Has the Dust Settled?

 Season's Greetings from the Stress Pool! I'm so glad to say that we've all survived the move, although both walls of the garage are still lined with unpacked boxes. Even Simon adjusted well. We wondered how our favorite kitty would take to the new house, and he reacted just like the rest of us - like we've been here forever. One of his favorite things is the kitty opening in the basement door. Why? Because of Little Nugget, that's why!

"Nana! Where's Simon?" Nugget's announcement at the front door is just like the angel Gabriel heralding their arrival. Of course, that really works out for Simon. He makes a mad dash for the kitty door. That doesn't stop Little Nugget - he sticks his entire head through the door and yells for Simon to come upstairs. Which, of course, he doesn't. 

The other thing Simon really likes is the screened-in porch. He's spent his entire time with us trying to get out the door to see the outside world, and did make it out a couple times when we lived on Grouse. Now, we can open the back door and Simon leaps out and onto the table to look at the wide world, and boy, do we have a view from our porch. He also gives us an inviting look as if to say, "Aren't you coming with me? Don't you want to sit out here and look at the view?" DH often accompanies him out to the porch. I don't know, though, how well that will go once the temps dip down a bit lower.

So yes, the dust is settling. It feels like we've been home forever. DH and I have been pulling Christmas decorations out of storage and going through them, finding a place for this, and a place for that, and looking at some and asking, "What about this?"

Often, the answer is, "I'm not married to that. I'm married to you."

We got brave and put out the Nativity set this year. It's Lenox, bone china, all white. Gorgeous, delicate...and, we have a cat. It's out of Little Nugget's reach, but Simon...well, he does like to jump! We're hopeful. 

While we love our new home, the biggest point of contention appears to be the kitchen. Our little kitchen (it is little, with very little counter space) served us well for Thanksgiving. But, nobody was more surprised than my Darling Husband. He worried over it for several weeks before Thanksgiving.

DH said, "We can order pies."

"Didi is coming over the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to learn how to make pies."

I could hear it before he opened his mouth. Then, "That kitchen is too small."

"It will be fine."

He didn't agree.

"So, you don't want me to bake until we remodel the kitchen in a few years? Really, it will be fine"

He gritted his teeth, but didn't argue.

I was sent to order the turkey breast. Every year for probably the past fifteen years I've gotten a turkey breast. Nobody would eat the dark meat, and there was always so much left, we felt it was in our best interests to get a turkey breast. Well, in a moment of insanity, I ordered a boneless turkey breast - for seven people, but realized it before I got home. "I ordered the wrong thing."

"Let's see how big it is when I pick it up," he said. It was small. DH asked, "Should I look for a small turkey?"

"Yes."

The next day he calls me during my lunch. "Giant Eagle sells several already cooked slices - we could get those to supplement."

"Get a small turkey."

"We only need a few more slices."

"Do you want me to make gravy?"

He got a small turkey. 

And, we made pies - 2 pumpkin and one pecan. We made turkey, sausage/vegetable stuffing, and mashed potatoes - all in our little kitchen! It ended up a good thing we had the turkey, because Morticia also came for dinner (she was unexpectedly let go from work early) so there were eight of us. And, surprise-surprise, they were happy to see dark meat. Who knew? We were so glad to have all of the kids and our grandson here for the first Thanksgiving in our new home. We felt truly blessed. However, we did miss having The Doctor with us - since Morticia wasn't going to be home, he made arrangements to spend the day with his family on the other side of town. 

When everyone had gone and it was just the two of us cleaning up from the day, DH said, "I'm surprised you managed to pull off the whole dinner in that kitchen."

"The kitchen on Grouse wasn't much bigger, and I managed for 35 years."

"True." He put something else away, then said, "It was nice having all of them here."

"Yes, it was."

He turned off the light as we headed for bed. "But, they're all still so loud."

I smiled, the afterglow of the day still warming my heart. "I know."

As Christmas approaches, we here at the Stress Pool wish you the warmest of holidays - and please, make time to appreciate the loudness, the singing, the laughter. It really helps to alleviate the stress, and nobody knows that better than here at the Stress Pool! Come on in, grab a cookie and a glass of eggnog (or something else if you so choose), and let's share a laugh or two. Maybe we'll even make a mess in the little kitchen. After all, it's being together that matters most. Merry Christmas!