s terrible moving decisions a few years back, so I know some of how you feel. *hugs*
So sorry Juliana! I’m in a group that prays for our kids(Moms in Prayer) and just want you to know that in situations like these where you have no power of influence, prayer works beautifully in these situations. God wants to answer your prayers for your sis and niece. I will keep them in my prayers, boy do they need them!
Oh man. I'm so sorry about this painful experience with your sister. :( That is so hard! I hope you can get a mailing address soon and be able to send Auntie Care Packages, etc. And I am a big proponent of making a thanksgiving meal even if you aren't hosting. Yummo!
Ughhh I'm so sorry about all of this with your sister. Praying for peace and comfort for your family.
I’m so sorry about your sister’s decisions. My sister in law (husband’s older sister) has a very rocky relationship with my MIL and has done quite a few similar things - moving cross country, real big F U vibes, etc and it’s painful for everyone. Hoping that she’ll relent to FaceTime for you & your sweet niece ❤️
Okay wait, my other treasure is that Taylor Swift and Red are saving my life. That album came out a few months after my first real breakup, and I just have been loving getting to really listen to everything without actually having to feel my own feelings this time around. 😂 And seeing all my friends talk about it is just a joy. ☺️
I have tried the sausage pinwheels and sadly must report that they are Not Good. 0/10 would not recommend. Petition to bring back the sausage wrap rolls!!
I have only heard negative reviews. This was such a popular item, I just don't understand it.
Hi Lil Swipes! It has been a week of reflecting, admitting some messy things about my spiritual life, questioning what I'm doing leading youth, listening to a lot of Taylor Swift and crying a lot of tears. Sounds like a good time huh? I paid for Erin's studies and was just not in the place to start so I keep saving each one to an folder in my email. I really hope to get to do Dis/Entangle someday as just by the name I know it would be beneficial. I just am not ready what with personal grief and sitting with my questions and my grief for now. Someone mentioned I'm possibly going through a "dark night of the soul", wondering if it all really matters and isn't God going to do what He wants to do anyway even if I pray?
The leaves are gorgeous here in Missouri...or were. They're all starting to fall now. We had some lovely unseasonably warm temps earlier in the week which is always a delight but makes me miss them even more when I wake up to below freezing temps like today.
I'm enjoying all things Taylor right now. Call me a Swiftie I suppose at 43 years old. It helps that I have two teenage girls who love her as well. :)
With Thanksgiving coming up and we get together with my extended family that my cousins who died were part of. I feel sad so much of the time about them that I have no idea what the day will be like. I imagine there will be tears and laughter both.
That is a lot of stuff to hold. I'm glad Taylor is there for you with her with Sad Girl Autumn vibes. There are layers of grief these days. I hope you have the space to feel all this. Treat yourself tenderly.
I feel you on Dis/Entangle. I started it and I think it would still be really beneficial to finish but I just got so overwhelmed. The good news is that it will hang around, and it will be there when you're ready. I hope Thanksgiving is heartbreakingly beautiful.
My lil swipes! I feel so late to the comments today (curse MST - I feel like I am in a whole other world when you are all starting your days and it's 5 am my time!
Our thanksgiving plan is to have my parents, my brother, one of my best friends and her husband and brother over for dinner. My mom was never an extravagant Thanksgiving person so I am excited to go all out with Alex (my bestie) this year. I bought deep orange candlesticks and we are going to create a beautiful table spread and Alex is bringing a pumpkin so we can write what we're thankful for on it. I am so excited! I told my husband that if he and her husband ever tragically die or run away, I will just marry Alex. She agreed to it.
The main treasure is our financial stability that is unfamiliar to me. After settling into this job and re-learning how to budget with my funky pay schedule, and also getting the much bigger paychecks, it is like a whole new life. We will get all of our Christmas shopping done by Small Shop Saturday. Because we can afford to. Because we have been able to put money away for it. Which we haven't ever been able to do - we have just been barely treading water for so long.
Another treasure is that I am going to be sharing small businesses on my IG stories this week! If you want inspo, follow me @shelbihan and I will be linking to small businesses I love (and not only UT local ones, I have some all over that I like : ) I could go on and on about why I love small business but if you just need a little nudge this season - even buying just one thing on your list from a small business will make a difference.
I'm excited to hear about your weeks and your Thanksgiving plans and just your general merriments. Happy Friday!
Sarah Bessy put out a List of websites for gift giving that support and made by women who live in terrible conditions here and around the world. https://www.sarahbessey.com/christmas-gift-guide-2021
Believe me - they’re already on my list and I love her gift guide every year!
My best friend and I regularly send each other listings of tiny cottages that we will buy and live in if something were to ever happen to both of our husbands. We are regularly each other's dates to events our husbands would hate, and 10/10 recommend going to a random wedding/benefit gala/poetry reading with your spiritual spouse.
My friends and i talk about our Old Lady Home that we will have someday. We were all roommates back in the day, so it seems right that we would end up together as widows or whatever.
It really is the dream.
Oh that sounds so fun! I can't wait to see what your table looks like 😍. And I am very much looking forward to your shop small rec's!!
Also, I feel you on the time difference. I can't usually get here until 8:00 am PST, which is basically midday for the lovely east coasters 😆
I am compiling a list today! I think this will be the first time ever that my IG stories are dots instead of dashes 😂
What a delightful Thanksgiving plan! I'm really looking forward to the small businesses you share because I thought I was ahead on my Christmas shopping and I definitely am not!
I have definitely made a spreadsheet and I am V prepared and excited hehehe.
Haha, I also have a spreadsheet but it just keeps growing!!
This all sounds so lovely! I hope you have the best time!
Thank you! ❤
Happy Friday, Lil Swipes! Most of the leaves on our trees blew away this week, but what a treat the colors were this fall. Some folks in our neighborhood and around town have an ornamental bush that goes from a lovely green to a blazing red overnight, and it is my favorite.
Our big Thanksgiving tradition is Pie Night. Started by a friend's grandmother who got sick and tired of her kin not eating her pies because they were too full from the Thanksgiving meal, Pie Night is the eve before Thanksgiving. Everyone brings a pie, the host makes a ham with fixings, and then we dig in. Usually, we host one for neighbors and church family and our house is packed to the gills. Pie Night 2020 did not happen, and this year we are not ready for a packed house, so we are doing a small version with some close friends. I am SO EXCITED to make pies, guys.
Treasures this week
1. I started going back to spin classes at my gym, and they are bringing me life. I know Pelaton is all the rage, but for me, there is something about being in the room with the instructor, with all the laser lights and music. It brings me so much joy.
2. I finished Tower of Dawn, book 6 in the Throne of Glass series, and I think it might be my favorite. I still have book 5 and 7 to read, but man oh man, I loved the new characters this book introduced. (Someone on the interwebs suggested reading 6 before 5, so I took their advice. We'll see if it pays off.)
3. Reading aloud with my kids has been turning into my favorite time in our homeschool. We just finished Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman, and it was a hoot. I'm trying to figure out our next read aloud, so if you have any suggestions for boys ages 5, 7, and 9, please share!
4. Hubs and I went out for a celebration dinner with his business partner and wife last night, and I had the most decadent, delicious meal I have had in a while: Crab Ravioli, followed by a chocolate ganache tartlet for dessert. I regret nothing.
5. I think we'll be putting up our Christmas decorations this weekend. I am usually a strict "not until after Thanksgiving" gal, but since we're going out of town for Thanksgiving, I kind of want it done beforehand so we come home to Christmas. I still will not allow Christmas music in my house or ears until Black Friday!
6. A friend of mine mentioned the book Sparketype by Jonathan Fields and an assessment test that goes with it, and I had a fun time taking it and finding my Sparketype https://sparketype.com/ Any kind of personality assessment stuff if my jam, but this one was fun and different because it deals with purpose and work - kinda strenghtfinders meets enneagram.
7. My 7 year old had his first soccer game last weekend, and it was a hoot. He had such a blast. He even scored a goal, and his team won, so he was ecstatic.
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Happy Thanksgiving!
Kids book recs are my jam! At that age, my kids loved Mrs. Pigglewiggle, Beverly Cleary's Henry Huggins series and Ralph the Mouse series, Kate Dicamillo books like Flora and Ulysses and The Tale of Despereaux, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier, and My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George. Oh! The Cricket In Times Square was a winner as well. The great thing about reading aloud is that the five year old can listen to higher level books than he can read!
Mrs Pigglewiggle! I remember those. :D
💛💛💛💛💛 this Pie night idea!!
My kids LOVED Fortunately the Milk! They also had a blast reading the Nanny Piggins books. They are a little tricky to find (I think the author is Australian?) but the ones we read ranked among their very favorites. Also Henry Huggins forever.
God bless you for sharing about Pie Night. I will be implementing that asap!
I JUST listened to a podcast with Neil Pasricha with Jonathan Fields!!
My stomach audibly growled when I read #4! 😂
Okay, is Pie Night the best Thanksgiving tradition I've ever heard of?? I think it might be. I need to bookmark this for next year! 😍
Right!?
Okay, Pie Night sounds amazing and is such a smart idea because I always have room for dessert but no one else does!
Holes by Louis Sachar might be a little old for the 5 year old, but it's such a fun book! Also the Mysterious Benedict Society, although those books are all super long!
I loved Greenglass House and The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street. A throwback that I loved in 6th grade and recently reread is A Murder for Her Majesty.
Pie Night! You are the 2nd Swipe to have some kind of pie tradition for Thanksgiving Eve. I gotta get on this! This is a great list of treasures. Happy Thanksgiving!
Okay in response to 3) This might be a little young for your 9 year old but I love love loved the Magic Treehouse series when I was 5-7! My first grade teacher used to end each day by reading a chapter from a Magic Treehouse book, and then a few years ago some kids I babysat were reading them and it was so lovely to read through again. And in response to 4) YOU HAD ME AT CHOCOLATE GANACHE TARTLET are you k i d d i n g that sounds delicious
Oh, we have LOVED Magic Treehouse. And the tartlet was amazing!
Sorry I’m commenting three times but my brain only works in fits and starts. Honestly my greatest treasure (aside from the tik tok lunch lady and my being a 50 year old woman obsessed with TS drama) is something my daughter told me this morning. I have 3 girls - Maggie, Zoe and Tori. Maggie is in college. Zoe and Tori are twins but Zoe’s in 9th and Tori’s in 8th. Tori has a very rare chromosome disorder so she acts a little younger than she is, but she is totally with it socially and she’s a trip. Anyway, she told me today that they had to write an essay in ELA about their heroes and she wrote it about Maggie, her older sister. My mom heart exploded. Just to hear how Tori sees her older sister and what an impression she’s made on Tori’s life. It’s dear. I cannot.
Y’all, take the wind when you get them. Write them down. Relish them. This is something I will need to come back to on those rough days as a parent.
I have 3 young girls (8,5,2) and this choked me up. I hope they stay friends in their teens. Thanks for sharing this sweetness!
What a wonderful treasure!
This is just so sweet! Love this treasure. :)
Good morning everyone!!!!
I am so excited that it's almost Thanksgiving!!! What is y'alls fave thanksgiving food? We always do a fried turkey (the only way I will eat it) and I always make Pineapple Cheese casserole.
I have been hearing so much about supply chain issues and empty shelves, but that has not been a reality where I live, thankfully. I have easily been able to get everything I need at the grocery store. I've already bought all of my Christmas presents and they all came within 1 week of being ordered. I know that just because I haven't experienced it doesn't mean it isn't happening, but I'm wondering how many of you are experiencing these issues?
Hope everyone has a great weekend and good luck to everyone preparing for the big day!
A - I absolutely need to know what this wonder of a pineapple cheese casserole is
B - My favorite Thanksgiving food - is well - all of it? We smoke a turkey (yum!) and make a chorizo stuffing that is amazing and this twice roasted kabocha squash wonder of a dish that makes squash haters turn over a new squash loving leaf! And pumpkin pie with streusel on top! And apple cobbler! Can. not. wait!
Pineapple Cheese Casserole has no right to be as good as it is! It is so delicious and it makes no sense!
I frickin’ love green bean casserole and last year I made one entirely from scratch using Smitten Kitchen’s recipe and I nearly ate a full 10 inch skillet of it by myself. Still love the canned version but hot damn nothing beats SK!
This is the first year in awhile I won't be making Deb's GBC, and I'm already mourning the lack of freshly fried onions in my life.
Me too! All the kinds. We are going with canned this year, 😍but SK's is delish!
Lauren, What is this pineapple cheese casserole?? I have got to know! 😂
My favorite Thanksgiving food, is actually a new addition as of last year: Bri McKoy's Savory Mashed Sweet Potatoes. Holy cow are they good. Last year, my family was not a big fan that I tried to introduce something new, and my mom and I were the only one that liked them, and I DIDN'T EVEN CARE,
Savory sweet potatoes are THAT good. Cheers!
(whoops, hit post too soon 😂), because my mom and I ate all of them and I wasn't even mad. Haha.
Also, I haven't experienced any supply chain issues either. Lauren I think you're in San Diego, right? I wonder if it's different for us on the west coast near really big shipping ports? 🤷🏻♀️
And all of these comments are straight up saving my life this morning. I love hearing about your favorite things Thanksgiving foods!
My favorite Thanksgiving food is dessert. When I'm with my family, we make pumpkin, pecan, apple, and chocolate pies, and I love all of them almost equally!
I have noticed extremely delayed ship times for products to small businesses - like my shop ordered displays in SEPTEMBER and we just got them on Monday. I think the issue might be more to the people who sell products because once they have them in hand, there isn't a huge delay in getting them to customers! At least, that is what I have noticed. Enjoy your fried turkey! Delicious!
I think that explains a lot of the supply chain struggle really well.
Same. Small businesses seem to be doing alright with this sort of thing. FedEx is a little slow, but the other shipping methods have been on time or very close to it.
Have you mentioned pineapple cheese casserole previously? This sounds so familiar! I also think maybe it was you who inspired me to already have gone out and got all my nonperishables? Whoever it was, this was a genius suggestion & has made me feel so relaxed. My favorite Thanksgiving food ... maybe my grandma's sweet potato casserole with pecans on top, that I think of as a better-tasting pumpkin pie, essentially. :)
I love making Thanksgiving food! We have a standard menu that we do every year for everything but the dessert. I don't really care for pumpkin pie, so I make different pumpkiny things. This year I want to try some kind of pumpkin mousse parfait or something.
We keep our gift giving very simple, so we also seem to be getting things in a timely way. I am the most prepared I've ever been this early in the game. It's a little scary, actually.
Mainly for me, the supply chain issues are rearing their head with furniture. I ordered two couches in April…they will be here in January.
We just got a new couch that I ordered in July - they told me then that it wouldn't get here until November, and I was amazed that it actually showed up when they said it would! I was fully expecting it to be delayed even more than it was.
I’m so happy for you! The supply chain problem has been such a crapshoot because I haven’t had a lot of problems at all, just those darn couches. I figured I’d be waiting 2-3 months because they’re custom couches, but not 9! 😬
Tell me about your couches! We have looked and looked and looked at secondhand stores, and I think our current plan is holding out for our friend's couch that they say they will sell to us when they find a new couch for themselves. But it's already been six months!! Where did you order a new couch, if you don't mind sharing? I get so nervous about how to tell if they'll hold up.
I ordered two custom couches from La-Z-Boy and because they’re custom, it’s gonna take a bit to get the fabric and style I want.
Ah, that's so exciting!! I hope they're exactly what you want when they do arrive :)
Me too! I saw the fabric in real life on another couch model so I know it’s going to look good. I’m always a little anxious before I get big stuff though haha.
I have had a hard week and anticipate a hard week. My late sister's birthday would have been this coming Monday, one of the first hard milestones to deal with. But also last week I got the sad news that the sister of a dear friend of mine passed away in a house fire. She was an acquaintance of mine on Facebook and we exchanged a few really nice DMs over the years. Since she had lived only 5 hours from me, I took off work last Friday to drive up for visitation with her family and funeral. I feel like my friend and I are in a sucky club - losing older sisters tragically.
But I did want to share this one tribute to my friend's sister that was so beautiful: https://theremix.substack.com/p/requiem-for-an-antiracist-friend?fbclid=IwAR1OYHfXBzJ6fbXhGipEvnY4HCbSpiinXkyZjvlJSUFnWj8ioW1qHT5eJ6A
I'm so sorry, Ellen. I read the tribute. What beautiful writing to dedicate to someone. I'm sorry you're in a club that you never wanted the membership for. I think it was very kind of you to go to the visitation for her family, even in the midst of an anniversary approaching that will hold your own grief. Holding big space for you today.
Sending virtual hugs. Those milestone events are so hard. And the sadness colors the festivities. I'm sorry. I hope you have space to rest and take breaks over these holidays and lean into the things that comfort.
Also this is my greatest treasure this week. This is literally literal. Dying.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CWV2tiZlr7X/?utm_medium=copy_link
The way he mostly doesn't blink ... He is so terrifying!! 😂
Laughing at so many of these today. The green pepper one is exquisite. I want to print it out on a canvas and hang it in my kitchen
Ha! It's hilarious!