THANKSGIVING 2009 in Which Laura Makes the Supreme Gravy of the Universe

The company was great -- we had Sarah, Bob, and Laura ; Brent and Flor; Dan and Jenn; Pam, Kate and Jim and Grandpa. Oh wait - where's Jenn in these pictures?! We can still see you, Kate.

We missed Mom and Lloyd this year - Lloyd was not too portable this holiday.

So, I'm an OK cook. Sometimes I approach "good cook." There are some foods that I cook well. Gravy has not been one of them. I always end up adding a can/jar/evelope of gravy mix to redeem what I've tried to produce (usually with lumps). This year, I made make-head gravy. You cook turkey wings in the oven, then on the stove, etc. Time consuming, but too easy. I knew it wouldn't be enough for all of us, so I bought no less than 6 jars of gravy to add to it. But, first, I decided to TRY the pan drippings from one of the turkeys (yes, we were a 2-turkey event this year) to make some gravy. Well, Gravy Heaven smiled on me, and the two gravies mixed together were absolutely superb. I'm really being modest and humble - but it was DIVINE.

. . . IN WHICH WE PLANT A TREE

On Sunday, October 25, we planted a tree in Sarah and Bob's back yard in memory of Baby Boy, born still on July 23, 2009. Bob's parents and brother were visiting. Sarah and Bob chose a Linden tree, which is native to this part of Utah. Dan, Thomas, and Bob dug the large hole to accomodate the tree and root ball. [Kate held Yaya over the hole and scared her to death! It was classic teasing at it's finest] Sarah had chosen a scripture "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." (Job 1:21) We listened to the song "You Are My Sunshine" and cried while they filled in the hole. (I always sang that to my children; my dad sang it to us; his mother sang it to him) It was such a tender moment, and my heart ached for them.

Sarah's greatest fear is that we will all forget him, but that will never, ever happen. We love ALL of you so much.

LET'S HEAR IT FOR HOLIDAYS

So, a 3-day weekend, and not a moment too soon. We're going to St. Anthony, ID to visit Mel's dad. Daniel and Jenn are going with us, so we should have some fun. Maybe I'll even figure out how to post some pictures when we get back.
Anyone else have fun plans?