Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!  Well, that was a month ago, but time and lack of turkey dictated that we eat our Thanksgiving meal a little later than usual. It IS almost American Thanksgiving, so technically we're doing ok.  When my kids were little it was lots of fun to decorate the table with dried leaves and ceramic pumpkins, but things change, and it's harder to remember Autumn when it's a humid 70% and 31*C outside.  The grey skies add a little to the long-weekend feeling, as well as the fact that we have Thursday and Friday off for Islamic New Year.

As I write, turkey's in the oven, cheese cake and apple pies are on the counters, veggies are cut, and I'm procrastinating doing any coursework.  Company is coming at 6:00 and with a few hours left, I'm just going to sit and enjoy the smells of the kitchen.  I might even haul out a few ceramic pumpkins and a candle or 2.

No matter what time of year, what season or celebration, my family is always on my mind.  I miss sitting around the table with the ones I love, participating in all the "kibbitzing" as my mom calls it, and I even miss the rat-tail tea towel whips that my brothers make, even to this day (does this ever stop? Like, once they turn 50 or something?).  At least those rat-tails mean that they're doing the dishes.  I especially miss the kids.  They're growing big without me, and that is the hardest part of being overseas.  All of our nieces and nephews are incredible, and we miss the time that we're NOT getting with them.

I remember a saying that used to make me chuckle as a kid, and it's "you can pick your friends, you can  pick your nose, but you can't pick your family"...or is it "you can pick your friends, you can pick your nose, but you can't pick your friend's nose"...Silliness aside (thanks Poppa), I am thankful for my family, both my childhood one and the one I married into (plus those lovely extras that married my brothers).  If I pine after one thing about Canada, it's my family.

One thing I am thankful for here is that when you do live in a community like ours, you CAN pick your family.  We have friends coming over to share our Thanksgiving meal, that we consider our 'Indo relatives,' and we have others who help us care for our kids when we need a hand.  We are surrounded by people who love us and who we love like family, and for that I am thankful.

It's been a while since I've posted, and lots has gone on, but this is what's up today.

Thanks for reading.