Thanksgiving Thankfulness Part 1- and What About Halloween?

(Rexy on her way to her first Trick or Treating experience)

Happy Black Friday! I don't know about you, but I didn't go near the stores today. It kind of scares me, too many stories of fist fights breaking out over toys and parking spots. Plus I'm determined to buy as many handmade items as I can this year. We'll see if that conviction holds as I get closer to the day and I'm without presents for someone.

There will not be a speck of art news in this post. It's all personal. Just so you know in case you want to skip it.

I realized that I never talked about Halloween - now that November is almost over - so I thought I'd post some pictures and give a quick synopsis before moving on to Thanksgiving. There was a party and children's parade at school.

Rexy wore regular clothes to school and then I went in and helped her change into her costume around 10 o'clock to be in the Pre-K parade. Well, as you can see, she didn't want to change out of the tights she wore to school. So she's wearing black and orange striped tights with her pink fairy princess dress! I like it's punk rock attitude. The parade was hard on her, though. Too many people, too many strangers. I'm not sure if taking a bunch of autistic kids around the school into strange rooms was such a good idea on the teachers' part.

(Aunt Laurie, Mommy and Rexy)

(Rexy at school)

Then, that night we went to my Aunt Laurie's house (yes, I'm named after her) for trick or treating. My aunt lives in a small town 40 miles south of us on a dead end road so I knew it wouldn't be unsafe or overcrowded. I wasn't sure if Rexy would be into it - more strangers - but after she saw the kids coming over to my aunt's house and getting candy she was all for it. So we set off, the four of us (me, DH, Rexy, Aunt Laurie), to trick or treat. We only went to about six houses which was about right for her stranger tolerance and my candy limit for her. At the next to last house we walked down a long, dark driveway and up onto a porch filled with what looked like rejected furniture. 2 big dogs were barking inside. If my aunt hadn't known this gal since she was 8 years old I might have hesitated to go up there. Anyway, I was apprehensive that Rexy might be scared. Well, Jeri opened the door and Rexy said her "Trick or treat!" and her "Thank you." The dogs calmed down and my aunt started chatting with Jeri for a minute. Well for some reason Rexy felt really comfortable there because she looked at Jeri and said, "Please come in!" and walked right into her house! Trying to hold back from laughing too much we got her back out on the porch and explained we weren't going in. As soon as we stopped talking she said, "Thank you!" and walked right in again! She was very determined. Too funny. Some people, she just likes their vibe or something. She can always tell who the insincere ones are, too.

Thanksgiving was yesterday. How was yours? Mine was almost exactly the same as it always is. Which is exactly the way I like it. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera at home so no pics. We, again, went to my Aunt Laurie's house. There were 11 of us for dinner. My aunt and uncle, my sister, my cousin, my other cousin and his wife. Also, my cousin's wife's parents have totally become part of our family, too, and they were part of the food extraveganza as well.

I'm thankful for the unchanging nature of our holidays. I'm thankful that my cousin's in-laws turned out to live only about 2 miles from his parents' house so that we don't have to miss him on holidays (When they met, his wife lived in Vancouver, BC and he lived/lives just over the U.S. border about ten miles from there. Their parents live 160 miles south of that - what a weird coincidence that they lived so close to each other, I think.). I'm thankful that they turned out to be so great that we want them to spend holidays with us! I'm thankful that my other cousin learned how to make pies from my grandmother before she died so that our holidays can continue as we remember them. It's comforting after dinner to eat apple pie that tastes just like hers. I'm thankful for my kind and generous aunt who has so valiantly stepped up to try and fill the shoes of my departed mother and grandmother. One of the hardest things for both of us to bear is the fact that Rexy will grow up without the grandparental presences we both had. DH's parents, too, have passed. I'm thankful for that golden time, after dinner is over, when we just sit around the table and talk; Telling stories, being silly, giving each other a hard time. It's the best. Most of all, I'm thankful for my DH and Rexy. With them, every moment is golden.

On Sunday we will go to another aunt (on my Dad's side) and uncle's house for a make-up Thanksgiving. That will be Part 2.