And That Was Thanksgiving 2010...

It's over.
The whole shebang...
the weeks of planning,
the hours of shopping,
and cooking...
Over.

Thanksgiving needs to be like Target
during the holidays
and have Extended Hours,
right?

We had a humongous 23 pound bird
and she was delicious!
We had all the fixin's to go with,
and pie afterwards!
I passed "FULL" to "Pain-Full"
before I got to dessert.

Thanksgiving Day was super cold,
I think the High temp got up to freezing,
so we didn't even go outside.

The Golden Child wrangled his parents
and put the rest of us under his ninja spell--
is there anything more entertaining than a baby?
I'll be that his picture was taken more than 200 times
over the course of the day.
It would be an understatement to say we are "smitten"--
we are enraptured by this baby's cheeks and bright blue eyes.
He owns us.
***

After dinner,
the Black Friday ads were poured thru,
and a plan of attack was charted:
We needed a new television--
as you may recall, our great behemoth died.
That was the beginning of October.

So we set our sites on two different TV's--
one was at Target
the other at Walmart.
That was the only thing we had on our Black Friday list--
a television set.
Yon Boofus raised his voice and hand volunteering
to go with Dad
in the dark morning hours
to retrieve the newest member of the household.

They got up at 3:30AM
and set out for Target first.
Mr W reports that after seeing a line of people
who'd obviously been camping out
circle the entire building
for hours before they got there,
Plan B (or Plan Walmart)
was enacted and he and his sidekick
darted across town
or over the woods and dale
to our Walmart in Monument.

It was a challenge to even find the 42" Emerson LD HDTV
Waiting Line,
and Mr W was tempted on two different occassions to toss his hat to the ground
and come home empty-handed,
but Mr. Boofus encouraged him to continue on.

Their perseverance paid off
and when they returned at 5:30 AM,
faces beaming brightly as they entered the house
with the bounty they had gone out hunting for
on their shoulders
and all was well!

Then, we went back to bed for a couple more hours.
Mr. W didn't rest long,
then he got to work assembling and putting up the TV--
just in time to watch the days' football games.
And he was happy.

The middle girls--
Nana and Daisie had stayed up past midnight,
to go get their own bounty at Walmart.
They too, did not come home empty-handed
but with a new toaster, crockpot, food processor,
and mixer...
much to Dani's delight.
Well done, Ladies! Well done!

The day started out famously...
but as it wore on,
poor Dean's anxiety got the better of him--
he knew he was returning to his home in Loveland,
and he said repeatedly he didn't want to go
and then lost it...
he struck out at Dani and myself.

The day ended sourly,
as Mr. W and I drove Dean the two hours north to his home.
Dean rode mostly silent all the way there.

He went in the house quietly,
and when I went to give him a hug goodbye,
he walked away.
I asked him if he's upset that I'm leaving him there--
"yeah" he said.
"Are you just ready for me to leave now?"
"Yeah."

His current caregiver visited with us
outside for a few moments before we left.
I think he wanted to unburden his own heart and feelings of "failure" -as he called it,
because he can't take care of Dean's needs.

He is suggesting that Dean be put in a group home--
for the structure and extra hands available.

I don't agree at all.
From everything I've read,
Group Homes are for less-functioning special needs
and there are more opportunities for
abuse and neglect in Group homes.
Since Dean's been in this man's home,
Dean has not been involved in Special Olympics,
or community programs
other than his work programs.
Dean's usually involved in The Loveland SN Orchestra
at Christmas
and the Loveland Ballet Theatre group that hosts a SN's concert/musical
at Christmas.
Dean's just been very bored.
And I think his meds are totally messed up.
So I'll report that this week to his psychologist and team
to see if they can help out.

Anyway,
my heart was heavy all the way home.
If you're inclined to pray,
would you think of my son, Dean this week,
as he moves to another host home?
I'm praying that this one will be a better fit for him,
and his heart will be comforted.
Thank you.
I love my son.

****

We got home in time to watch the
Boise State vs. Nevada game.
We're BSU fans,
having lived in Boise we know that team is
nearly worshipped,
and had great fun cheering them on while we lived there.
So when I went to sleep last night,
Boise was whipping Nevada but good~!
I was in shock this morning to read that BSU lost.
How is this possible?
*****

It's Saturday,
and I have to work.
Boo.
This is where those Extended Hours
would come in handy,
ya know?
I'm just really tired.
But then, I think--
isn't everyone I know
really tired?
So it's not just Me--
knowing that is comforting.
Everyone's just doing what they can, right?
Right.

Time to put away the Fall accessories
and bring out the Christmas stuff!
That's a mood lifter, for sure.
Boofus is really good at putting up the tree.

Happy Weekend.
December's almost here.