{"id":6798,"date":"2012-11-22T00:05:27","date_gmt":"2012-11-22T07:05:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/?p=6798"},"modified":"2012-11-25T09:14:22","modified_gmt":"2012-11-25T16:14:22","slug":"giving-thanks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/?p=6798","title":{"rendered":"Giving Thanks."},"content":{"rendered":"

Let us give thanks….<\/strong><\/p>\n

for the families that we were born into<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The Queen Bee and her Wannabees. Brianna and her daughter and granddaughter.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Guinea teaching Bugs 101 to her keets in the garden.<\/p><\/div>\n

and the families that we chose.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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"You are not a kitten. You are not a hen....Wait. You ARE a hen!" (Are You My Mother? by PD Eastman)<\/p><\/div>\n

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Tina and one of her "brothers." Guess her kids will have uncles. There goes the matriarchy.<\/p><\/div>\n

For those that give generously<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Milking through. 21 months and counting. Julia is my rock star!<\/p><\/div>\n

and even those that just give when they feel like it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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"What have you done for me lately?"<\/p><\/div>\n

For those that take to their work with cheerfulness and diligence<\/strong><\/p>\n

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"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. ... "<\/p><\/div>\n

and those who take to their work with….well,…um…who just take to their work.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Hooray!" say the children, "Pony rides!" "Yes," says C.C. "Hip. Hip. Freaking hooray."<\/p><\/div>\n

For the strong who provide protection<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Puppy Power!<\/p><\/div>\n

and the gentle who provide companionship.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Don't be fooled by Riccio's cuteness. His guinea pig eye looks guilty. Which means he has pooped on Pretty's quilt. Again.<\/p><\/div>\n

For those whose hearts are filled with hope<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Tina before she got her new legs.<\/p><\/div>\n

or determination<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Blackbeard sitting her fourth nest of the season. In November. Because like Pinky and the Brain, she has plans to conquer the world. With ducklings.<\/p><\/div>\n

or peace.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The Three Billy Goats Sleepy.<\/p><\/div>\n

For new beginnings<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Easy Bake Incubator.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Baa, baa, black sheep. How long 'til you get your wool? Will I have time to learn to knit?<\/p><\/div>\n

and memories of those whose time has come and gone.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Josie. We miss your eyeball rubs.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Tasha. We miss your ferociousness. No one else does, but we do.<\/p><\/div>\n

For fruitfulness<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Oh, to canning we go, oh, to canning we go. Turn up the stereo, to canning we go!<\/p><\/div>\n

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Young carrots and mature broccoli. The greatest generations. <\/p><\/div>\n

and even for failures.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Previously known as snap peas.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Plan: Delicious sweet corn to eat and freeze. Change in plan: Bug ridden corn cobs for chickens and dried up stalks for a decorative fall corn shock. Eh.<\/p><\/div>\n

For ordinary beauty<\/strong><\/p>\n

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View when sitting on the deck in the fall. Before the raking, when you no longer have time for sitting on the deck.<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

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Pink zinnia and a Red Admiral. I love how the butterfly matches her orange to the stamen. Well played, well played.<\/p><\/div>\n

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My work commute. The corn often switches sides of the road without signaling and the clouds tailgate. Agh! <\/p><\/div>\n

and simple fun.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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If you go, we go. No one gets left dry. (from Backdraft. Kind of.) <\/p><\/div>\n

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Fishing: Free. Fun. And slimy.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Follow the leader. But watch for goat berries.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Look, mom. Almost flipped over. Someone get the c-collar ready.<\/p><\/div>\n

For surprise gifts<\/strong><\/p>\n

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When my aunt heard I was starting to knit she sent me this entire container of knitting needles. I don't know how to use them all yet. But sometimes I open it and drool on them while perusing Ravelry. Thank you, Aunt Peggy.<\/p><\/div>\n

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A co-worker gave The Other Half this car. It is small and spray painted and gets lots of mileage to the gallon. Which means I never have to worry about him running out of gas on the way to work. Also I don't need to worry about another woman trying to pick him up at stoplights.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Went to help a friend with hoof trimming. Came home with a champion buck. This is the kind of fair trade China is getting away with, why not me?<\/p><\/div>\n

and unexpected finds.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The deer have been elusive this year, but the wild turkeys have donated lots of feathers for the Thanksgiving mantle.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Stumbled upon this sopapilla cheesecake recipe on pinterest. So I think it should have been on StumbleUpon instead. But who am I to judge?<\/p><\/div>\n

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Found this great dog in the front yard. Then found him a forever home. Because we'd have to buy another couch and then build a bigger family room to have enough space for three dogs in the house. And someone would still end up sittng in the wet-spot-from-paw-licking. Ugh.<\/p><\/div>\n

For the good<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Sampson the rooster. Our flock king, who sounds the alarm, keeps the hens in line, and never, ever spurs us. Long live the gentle giant.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Papa the pig. Who taught us everything we know about raising pigs. Especially why they should not be allowed to get bigger than 250lbs. <\/p><\/div>\n

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A good sign that your soil is healthy. And that you should go fishing. See "Simple Fun" above.<\/p><\/div>\n

the bad<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Dog food bandit.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Squirrel proof, my as*. Or squirrel as*. Whatever.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Squash bugs on the squash. Who'dathunkit?<\/p><\/div>\n

and the ugly.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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I don't even have to look up to see what a visitor is talking about when she says, "Oh! What is THAT?" I just say "It's a guinea" and go on with my business.<\/p><\/div>\n

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I don't even have to look up to see what a visitor is talking about when he says "Oh! What is wrong with THAT chicken?" I just say "It's a turken" and go on with my business.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Spider cricket. There's nothing good when you add "spider" to the front of a word.<\/p><\/div>\n

For holiday visitors<\/strong><\/p>\n

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My mother's dog, Tootles. Finally, a dog small enough for the kids to sneak under the covers.<\/p><\/div>\n

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My mother's other dog, Missy. A laptop dog.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Timmy, the elf on the shelf that arrives after Thanksgiving. To keep an eye on the naughty and nice. And, apparently, the soup cans.<\/p><\/div>\n

and, especially, for the upcoming holiday treats.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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We make cupcakes for the church reception following the Hanging of the Greens each Thanksgiving weekend. One year we made a cupcake wreath. Because it certainly seemed appropriate.<\/p><\/div>\n

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One year we made an edible partridge in a cupcake pear tree. Because the only bird you want eating your fruit is a pretend one made of frosting.<\/p><\/div>\n

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But this year I am making a cupcake Christmas tree. Since Little won't let me make one for his December birthday party any more. Now he wants a cake with Transformers or Batman or Pokemon or some superhero other than Jesus. Go figure.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Oreo truffles. Enough said.<\/p><\/div>\n

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So let us give thanks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

God is good.\u00a0 All the time.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Happy Thanksgiving, people.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Let us give thanks…. for the families that we were born into and the families that we chose.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6798","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6798","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6798"}],"version-history":[{"count":51,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6798\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6904,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6798\/revisions\/6904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ruffledfeathersandspilledmilk.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}