November 29th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

It’s the morning after, and I’m so tired and I’m so sore, my hair even hurts. Thanksgiving is a LOT of work!

I had planned on eating at six last night, and I think I did pretty well. We were only about fifteen minutes behind schedule, and I only forgot one thing. We sit down at the table, four people short of who I thought was coming, and my husband asks, “Where’s the stuffing?” Dang it! The one thing I didn’t have prepped because it only takes a few minutes and I didn’t want it to take up oven space. So, while everybody’s dishing out, I go make the stuffing. DISCLAIMER: I used to actually make stuffing and it would take quite a bit of time to make, but everyone loves Stove Top, so I figured stuffing was one corner I could cut and not feel guilty about it.

So, stuffing crisis averted. We all had a yummy meal. I broke out the containers and divvied up all the leftovers, so everyone walked away with another Thanksgiving dinner, including leaving enough home for the four of us. I loaded the dishwashers once, started doing the remaining dishes by hand, my daughter unloaded the dishwashers, I loaded them again, and then finished the last dishes by hand.

It is mind blowing how many dishes get used for Thanksgiving. Before dinner, all of the dishes I had used to prep the food where already washed and put away, several of the pots were washed, and the turkey roaster was washed. The four loads of dishes were just the plates, glasses, silverware and serving dishes we used.

Now today, I get to put all this stuff away…yeah. For the holidays, like I’m sure many people do, I pull out the good china, so all of that needs to be packed away again. I also use my aunt’s pots to prepare, so they need to get stored in the basement again. The folding tables need to get dragged outside and the furniture needs to be put back in place. (We don’t have a dining room, so our Thanksgiving dinner takes place in our family room.) The floor needs to be mopped, the vacuum needs to be run, and then I get to drag all the Christmas stuff upstairs because tomorrow we are having our tree decorating party. Just shoot me now…please.

Other than going to the grocery store to pick up some stuff I need for tomorrow, I am NOT Black Friday shopping. My daughters, on the other hand, are out with their grandmother, aunt and cousins at Jersey Gardens. My son PJ and his girlfriend Alex are out, God knows where, shopping; and my husband is off to work, so he’ll be out in the mess as well. No thank you. What about you? Are you braving the crowds?

One last funny story before I close, I took the dog out this morning just as it was getting light out. I heard a strange noise and I looked up toward the sound. Directly overhead was a navy and red hot air balloon. It took a minute for Colby to spot the balloon, but when he did he went bat guano. He was wagging his tail so hard his body was literally shaking, and he was barking his head off. (I’m sure the neighbors just loved that at 6:30 in the morning.) Colby wanted to get at that balloon in the worst way, and I had a devil of a time getting him back in the house. My dog is such a nut!

Okay, I’m off to Ireland. I have less than 1,800 to go, so I’ll probably be finished today. Even if I finish today, I will still post one last chapter tomorrow for you to read. I want to thank you all again for reading as I wrote. I don’t think I would have made my NaNoWriMo goal if you hadn’t been.

I hope you have a fabulous day. Safe and productive shopping if you are out there in the insanity. And, Happy writing!

 

Your Last Challenge was to spend a wonderful day with your family. I hope you all took me up on my challenge!

Your Next Challenge is:

 

Tell a little something about you and the holidays – what makes them special for you, a tradition you’re pretty sure is only done by your family, you’re little holiday secret, whatever you’d like to share.

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 28th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Gobble, gobble, gobble. The day of the feast has finally arrived.

I went to bed early last night, I think I was asleep by 9:30, with the hopes of getting a few extra hour of sleep, so I could be well rested for all that still needed to be accomplished today. As you can see by the timestamp of this post, it didn’t quite work out that way.

I woke up at 2:30 and couldn’t fall back to sleep. I laid in bed until three and then gave up. So far all I have done was load the dishwashers – that’s not a typo, we actually do have two dishwashers. It’s a cool, two drawer, independently run unit by Fisher and Paykel. The dishwasher came for free as a promotional item with the stove we purchased, a stove which later today will have all six of its burners running at the same time, and will be baking our turkey as well as several sides all at the same time! Can you tell I LOVE my stove?

 

After I finish this blog entry and my first of, I’m sure, several cups of coffee, I need to find quiet things to work on so I don’t disturb my sleeping family. Vacuuming at 4:30 in the morning will not go over well. What I think I’ll do is get all the food prepped and in the pots/pans/dishes to be cooked. I can do that, put it all on the back porch to get it out of my way (okay, so a cold day does have its benefits at times, but I still don’t like the cold), and then I can get my kitchen cleaned.

The turkey doesn’t need to get into the oven until 10:30 to be ready for supper at 6, so that will give me time to whip up a batch of corn bread. First thing I’m going to do though is stick little PostIt notes all over the kitchen saying, “Don’t Forget the Butter!” It’s a standing Thanksgiving joke around here. The corn bread recipe I use calls for melted butter. I melt the butter in the microwave while I’m combining the other ingredients. I make the corn bread, actually corn breads, I do those little individual loaves. They look beautiful on the cooling rack. I open the microwave to pop in whatever’s next, and there’s the butter. I have done this several times, and it’s always and only the corn bread I screw up, year after year. I’ve even make it a point to tell whomever is helping me in the kitchen, not to let me forget the butter, and they forget to remind me. I would just give up, but when the recipe is done correctly, it’s the yummiest corn bread ever.

Other than the biscuits which I’ll pop in right before we eat, the corn bread is the only baking I need to do today. Last night, Lys baked an apple pie and two pumpkin pies for me. I had asked her to use my deep-dished Longaberger casserole to make the apple pie, and to use three jars of the apples I had canned. Since we were only making one apple pie, I wanted it to be a big one. Instead of the casserole dish, Lys used a Longaberger pie plate, and she did use 3 quart sized jars to fill the pie.

Holy crow. If I had just made pies with fresh apples, I probably would have gotten at least five pies; but since we picked the apples so early, I couldn’t use fresh, I had to can them or they would have gone bad before I could have used them. I filled eight quart sized jars of apples. I already used two for a cobbler I made a few weeks ago, and now Lys used three to make one average sized pie, which means I only have one pie’s worth of apples left. That’s sad. Cleaning, peeling, cutting and canning those apples took hours. Seems like an awful lot of work for very little yield.

Okay, it’s going on five already, and if I want to get finished by one so I can sneak in a nap before people get here, I had better get moving.

I hope you have a blessed day, and Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Your Last Challenge was:

I’m thankful for…

 

I know ten minutes will not be enough time for this challenge, because I really do have much to be thankful for, at least fifteen minutes worth. J

I’m thankful we have food to eat.

I’m thankful we can provide shoes for our children’s feet.

I’m thankful for the roof over our head.

I’m thankful we can sleep in a bed.

I’m thankful for those who gave their lives so we can live free.

I’m thankful for our dear friends and family.

I’m thankful I have a husband and children to love.

I’m thankful for the many blessing we receive from above.

 

Since I knew I couldn’t possibly list everything, I guess my brain thought a more generalized poem would suffice. Yup, I’m still a little baffled when a challenge produces a poem. The one thing I didn’t mention above was I am incredibly thankful to be able to do something I truly love, writing; and I am thankful for all of you, reading.

 

Your Next Challenge is to go have a wonderful day with your family.

 

You have all day. Enjoy them and your time together. Eat delicious food. Throw your calorie counter out the window. Have a slice of pumpkin and a slice of apple pie. Laugh and make memories. Go.

November 26th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Good Morning! Yesterday was partially productive.

I wrote over four thousand words, so that was good. The reason I was able to write so much was because we got a really late start on cleaning the family room. The plan was I would write until my daughter, Dani, came home from school around noon. She would take a break and eat lunch. Then both daughters and I would tackle the family room.

Since my uncle is now coming to Thanksgiving again, and he has horrible allergies, we have to do a thorough cleaning. I’m talking everything has to be taken off every shelf and cleaned, the walls need to be wiped down, every piece of furniture needs to be moved and vacuumed (even the bottom of the couch). Every candle needs to be capped so no scent escapes. No air fresheners can be used. We practically need to sterilize the house, so it is A LOT of work, but it’s a heck of a lot better than having to call an ambulance again because he’s having a severe asthma attack.

So, back to why we didn’t finish the family room. My mother came and picked up my oldest daughter, Lys, yesterday morning at ten. When she was here, I told her she couldn’t keep my daughter out all day because I really needed her help. My mom told me she would have Lys back by two. Perfect, an hour later than I had planned, but still doable, because I figured it was a two hour project if all three of us worked together. We’d be done by four, and I’d get a break before I had to start cooking dinner.

This also worked well for Dani, because she was so tired when she came home from school, she got to take a nap until two. Since the house was quiet with Dani asleep and Lys out with my mom, I got to write for longer than I had planned. I came to a stopping point, the end of a chapter, and I look at the clock. 2:45, and still no Lys, so I send a text. No reply. 3:15 I call. No answer. 3:30, I call again. Again, no answer. At this point, she’s an hour and a half late and I can’t get a hold of her, so I’m thinking they got into an accident, because that’s how my brain works.

Five minutes later, Lys calls and says they are at Kohl’s. Needless to say, I am not able to keep the displeasure from my voice. She apologizes and tells me they will be home soon. Dani is still asleep on the couch, so I wake her up, and the two of us begin on the room. She helps me drag an old chair to the dumpster, which I had been planning on pitching for months, but never got around to doing and be darned if I was going to spend half an hour cleaning it if I was just throwing it away. Then we disposed of a ripped up desk chair as well.

The next thing on my agenda was to break down Colby’s cage and get it moved into Dani’s room for the holidays. There was nowhere in the family room to keep it where it wouldn’t be in the way. I begin folding up the crate, and Dani tells me she didn’t realize I had planned on moving it right then and she needed to go and make room in her room for it. Off she goes, leaving me alone in the family room. I look at the clock. 4:15. Still no Lys.

My phone rings, it’s my girlfriend Karolyn. I feel bad, because she had to listen to my five minute, without taking a breath, rant over not being able to get the room cleaned and how inconsiderate my mother was for keeping my daughter out when she knew I needed help. Karolyn listened, commiserated, sympathized, and like any true friend does, she got angry on my behalf, and then told me an even worse story about what happened to her, to make me feel better.

At 4:45, I hear the beep of my mother’s car alarm in the driveway, nearly THREE hours after when I should have been hearing the beep. I end my conversation with Karolyn, so I can glare at them when they come in the door. Now, I wasn’t going to say anything, because I really do hate confrontations, but they were sure going to know I was not happy. Then my mother makes the unfortunate mistake of telling me not to be mad at Lys, “they were having fun”. That’s when I lost it.

I told her I wasn’t mad at my daughter. My daughter wasn’t the one driving. My daughter wasn’t the one who had it explained to her how I needed help. My daughter wasn’t the one who promised to be home by two. Then, instead of just apologizing and being done with it, my mother has the nerve to point out that I was the only one cleaning, implying that if Dani wasn’t helping then why should Lys be required to help. That’s when I blew my second gasket, and set the record straight.

What fries my cookies is, my mom doesn’t think she did anything wrong. She freaks out when she’s entertaining for nine on New Year’s Day, and my husband and I do a large portion of the cooking for that day, plus my mother has a cleaning lady who cleans her house before the party. Wouldn’t it be logical to think I stress out a bit before an event, and any deviation from a set plan causes me a whole lot more stress, especially when I have to do all the cooking myself and I don’t have a person to clean my house for me?

Anyway, what’s done is done. I can’t change it, so as of right now, I am over it. Today, I will write until noon. Take a lunch break when Dani gets home from school. Then the three of us will tackle both the family room and the living room. We should be able to get both rooms immaculate by 4:30 – 5, and I can take a half hour break before I have to start dinner. Barring any unforeseen setbacks, I can get back on schedule and be able to breathe again.

On that note, let me get to Faerie Tale Queen. I hope you have a terrific day, and happy writing!

 Your Last Challenge was:

 The Black Friday experience…

Once every four or five years, I decide to brave the crowds and go shopping on Black Friday. Then, when I return home, I vow NEVER TO DO IT AGAIN. It is complete insanity, the lines, the traffic, the parking. It’s an unmitigated nightmare, but the one thing about Black Friday that disappoints me most is the attitude of the people.

Just the day before, they were gathered around a table with their loved ones giving thanks for all the many blessings they have in their lives, and on Friday their bodies are overtaken by trolls. They are mean. They are nasty. They are self-possessed. Tell me, is that 20% off video game worth you banging your cart into another person and then cursing them out for being in the way?

After the third time I utter “Merry Flippin’ Christmas to you to!” is when I usually give up and call it quits for the day. Black Friday is the anti-Christ as far as I’m concerned. It brings nothing but bad will and disdain. Sure it would be nice to finish up my Christmas shopping, but I think I will wait and do it next week, during the week, when there’s a chance of getting a stranger to smile back instead of sneer.

 

Your Next Challenge is:

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 25th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Good Morning! Well, the 4:00 am thing didn’t exactly work out for me this morning. I drank entirely too much caffeinated sweet tea last night, to be able to fall asleep early enough, to be able to wake up at four. I think I hit the snooze button at least five times before I actually got out of bed.

We all went to my son’s house yesterday. He and his girlfriend Alex hosted the Dallas vs. Giants football party this time around. Let me tell you, sixteen people in that tiny Cape Cod is an experience. There were people everywhere. It was a noisy ruckus, with a lot of yelling and laughing, and for the folks watching the game, even a little bit of cursing… on both sides. It was a house divided almost equally of Giants fans and Cowboys fans and Food fans (several were there just for the food and family and could care less about football). It was nice not being grossly outnumbered for once, but I didn’t even watch the game. For some reason this season, when I watch, my Giants lose. Unfortunately yesterday, I poked my head in to sneak a peek at the end, and well, y’all know how that turned out…

While all that rowdiness was going on in the living room, Alex was running around making food, serving food, cleaning up food, making and serving more food. I kept asking if she wanted help and she kept saying, “No, it’s ok. I got it,” but you could tell she was getting tired. She and my son had been busting their butts for days preparing for the party. I finally managed to nudge her out of the way so I could at least wash some dishes for her.

I get it. I remember what it was like when I hosted my first parties when I was young. I wanted to do everything, but then, with age I came to realize some of my guests actually felt more welcome if they were allowed to help when they offered to help. Did it really matter if the carrots went in the wrong section of the cru de te dish or if the cheese was in squares instead of cracker sized rectangles? No, it didn’t, and when I realized that, parties went a lot smoother. Helping made my guests happy, and it helped me. When Alex gets a few more parties under her belt, I’m sure she’ll come to the same conclusion. In the meantime, I just keep offering to help, and do the dishes when she’s not looking.

I spent quite a bit of time chatting with my son’s friend Mike’s girlfriend Ashley last night. I had met her briefly in October, and she seemed nice, but we didn’t really have time to talk then. Well, we did last night, and she confirmed my first impressions. She is nice. I’m glad Mike has found a great girl, and I’m glad we get along with her. This is especially helpful since my son informed me last night that Mike and Ashley will be joining us for Thanksgiving.

Actually, I’m thrilled they’re coming. I’ll confess now, I was kinda depressed when I thought I was only hosting Thanksgiving for nine this year. Heck, I could have nine for dinner on a random Tuesday night. There’s nothing special about that, and Thanksgiving should be special. So, now with Mike and Ashley coming, arrangements made so my aunt and uncle are now coming (my uncle had shoulder surgery and wouldn’t have been able to drive), that brings us up to thirteen. All I’m waiting on now is to hear if our friends Barb and John are coming. If so, that puts us at fifteen, and for me, makes it feel more like a holiday. True it’s half the number I used to host for Thanksgiving, but I’ll take it.

So here’s the game plan I came up with for the next three days. I get up early, do my blog while my daughter gets ready for school, write like a fiend from the time my husband leaves for work and my daughter comes home from her half day at school, then me and my daughters tackle one room each day – family room today, living room tomorrow, kitchen Wednesday, which will leave only the bathroom to clean on Thursday. If I stick to this plan there is a slim chance I may hit the 50K. Please keep your fingers crossed for me.

I hope you have a great day and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge was:

 This year you are able to go home for Thanksgiving for the first time in many years. When you get there, things feel just a little off…

 

From the moment I boarded the plane this morning and during the entire drive from the airport, I could barely sit still, which I’m sure made me one of the guy I was sitting next to on the plane’s favorite person. I’m sorry, but I was so excited. It has been years since I have been in the position to be able to come home for Thanksgiving. Either money was too tight or things were just too crazy at work and I couldn’t get away; two years, I wasn’t even in the country during Thanksgiving.

I’ve seen the family over the years. I’d meet up with them during my travels or they would come and stay with me for a few days, but this was the first time in forever we would all be under one roof.

As I pulled up in front of my parents’ house, the first thing I notice is my dad painted. For my entire life, we have had a white house with blue shutters. Now we have a blue house with white shutters. My folks are getting wild and crazy in their golden years. Dad’s going to get a kick out of the fact I had to double check the address to make sure I had pulled up in front of the right house.

I gather my luggage, headed inside and stop in my tracks. Gone were the beige walls, gone was the shabby furniture, and what replaced it looked like it had been torn from the pages of Country Living. The transformation was astounding. Maybe this isn’t the right house.

“Honey your home!” Mom squealed and wrapped me in a fierce hug.

 

Your Next Challenge is:

 

The Black Friday experience…

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 13th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Good morning. I hope this beautiful, albeit cold, day finds everyone well. Thankfully, yesterday’s early morning snow did not amount to anything.

As I do each morning, I reread my response to the previous day’s challenge. When I did so today, I realized my response only used two of the required three words. I did not meet the three word challenge. Many times, the ten minute allotment does not give me enough time to finish a story, but on these three word challenges I do try to fit the words into the story early on so the goal is met. I could fib and say the word “strange” would have come up when Nick and Krista discover the wine cellar, but to be honest, I read the prompt incorrectly and thought one of the words was “surprise”, not “strange”. It’s pretty sad when I can’t even remember my own challenges. LOL.

Faerie Tale Queen is moving along. The ideal target number for day thirteen is 21,666. I’m not sure if I will hit it, but I’ll get close. Kieren and Caleb – yeah, love his name, just not for this story, so y’all can chime in any time now with suggestions – have finally met. It was a somewhat awkward encounter, and Kieren’s thoughts had me chuckle. Her inner voice is rather feisty.

I was concerned as to being able to make the dialogue genuine. Not a believable conversation, I think I do well with that, but the Irishmen vs. New Yorker. Although we all speak English, some of the words we use mean different things. Silly things like remembering over here chips mean potato chips and over there they mean fries, and potato chips are crisps. Luckily, the internet has just about everything you are looking for, so I was able to compile a list from several sources. What I found most interesting was there are several words I, and many in my family, use quite frequently without realizing they weren’t really “American” expressions. I guess it’s my quarter Irish heritage showing through.

Time to make my daily 3,300 mile journey. Wish me God’s speed. I hope you have a glorious day, and happy writing!

 

Your Last Challenge:

 

 

A week’s worth of cleaning, shopping, preparing, cooking and stressing, but everything is finally done. After my husband carves the bird, we’ll call everyone to the table. I so love having the family all together.

I take a moment to double check my daughter’s table setting skills, to make sure each setting has a napkin and the forks and knives are in their proper place, when it hits me for the first time that there are so few settings at the table. There are only nine this year, a mere third of what once was.

Today is a day for giving thanks, yet I cannot help but feeling sad. Our older relatives are either too sick to attend or have passed away, friends elected to go on a cruise, even one of our children will be spending the holiday with the in-laws instead of with us.  We didn’t need to add any leaves to the table, and when the butcher asked if I wanted the usual, and I had to tell him no, we only needed a regular sized bird this year.

I begin to think about what future Thanksgivings will look like. Soon all of our children will be off with their own families, celebrating the holidays; too soon our parents will be gone, and our friends will have moved away. For over twenty-five years, Thanksgiving has been my holiday. The one time of the year when I got to feed all the people I loved, and it was slowly slipping away from my grasp. Would I be cooking for just my husband and myself? Would we be guests at someone else’s home?

My husband interrupts my melancholy. “Ready?” He asks as he places the platter of meat in the center of the table. I wipe away my tears and nod. Instead of fretting over what’s to come, I decide to be thankful for the day I have, and enjoy my loved ones while I still have them.

  

Your Next Challenge is:

 

You are walking down an alley and you come to an unusual dead end. There are several recognizable portals in front of you – Alice’s Rabbit Hole, A Wardrobe, The Entrance to 221B Baker Street, Boo’s Door, Maxwell Smart’s Phone Booth, Dumbledore’s Spiral Staircase, (insert one I didn’t think of). You turn around to go back, but you find your way blocked. Your only option is to choose.

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 11th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Happy Monday Morning Folks! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.  

 

Today, in its entirety is going to be spent getting caught up on Faerie Tale Queen. By day eleven we are supposed to be up to 18,333 words which means I have to get almost 5K words done today. The good news is, five thousand words should equate to about two chapters, which means I will have one in reserve for posting if I fall behind again.

So have you been reading along? I do get random comments every now and again, but they are usually from the couple of brave souls who comment regularly. I know there are a bunch of you out there who read my blog, because when you see me in person, you tell me. This time, I could really use your comments. A few words would be great. This novel is stepping out of my comfort zone and I want to make sure I’m giving the readers something they would enjoy.

 Okay, I’m off to pound the keys. I wish you a wonderful day and happy writing!

 

 Your Last Challenge:

 

You are a turkey and you overhear the farmer’s wife say Thanksgiving is next week.

 

“Mabel. Mabel! Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness! Did you hear? Did you hear?”

 

Mabel rolled her eyes, “What has ruffled your tail feathers this time Priscilla?”
 

“The farmer’s wife. The farmer’s wife! I heard her. I heard her!”
 

At this point Priscilla’s panic had drawn a crowd in the barn yard. Even the cows had wandered over to see what all the fuss was about.

 

“Quit clucking like a chicken and tell me what your heard Priscilla.” Mabel snapped.

 

“Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving! It’s next week. Next week!”

 

Pandemonium erupted amongst the turkey population. All squawked, many ran around, some cried, and two even fainted.

 

“Ladies.” Mabel looked around for a higher perch, hefted her considerable bulk upon it, then tried again, “Ladies! Enough! Panicking will not solve this problem. What we need is a plan.”

 

Sorry, I didn’t get very far. My daughter is up and eating her breakfast in front of the tv, so I can’t concentrate. Better luck tomorrow.

Your Next Challenge is:

 

Write a story containing the following three words: Gate, Strange & Butter.

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 9th Writing Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Dang it’s chilly today, beautiful, but chilly. Then again, it is November in the Northeast, so what else should I have expected? I don’t know about you, but for some reason I feel like we are going to have a bad winter this year. I hope I’m wrong!

Yesterday my daughter slept until eleven, which meant I got an extra hour of writing time, so I was very happy. Chapter three of Faerie Tale Queen is posted on my FB page for all of you to see. At this pace, it means chapter four is due tomorrow and I’m a little concerned because of my abbreviated weekend writing time.

Thankfully the chapters are short, one of the pluses to writing a modern day romance novel, they are meant to be a quick read. If you only have a few minutes to sneak away to read, you can finish a chapter in the time you have. There are short chapters in the historicals as well, but they are not as frequent, and they are usually the sub-plot chapters. Historical romance novels are also, at least, 25K words longer than a modern romantic novel, so you have leeway to add more detail, a lot more detail.

Okay, as I said yesterday, these are going to be short and sweet until Monday when I have more time. So, wishing you a very productive day, and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge:

 

 

Don’t laugh. Don’t laugh. If you do, the little boogie will think it’s funny and he’ll do it again. How the heck did he get the jar open?

All I needed was ten minutes to get dinner in the oven, and I knew I couldn’t do it without giving Jamie something to keep him occupied while I did. I also knew I couldn’t deal with my normal failsafe of a pot and a wooden spoon. Those I reserved for my more elaborate dinner preparations because they bought me a minimum of twenty minutes.

Tonight all I had to do was pop a roast and some potatoes in the oven, ten minutes, tops. I plopped him next to the dishwasher, out from under foot, gave him his wooden spoon, but instead of a pot, I gave him a sealed plastic jar of peanut butter. It still made noise so it would keep Jamie happy, and I would get to sit down to dinner without a splitting headache for once. It was a win for everyone.

He banged for a few minutes, then was quiet for about twenty seconds. I was just about to peek around the table to check on him when he started singing, so I thought I was okay. In fact, he was being so good, I figured I even had time to set the table without him glued to my hip. Three extra minutes…bonus. I placed the plates and silverware on the table, folded the napkins and began to set the places. When I turned the corner of the table to place the remaining two settings, that’s when I saw my little cherub.

 

Your Next Challenge is:

 

You are a turkey and you overhear the farmer’s wife say Thanksgiving is next week.

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.