Thanksgiving 2011

My family and I went to Ohio for Thanksgiving again this year, and man did it make me feel old.  Last time (two years ago) my cousins and I ran around everywhere and stayed up until late in the night being hyper. This past weekend I couldn't run around because I'm recovering from a hip muscle tear, I was too tired to stay up very late, and added to all that was an inconveniently-timed somewhat apathetic mood that I couldn't seem to shake. However, despite all that we did have a good time. :) (I certainly hope I wasn't too boring for my cousins, at any rate...) :/ If so, I'm very sorry.

We had a lot of fun making bonfires, and playing with them, and standing in the mud. The second day we were prepared though. Rebecca, John, and I laid a gravel ring around the fire pit so that we wouldn't be sinking into the mud. (Laid it with nearly mathematical precision, I might add..."nearly" because we didn't get out a tape measure or run a string compass, but we were close.) And we made sure to have plenty of "poking sticks" on hand to mess with the fire. Dad, Uncle Jim, and Grandpa had been out cutting down a tree, so Rebecca and I went and cut ourselves some nice green sturdy sticks.

Mud-less fire pit.

When we got home every article of clothing was smoke-saturated, since it'd all been put back in the suitcases with whatever we'd worn around the bonfire. Which reminds me, I have no idea where my coat got off to when we got home...

On that note, I want to pause just long enough to mention that I actually packed light for once! I was very proud of myself. ;) I wore/used all but two of the items I packed.

This was fascinating.
The log was hollow so the fire went right through it
and out the end.

On the way home from Ohio we stopped at a rest area and I noticed that the lady in the car next to us was wearing a head scarf. I didn't really think much of it and we went on.

A while later, back on the road, we saw a car stopped by the side of the road, and a woman who seemed to be kneeling on some sort of rug looking under the car. Mom and I remarked on this, and I added that I thought it must be the people who had been parked next to us at the previous rest stop, because that lady was wearing a headscarf, as was the lady peering at her car. So unless there were a lot of ladies in head scarves on the route, it was probably the same one, and she and her husband must be having car trouble or something.

It was probably thirty minutes later that a thought suddenly hit me and I turn to Mom. "The lady with the headscarf, kneeling next to her car! She was probably praying! On her prayer rug!"

We're so religiously-aware.