Baby-sitting, Chicks and Tigers

While Uncle Lauren was baby sitting the girls for us at the hotel, he ran into two chicks (too bad I don't have a picture of them!) In conversation, he found out that they were going to be at the local mall the next day with a baby tiger exhibit. They told him to bring the girls on over and even told him to ask for a particular person upon our arrival.

After checking out of the hotel the next morning, we headed a few blocks to the mall and found the tiger exhibit just outside of Sears. You could play with the tigers for 8 minutes, 2 people, $25. We immediately opted to look. We were on one side of the cages and Tony's parents and the girls were on the other side. I was feeling dizzy so we went to sit on a bench and wait. I reminisced of the day that I got my picture taken at a mall with a baby tiger. I'd changed my outfit several times that day, something I didn't normally do, having no idea that they were taking these pictures. My final outfit of choice ended up being an olive drab broomstick skirt and a white and olive striped polo...I matched the setting perfectly.

Well, the next thing we knew, the girls were telling these people their names and taking off their jackets. The "chicks" had recognized Lauren immediately and invited our three girls, Liz and Lauren in to play with the tigers for free! Larry was allowed to take photos and Betty, Tony and I were able to go inside the fence and sit on a bench and watch. It was such a neat opportunity! The girls loved it. The baby's were 5 weeks old and if they stayed that small forever, I'd have wanted to take one home with me. As it was, they had some older ones a few cages down. One was crouching and thought he was hiding behind a stuffed teddy bear. But he sure was eyeing the little boy on the outside of the cage and fence. Tony thought that the tiger wanted the little boy for dinner! Yikes!

Unique Thanksgiving

Finding out that Tony's family was not going to able to come down here for Thanksgiving, we knew that the girls were going to be terribly disappointed. So Tony devised a plan. We got a room on priceline at a hotel in Benton Harbor and met his family halfway. We had Thanksgiving dinner at Cracker Barrel (of which I sampled the mashed potatoes and turkey and ate steak fries and half a piece of pumpkin pie) then went back to the hotel to relax and enjoy each other's company. Our rooms had an adjoining door and Uncle Lauren had brought the Wii.

Larry, Tony and I headed to the lounge to watch (insert "laugh at") the Lions attempt to play against one of the best teams in the league - the Tennessee Titans. Sadly they lost and for all the complaining I've been doing about the Colts this year, I daresay, I came away with a new appreciation for our Indianapolis team. There is obviously no comparison!

One tradition that held true even though we were at a hotel was the guys getting up at 5 a.m. to get in on a few Black Friday deals. Us women just aren't morning people! And I don't have an inkling of desire to fight those crowds. Britnee went with Tony this year and they came back with a good majority of the Christmas shopping done. I did want to stop at a Family Christian store on the way home and that crossed another three or four names off our list.

Thanks Fafa, Shamu, Uncle Lauren and Aunt Liz, for agreeing to meet us! We enjoyed it alot, but are really looking forward to next year when we can celebrate in our traditional style - at home with Betty's home made stuffing!

P.S. I drove off without my camera, thus the pictureless post.

Just Want to Tell You I'm Thankful

I'll never forget the day that this song was introduced to me. We were adding new songs to our chorus book at church. There was a couple who'd started attending after relocating from out of state. They had a few songs that they particularly loved from their former church. I knew a couple of them but this one I was unfamiliar with. Sis. Monroe offered to teach it to me but the catch? She was tone deaf. She would try to sing a phrase and I would play it back. She would tell me whether I needed to go up or down on particular words/notes.

My shirt was soaked with perspiration by the time we got to the end. But the result was this beautiful song that fast became a favorite. We might have re-written part of it because I have never found these exact verses or the tune anywhere. But it has blessed me many times over the years and God's presence would certainly come and hover over a particular little chapel in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, whenever we sang it. I can still hear my parent's voices with Dad raspily belting out the melody and Mom's loud but steady alto joining in.

Just want to tell You I'm thankful for all that You have done;
For the stars and the moonlight and the setting sun;
And when my work on earth is through, I'm coming home to be with You;
Just want to tell you I'm thankful, that's all.

I'm even thankful for the trials that You send from day to day;
For they mellow my spirit and teach me how to pray;
Let me cling a little closer to Thee lest I fall;
Just want to tell you I'm thankful, that's all.

Just want to tell You I'm thankful each moment of the day;
For You never cease to love me or hear me when I pray;
And when I find it hard to stand, You're there to lend a helping hand;
Just want to tell you I'm thankful, that's all.

I'm even thankful for the times when Your Word has pierced my heart;
Showing all those imperfections from which I must depart;
And if I love you first and always, You won't let me fall;
Just want to tell you I'm thankful, that's all.
Just want to tell you I'm thankful, that's all.

My Contribution to Thanksgiving Dinner

You Are Mashed Potatoes

Ordinary, comforting, and more than a little predictable You're the glue that holds everyone together.

What Part of Thanksgiving Are You?

In Honor of My Mother-in-Law

I bet you were expecting a Christmas post from me today, huh? Well, it ain't happenin'. I am in no man's land (northern Michigan) and internet access is sloooooooowww up this way. So since I've been bantering with my in-laws all day (a good kind of fun :), here's a post I'd already had in queue:

It was the evening of Thanksgiving. Tony was lounging on the couch, I was sitting on the floor in front of the couch and my mother-in-law was across from us doing something with her cell phone (probably answering a call from her eldest who was in the same room.) I guess you might conclude that we were bored. But we weren't. Just relaxed and having some down-time. Of course, my camera was in my hand (is it ever anywhere else?) so I was passing the time by taking some portraits of me and my beloved. I finally had one that I thought turned out really neat. My mother-in-law dared to disagree. Upon viewing my masterpiece, she vehemently proclaimed, "This would drive me nuts! I could never decide which way it should be turned." So in honor of my mother-in-law, I present to you, Betty's Fury.

I should mention that my mother-in-law and I get along famously. She did not mean this in a rude way at all. We all had a good laugh over it and in fact, my father-in-law spoke almost the same exact words when he saw the picture later.

Meeting Lincoln

It just occurred to me that I never shared any photos of our first time meeting Lindsey's little Lincoln. She was able to bring him to Aunt Jodi's the Saturday after Thanksgiving. We all enjoyed spoiling him rotten. He was so sweet even Kerrigan decided that a little brother wouldn't be so bad after all. Not that we are planning for a brother (or sister for that matter!), but she has very emphatically stated more than once that she enjoys being the baby of the family and would not be pleased to have that position usurped!