Thanksgiving is upon us...

And I am so thankful. I look back on the last year and actually remember myself saying last Thanksgiving, "I can't wait until next Thanksgiving. " It was a little bad-attitude of me, but with #4 being 4 weeks old, I dreamt of easier days where I wouldn't have such lines under my eyes. These are good days. I can get 9 hours of sleep if I have the self-discipline to go to sleep at 8:30, which I actually did the other night and felt like super woman for the next 2 days. You should try it.

We're having Thanksgiving at our house this year. Nathan's parents will come here and we'll let the girls experience the wonder of preparing the Thanksgiving Feast. Twill be memorable, I'm sure.

Lola is nearly walking on her feet, but prefers shuffling upright on her knees.

I forgot to share earlier, Claire has been rather deaf since August. I finally decided to call our Ear Nose Throat friend and make an appt but we had a month long wait to be seen.

Where I would normally give regular instruction, I was forced to yell, which I could pull off at home, but in public I just seem like a terrible person.

Her appt is now 3 days away and last night as I was getting Claire ready for bed she stood up straight and shocked, looking around the room in wonder and asking, "Why am I so loud? Why are you so loud?" She strarted laughing at how loud everyone was. She was still giggling about it this morning at breakfast.

Okay, there's this girl that I see around town. She's at my grocery store all the time, and on Saturday I saw her at my Target. I just want to stare and ask her, "where do you come from? How did you become the way you are?" The truth is, I wish I were like her. She has 3 girls who look to be 3, 2, and 3 weeks old. She and her girls look like a little fairy tale walking through reality, and reality doesn't quite touch them. What I mean is that whatever might be ugly in the world, she doesn't seem to see it, or at least it doesn't change her expression.

A Stepford Wife! That's what she is! She's beaming and she's given her and her girls curly-cued hair. They're all wearing their home-made dresses (cute etsy style), they're wearing their tall brown boots and pea coats. Her whole demeanor is glowy, happy, joy, bubbly, sing-songy, "Oh girls, What kind of apples should we get today?" And the girls are all sweet and quiet and say, "That one, Mommy!" and they go nearly skipping on to the next aisle. I'm pretty sure everyone in the store stops what they're doing and watches for a minute or two. They are just a lovely spectacle. But she doesn't seem to have a bad day. I've seen them on 5 different occasions and they are consistently put together and joyful. My girls and I are quite a different spectacle I think.

I feel like begging her to be my friend and teach me her ways. I did approach them as they joyfully picked out shrimp and we chatted about little girls. But then Kate started being her awesome self and poking holes in the packages of ground beef.

I have been inspired. When I'm shopping my eyes are drawn to the tall brown boots and pea coats, though I'll never get my hair to do what hers does. Too bad I can't purchase something that makes me beam and constantly sing-song my words to my children. We'll get there. :)