Thanksgiving Prep

18 cups of flour makes 128 dinner rolls. I know this because I quadrupled the Betty Crocker recipe today. I've been kneading and rolling and shaping dinner rolls for 8 hours.

Meanwhile, I've made four pies (2 pumpkin, and 2 dutch apple), pistachio fluff, and roasted a 20 pound turkey. I've also minced onions and celery in preparation for tomorrow's big event.

I'm tired of dough. 128 rolls sounds like a lot... but it's really not. 16 people coming for Thanksgiving dinner and another 9 on Friday for "leftovers" will eat a lot of rolls. I hope I have a few leftover for myself on Saturday or Sunday! :)

Tomorrow, I will roast a second 20 pound turkey and make a dinner with all of the fixings. (Dressing, stuffing, veggies, mashed potatoes, gravy, yum!)

Three solid days of cooking is fun, but also exhausting! My fingers and shoulders feel the work of kneading and rolling and kneading and rolling and kneading and rolling.... :)

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!

Kangaroos at Wal-Mart

My son works at Subway within a Super Wal-Mart store. One day a couple comes into Subway, with a "baby" swaddled in blankets. As they order sandwiches, a big tail flops out of the blankets. Turns out it was really a baby kangaroo! This story has become a classic in our family as we laugh about the insane things you may see at Wal-Mart stores.

But the saga continues....

The couple also has a disabled goat, "Edward", which can't walk.
Both the Roo and Goat wear "designer diapers"...
And the Roo ("Jack" if you're close) sleeps with the woman every night...
And they take their disabled goat and kangaroo with them on vacation...

Their RV broke down in while on vacation in Florida, and the story made the Milwaukee news! Thank Goodness the Red Cross came to their aid with temporary motel shelter for the couple and their pets. (Really, I can't make this stuff up...)

http://www.todaystmj4.com/news/local/34762919.html

Funny post on Obama's use of complete sentences

The post begins...

In the first two weeks since the election, President-elect Barack Obama has broken with a tradition established over the past eight years through his controversial use of complete sentences, political observers say.

Read the short post here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andy-borowitz/obamas-use-of-complete-se_b_144642.html

Thank you, Andy Borowitz for making me smile this morning.

Eye Candy

People released their list of the Sexiest Men Alive. Topping the list was Hugh Jackman...

At 6 ft. 2 in., all scruff and biceps, Hugh Jackman looms large in the epic Australia, which he says kept him "dirty 95 percent of the time" and left people stammering, "Oh ... my ... God," according to costar Nicole Kidman, who adds, "Women's jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room."

People posted a video showcasing 100 of the most sexiest me alive here: http://www.people.com/people/package/video/0,,20237714_20237719_20238484,00.html

Enjoy ladies, Enjoy.

Meanwhile, I'm just happy and thankful to call People Magazine's 101st sexiest man alive my husband. (Love ya Toad! BTW, I'd rank you #1!)

Christmas already?

Flipping through the radio stations today, I stumbled upon a station playing ALL CHRISTMAS music. Ahem -- it's only November 15th!!!

It's too soon... way too soon.

UPDATE: TBS is showing "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" on TV right now!! WAAAAAYYYY TOO EARLY!!! I'm outraged. TV Christmas specials shouldn't begin until Thanksgiving.

Work Sucks

Why do large corporations decide to "downsize", "right size", "reorganize", or honestly "lay off" people right before the holidays? Would it be so hard to do this in September instead of December?? I mean, REALLY?? Would it??

I don't want to tell people that their jobs are gone, especially those with young families. I certainly don't want to tell people to look for other work at a time when our country is facing the worst economic times since the Great Depression.

Don't tell me "this is why you are paid the big bucks". I'm not. Really, I'm NOT. I make less than most of my employees.

And it's hard to be strong and optimistic when my job is also likely on the chopping block.

My main mantras to get me through this stressful time:

• Work is Work. If it was meant to be fun it wouldn't be spelled W-O-R-K.
• That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger.
• Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you choose to respond.

Just keep repeating these three phrases over and over and over and over and over and over and over again....

Meanwhile, for those that know me... please be patient with me. This is incredibly hard for me.

A New Dawn

I watched the sunrise this morning. It was another early day taking my husband to the airport. You can't watch a beautiful sunrise without feeling hope, optimism, and a sense of peace. It was a fitting morning to usher in a new day in American politics.

When I returned home, I watched Obama's victory speech online. It was eloquent, stirring, beautiful, and gracious. His words and delivery were all that we've come to expect from this man. But let us not forget that he is just a man.... A single solitary man that cannot change our nation by himself. His victory was the result of millions working together for a common cause. I hope that all of us that fought to elect Obama will continue to work even harder to bring about the change we really need in this country. It's not over folks, it's merely the chance to begin working for the change we want.

I can't say it any better than Barack did himself last night. Here is the excerpt that spoke to me loudly, and the part of his speech that isn't getting any media attention this morning.

"The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection." And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too. "