POST THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS

I hope everyone reading this had an enjoyable Thanksgiving day.  If you didn’t know it was November 23 you just might think it was August 23.  That’s because in Southern California the weather was sizzling for what should be a cool, comfortable Fall day.  I wore a summer dress and sandals as if it were a summer day.  The air conditioning should not have to be running in order to cook a turkey in the oven.  Crazy huh? 

Kudos to my sister-in-law Denise and my brother-in-law Len for hosting this holiday year after year.  They go through a lot of effort to make the day very special for all the family present.  Denise does a great job in the kitchen making everything she serves from hors d'oeuvres to main dishes to desserts from scratch.  Her table settings are as lovely as her food is delicious!

My husband and I look forward to this holiday every year and gladly drive the 4 hour round trip so we can spend the day with family who are able to be there.  This year we lucked out in regards to the traffic.  Seems that most people traveling for the holiday obviously had left earlier in the week as we encountered very few slow-downs on the freeways.

Because we had not seen any of the family since last Christmas it was wonderful to catch up with all the latest news from everyone.  We heard about the wedding plans from one nephew and congratulated our other nephew on the upcoming birth of his first child.  And we got to hold our adorable 2 year old great niece.  My husband’s 93 year old aunt was there too, so we had 4 generations of female family present: his aunt, his sister, her daughter (our niece), and our niece’s daughter.  Altogether we totaled 16 people.  Conversation flowed comfortably among all of us.

As we drove home that evening I felt very grateful for the warmth and love of my husband’s family.  They’ve been a part of my life as far back as I can remember.  Not only was I full from Thanksgiving dinner but my heart was full as well.

TRAVELING THE BACKROADS

I recently returned home after spending a month traveling through Portugal and Spain, staying in traditional Pousadas and Paradores, and exploring the backroads of Spain in depth.  The trip started in Porto, Portugal, where I spent 5 days, then moved on to Lisbon, and Evora, before going into Spain.  From the border between Portugal and Spain the trip headed south as far as Ronda, and then east, before making it’s northern route through the heart of the country all the way up to the Basque region of Bilbao, and Santander on the Bay of Biscay, eventually ending in Oviedo, after covering a major portion of Spain. 

The trip was so interesting with numerous “learning and discoveries” on a daily basis.  I have many stories to tell as time goes on, but first I want to share a small sampling of the numerous artistic photos I took.  I’m already working on several photos from the trip in preparation for making quilts.  Right now I’m in the process of sketching the designs and will share my progress at a later date.