Here’s a great video clip from Ritchie McDonald and Jim Brickman, “I’m Coming Home For Christmas.” This song makes me think of all the military families that are apart during the holidays.

Last week, there was a very interesting article on Yahoo! about teenagers, and how it’s very hard for kids this age to show gratitude. Supposedly, gratitude goes against the biological make up of the teenage brain, and everything teens are trying to learn during these years, primarily independence from the parental units.

My holiday music today includes two videos, I couldn’t pick which one I liked the best. The first song is Steven Curtis Chapman’s ‘Christmas Is All In The Heart.’ This is another song that I love, especially the lyrics at the beginning about Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree. Lots of memories, loove the song.

I love music, as I’ve mentioned many time, but I really love holiday music. It doesn’t have to be Christmas music, and it can even be instrumental or from another country. I just love holiday music. For the next few weeks, as long as I can manage, I’m going to show off some of my favorite songs that are available on You Tube.

What am I going to do with my child? Remember that old joke about locking your kids in a crate until they’re 18 or something like that? I am headed that way with Jordan, only I’m not going to lock him in a crate, I am going to glue his lips shut. I have somehow birthed the perfect blend of equal part class clown, smart a**, and cute kid.

I’ve been playing with my Photoshop settings and my digital camera, and since I have the perfect pupil, Ms. Bella, I am going to post photos when I can. I know it will be fun …

I don’t know how many of you decided to Brave Black Friday. I cannot stand crowds, much less when it’s a crowd of people at 5 am, standing outside in the cold, still high on tryptophan, ready to trample anyone necessary to reach a Tickle Me Elmo. My husband, oddly enough, is a huge fan of greeting the other day-after-Thanksgiving people. Every year, I know by about Easter, if he is going to be home the day after Thanksgiving. And, each year, I just roll my eyes and say, have fun, don’t wake me on the way out.

Okay, it’s Thanksgiving and I should take a moment to give thanks. I could list all of the normal things most of us are thankful for-family, friends, a day off of work-but instead, I decided to follow the Medicore Mama and list 10 not-so-average things to be thankful for. Here you go, my own personal gratitude journal:

By some miracle of nature, we made it to bed before 11 pm last night, and I actually got more than 5 hours of sleep. That doesn’t happen often around here, and it certainly doesn’t happen often when the kids are out of school. Robert left for work while I was still sleeping, and since I got to play Snow White, I actually woke up a few minutes before the alarm clock went off.

My dad sent me his recipe for Thanksgiving turkey. If it sounds kinda strange, don’t worry, he always says my mom taught him how to cook.

This was Bella tonight, after we got back from our walk, slurping down water from her bottle. She is a totally different dog than the one I brought home a few days ago. Each day, I come home with a little more skin left on my hand, as she learns to walk on the leash next to me, and not try to rip my arm from my socket.

Today was the first day of Thanksgiving holiday for the kids. Luckily for me, they have the entire week off. According to Chase, for the first time in like 25 years, instead of going to school Monday and Tuesday, and then missing the rest of the week, our school district was kind enough to give the kids all five days. The flashback I am having is not the good kind, from college days, or one martini too many.

Last night, Bella and I went on our second walk for the day.
When we got back, she was pooped and so was I.
Evidently though, Ms. Thang decided to re-arrange her crate. Her crate is in …

I went for a mammogram last week, you know, the whole turning 40 thing. I actually had one when I was 35 so the process was not new to me.
I remember a few years ago, …

Well, Bella made it through her first 24 hours after rescuing us. So far, so good. In many ways, she is the puppy version of a exactly what she was: a foster child. She is nervous, wild, unsure, hyper, playful, fearful, curious, and testing us every chance she gets. She loves her big crate, absolutely hated-and I mean we’re talking 4 paws spread out, you-ain’t-gettin’-me-back-in-there hated, the smaller crate.

I did something today that I didn’t think I would be doing for many months:
I brought home a new dog.
After losing Tank so unexpectedly last month, and with all of the things we have had …

I still cannot believe that next week is Thanksgiving. It seems like just yesterday, I was sweating my rear end off (I still had to rear end to sweat off at the time!) standing by …

I came across some fabulous recipes this week that I wanted to share. Of course, for these to qualify as Show Me The Mom meals, they have to be quick, super easy, and there must …