I Love Food

Can you believe it? It's the last day of November. The weeks simply flew. I can't tell you how thankful I am for all of you! It was fun getting to know all of you better. ; ) Well, here is the last Thanksgiving guest blogger: Heather Palmquist is a talented writer I met on Twitter several years ago. In fact, I will always associate a black panther, her avatar at the time, with her. She is also one of the rare Internet friends that I got to meet in person over coffee. (Is there any other way to meet a writerly type person?) Heather is a generous, loving woman with a wicked sense of humor, but I'll let you get to know her yourself.

I love food.

No, I don’t think you understand. I love food. Not only do I love to eat it, I love to shop for it, cook it and even talk about it. And for me, Thanksgiving has always been about just that. Food. Stuffing myself retarded on stuffing, mashed potatoes, rolls and pie. Sorry, mom and dad, but family’s just a side note when gravy’s involved.

So imagine my dismay at not being able to keep my Thanksgiving date with my best friend Pauline’s spread of ham, whipped sweet potatoes (nut-free since she nearly killed me last year when she “accidentally” forgot to mention the pecan topping which I’m quite allergic to), more awesome stuff that I blocked out of my mind since I missed out, and her pumpkin crème. Instead, I spent the day in the hospital with an IV full of potassium and some broth. Pauline was kind enough to hold off on making the pumpkin crème until Christmas.

I realize this doesn’t sound like it’s going anywhere near something to be thankful for, but not being able to eat anything other than liquids for the majority of November has actually taught me to be grateful.

I am thankful that my hunger is due to a medical issue and not lack of being able to get food.

Every time my stomach growls, I console myself with thoughts of the pizza or pasta or ham or mashed potatoes or woked asparagus that I am going to gorge myself on once I’m able to eat again. I am mentally planning the dishes I’m going to cook in my yet-to-be-used Crockpot my mom bought me when she was here several weeks ago. And I remind myself that there are people all over the world who do not know where their next meal is coming from, let alone able to remember their last meal. That last one especially now that I’m subsisting on a diet almost solely of Ensure—when did I skip middle age and head straight into SnowBirddom?—is really what keeps me in the land of giving thanks.

This holiday season, I ask that each of you remember what it’s like to be hungry (I’m sure we all have a Top Ramen stage somewhere in our lives) and give to your Community Food Bank. And please keep in mind those who have food allergies, so any canned goods that are gluten-free are especially needed.

As for me, I’m home and trying to stay out of the hospital. Although, come to think of it, at home I have no TV, no one comes and cleans my room for me and no one serves me breakfast, lunch and dinner in bed. Then again, lunch and dinner were consistently becoming pureed chicken in beef broth, so I guess giving up watching marathons of Storage Wars and American Hoggers is a fair trade. 

Thanksgiving traditions.

Today, for the next-to-last Thanksgiving post, I have the pleasure of introducing you to Jodie Griffin. Jodie is a talented writer and all around nice person. Her first book, Forbidden Fantasies, releases early next year through Carina Press.

First, I’d like to thank Shawna for sharing her blog space with all of us this month. I’ve really enjoyed reading all the posts.

Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday of the year.  Food, family, fun…what more could I ask for?  My house is decorated with pumpkins and turkeys, much to my husband’s dismay. (Although, after fifteen years together, he’s gotten used to it!)

When I was growing up, Thanksgiving had a routine.  Every year, the same thing. Instead of being boring, though, I loved the comfortable sameness of it.  On Thanksgiving morning, we’d get up, and mom would be getting the turkey ready. We’d have the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade on TV in the background and be peeling potatoes and making the stuffing to fill the bird.  All day, the house would smell amazing. We’d often have friends over for dinner or dessert, and after we ate, we’d play board or card games.  Then, at night, my mom and I would watch Miracle on 34^th Street together, and we’d munch on leftovers.  Those were the days! 

Now, as an adult, things are similar with my own family, although we’ve added some traditions of our own.   We have Wii bowling matches, and there’s usually some movie or another blaring from the family room.  While husbands and kids are doing that, my sister and I scour the store ads for bargains, deciding whether or not it’s worth it to brave the Black Friday crowds (for me, most of the time the answer is “not on your life!”)

One tradition that hasn’t changed is sharing what we’re grateful for. This year, I can add “got my first publishing contract” to my list.  My novella, Forbidden Fantasies, will be published by Carina Press in March 2012.

What traditions have you carried over from your own childhood?  Happy Thanksgiving, and I hope you all enjoy this festive holiday season!

Jodie Griffin   

Facebook --  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jodie-Griffin/165472856805202

Twitter --  http://twitter.com/Jodie_Griffin.

Why I am More Than Thankful This Year

Besides being a proud wife and mother, Sharon Cullen is the author of numerous romances. Her latest book, Her Dark Knight (Carina Press) is now available for download. You can learn more about Sharon at her website. She’s very active in social media. You can follow her on Twitter or friend her on Facebook.




I’m typing this while at home alone and I’m incredibly thankful for it. That might be weird for some people to hear. Most people don’t like to be alone and, yes, I am one of them. But alone right now means that my husband is at work and six months ago we didn’t know if that was ever going to happen again.

May 9th, 2011 was a warm, almost-summer day. Earlier my husband, our three kids and I, ate dinner on the back deck. After dinner I settled down to read and my husband—never one to sit still for long—decided to go on a bicycle ride with our dog, Winston. Winston is a larger-than-usual black Labrador who has an overabundance of energy. John and Winston have been doing this bike riding/dog running thing for many years. At 6:35pm I received a call from the local EMT’s. To this day we aren’t exactly sure what happened but John had fallen off his bike. He fractured his skull in two places and had to be flown by helicopter to the closest head trauma hospital. He underwent emergency surgery to remove a piece of skull to accommodate the swelling in his brain. He was in a medically induced coma for nine days, in neuro ICU for fourteen days and in a rehabilitation hospital for eleven days. He had to relearn how to walk and he endured hours upon hours of speech therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy.

On October 3, almost five months to the day of his accident, he returned to work. His doctors and nurses called him a miracle. His recovery far exceeded anyone’s expectations. On October 1st, eighteen weeks after awakening from a coma, he ran his first 5K.

I am incredibly thankful to God for answering the many prayers sent up from family members and strangers. And I am thankful for the woman who saw John fall and called 911 immediately. I’m thankful for the paramedics who rushed him to the hospital, the emergency room doctors who realized the severity of John’s injury and called Air Care right away. I’m thankful for the doctors and nurses on the neuro ICU floor who took such excellent care of John and who were always upbeat and positive. I’m thankful for Lauren, John’s physical therapist and the person who taught him to walk again, and to all of his therapists: Courtney, Stephanie, Allie, Amy I, Amy II, Paige, Jonathon, Karen, Melissa and Lisa. I’m thankful for John’s neuro doctor who understood the importance of John returning to work and who worked tirelessly to get him to that point. I’m thankful to all of our friends who stepped in and held me up when I needed it, who drove our kids to soccer practices and school and back and forth to the hospital. I’m thankful for all of John’s co-workers who waited with me in endless waiting rooms, who walked me to my car late at night, EVERY night. Who cut our grass and did home repairs.

But most of all, I’m thankful for John for working so incredibly hard and for never taking “no” as an answer.

Friends

I first met Jodi Meadows on Twitter where she charmed me with her ferrets and yarn. No, not the story telling type of yarn--although she can to that too--I mean she spins and makes things with it. She is amazing. But what struck me most about her was her sweet nature that shines through every tweet and blog post.

I am quite honored to be able to introduce you to Jodi Meadows.

I am thankful.

I never want to take for granted living in a nice house, having clean water, and knowing where the next meal will come from. I have a good life. A safe life. My needs are met, and I don't know anyone who'd argue that it's important to be thankful for these fundamental things.

Also fundamental, which we might not always remember to count as fundamental, are friends.

I am incredibly grateful for my friends.

My friends give me hope and courage. They make me stronger, smarter, and more compassionate. They laugh at my dumb jokes, make themselves available when I need help. They put up with my yarn pictures and asking of opinions on other yarn things, even though most have no interest in yarning themselves. (Though they certainly like receiving yarny things.)

My friends keep me entertained, and keep me inspired. They know when to tell me I'm being crazy, or not being crazy, and when I need to stop what I'm doing and eat/sleep/play with yarn. They remind me who I am, and who I want to become.

Without my friends, my life would be much different. Sadder. Lonelier. I would not be who I am without the millions of ways they have affected my life.

I am so blessed to have all these people in my life, especially when things are changing so much. They stick by me. They support me. I don't deserve my friends, but I appreciate every moment I'm given with them.

Dear friends: I love you. Thank you for everything.

 

Jodi Meadows lives and writes in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, with her husband, a cat, and an alarming number of ferrets. She is a confessed book addict, and has wanted to be a writer ever since she decided against becoming an astronaut. She is the author of INCARNATE. (2012 Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins Publishers) Visit her at www.jodimeadows.com