Roll Tide!

Two of my favorite monkeys on game-day. I called the little cheerleader over to sit on one knee and I assumed her big brother would stand beside me as I squatted. No dice. He lowered his shoulder and barreled into me and little cheerleader, knocking all three of us over. Now I've got this sweet picture and a nice-sized bruise on my bum to remember the day by.

The best was my sweet niece who, as her brother and I laughed, bounced between almost-tears and laughter, as if saying, "What the heck are you two laughing about? I just got knocked over! Whatever, I'll laugh too, I guess."

More Reasons to Vote

...free Starbucks coffee. 44% off Kenneth Cole all day today. And apparently, free sex toys? Check out the article on MSN.com about the perks that come with voting. I mean, beside furthering democracy and having a hand in your own future.

I think the funny part is the comments--people are all worked up about how this will get people out to vote that don't really care. I'm sorry, no matter how much I'd like a free cup of coffee, waiting in line at the polls is way not worth it if the freebie is my only motivator.

While you're waiting for the results, don't forget to grab a cone at Ben & Jerry's!

Stop, Drop (what you're doing), and Vote

It's cliche, but if you're reading this, I hope you took a few minutes today to go vote. Regardless of your party choice, regardless of if your choice is not to choose, I think it's really important that you vote. And if you don't vote, should we encounter any political angst or trial over the next four or eight years ("fingers crossed for 16!"), feel free not to complain.

Holy Good Gas Prices, Batman!

Never mind that "good gas prices" used to mean $.97 a gallon and that I distinctly remember when prices soared over $1, and that it used to take $50 to fill up the boat, which I found astronomical.

Today, I got gas, a full, full tank of gas, for under $40. At times it's been almost $60, and I don't have a huge tank, probably 16 gallons, or 16.2 if I let it go really empty (like my receipt says today).

Hurrah for small victories! ...and for the societal brainwashing that leads me to think that spending less than $40 on a tank of gas is a real victory.

Wedding Planning Moment of the Day

Ok, so sometimes I do weird things when I'm bored an online, like I was last night just before going to bed. After I'd run through my usual list of stalling sites (tmz, cnn, msn, facebook, this blog...), I decided to go googling. I googled my name, but no luck... there are a million of me, including one very famous childhood star with lots of fan websites. To actually google me, you have to know one other defining characteristic, like where I went to college or high school.

But B, B's name is very distinct. I'd never googled him but, hey, it'll be my name soon too, so I may as well check out what comes up when you google his last night.

There it was-- a fake wedding website listing empty registries! I guess the bridal show I went to sold my name and info to vendors (for my convenience. Sure.), so when you googled his name (which friends might do when hunting a wedding website for us), these two empty registries came up for JCPenny and Bed, Bath, & Beyond.

Oh, I'm on it. I already called both and asked for the accounts to be deleted, and have since hit up WeddingChannel.com, where the registries (empty, mind you) were hosted. Hopefully it'll go away soon. I'm not sure what's worse, having people find our registry when the simply google our names, or having them find a empty registry when searching our names. Oy.

It was weird though to google his name and see mine pop up. Looks like the web is about six months and a few days ahead.

Two-Hour-or-Less Thanksgiving: Shopping Edition

As I was first starting to plan for this big "fastgiving" event, as J as dubbed it, I pulled together a menu of all my favorites that scream Thanksgiving to me: turkey, gravy, sweet potatoes, creamed corn, green beans, ambrosia, rolls, and stuffing. Ok, full disclosure, I don't normally even eat turkey on Thanksgiving. Hello? There are sweet potatoes to be eaten!

I've helped mom with Thanksgiving for a long time, starting with making place cards and napkin rings (brilliant, mom) and now by helping with sides. So obviously I've never cooked a turkey, much less purchased one and prepped it (explaining why I woke up this morning at 7am in panic because I didn't have a turkey thawing in the fridge yet. Thank God for fresh turkeys!)

Another new one for me-- everything is from scratch. While we generally do all sides and, of course, the bird homemade, we have a kind of tradition at our house of having a cake from a specialty store and Sister Schubert yeast rolls. When my grandma was alive, she used to make the rolls, but since then, we've gone the Sister Schubert route and, if you've ever had them, you know- perfection. And we don't mess with perfection.

So off I go this morning to Publix at 8am (thank you daylight savings time) and pick up, literally, a ton of ingredients, and way more groceries than I've ever purchased. It only took an hour, which is pretty good, especially since I can't tell a green onion from a shallot. The shopping list included two kinds of rice, lots of fresh fruits and veggies, three herbs, and a delicious fresh turkey.

Tomorrow's the big day. Wish me, and my poor kitchen, luck!

Countdown to Two-Hour Thanksgiving

It's November 2nd and it's 70 degrees outside. What? Sign me up. J and I went out for a five-mile walk and it was gorgeous, and the perfect lead-in to tomorrow. What's tomorrow you ask? Let me tell you a little story.

Once there was a little girl named A. A had a great job at a food website. The food website had monthly planning meetings. At one planning meeting, A said, "I have a great idea for our Thanksgiving package. Let's do a quick-cooking menu that can be done in a small kitchen. And let's see if we can do it in two hours or less!"

There was much rejoicing and A's editors loved the idea. Which is how A, oh this anonymous A, found herself buying $176 worth of groceries on her work credit card and selecting a turkey on November 2nd.

That's right, kiddos. Tomorrow I'm embarking on a two-hour journey (with J, my cooking buddy) that will encompass all of the Thanksgiving staples, made from scratch, in less than 120 minutes. Twelve-pound turkey? Check. Sweet potatoes? Check. Creamed corn? Check. Gravy? Check... and so on. If you want to see the full menu, check out my work blog:

http://youvegottotastethis.myrecipes.com

When I'm able to move again (after cooking and eating my body weight in green beans and stuffing), I'll update how the meal went.