Thanksgiving at the Whitman Home

Thanksgiving Has Gone and Gone and We're Still Giving Thanks

What a wonderful day it was!


Kevin beat the roosters up by rising at 5:30 AM. He had a BIG day ahead of him, with a BIG menu to live up to. When I woke up at 8:00 AM, the pumpkin pies were already in the oven. My hubby is so good to me! ;p Most of the morning, I sat in the recliner with my foot propped up. I enjoyed the sale ads and for once, I was glad I was unable to do Black Friday shopping. This wicked little surgery will have me held back a looooonnng time. But again, that's o.k. I was treated like a queen on Thanksgiving Day; how can I complain??


The menu changed....it grew and expanded to include the following: Turkey breast, Spiral Honey Baked Ham, cream corn, speckled butter beans, baked macaroni & cheese, dressing, broccoli casserole, sweet potato casserole, rolls, and that WAY good pumpkin pie. Umm, ummm, good! With only 5 people in our family, we had alot of leftovers. All the better the next day, I say!


I did manage to set my table. I decided to use my Wedgwood India China, Godinger tea goblets, and my Wallace Queens flatware. Fresh tablecloth, cloth napkins...it was so nice. After we ate, my family and I sat around the table and had coffee with our pie. We have such a good time "dressing up" the table and eating with our finest settings.

All in all, the day was relaxing and fulfilling. Yet, these are not the things I'm most thankful for. I'm thankful for the great salvation I have, and for the great God who imparted it. I'm thankful for my children, all of who now know the Lord as their personal Saviour. I'm thankful for a loving husband and the marriage relationship we have shared for over 15 years. I'm thankful for my Church where I can worship the Lord, and I'm thankful for the freedom to do so.

I'm also thankful for safety, a home, and 2 vehicles. Everyone in America doesn't have those things. I'm thankful for the good health care I receive and the ability to pay for that care. I'm thankful to live in America, the beacon of freedom to the rest of the world. I enjoy freedom that other people in other lands know nothing about. Even with the problems we are having in the USA, we are still a great land, and I'm thankful for that great privilege.


Up next will be some photos to kinda let you see inside the Whitman Home in preparation for our big day. Hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving on the Way and the Tradition Still Holds

Thanksgiving is almost here, and I have to say, it's one of my favorite holidays! I love the menu planning, the cooking, the cleaning...as much work as it is, Thanksgiving dinner is so rewarding.

Ah, yes...Thanksgiving dinner. How I love all that it entails. But this year will be different. Kevin dearest will be manning the kitchen. Since my ankle surgery is still dictating my life, my wonderful husband will prepare the feast.

Mind you, it would be sooo easy to just run up to my Mother's house in NC. It's even a little tempting. But Kevin and I have been trying to make a tradition of our own, and that's Thanksgiving at home. Our home.

I have to give Kevin proper adulation, for most men would be making a B line to their Mother-in-Law's house. After all, he's preparing a meal for a couple of teenage boys, a tween daughter, and a precious but persnickety wife! But he's very serious about our traditions. To be honest, this isn't the first Thanksgiving meal he has thrown on the table.

The first Thanksgiving supper (not the one with the pilgrims) was in 1998. I had to have my gal bladder removed the day before Thanksgiving. At that time, our tradition was to go to my Mother's home. There have been many medical advances, and even though they don't saw you in half anymore when they remove your gallbladder, I was unable to travel. We had all the food, but no cook...so I thought! Kevin prepared a wonderful spread, and was right proud of himself for the good job!

Some may say, "Oh, you were just really hungry. That's why it tasted so good. Appreciation is a great seasoning sauce." No. The man can flat out cook. And that's one of the reasons I'm looking forward to Thursday.

Wives, imagine. Sitting back on Thursday morning while your husband prepares a feast! Turkey, Honey baked ham, cream corn, dressing, sweet potato casserole, green beans, rolls, and last but not least, Kevin's home-made pumpkin pie. He has that one mastered. I will relish every single bite. I've got it sooo good. ;p

It will mean alot of work for Kevin and the kids, but it will be a wonderful day. I hope all of you have a wonderful day, and please, never cease to be thankful.

Family Slideshow

Compliments of my lovely daughter, Savannah!

Many of the colored pictures are from our summer vacation. Yes, the one that started this whole foot surgery mess. So, I watch this slideshow with mixed feelings. ;-)

Returning to My Roots

I have found my way back.
It's been a long journey, but like a beaten, prodigal daughter, I have returned to what I know is right. It has taken the "recession", but I have come back to my penny pinching, coupon clipping ways.

Actually, I'm not sure I believe we are in a nation-wide recession. As long as the X Box 360 is being manufactured, I feel sure that we aren't. After all, if countless numbers of Playstation 3's and X Box's are being shoved under Christmas trees this holiday season, I feel confident that our economy will survive.

What? You don't believe me? Last time I drove past the factory outlets near my house, the parking lot was swelling with cars. Honey, they don't sell groceries at those places! The last time I tried to eat out at Cracker Barrell, the parking lot was so full, my family and I went elsewhere. Unless C.B. takes food stamps, all those cars represented paying customers. So, no. I don't think we are in a "Nation-wide" recession. But no doubt, we are all feeling the pinch.

When Kevin and I first got married, every month his precious Grandmother would send me an envelope full of coupons (and a little bit of money). Talk about spoiled!! I didn't even have to clip those things! Sweet Grandma Olivia did it for me. She did this on her own volition out of sheer desire to help me. So I took full advantage of her tedious labor. She always sent the best coupons. There was nothing like looking at the bottom of my receipt and seeing how much was decucted in coupon savings.

I was full blown. I had a pendaflex coupon holder with dividers and subcatergories. I was eager to use my money saving prowess, and I L-O-V-E-D stores that doubled their coupons.

Some of my greatest savings were from the coupons the hospital gives you after you give birth. You know, Enfamil, Baby wipes, diapers. Manufacturers are good to new mommies. Those were the best deals, and many times, they gave Buy One Get One Free Coupons.

But once my children were out of diapers and old enough to eat table food, my need for coupons seemed to shrink. And I guess that's when I sort of lost my way. Grandma Olivia still sent them, but I didn't use them. I put the pendaflex coupon organizer in storage, never to be found. I eventually told Olivia, "Don't bother with the coupons."

Now, 10 years later, I find myself wondering how I could have ever walked away from the "bargaining table", so to speak. Gas and groceries are huge expenses, and they have to be purchased at least weekly, sometimes more frequently than that. Don't get me wrong. I've always used coupons to Pizza Hut and Arby's. I never became a coupon reprobate! But I have forgotten the joy of saving money each trip to the grocery store.

I do have to add, I have a friend who is an avid couponista, Amber. I have a link to her blog. Well, after seeing all the stuff she had on her blog, I was inspired to go back to what I had done so long ago. Thank you, Amber, for being a beacon of light on this subject!

I started out by going to free online printable coupons. Not for me. Too much involved. And you can forget the freebies. Time is money for me, and I can't sit around all afternoon entering my personal information just so I can get a trial size product in the mail, which usually takes about 6-8 weeks.

No...I'm a coupon purist. Some merchants frown on downloaded coupons, although I have saved alot on my perscriptions by going to the manufacturer's site and printing the available coupons. (I received a $126 medication FREE because of a manufacturer's coupon! SCORE!) But by and large, I like the old fashion coupons. That's right, the one's you have to clip. I even started a newspaper subscription so I could get my hands on the coupon inserts. The sound of scissors clipping have been filling my home. And when I get back on my feet, I plan to use these babies!

I'm back to what I once knew, except now, I'm not so spoiled. I have to clip my own. Even though gas is going down (hopefully, it will stay down) I want to save that hard earned money Kevin brings home. Hey, I've gotta make my $11 per month savings quota...that will pay for the newspaper subsrciption.

I guess I will be shopping for another coupon pendaflex folder. It makes me feel a little old. I always envision granny's with coupon holders holding up the line at Walmart while they shuffle through their coupons. If coupons are a sign of aging, I've been maturing for a long, long time.

Agony of de Feet!

I hate to be a whiney baby...but this whole recovery thing stinks. I mean, people keep bringing me food every day. I haven't been able to do the housework that I so love to do. Someone else is carting my kids all over creation. People are calling me every single day to say, "How are you? I've been praying for you. Feel better soon!" My husband has to help me up, down, and into bed. I have to have my foot propped on three thick pillows. I have been robbed of the privilege of doing laundry.(Please stand by while I regain my composure.) I have been stripped of my God given right to go to the bank, to dash in and out of Wal-Mart, to stroll to the library and return books that are 6 weeks overdue, to make a last minute run to the grocery store right before it closes. Is anyone shedding a tear for me yet??? It's rough, I know, but some how, some way, I will survive.

A little tongue in cheek humor there. Actually, all of the above represent the beautiful side of recovering from a major surgery. Of course, if you don't have a strong network of family, church or otherwise, you might not have the wonderful help I do.

I can't thank the Jefferson Lighthouse Baptist Church enough for all their sacrifice and help during this time. The family of God has stood by my bedside many times, whether it be hospital bed or my bed at home. It's been a thick and thin relationship that has never given way under the pressures. I can only hope to return the blessing to each of the ladies. God knows my heart. I want to, more than anything I want to.

However, there are some agonies of de feet that I have to come to terms with on my own. With all the positives, there are some negatives I have to deal with, and to be honest, I don't have an easy time dealing with them. For instance, I am immobilized to the point that I can't even do a simple task. That greatly aggrevates me. I was sitting here last night with our dinner guests, (they had brought us all the yummy fixins for tacos and stayed to dine and clean up) and I noticed this enormous cobweb. Under normal circumstances, I would have done all I could to detract any attention from what seemed to be obvious. But instead, I just sat there in my wheelchair helplessly awaiting the cobweb's debut. I don't know if my dinner guest noticed it, but all I could think was, "Some creature sure was busy during this past 2 weeks!" Doesn't make a homemaker feel too good.

Although I don't miss grocery shopping, I miss being able to drive. I won't be able to drive for another 4-6 weeks. That's a real bummer because I really dislike asking people to run errands for me. And with Kevin's busy schedule, it makes it double hard on him.

It sounds fun to ask someone to hand you something that is 6 feet away from you, but after a while, you just want to be able to do it yourself. However, getting it yourself is not that easy. My foot is supposed to be elevated above my heart. So in order to get something even six feet away, I have to remove the leaning tower of pillows, de-recline the recliner, pull myself up on my crutches, and hobble the few steps away to get whatever it was I wanted, find a way to carry it back to the recliner (hopefully in my mouth or under my arm squeezed beside my crutch). And then if I drop it! AACCCCKKK!!!!!! To sum it up: I have to really want it bad to get it myself. It's just so much easier to ask someone else to get it. But asking someone else comes with a twinge of guilt. ;> Vicious circle, I know.

It's not only the guilt of always having to ask someone else to do a simple task for you, it's also the fact that you like the way you do it better. Oh boy, this is a real issue for me. As I wheel through the kitchen in my wheelchair, I am at eye level with my countertops. When I see crumbs, microscopic though they may be, I ask, "Dear Lord, where have I gone wrong? I have shown these kids time and time again how to clean this counter. Where's a dishcloth...." Now this is where I get in real trouble with my husband. As he wheels me out of the kitchen, I am wiping the counter as I go, just a'pitchin' a hissy fit. Then I start in about the microwave, and the refrigerator, and the sweeping, and the mopping. Oh, wait...that's how I am even without surgery! Seriously, I want to reclean what my husband and children are trying to clean, and it wouldn't be so bad if my hands, or in this case, my feet, weren't tied.

Another form of agony I feel is my restriction from the piano. My surgery was on my pedal foot, so I can't play the piano for at least 6 weeks. Now that makes me sad. I have tried crossing my legs and using my left foot on the pedal, but it is too awkward. I will enjoy hearing the choir from the pew for a change, but I will greatly miss my place on the piano bench.

Yes. The agony of defeat, or de feet. Either way, I'm experiencing it. I know I'll come out on top, but arising as the Victor takes alot out of a person. It most definitely takes a lot out of their family. I'm thankful for their help, and I'm thankful to God. Without them, I could never be victorious at all.

Above all, I want to be thankful that my condition is very temporary. I'm not permanently confined to a wheelchair, and my prognosis is great, of course. Lest I should be seen as unaware of how great I've got it, I want to say I see sunny days ahead!

Have I Failed to Mention....?

Some pets are called, "the dog with a thousand faces." I am the "person with a thousand matter-0f-fact facts", one of them being that I suffer from insomnia. So, in case I have previously failed to mention that, don't let the time stamp on this post freak you out.

I have survived the Lateral Ligament Reconstruction with the Arthroscopy. In fact, the surgeon was pleasantly surprised with what he found. I had no cartilage or bone fragments floating around. However, I did have two ligaments on the right side of my ankle that had to be repaired. All in all, I will survive.

Now for the recovery part. I know, it seems like the easy part, but this ankle hurts. In case I didn't mention it, the surgeon attached my torn ligaments to my ankle with anchors, which means he had to drill into the ankle bone. Ouch. It's just a wee bit sensitive. Actually, it's "alot" sensitive. The Percocet is barely knocking the edge off the pain. I'm doing my best to keep my foot elevated, but to be honest, no postition is comfortable.

I have a 12 week recovery ahead of me and alot of time on my hands. It's not that I don't have anything to do. It's just that I can't do anything that requires my feet! As soon as I can get past the pain and grogginess, I hope to devote some time to my homeschool lesson plans. I know my children will greatly appreciate that!

I had a dear friend stop by today. I thought she was coming to see me....you know, the poor, post-op Pastor's wife, but she had come to see my daughter. She had bought Savannah some yarn and a crochet needle and she wanted to dart in this house and show Savannah how to crochet in like 5 minutes. I said hold on! These kids have work to do! All the while, I'm trying to figure out if I can think clearly enough through the Percocet fog to learn how to crochet in 5 minutes myself! You see, I may have failed to mention it, but I have always wanted to learn.

Annette, my dear friend, said, "It won't take but a minute. I just want to show her how to start her chain. Then I will teach her the rest." Y'know, I kinda wanted to say, "Hey, I'd like to learn!" But I refrained. I sat there with my foot propped up trying to absorb what she was showing my daughter. Every now and then, Annette would turn to me and tell me how to do what she had just told Savannah. My chance came later in the day when she brought the boys home from Christmas play practice. The sweet gal even went to Wal-Mart at 10:30 p.m. to get the colors of yarn I wanted. She even returned with Reese Cups. What a Friend!

So, the Leftie is finally learning to crochet. Did I fail to mention that every time I asked someone to teach me to crochet they backed out once they found out I was left handed? They always said, "You're backwards. You won't be able to understand." Actually, I didn't have any problem translating what Annette did with her right hand into "lefthandedness." It came pretty natural. As soon as I can add to my chain, I will post a picture.

It's been a lovely late night chat, but even insomniacs get sleepy. Now I must carefully hobble back to my bed. In this home, no further injuries on my behalf are permitted!!

Surgery....And a few other things

Well, in just a few hours I will be leaving my house to go to the surgery center. I should be in bed sleeping, but I always have trouble sleeping before surgery. This will be number 11. Incredible.

I wil have a 12 week recovery time, but hopefully, I will be up on my feet within 2-3 weeks. This isn't what I was hoping for, but we don't always get what we want in life. And it's better on us if we just go ahead and deal with that fact.

That leads me to the election.

I'm very disappointed. I wasn't a big McCain fan, but I absolutely detest Obama's policies. It is a historical moment that we have elected an African American as the President of the United States. It is shameful that blacks were ever treated the way they were, and it is a proud moment that an African American has been elected into the highest office in the world.

It is also historical in that Obama is the most socialistic president ever to serve. This greatly concerns me. But again, we don't always get what we want. Historically, after two terms of any given political party, the other party regains control. So the bright side?? Not sure if there is one because the Republicans have fallen away from conservatism .

Yes. There is a bright side. God is still God. Jesus still saves, and He is still Lord! I am so thankful that no matter who is in the White House, I know Who is on the Throne!

The Notebook

It was guarded with our dear lives. It was courriered daily via a backpack slung over one shoulder, as was the 80's custom. (Only a complete geek would carry his/her backpack over both shoulders.) To the incognizant, it was just a pretty little something Sherrie and I were always scribbling in. But to us, it was The Notebook.

It was Sherrie's idea, and what an idea! Our senior year, we had so much to share. We were best friends. Part of our circle, Rachel, had moved away, so we were down to two. We had so many thoughts, so much we wanted to express, but who wanted to get caught passing notes? We both were conscientious students....well, for the most part. We decided to class up the traditional note passing by purchasing a decorative notebook. It's purpose was two fold: 1) we could quickly discern The Notebook from all others at a casual glance, 2) when we wrote in it, it looked like we were doing class work. Now granted, this idea is no longer new, but I can't help but feel that we pioneered this new method of the age old form of classroom communication.

I still remember the very first notebook. It was white with large black polka dots all over it. It was so near and dear to us, we did not scribble on the outside of if it like other notebooks. I didn't use it for anything else, nor did I whip it out and use it casually for fear of someone sneaking a peek at the contents.

We were faithful to our regiment. Sherrie and I met every morning at 7:30 am. We would sit in her car (sometimes mine) and before we would go to class, we would pass the notebook. By third period, we would pass it off again. And again by lunch, and usually, again by the end of the day. Naturally, someone would take it home. This routine lasted our entire senior year. To be honest, I'm not sure how many notebooks we went through. Sherrie, do you know? And if you do, do you have any of them?

Now I know some of you are thinking, "Big deal. A whole post on a notebook? All teenage girls write notes." That's true. But I was that teenager. And there's nothing like a trip down memory lane!

Within those pages, so many stories were told. Sure, we talked about shallow things, like, "Could her clothes be any tighter??" Or "He is Muy guapo!!!!" We were silly at times. We had the goods on other people and we knew it! That notebook held enough explosive secrets to fill a tabloid for a month!

But, it also contained painful confessions of two teenage girls trying to find their way in the world in which they lived. There were times we were crying to each other about our family problems. At times, we were "crying" about the problems we had with each other! Though I don't have the notebooks with me now, it would pang me to read some of the words I vaguely remember writing. What am I saying?!?!? I'd have a fit if ANYBODY read them now...except Sherrie of course.

There were a few times we both went into panic mode because one of us misplaced the notebook. Afterall, who would be comfortable with the thought of someone in the high school having access to your deepest, darkest thoughts? Talk about becoming the laughing stock of the school! Fortunately, it was always quickly recovered, usually shoved in Sherrie's or my locker.

Oh...The Notebook. I kinda wish I could get my hands on it. It would do my heart good to see what I said in my youth. If nothing else, it would serve as faithful reminder that age and growth isn't always a bad thing.