Susanne at Living to Tell the Story hosts a “Friday Fave Five” in which we share our five favorite things from the past week. Click on the button to read more of the details.

1. A quiet week. I love the Christmas season, but it was nice to have a quiet week at home. Both our New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day were pretty much quietly spent at home except for…

2. Going out for dessert New Year’s Eve. Our church had its usual midweek service on Wed. night. Our pastor doesn’t believe in “watchnight” services, and I am so glad. In the past when we’ve attended such things I’ve either fought sleep (especially when they show a film) or been cranky. Then I don’t like driving home after midnight when the alcohol-impaired party revelers are on the road. But on the way home after church my husband impromptuly (is that a word?) suggested going out for dessert. The service was veeerry slow, though the waitress was nice. But I thought at the time how much I enjoy being able to go out with near-adult children now and have such a good time talking and laughing. And we were still home by 10.

3. Inventory sale at my Christian bookstore. Actually I was quite perturbed with them when I stopped by about 5:20 Tuesday afternoon to get a 2009 calendar only to discover they had closed for inventory at 5 — and perturbed at myself because I had left that at the end of my errands that day: if I had gone there first, I would have made it. But, when I went back today, I got a whole new stack of books, some 40% off, some 60% off, on their clearance tables. There were some titles and authors I had seen mentioned often around blogland that I wanted to try, and I was glad find some of their books on clearance.

Add this stack to my TBR stack I posted a few days ago — and I’m going to be busy for a while!

The top one by F. B. Meyer isn’t one I have seen around blogland, but I have been wanting to read something of his. I keep seeing him referred to in other biographies I read.

4. Finding this plaque at the Christian bookstore — not on clearance, but I had a 20% off coupon! I’ve been looking for decorations for the family room with blues and tans and browns, and I love plaques with Scripture.

5. Filling in a new calendar. I take the old calendar and go through month by month to find the birthdays and anniversaries to record on the new calendar. I enjoy that quick look back over the events of the last year and looking at all those fresh, blank pages of the new year. It reminds me of Dr. Bob Jones. Sr., saying, “There are no stains on the pages of tomorrow.”

• We very much enjoyed our anniversary! Thanks for all your lovely thoughts and wishes. We usually just go out to dinner and exchange cards since it is such a busy time, but I look forward to that dinner out with just the two of us each year amid everything else going on. I’d recommend it even if it is not your anniversary.

• Everyone is off this week, and I so enjoyed sleeping in!! I definitely needed it.

• I think I am pretty well set for Christmas. I need to sit down and take stock and make a list, but overall things are going well with minimum stress, despite the late start. I know I have to go to the grocery store: we don’t have freezer space for something big like a ham or turkey, so I have to wait until a few days beforehand to get those. I also need to get my mother-in-law a stocking since she will be with us Christmas Day, and I am kicking myself for not thinking about it all the times I’ve walked through Christmas decorations the past few weeks and hoping there is something decent left. I need to get some stocking stuffers and round out a few things…but overall I’m feeling pretty well prepared. There is one thing I wanted to make for a after-Christmas birthday, but there are few places that sell fabric in town any more and none has what I want, so if there is time I may try to go to the next town to buy fabric.

• The last of the Christmas events has been attended except for meeting my sisters and their families for dinner this week (we live less than an hour from each other but rarely see each other, our schedules just don’t mesh) and our church’s Christmas Eve service. Oh, and two sons have a Christmas party to attend.

• I wanted to tell you about two new blogs. My middle son, Jason, just started a blog here —  mostly Bible study thoughts right now, but I think he’s planning to expand it as he goes along. And then I have so many quotes and poems in my files I decided to start a blog called Words Fitly Spoken. It’s mostly Christmas quotes right now, but I’ll add others after Christmas.

• We’re all missing my son’s fiancee. 😦 It’s beginning to slowly dawn that, unless they live nearby, we won’t have that frequent contact like we’ve had the past year or two.

• Many of you know Lizzie at A Dusty Frame, but if you don’t, her family is going through a trial right now, and she is trying to earn money and still stay home with her son. She has a post here about ways to help, but I wanted to especially mention her shop, called The Dusty Attic, and her Etsy Shop.

• I do have one or two more things I want to share before Christmas, so I’ll be back before then. I know it is a busy time before then, so if I don’t see you again before Christmas, I hope you have a blessed, meaningful one.

One of my favorite church services of the year is our Thanksgiving Praise service, usually held the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving in place of usual Wed. night prayer meeting. It’s a time when the floor is open for testimonies, and it’s such a joy to hear people speak about the Lord’s hand in their lives over the past year.

God is good.

By the way, thanks to many of you for the reminders (on the post about Castlepoint closing) that when God closes a door, He has something else in mind, something even more suited for those involved. That’s one of those things I know but temporarily lost sight of while absorbing the shock and suddenness of the news. We can trust Him for the future — He already sees it and is preparing us for it.

Today will be a busy day. Jesse has his sports physical for basketball this morning, then I have pies to make this afternoon. I have to confess I use frozen pie crusts. We don’t have much counter space to roll out pie crusts, and it’s such a mess, and frozen ones aren’t that expensive.

I got a free turkey — a local grocery store awarded points for each shopping trip there over the last few weeks. But the ones they gave out were a little over 12 lbs., and then I feared that might not be enough for 7 people — the five of us, Jim’s mom, and Jason’s girlfriend, and possibly a friend of theirs from school who wasn’t able to go home for the holidays. I usually get about an 18 lb. one. According to one cookbook you should allow 1/2 lb. per serving if the turkey is over 12 lbs., 3/4 lb. per person if under 12 lbs. I think it will be okay — I hope. I don’t mind not having leftovers to put in the freezer for future casseroles, but we like enough to make turkey sandwiches or heat up a plate of leftovers Thanksgiving evening and the next day, and then to make Turkey Bone Soup.

Jesse has a half-day of school today, but everyone else is off for the rest of the week. We don’t usually get our tree right after Thanksgiving, but we’ve talked about it this year since everyone will be off over the weekend. Other than that we don’t have any plans. Maybe play some games, watch some DVDs, and relax. NO shopping on Friday — I’d rather wait til weekday mornings when it’s not crowded. Jim wanted to start painting the outside of the house, but it’s been pretty cold lately, so I don’t know if he’ll start that this week or not. But with everyone here, posting might be lighter than usual. Then again everyone does take time to do their own things, so we’ll see.

Happy Thanksgiving Eve!

…this morning as I was getting ready for the day…but I have been at the computer a while now and can’t remember most of them.

It would be pretty bad if I needed a recorder with me through the day to remind myself of things I wanted to post, wouldn’t it? I do have a file on my computer where I jot ideas for posts, but nothing portable.

Oh, well…if it is important it will come back to me.

(I find myself saying that all too much these days!!)

It has been that kind of morning — a lot of thoughts flying around and I need to sit down and make a game plan for the week. Last week was a blur of busy-ness and then sickness, and I feel like I am coming out of a fog and need to get my bearings. I am feeling much better now (thanks for praying!) Jim made it home safely but feels a little draggy with zipping back and forth around the globe last week, plus he is either coming down with what I had or perhaps all the different things he ate (fish stomach soup and eel, to name a couple) are catching up with him (I am glad I did not go on this trip — I don’t think I could have eaten much of what was there and wouldn’t have wanted to offend.) We enjoyed looking at the photos he took, watching some videos of the trip, and hearing his stories Saturday night — plus exploring the things he brought back! (More on that Friday!)

I CANNOT believe we’re past the middle of November already. It took me a while to get into autumn, but now it seems to be flying too fast. Jim and I were discussing Thanksgiving plans yesterday and whether we wanted to get the Christmas tree that weekend. We don’t usually — that seems too soon to both of us — but everyone will be here and out of school/off work (except maybe Jason — he just started at Subway) — so that may be the best time.

Then Jason asked if he could spend Christmas with his girlfriend in OK because that is the only time during their Christmas break her mother has off work. I was thinking this would likely be his last Christmas at home…but now it will be his first one away. 😦 Of course, all parents know this kind of thing is coming…but it is still sad. His girlfriend has been with us last Thanksgiving and will be this one, too, so I guess it’s our turn — the first of many….:(

I’d better change the subject!

One thing I did want to mention was a couple of contests and giveaways.

I saw at Linda’s 2nd Cup of Coffee (LOVE the coffee dispenser in her header!) that another coffee-loving Linda at Mocha with Linda is giving away several books over the next few weeks. If you read here regularly, you know I am a book lover, and I know many of you are as well, so feel free to click the button and check it out.

Then the ladies at 5 Minutes For Mom are always up to something, and this time it is a series of giveaways from now through Nov. 25 with several big prizes along the way, including a Wi-Fi Epson Artisan 800 Printer and a $100.00 gift card to Sears. Click this button as well to find out more. I have my eye on a couple of things already! Despite the blog name, I don’t think you have to be a mom to enter.

And with forgetting half of what I was going to say, I still managed a long wordy post. 😳 Have a good day!

…that my husband has been in China for the last eight days.

I didn’t want any cyber-stalkers to get any ideas. But he is in US airspace even now on his way home.

He is on a board that has to do with textile fiber standards, along with people from several other companies, and they had a conference there. He works with the color aspects and gave a presentation on that — a 2-hour presentation because it had to be translated as he spoke. He said it went well, but we haven’t had much chance to talk about it all. Thankfully he has been able to call almost every day. His cell phone worked to call here, but a couple of times I tried to call him and couldn’t get through.

To give you a little window into his world, here is the description of his presentation:

The session will focus on color communication and the SAE standards that govern automotive color measurement and observation for automotive interiors. [He] will review the practical application of how color is approved at North American OEMs. The future of color computer-aided design and world-wide communication will also be discussed.

We’ve gotten kind of used to him coming and going through the week, but to be gone that long, that far away, and over a weekend has been a little tougher. We’ll be glad to have him home.

I had plans for a really productive week, but with having a bad cold the first part of the week and some kind of stomach bug the last two days, expect for missions conference and laundry I haven’t done much.

I have had about eight crackers and a few bites of applesauce over the last two days and have had to stay within a few steps from the bathroom, even after taking the maximum amount of Pepto Bismol caplets yesterday. I switched to Immodium, and whether that kicked in or whatever this is has run its course or the Lord answered prayer — likely a combination of all of the above — God can answer prayer through those other things as well as directly healing — I seem to be over the worst of it. I hope. No one else in the family has it, thankfully, and I hope they don’t get it. We did eat out Wed. night at a pizza place — I had a salad and no one else did, so I am wondering if something I ate there had an effect or if it is just a bug.

I know Jeremy is due to leave the nest soon, and I am not looking forward to that, but I have been so thankful this week he has been here to take Jesse to school and run a few errands for me.

Daytime television is a vast wasteland. I’ve tried to veg out with the TV a little, but there is not much worth watching in the daytime! I have gotten some reading done and slept a good bit this morning and feel a little fresher now. So hopefully all is on the mend.