Day three and all is well.

Today we picked up Doug from the airport. It is amazing to me that you can smell a country on someone. I know what China smells like, and it isn't that great. Thank heaven for washing machines and laundry soap. However, this got me thinking about our noses. I like mine. It has been with me all my life, and I have become quite attached to it. It is terrible when it is stuffed up, and I can't use it. It sometimes enjoys causing mischief by itching and making me sneeze. I think it feels ignored. I find at times I am irritated by it because when it has a problem, I am very irritable. Nothing worse than an itchy nose.

It has the ability to smell some pretty terrible things. Like broccoli gone bad in the fridge, or garbage that has been waiting for garbage day to come in the 100° heat for a week. Or when a diaper needs to be changed. Just when you think that you would prefer to have your nose surgically removed because of allergy problems, or having to clean out the fridge, something wonderful happens. Just a whiff of a pleasant smell can change your mind about being rhino-challenged. I feel so fortunate to be able to smell a freshly baked apple pie or cinnamon rolls. In honor of Thanksgiving, what about the delicious scent of a turkey in the oven? The smell of freshly baked bread from my bread machine in the morning when I wake up makes life worthwhile. I still remember Nanny, my Mom's mom. She passed away from cancer when I was quite young, but I can't smell Avon's Skin So Soft without having vivid memories of her.

Smells are such powerful things. They help us recall moments in our lives, or people we love, or places we have been.  I have missed the way Doug smells (the good smells) all week. When he comes home from a long trip, he isn't really home until he showers and puts on clean clothes. Somehow it just isn't right until he removes the smell of Asian cigarettes and air polution. Know what I mean? When he smells better, all is right with the world, because my man is home.

I am also grateful for eyelashes. As women, we curl them, paint them so they look darker and longer, and we can now use chemicals to lengthen them. It might change the color of your eyes, but who cares? You will have longer lashes. Someone even went as far as to create false lashes. You can buy them in strips, groups, singles, or in bright colors. You can have extensions done from a professional, or take the time to do it yourself. Just be careful not to glue your eyes shut. Hey, I've seen it happen, my friend. It isn't pretty.

Every day, I put on mascara. Unless I am deathly ill, of course. In which case, I don't answer the door. Heaven forbid that anyone should see me without my lashes done. My natural eyelashes are the color of my skin. When I don't dress them for the day, people think I am terribly ill. (Someday I may just take advantage of that.) Doug used to laugh and tell me I didn't have any eyes when I washed off my makeup. What am I, some alien freak? At least I am all set in case of invasion or abduction.

I have been thinking about this lately because of my neice. Last spring, she pulled out all her eyelashes and eyebrows. They were bugging her. I guess 3rd graders just don't care about those long and lovely lashes they are graciously given. It is shocking to see someone without eyebrows or eyelashes. Their faces are no longer framed, and they have a shocked expression, not just surprised. It is now almost Thanksgiving, and they are just starting to show some growth.

It's one thing if someone is going through chemotherapy, they lose all of their hair. Everything matches, and it is fine. But when they lose hair in just one location, it is bizarre. In my freshman year of high school, a kid shaved off his eyebrows. He won $20 for doing it. He said it wasn't worth it. Sometimes you are grateful for lessons other people have learned.

Today, I have also been thinking about hugs. When I was little, my Uncle Gene would try to corner me at every visit, and ask me where his kiss was. I'm sorry, but I never had a kiss for you. Don't even try it. You are an old man. You are not my parent, you are not my baby brother or sister, and I am too young to be engaged. Those are the only conditions that warrent a kiss from me. Keep your lips to yourself, thanks.

Hugs, on the other hand, are meant to be shared. I love them. They welcome someone into your space, and you can feel actual warmth from them. I decided when I was young, that hugs were the best. Today, I was able to hug my hubby after not seeing him for a week. I forget how much I like to hug him until I can't.

Years ago, when my sister, Darcy, was home for a visit, she said something that surprised me. "Amber, you give the world's best hugs. Nobody hugs like you." I was so surprised by that. Hugging Darcy was like hugging a fragile piece of porcelain. She became so thin, I was always worried that I might squeeze too hard and break one of her ribs. I wanted her to know I cared about her, and that she meant something to me. Hugging her was an opportunity to show her how happy I was to see her, and that she was an important part of my life. It never occurred to me that she liked it. I would love to be able to hug her again. I think the best hug ever will be the one I get to give her when I see her in her perfect body, healthy, happy, and strong.

If only Uncle Gene would have asked for a hug instead of a kiss.......

Day two.

Today, I am thankful for something. I'm sure of it. Do you ever have days that are so full of stuff you have to do, that it is hard for you to clear your mind to remember the important things? I am having one of those days. Or weeks. Or maybe years. It could be my whole life, but I am too mentally fatigued to remember. This might take some time........

I suppose the first item on my list today would have to be airplanes. Every time I see a plane overhead, I wonder what it a pioneer would do if they were suddenly transported in time, and saw how we traveled. Would they feel that they suffered coming over the plains for nothing? Really, they could have endured a while longer, and then chartered a plane to get everyone to where they needed to be. Of course, in this day and age, they would have had terrorists attacking the Mormons. That puts a whole new spin on things. On that same line, what about Christopher Columbus, or the pilgrims? Obviously, everything was meant to happen the way that it did. We learn so much from them, and I am forever grateful for the sacrifices they made. I can't imagine the difference it made in their own lives. I just have to wonder if it would have done serious mental damage to them to see that we can cross the country in a few hours, not to mention the other side of the world. Can you just see their brains exploding with the concept?

Really, the reason this comes up today is that, as I write, Doug is flying home to us from China. I always feel like the flight from China is so far. He left a few hours ago, and we will arrive to pick him up from the airport tomorrow at 1:00 in the afternoon. I always feel bad that he is in the air for so long, and then I remember that he could have done it by boat. His one week trip would have been infinitely longer. See you in a year, sweetie.

I am also thankful for movies. I know, what a corny thing to be grateful for. (Yes, I used the word corny. Deal with it.) Truly, I am a movie buff. I wish I had known as a child that I would have such a love of the silver screen. I would have paid more attention to what I was watching. As it is, I have wonderful memories of the movies I saw as a wee one. The first memory I have of seeing a movie is when my Grandpa Williams took us to see "Bambi" in the Preston theater. We got a flat tire on the way home. I am sure that he was irritated by that, but it became memorable to me. I still love that movie, and the music is very dear to my heart. ♪ ♫ Drip, drip, drop, little April showers..... beating a tune as you fall all around. ♫ ♪

I loved it when movies came on and our family made an event out of it. We would pop popcorn and gather around the television and anxiously await the beginning of "The Sound Of Music", or "The Ten Commandments", or our all time favorite, "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory". We would marvel at the amounts of chocolate and candy at the beginning, and the edible room was a dream come true. What kid didn't dream of their own personal chocolate river? Or wallpaper where the snozzberries taste like snozzberries? Who didn't have the secret wish that their sister would be chewing a piece of gum, and she would blow up like a blueberry, only to be taken to the hospital to have the juice squeezed out of her? Oh, you didn't wish for that? Sorry, my mistake.

Somehow, owning movies on DVD and watching them whenever you want is just not the same. Although, I have tried to continue the tradition with my daughter. We put on our pj's, and pick out a special movie. We cuddle together under blankets with our fuzzy Elmo socks sticking out the bottom of the blanket. That is a special time to us.

I have also been known to use movies to change my mood. When I am working on a wedding cake, I love to watch "Father Of The Bride" movies, or "My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding". It just makes me happy, and the cakes are more fun. Lucky for the bride, they turn out better, too. Christmas just isn't Christmas without "A Christmas Story", or "Home Alone", or "The Santa Clause". (I happen to be a Christmas freak. Tell me you didn't see that coming.) On the flip side, beware when I am watching an action flick. I wouldn't sit too close to me, if I were you. I'm just sayin'.

Lastly, I love little girls. They are so gosh darn cute. I love how giggly they get, and how they get so excited over things. Oh, how I miss being able to get away with the shrieking and giggling of teenage life. Now, when I do that, people think I need medication. They could be right. I probably do, but my fatigued mind can't remember to go to the doc. Guess I am a terminal case.

And so it begins.

This year I have decided that I want to continue the week of Thanksgiving that I did last year. This year has given me so many opportunities to be grateful, and I want to take the time to voice my thanks.

I think I will start with the obvious, my wonderful husband. At the moment, he is in China attempting to achieve a few miracles. OK, maybe not miracles, but at least a few amazing feats of engineering brilliance. He left last week for South Korea to finalize a contract for an electrical device. (I would tell you what it is, but I would have to kill you after. As far as I know, this is an unmentionable.) He then headed to China for some other top secret items, that probably aren't so top secret anymore. I will someday take the time to explain these items, but today is not someday. It is today, and my subject is my hubby, not some piece of plastic and metal that will someday (hopefully) make us debt free. It's good to dream.

When he leaves on these trips, I worry so much about him. It unnerves me just a bit to send him to a communist country. If anything makes you appreciate your freedom, that'll do it. On one trip, Doug mentioned that a plane flew overhead, so he looked up. He was stunned to see a Russian MiG 29 flying low overhead. He turned to his translator, and commented on how excited he was to see that. His translator just shook his head and said, "No, no! We don't talk about that! We don't talk about military." They were surprised that he knew what it was. They had no idea. Now I will give a moment of pause for your memory to recall those scenes in "Top Gun". I know that you are now singing in your mind, "Highway to the Danger Zone". Admit it.



Which brings me to the next item. Freedom. I am so grateful for the freedom to get an education for whatever I may choose, for the freedom to log on to the internet and find whatever information I am interested in, and for the freedom to talk about our government and discuss the good with the bad. I am also thankful for those who defend that freedom. What an amazing military we have. There is just something about our men and women in uniform that gives me chills. I can't help but be impressed by them. It is so incredible that there are those who are willing to sacrifice their time with their families, and sometimes even their lives, so that we can enjoy the opportunity to live in a free country.

The next item on the list is a silly one, but in keeping with the theme of China, I am so grateful for soft, comfy beds. Seriously, don't you just love those mornings when you wake up, and your bed and pillow are so cuddly and pleasant, that you would just about give anything to stay there? Then the harsh reality of daily life kicks in, and you have to leave it all behind.

A-Haunting we will go!

After all these years, you think I would learn. Seriously, I should know better than to be stuck inside on a rainy Saturday afternoon with Doug. He gets bored very quickly, and then the trouble begins. The comment was made that it would be fun to make some ghosts for Halloween. "Cool! Sounds like fun, let's do it!" (That will be on my tombstone someday, I'm sure of it.) When I got a look at the pictures, I realized that he might just have some unresolved issues with me.....

I began to feel like there was a hidden agenda that day. Had I done something to irritate him? Me, the world's most perfect wife? What could I possibly have done to justify this? Well, I think I better not open that box. It belongs to Pandora.

I took another picture of Doug, and then my questions were answered. Doug's true identity was revealed. I have married the spawn of Satan. That sure explains a lot.If only I had taken this picture 20 years ago.....

Well, at least he is handy. He is great to have around when things go awry and need fixing. I used to think he just had exceptional skills, now I realize that part of his skill is from an extra set of hands.  I can't believe he was keeping that secret from me. How many times have I been involved in something and wished for an extra set? Where can I get a set of my own?

In my attempt to explain to Doug that I am an angel, and he should worship the ground I walk on, he came up with a brilliant idea. Why not take a picture to reveal MY true identity, too? Remind me to say "NO!" next time. I am now totally busted. At least I can claim to be an angel, even if I AM playing for the other side.

We decided an exorcism was in order; after all, we have an image to uphold. It seemed to work, but I just liked the lights. They were pretty. What can I say, I am entertained by small and simple things. Apparently, I am a cheap date.

After we were thoroughly cleansed of all evil, (in my dreams) I took another picture of Doug to see if it worked. Sure enough, he was my super hero again. Able to control the elements, and leap small footstools in a single bound.

My hero! We tried for a halo, but it didn't take. We did get a nice picture of his wings, however. I should have known that he had wings, as he is so addicted to flying.

Doug is also enthralled by the supernatural. He really wants to find evidence of ghosts, so we went ghost hunting. If you've never done that, you should. Lots of fun, but chasing them around a stool can be hazardous, so be careful. You want to make sure you don't break a nail, like I did. Stupid ghost.

We found that ghosts like to play "Ring Around The Roses", and "Here We Go 'Round The Mullberry Bush".

It wasn't long before we realized that our ghosts were just trying to make us dizzy and fall down. I have to say, it was pretty effective. There was plenty of dizzyness going on that evening.

We decided to check out Miriam. She is old enough that we thought maybe she was haunted, too. We were not quite as surprised with the results as we should have been. She is turning into a teenager in a couple of months, after all.

After realizing she had a direct connection to the mother ship, we performed another exorcism to disconnect her. I'm not sure how long it will last, but let's hope it will get us through the next 5 years, or so. Yeah, good luck with that, right?

Well, it seemed to work, if only temporarily. I guess we'll take what we can get. I'm just hoping that the moodiness subsides for a week or so. I could use a break. I found that Miriam has inherited her father's ability to manipulate the elements. Either that, or the mother ship is trying to reconnect. We'll keep checking, just in case.

Beware, all of you that have family members that are easily bored. You just might get more than you bargained for. Make sure you want to know what is really going on in the seedy underbelly of family life. Luckily, I have a great couple of people to live with, aside from the occasional attempt to bump me off. Halloween will be over soon, and we will all be back to normal, right? Right? Please tell me that we aren't always this twisted and creepy...