All Posts Tagged With: "family"

Back from Enid, we’re now enjoying the remainder of this holiday weekend to relax, do some holiday decorating and catch up on a few chores. Reflecting on the Thanksgiving celebration that was, it was as good as we could have hoped it would be. The only thing that would have made it perfect was if my brother and his family could have joined us, but it didn’t work out this time. Fortunately, barring any unforeseen intervening circumstance, we’ll get to see them during Christmas week when the whole family will be able to gather together.

By all accounts, the Thanksgiving feast was a success. It was a lot of work, and that’s even with a couple of the items prepared in advance. Karla and I arrived in Enid a little after 8am Thursday morning and successfully met our self-imposed deadline for the main feast scheduled for 2pm. Now I know that Karla, my mom and others have done it many times, but that’s the first time I was in a kitchen, working non-stop for six hours. I just don’t think I’m cut out for “woman’s work,” as my mom calls it. Seriously, I certainly have a greater appreciation for the work of putting together such a grand meal and for those who’ve done it faithfully year-after-year.

Based on the comments made after the feast, the work was well worth it. There wasn’t a single complaint — other than my own self-criticism. (Frankly, I didn’t enjoy it as much as everyone else because my tastebuds were numb from all the taste-testing throughout the cooking process.) Being the perfectionist and worrywart than I am, I was fretting about how everything would turn out. According to the experts — my mother and Karla who’ve done this many more times than I have — the meal was a resounding success Continued

Today is one of my favorite days of the year. It’s a day that we set aside the normal cares, stress and grind of every day life and focus on family, reflect on our many blessings and eat way too much food, feeling miserable the remainder of the day.

This morning, we’re getting ready earlier than normal for a non-working day as we prepare to drive to Enid, where my parents live, to celebrate Thanksgiving with them and my sister’s family. I’ve volunteered to prepare the feast for today, with the (more expert) assistance of Karla, which means we have to gather all the fixin’s for the meal in addition to the usual impedimenta that goes along with our entourage (a family of four plus three canine kids). We’re leaving early enough this morning (6:30-ish) so I can get the turkey in the oven to begin its 4-hour-plus roasting and then prepare the various side dishes.

This year, I’ve chosen to brine the turkey using a Williams-Sonoma recipe that features its signature pre-made turkey brine blend of seasonings — coarse sea salt, dried apples, juniper berries, lemon peel, Spanish rosemary, three varieties of peppercorns and other herbs — and buttermilk. The turkey has been brining since Tuesday evening. I’ve become a brining devotee ever since my brother turned me onto it a couple of years ago — it makes such an amazing, succulent difference to the turkey (and other meats that I’ve brined).

To accompany the turkey, we’re trying something different from our family’s traditional dressing recipe. After a failed experiment with another Williams-Sonoma recipe (Smoky Bacon-Biscuit Dressing), Karla found a pre-made stuffing mix that we’re going to try: Cranberry & Pecan Stuffing. It’ll be the first time we’ve tried it, so I hope it’s good and that everyone likes it.

We’re also fixing classic mashed potatoes, snap beans with caramelized shallots and roasted mushrooms, and molded cranberry sauce — the latter two being Williams-Sonoma recipes as well. (Are you noticing a Williams-Sonoma theme to this Thanksgiving menu? That place has become like a toy store to me!)

One other item we’re including is another new addition to our traditional Thanksgiving menu as a first-course to hold people over until the main meal is ready. It’s yet another Williams-Sonoma recipe: Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Cider Cream. I actually made this a couple of weeks ago to try it before springing it on the rest of the family; I’m glad I did. The recipe makes alot of soup — and I mean, alot. We ended up taking two-thirds of the batch and freezing it to save for today. We’ll reheat it on the stove and it should taste as good as the day it was made! It was really good, by the way.

So, it is going to be a very busy and full morning as we start preparing the feast. I have no doubt that I will be miserably stuffed by the time the annual Dallas Cowboys Thanksgiving Day game kicks off this afternoon, no matter how much I pace myself throughout the meal. I’ll let you know later how the meal turned out and how well it was received.

Until then, have a wonderful, gratifying, satisfying and blessed Thanksgiving holiday.

Marc Stober writes a memorandum to his household “organization” regarding the financial crisis. Here are some highlights:

With the recent news on Wall Street, I have been hearing many concerns about our organization’s situation and wanted to take this opportunity to detail what we are doing from the top.

First, there will be no layoffs.

…

In the Travel and Entertainment category, you will find that fewer requests to eat in restaurants will be approved, and requests for desserts in restaurants, particularly, will not be approved (unless they are included in the cost of a kid’s meal). In the case of Cabot’s or The Cheesecake Factory, where ice cream or cheesecake, respectively, is kind of the point, sharing is strongly encouraged. An additional benefit of this will be improved health. Netflix has been put on hold for 90 days, and we will reconsider that offering then; unopened red envelopes left on top of the TV indicate a lack of demand at present. Newspaper and magazine subscriptions are subject to elimination as well. Executives, including myself, are being asked to purchase regular coffee in place of more expensive coffee drinks while traveling, and to utilize meals from our on-site food service provider whenever possible.

…

Lastly, note that we have no plans to add human resources. Requests for non-human resources (i.e., pets) may be considered in a future fiscal year.

On this day, at this moment, 39 years ago, a child was born in Pensacola, Florida to a young military family — a U.S. Navy pilot and his bride. They dragged led him around this great country throughout his childhood years, affording him the opportunity to experience the rich culture and traditions of its many states, from Florida to Texas to Florida to Virginia to South Carolina to Kansas to the middle of nowhere in western Kansas to Illinois to Indiana to Oklahoma. From living the nomadic life of a military brat to the nomadic life of a rural-church pastor to the nomadic life of a military brat (again), from the times of plenty to the times of famine, it was an adventure never to be forgotten (and hopefully never repeated).

It was the humble beginning for a man who would leave an indelible mark on those who came to know him, admire him and love him dearly. A man who is larger than life (and larger than most). A man who is wise and aged beyond his years, yet maintains a child-like (or childish) quality. A man whose humility would prevent him from telling you just how exceptional, unequaled and legendary he truly is. A man who has been called (even if only by himself) “God’s gift to mankind.” That man is yours truly, your most humble scribe.

Happy birthday to me!

In all seriousness, I want to sincerely thank my wonderful parents for bringing me into this world and for raising me to be a positively contributing member of our society, reared on “Real America” values, through some really good times and some very challenging times. I wouldn’t trade any of my life experiences for the world.

And thanks to my wonderful wife, my two beautiful girls, my three canine kids, my brother and sister, and my cherished friends for making this a very special day.

And thanks to my Creator, my God and my Savior for this life and for granting me another year of life and bountiful blessings.

It’s time we had a president who understands what it’s like to stand alongside people who have lost their jobs, and walked the picket line with them. Who understands what it’s like to listen to a grown man choke up because he hasn’t just lost his job, he’s lost his pension, he’s lost his healthcare, and he’s trying to figure out how he’s gonna go home that day and explain to his wife and his kids that they’re in trouble and he might not be able to take care of them the way he wants.

There’s something wrong about that. There’s something un-American about that.

— Barack Obama

My “time out” went longer than I originally had planned, but that’s for a very simple reason. I’ve been that busy and that tired. And my blogging will likely remain significantly lighter than in the past, at least for the foreseeable future.

In fact, I only blogged yesterday because the story got under my skin for some reason — perhaps I was a little sensitive about glaring hypocrisy due to the overabundance of it in the last few weeks for this interminable presidential campaign. It was enough to force me to set aside a few minutes to write a quick post, even though I hadn’t intended to start blogging again for at least a few more days. But this overly intrusive election cycle pushed its way into my consciousness even though I’ve been desperately trying to avoid as much of the coverage as possible. It’s just too much crap for me to stomach. (In fact, there’s been so much BS flying around, that I just added the “FactChecking the BS” feature on my sidebar, in case your interested in the facts, i.e. the truth.) I find myself asking daily (and often many times throughout the day), “can’t it just be over already?”

In any case, my blogging for the time being will be less than what I’ve done previously. One of the reasons is that I’m adding another hobby — I’m concentrating on learning Spanish. I invested in Rosetta Stone’s highly acclaimed software to help me achieve my goal of eventually being fluent in Spanish. I even have help from a couple of the native speakers here at work, who seem to be delighted that I’m trying to learn their language. Starting Sunday, I plan to start a daily lesson plan to help me toward this goal. When the software came in a couple of weeks ago, I tried one of the first lessons and it seems pretty darn effective to me in their methodology. After trying it out herself, my daughter Sarah, who has been taking Spanish in school, says that she finds their method very helpful and makes learning easier. She’s been more faithful with it so far than I have been and she’s doing a pretty good job!

As I mentioned previously, I went to Las Vegas last week for the Photoshop World conference. I had a good time, even though I missed Karla and the girls and my “babies” (the pugs). The conference was really good and informative and overwhelming in its scope. This was my second trip to Vegas in as many years. Last year wasn’t as much fun, but I blame myself mostly for that. This year I knew more of what to expect, both with the conference and especially with Vegas. With that knowledge, I was able to plan better and set me expectations appropriately. Consequently, I had more fun.

For one thing, the hotel accommodations were much better this year. Last year I stayed at the Luxor. I didn’t like it and its location, although “next door” to the conference, was far enough to make the constant walking back and forth between the conference and my hotel room not very much fun. This year, I stayed in Mandalay Bay where the conference was held. The much closer distance to the conference was much more convenient and much easier on my feet. Even more, the rooms were much nicer. That, in and of itself, made the trip much, much better.

What also helped was that I had a specific purpose for my off time — playing Texas Hold ‘Em poker. I played each night I was there (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) at the MGM Grand Casino. A friend from work told me he played there and liked it. After checking out the poker room at Mandalay Bay and not liking the environment or having to wait too long for a $2-$4 Limit game, I decided to go over to MGM to try it out. And I liked it too and will go back there next time I”m in Vegas.

The first two nights, though, weren’t very good for me at the table. I just wasn’t getting good hands to play and there were some very aggressive players — and I’m not very aggressive, but try to play a “tortoise-rather-than-the-hare” style of playing. The first night, I was $62 down. The second night, I was $50 down. The last night, I turned things around, leaving the table early $54 up. The way I was playing that night, I probably could have made more, but I didn’t want to press my luck. I wanted to end my trip on a positive note, so I walked away while I was ahead. And it felt good too. I felt good about my play and I felt good about coming away having a profitable night.

When others asked me how I did in Vegas, I told them I ended the week $58 down. Both Vegas locals and friends here said that was a pretty good week in Vegas. I thought so too. I learned a lot and I enjoyed playing a lot and only being out less than what a single show would have cost!

Since Vegas, I’ve been catching up at work and it’s been a busy week on top of catching up for missing three work days (plus the Labor Day holiday) last week. This weekend, we’re headed to Enid, America to visit my parents and also see my sister, her husband and my baby niece. I hope to have pictures to share by Monday.

Take care and go Thunder!

After a nice, long (but not really long enough) four-day weekend, it’s time to get back to work and back into my normal routine. It was really nice to spend some extra time with the girls before they get started with the new school year.

On Friday, after my appointment at Cottonwood to help me keep looking gorgeous with a simple, long overdue hair cut, I took the girls down to Karla’s work so they could see her office and tour the printshop. We then took Karla to lunch and enjoyed a little Mexican fare at Chelino’s. We dropped Karla back off at work and then headed to Quail Springs Mall to catch a matinee at the 24-screen AMC Theatre. Since Karla didn’t have any desire to see it, but the girls and I did, we saw The Dark Knight. We all loved it. We all gave it an enthusiastic thumbs up!

Yesterday, I took the girls to their respective schools for information day during which they picked up their class schedules. They both had hoped to get their lockers set up as well as to get their books, but unfinished construction at Sarah’s high school and a policy change at Ashley’s middle school thwarted that. Both were disappointed, but excited to have their schedules and begin planning for the new year that starts next week.

So, it’s back to the grindstone for me this morning. I’m heading into work early to catch up on emails and mail that have stacked up in the brief two days that I’ve been one. It’s my Monday morning, but at least I have a short workweek!

Well… I didn’t have to wait too long after yesterday’s post for gratification. I couldn’t help myself. There were two irresistibly strong urges pulling me — one was a father’s love for his daughter and deep desire to bring them joy; the other was a gadget junkie’s lust for the next cool thing. Typically, I can resist one or the other on their own; but both forces acting upon me at the same time is hard to resist for very long. The more difficult of the two for me to resist would have to be wanting to make my daughters happy.

You see, if you haven’t been following along, my daughters are getting their very own iPhones, albeit the hand-me-downs from Karla and me. They were beyond excitement when I made the announcement a few weeks back. They were just as excited about the iPhone 3G launch date as Karla and I were because they knew it meant they were going to finally get iPhones, which they’ve been envying ever since I got my first one over a year ago. As a father, I truly love to give my daughters surprises and gifts and generally bring joy into their lives. It was that love for them that compelled me to do something I hate (hate, hate, hate) to do — wait in long lines.

Yesterday after lunch, we headed to Penn Square Mall to buy Sarah new prescription eyeglasses. After we were done there, we decided to see what the line was like at the Apple Store. It was long… again… but not nearly as bad as on Friday. We heard some people walking by say that it was taking about two hours to get through the line. I wasn’t excited about waiting in line for that long. But I looked at the pleading eyes of my two daughters and felt the prodding of my inside, gadget-junkie voice and relented. (Plus it meant I wouldn’t have to brave that insane Penn Square Mall parking lot again for a while!)

We joined the queue and begin our wait. The girls’ excitement made the wait much more tolerable. While we waited, Apple Store employees passed out bottled water as well as some candy treats, which was a pleasant surprise and quite nice. The line moved pretty quickly for a time and then seemingly stalled for a period of time. The closer we got, the slower the line seemed to move, until all of a sudden it seemed to move pretty quickly again.

One hour and 35 minutes after getting into line, we were entering the Apple Store. The employees were very nice and attentive. (One of the employees helping us turned out to be one of Ashley’s teachers next year! He teaches the Yearbook class that Ashley was so excited to get into for this coming year.) The process was fairly painless and 20 minutes later we were out with two new iPhone 3G’s. Phew! Finally!

We returned home and began the process of getting the two new iPhones set up, erasing our old iPhones and then getting them set up for the girls. By bedtime several hours later, everyone had working iPhones. And to see the joy on their faces made every second standing in line and every penny spent well worth it to me.

I’m sure you’ll be hearing more about our new iPhones in the coming days, but I have to cut this post off here so that I can get ready to go to my new office to get it set up so I can hit the ground running tomorrow morning. Busy, busy, busy!

More photos of Baby Rachel for this Wordless Wednesday!

Baby Rachel with Grandpa (my father).

Continued

We’re celebrating the Fourth of July holiday in Enid, America, sharing food, fun and fellowship with family — my parents and my sister’s family, including newborn Baby Rachel, and a whole gaggle of dogs! Unfortunately my brother and his family in Houston weren’t able to make our mini-family reunion this year, but we are surely thinking about them!

In honor of all the celebrations with family and friends across America, here’s a wonderful quote from Erma Bombeck.

You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.