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Thanksgiving in the Mountains

Posted by Carolyn on December 1, 2015 2 Comments

First of all, please excuse how quiet andthenthey has been. I had grand plans to write a few blogs while we were away for Thanksgiving, but I dropped my phone in the toilet right when we got to our house. It spent the whole weekend in a big bowl of rice, and thankfully has made an almost full recovery.

Anyway, we had a wonderful weekend up at Sunriver for Thanksgiving with my Dad and Step-Mom and her brother and family. We went up to the mountains on Wednesday, and drove on packed snow from before Willamette Pass all the way to Sunriver. I’ve never seen that much snow, for so long. Luckily, we got to do the drive during the day, so it was sunny and clear.

We got to the house in time to play in the snow a little bit before dark. Alma loved it and would have stayed outside longer, despite her cold, wet fingers and legs. The promise of the big bathtub was the only thing that could lure her inside.

The next morning, Thanksgiving, we went to visit our great friends, the Gosses, in their new home in Bend. It was another snowy, beautiful drive. It was fun to finally get to see their house, and to get to see them!

The rest of Thanksgiving was spent playing in the snow, cooking dinner, and eating. I made the turkey this year, and everyone added something to the table. It was wonderful.

On Friday we braved the below freezing temperatures and went to the High Desert Museum. I love this place so much. It holds so many memories of my childhood. The otters (who weren’t on display), the indoor scenes of the West, the old settler’s cabin and sawmill. It’s all there, all the same, and all incredible. I loved sharing it with the girls. Plus, it was amazingly beautiful in the snow.

Alma took this photo of me and Jesse.

We went back to the house to watch the Civil War and learn how to knit. Harriet has such a sweet relationship with my dad. He’s certainly one of her favorite people. I’m pretty sure the feeling is mutual.

Then, we tried to go to the tree lighting. It was just too cold, and we left before Santa got there and the lights were turned on. It was still fun, and Alma got to talk to Rudolph and Frosty. Here’s my favorite exchange:

Alma: Rudolph, I saw your friends being mean to you!
Rudolph: *nod*
Alma: Do they let you play with them now?
Rudolph: *nod*

It was sweet to see her so concerned for Rudolph. She has a sweet heart in her, that’s for sure.

November 2007, A Very Azerbaijani Thanksgiving

Posted by Carolyn on November 10, 2015 Leave a Comment

The following is a blog post Jesse wrote in November 2007, while a Peace Corps volunteer in Azerbaijan. Holidays are so important to us, and it was so odd to be away from our families, friends, and traditions while we were in the Peace Corps. Looking back through this post and the photos a couple things come to mind: though things change over the years, the things we’re thankful for stay the same – friends, families, music, laughter, also it is shocking that none of us got sick from that turkey from who-knows-where, cooked in a oven with only an on/off switch.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

This year marks the first time both Carolyn and I were outside of the States for Thanksgiving. It gave us a great opportunity to see how another culture celebrates this wonderful holiday. From what we could tell Azeris treated the day like…drum roll please…the same way they treat every other day! Turns out Thanksgiving is pretty much just a Western holiday (who knew?!?), so our good friends on the Peace Corps staff and in the embassy were nice enough to put together a nice little party for us. In honor of this wonderful event I decided to write a little poem (in true Robert H. Williams style.)

Twas’ the week before thanksgiving and plans were being made
For a feast so grand that the memory would not soon fade

Volunteers were cooking and packing their food
And journeying to the capital in a festive mood

When, at last, the party had arrived
Our embassy friend flung his door open wide

All our friends came together in one great big room,
The odors of the villages cleansed and perfumed

First we told stories and caught up on old times
Then came the food and talking stopped on a dime

There was turkey and stuffing and green beans, OH MY!
We had soda and juice and even pumpkin pie!

Everyone ate ‘til they were ready to explode
And staggered back upstairs for the talent show

There was singing and dancing and stories galore
And one strange act that left everyone calling for more!

After the songs were sung and the story finally finished
The time came to go, with the spirit far from diminished

So we all made our way home, our bellies full
And everyone had good reason to be thankful.

This party took place the week before thanksgiving actually occurred, so we were left to prepare our own celebration on the day of. We all gathered at our friend Mike’s house and had our site mates Nate and Cindy over. Mike’s girlfriend Kate joined us from Ganja and our good Azeri friend Zamira joined us for her first ever Thanksgiving. We were lucky enough to find a frozen turkey at a local store (we believe it was imported from South America!) and we managed not to burn it! With some help from packages from the states we had mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cheesecake and green bean casserole.

Being here really has made us aware of what we should be thankful for in life. We are of course thankful for our good friends and family. We are thankful for the thoughts and prayers they send to us (not to mention packages and letters!). We are thankful for great site mates and great PC staff members. We are thankful for all the amazing friends we have made our family here in Azerbaijan. We are thankful for the little things back in the states like having a bathroom inside the house and familiar food. We are thankful for music and laughing and playing games.

Most of all I think we are finding that we are most thankful we have each other.

Friday Gratitudes 2

Posted by andthenthey on January 17, 2014 Leave a Comment

This has been a long week that flew by. In the moment, I couldn’t believe it was taking so long, but last night I realized, ‘hey! It’s Thursday!’ I love that.

10. Books – Alma has gotten so good at sitting through a book, even books with lots of words. I love it.
11. Muscles – First training day for Couch to 5K. My muscles were soooore, but it was a good kind of sore. Grateful to have strong legs and a body that can put up with what I give it.
12. Pancakes
13. Wine
14. Nanapapa – Dinner with my dad and step-mom. I love how Alma says their name as one. “Nanapapa, nanapapa!”
15. Rach – we had an amazing nanny last year while I was teaching. She and Alma have formed the most incredible bond. Alma freaks out and lights up when she sees Rach, and I think Rach feels the same way. We still see her a couple times a month and it is lovely.
16. 2110 – while on my training run (ha), I finally met the woman who lives in my old house. We live about a half mile from the house I grew up in, and we walk by it all the time. I have wanted to meet the owners for a long time, but never saw them outside. On the 16th, the woman was getting the mail, so I introduced myself. So fun to hear that they have a daughter who sleeps in my old room.

There you have it, folks! So much for which to be grateful! Here’s to my next week of gratitudes! What have you been grateful for the past week?

One Little Word – Gratitude

Posted by andthenthey on December 30, 2013 8 Comments

I have done Ali Edward’s One Little Word project in the past, but I’ve never really done much with it. In 2009 my word was FOCUS because I was in grad school and knew that I needed to focus on my schoolwork, my marriage, my friends, whatever I was doing. It worked for me that year. Since 2009, I can’t remember if I ever picked a word. Obviously it didn’t leave in impact if I did.

Every November, I like to do the 30 days of Thanksgiving, or 30 Days of Gratitude on Instagram. It is fun to intentionally think of something everyday that I was thankful for. It was often little things, but those things are important, too. It feels so good to pay attention to, and acknowledge the things for which I am grateful. I want to feel that way the whole year.

For 2014, I want to really focus (there’s that word again) on being grateful.

Here’s a confession: Being home all the time with Alma and Harriet is really hard. I spend a lot of time calculating how much time until Jesse comes home, we have a play date, my parents are coming over, nap-time… I don’t know that I am the kind of person who thrives being a stay-at-home full time parent.

That isn’t saying I don’t enjoy my kids, or my time at home with them. I really love them, and get a lot out of being with them. While it is hard being home, I can’t imagine how hard it would be to leave them (especially Harriet right now) somewhere else, or with someone else. Whenever I do get a break from them, I find myself rushing back home to be with them again. And boy do I miss them when they’re sleeping. It’s a confusing feeling… when they’re awake I can’t wait to get them down, but when they’re down, I just want to hang out with them.

Anyway… I want to be grateful for this time. I want to be more grateful during the time I have with my daughters. I will never have kids this age again. Alma is so funny, and I love watching her learn new things. Harriet is just waking up to our amazing world. I also want to be actively grateful for other things in my life. I really am very lucky to have such a full life, I want to give thanks for it.

Gratitude. 2014, bring on the things for which to be thankful!

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