Thanksgiving was wonderful this year. There were a lot of people, but everyone brought a delicious dish so there was more than enough food for everyone. Mary and Skyler hosted, and she baked a beautiful turkey - not bad for a gal that was a vegetarian for ten years prior to moving to Connecticut! After eating, there was lots of talking, playing board games, and feeling contented. The day after Thanksgiving, we reunited for leftovers and to showcase our various talents. I played a duet on the piano with two hands and a foot. From various other participants, there was banjo playing, reciting the first 100 digits of pi (!!!), dog tricks, joke telling, ballet dancing, reciting the alphabet backwards and of course stupid human tricks (MK can touch her shoulders together!!). It was an amazing evening fueled by good company and just the right amount of wine.

Yale/Harvard 2007

  


Well, I wish I could say it was as good as last year, but not only were we freezing, our guys were just embarassing.  At one point, Harvard threw a terrible pass and one of our guys caught it, tripped, and handed it to another Harvard player.  Like, "oh my gosh, you guys almost let us get the ball!  Here, take it, score another touchdown!"  

At the end of the third quarter, I couldn't feel my hands or my feet and I was exhausted, so I called it a day.  I hear things didn't get much better, so I'm glad I spent the rest of my afternoon tucked in on my couch.  At least the tailgating before hand was fun!

This afternoon I was overcome by an overwhelming longing to be home.  More specifically, to be eating breakfast at my Grandma Mary's green round table, my dad across from me reading the Sunday paper in his PJs.  I wanted to see my grandma's worn bible at her place and hear her familiar voice floating in from the kitchen.  I wanted it so badly, tears came to my eyes.

Then I remembered my parent's living room at Christmas time, all of us in our pajamas, though Dad always cheated and took a shower before donning his robe.  My mom would make something special for breakfast and we'd open presents while my Dad made balls out of wrapping paper and launched them at us.  We'd all try out our presents or maybe watch one of the new family DVDs and then Mom would get out the Christmas china and we'd have lunch, the five of us, in the fancy dining room.  

Then there was Thanksgiving at Grandmom and Granddad's house, my favorite holiday.  The food was always awesome, of course, but the best part of the whole day is playing cards all afternoon in the dining room.  In between games or if it's a while before your turn, you sneak off to get yet another tiny sliver of pumpkin pie.  The secret to a great Thanksgiving is to eat just a little lunch so you can have a piece of pie every hour until dinner.  Now that's a holiday!  The best present I ever received was June before we left for Connecticut, my family threw me my own little summer Thanksgiving, complete with my Grandmom's delicious pumpkin chiffon pie (mmmmmm....) and playing cards until the men were groaning that it was time to go home.  

I guess you could say I'm a little homesick.  I was always pretty sure I wouldn't live my grown-up life in Missouri but part of me assumed I'd somehow pack up my family and taken them with me.  I love getting frequent updates but it's a little bittersweet because it just doesn't seem fair that I can't be here and there at the same time.  I see pictures of everyone laughing and eating cake and I think, "shouldn't I be there?"  I'm tired of missing birthdays and holidays and family dinners!  Well, this year I put my foot down.  We've done a Christmas with Kevin's family in Arizona.  We've done a Christmas apart when I was on a cruise with my family.  We've done a Christmas just the two of us in New Haven.  And now it is time for a Christmas in Missouri!  Vacation has been confirmed, plane tickets have been purchased, now it's just a waiting game.

So, is it Christmas yet?

Kevin's parent's made it out this past weekend and we had a nice visit.  They stayed with us, which was a little crowded in our tiny apartment, but we made out ok.  They had never been here before and they were excited to see Yale and New Haven.  Unfortunately, it got pretty cold while they were here, so we didn't spend much time walking outside.  We did have one nice day though, and went down to the beach in Milford and walked on the shore for a while.   Sunday we went down to Mystic and had a nice time exploring the "village" of little shops.   Overall it was a nice long weekend and they were already talking about coming back in the summer so they can explore the east coast a little more.

A couple of weeks ago, I started working the perfect job.  I have known for a while that it probably was a good idea for me to make a little extra money this year.  Several of my classmates got jobs at the hospital working as student nurses.  While the hours are flexible and the pay is alright, the thought of working 12 hour shifts taking vital signs and cleaning up body fluids was less than appealing.  A few weeks ago, an ad floated around the nursing school email about a new mother looking for a little baby break a few days a week so she could get some writing done.  I impulsively emailed her and I'm so glad I did.  

I started last week as a nanny for this precious 4 month old little boy.  They live on the ocean in a nearby town, so I'm able to get out of New Haven and rock this little chubkins while looking at the water.  It's a welcome break from nursing and I very much prefer it to a job working at the hospital.  I am still dealing with body fluids, but they're pint sized portions and at least I get a break from vital signs!