Living, Loving, Learning

HAPPY THAN KSGIVING! I hope you are all having a wonderful holiday! This year, I feel there is so much to be thankful for. My boys, Bruce and Griffin, without whom I would not truely know what it is to love and be loved. My family, whose stories, traditions and commitment have formed who I am today. My friends, a group of amazing people whose talents and ability to thrive in all sorts of situations nuture my spirit daily. My bosses, who are kind and fair, that make it bearable to be away from my "real life" 5 nights a week. Not to mention all of the material goods and creature comforts that make my life pleasurable. And I am thankful to you who are reading this, that you care enough about me and my thoughts to take the time.

All is well here at the Gast household. My brain has been so busy with details, I have not had any left over brain matter with which to blog. SOOOO many things going on right now. With THE END quickly approaching (Bruce will graduate in June) there are so many decisions to start making. Firstly, when do we put the house on the market? The housing market in this area is terrible and we certainly don't want to be stuck when it is time to move. On the other hand, we wouldn't want to sell it too soon and be somewhat homeless for a few months ....with a toddler. I have been watching HGTV like a maniac (the way I watched baby shows P.G.) and am trying to sort through the advice. My absolute favorite is "House Hunters". I love watching the couples trying to compromise - what is more important, his 3 car garage or her gourmet kitchen?? I love seeing the strange and unusual things people have in their homes, regardless of the fact that it is going to be on national TV. Anyway...

So, we have been enjoying every last second of falls golden days. Griffin is working hard to learn how to peddle a bicycle. He loves to ride at Gran and MorMor's house because it is all downhill! His favorite think to do these days is to pretend to be a "puppy" - that should explain the licking of the grass! And, For all you Arlo fans, he is perfecting his rendition of "The Pickle Song".

Wow, I am totally blown away with the Democratic successes this week. Really I should say OUR success...ours who have voted, who have discussed and wrote about these issues, who made phone calls, who attended rallies, who gave money. Even Rumsfeld and the President have heard the cry of the people for change, a feat that I wasn't sure could be accomplished. But tempered with my excitement I also feel a lot of trepidation. The Democrats were able to win on this wave of dissatisfaction with the current administration rather than their clear thinking, decisive plans and awesome leadership. My hope is that the leaders of our country will be fueled with a new excitement to work as a group to lead this country into the next chapter...hopefully one of peace, prosperity and a renewed commitment of caring and repairing this earth and the people on it. On a lighter note...the winds of change have also blown through our house. Bruce had to shave off is facial hair because he is interning in a...

Our great friends, Dean and Gabriella, invited us over to celebrate Halloween at their house. Seeing as we were not keen to spend the night passing out candy to teens in the ghetto, and we love spending time with these friends, we eagerly accepted. Gabriella had quite the spread, as usual, and the crowd favorite was definitly the tasty beverage "Vampire's Blood" chilled with a hand made out of ice. Another family with their two boys were also there and then it was the big decision time. Well, against our better judgement, Bruce and I caved to peer pressure (that had come from all directions from apalled parents all week long) and we let Griffin go trick-or-treating. See, it's not that we have a moral delemma with letting our son beg food from strangers, or a religious issue with celebrating demon spirits and all things bloody, or even a snobbery against buying in to the mass merchandising that accompanys such a holiday. It is just that we have worked so hard to keep c...

I better finish these vacation posts soon as I am running out of Roman numerals that I know. So after we left the Jack Daniels distillery, we were hoping for a quick drive into Memphis. In reality, the only way to get there was a small, curvy 2-lane road with a maximum speed limit of 55 mph. Normally, this is our preferred mode of travel, but at this point in the trip we were ready for a short drive and a relaxing evening in a decent hotel. We drove for about an hour when we saw signs advertising "Moonshine Jelly" - c'mon, you know we had to stop. Because Griffin looked like this, we decided that I would run in and investigate and Bruce would stay in the car. As we pulled in, I could not believe my eyes...I daydream of places like this. It did not disappoint as it was filled with Native American Crafts, old dusty quilts, vintage postcards, locally made bake goods, terrifying ceramic dolls and shelf after shelf of early 80's flea market leftovers. I could have spent ho...