Tis the Season

Hello,

I noticed that I last posted on 11/5, so I guess I am keeping up with my once a month promise so far. Not bad.

We had a great Thanksgiving, just my mom, dad, brother and sister were in attendance. Lots of leftover turkey since I made a total of 26 lbs for just the 6 adults. For the first time I tried a 12-hour brine solution, and the turkey turned out very juicy. I will definitely do a brine solution every year from now on. I must say it smelled pretty disgusting and I almost lost my appetite when I was rinsing the turkey the next morning, but I managed to control my gag reflex. Felipe actually enjoyed the smell and thought it smelled like a solution that needed some gin or vodka. And people wonder why I don't enjoy alcohol. Adding alcohol to a "s0lution" that smells like some combination of vomit and mold to make a tasty cocktail just doesn't do it for me.

The next day my sister and I decided to brave Black Friday. I wonder if it is called Black Friday because you are waiting foolishly in line in the pitch black of night to save a couple dollars on some crazy toy. I thought the girls were old enough that I didn't need to do Toys R Us, but I saw something in the ad that looked promising. Since Toys R Us opened at 5 AM we decided to get there at 6 AM in hopes of passing the departing crazies while we entered. No such luck. At 6 AM the line was wrapped all the way around the building. Once we got in line we felt we couldn't leave, so we were stuck waiting outside for about an hour to save about $20 total. Hmmm, needless to say, I doubt I will be doing that again (I say this every couple years). The Mesa High School orchestra and choir had a great fundraiser though. They sold donuts, coffee and hot chocolate to everyone waiting in line. The prices were cheap for those of us waiting ($1), and I bet they made some good money. What a great fundraising effort!

Today I am by myself at home while the girls are out with my sister buying gifts for the disadvantaged and Felipe is off buying my gift. Supposedly. I say supposedly because we don't usually exchange gifts. Very unromantic, I know. I strongly hinted that I would like some upgraded diamond earrings, but I doubt that Santa or Hubby will bring those this year. Sigh.

Our 2 year old Dell computer completely crashed a couple weeks ago. According to Dell, our motherboard and memory needed to be replaced. The good thing was that Felipe managed to salvage our hard drive (it had all our pictures). Then Dell did something really surprising and just sent us an entirely brand new computer. It is the latest and greatest and we are so excited! I will definitely buy a Dell computer again. We bought the computer at Costco.com and it automatically came with an extended manufacturer's warranty for 3 years. Dell sent a technician out to us when it initially crashed and eventually they determined to replace the entire unit. It's nice to have a technician come out and work on it because even though Felipe could have done it, it would have taken him several hours on the phone with tech support while they ask him questions like, "Are you sure the computer is plugged in?". Here's a question for you computer/itunes geeks out there (you know who you are). Do any of you know how to "unauthorize" a computer that no longer exists?

The weather today is beautifully cloudy, windy and rainy. We have been desperate for some rain, so it is a good thirst quencher for our state. The bad thing is that since the dogs have been getting wet our bedroom smells like a bunch of dirty gym socks. So romantic. On that note, I think I will go and make some hot chocolate and curl up with a good book. Thanks for checking in.

Love to all,
Christy