Thanksgiving

Pictures of Joseph taken around this time of the year

when he was three years old.

Oh, memories... But somehow I couldn't find any pictures of past Thanksgiving days. The pictures above will have to do. Today, Joseph and I spent a quiet day at home. Joseph, as usual, spent the whole day playing on his computer. Brady was at work. Austin was in and out of the house. Joseph's friend, Noah, kept us company in the morning until noon when he was called back next door for their Thanksgiving dinner. Not long after that, Noah's aunt -our neighbor- came with a tray of food. Then Nana came to sit with Jojo. After Nana left, Austin took the Christmas tree, wreaths, etc. down from the attic. Joseph ended his day watching Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving on TV and a few other shows, and then his Daddy came home. Just a regular day for Joseph.

There's a lot to be thankful for today. But I am specially tickled with Brady's new ringtone:

Day 24

There's an article on our local/parish weekly newspaper that featured Joseph and his Wish trip. It was a really good article. My friend at work sent me a text to tell me about it. I had no clue because we don't get the weekly paper. I knew that someone from the KidsWish Network interviewed Brady after our trip to Florida, but Brady forgot to tell me that it was going to come out on our local paper. Anyway, I am very thankful for this surprise article. I just need to figure out how to post it here.

Day 23

Two things that I am very thankful for today: (1) I won't have to repeat three hours of dementia training required at work because my co-worker was able to print my certificate. And (2) Joseph and I finally completed the clam water levels of the Club Penguin AquaGrabber game and even won 4 stamps. They may seem little things but these two made my day!

Day 22

Late post: Thankful that I grudgingly went on a girls' night-out last night and actually had fun. Except that it was only for 1 1/2 hours total for me! That's about all I could handle. Brady was very supportive, and Joseph didn't even notice I was gone.

Day 21

Thankful that Joseph can make friends and chat, online that is. He spent the whole weekend playing on Disney Pixar The World of Cars Online. Unfortunately for him, most cars think his car is a girl because of the name Precious. Poor boy, now he can't change the name (he picked it randomly) because he will lose his friends, racing points, and "money".

Day 20 (one day late)

Thankful for Heidi's/Junior's blog for this turkey idea. Joseph wanted to use his handprints and footprint, though. When he finished and looked at it, he said that it's like a potato with fireworks behind it.

Day 19

I'm thankful for the Internet (again), for making the world smaller for families dealing with SMA and other awful childhood illnesses/disorders.

Day 18, a few hours late

I'm thankful for my job: less than 30 minutes from Joseph at home, family-oriented bosses, flexible hours, opportunity to work just 4 days a week.

Day 17

I'm thankful that Joseph and his Dad had a great day today. Nighttime is a different story, what with bath time interfering with computer time and someone getting very impatient. I'm not telling which one. :)

Day 16

I'm very thankful that I am feeling better. And thankful that Brady is taking care of Joseph until I'm 100% better.

Day 15: See you later, Ninang

Then, it was suddenly time to say Goodbye to Joseph's Ninang (godmother). We left home for the airport hours earlier than her flight to enjoy lunch at Logan's.

We got to the airport with enough time to take it easy. And Brady thought it was only me who loved to take pictures.

Joseph: "Hmmp, I don't like the smell here."

Bye, Cristina. It was so good to see you again.
Oh, I hate saying Goodbyes. It always sucks for the one being left behind. I felt sad when Cristina left and missed my Mom so badly. We took my Mom and my sister to this airport (the old building) four years ago and I feared that it might be the last time I would see her again. I was right. And now I feel very homesick, although I know in my heart that home as I remembered and knew it would never be the same again. Which brings me to being:

Thankful that I have these two.

And wherever they are, there is my home.

And I am thankful for my beautiful cousin,

for being generous with her time, her kindness and love for my son.

I really enjoyed her time with us,

though short and complicated by my being sick.

And though she's younger than me, I can only aspire to be as confident and as wise as she is.

Day 14

One day in November 2007

Fast forward to today

It must be true then, that my cousin Cristina is a lucky charm to Austin.

Austin killed a doe when my cousin was last here three years ago.

And early this morning, he killed an 8-point buck.

Some other pictures from today

Joseph and his Ninang Cris



These are what we call, money on the ground.
At $1/lb, people in our parish are picking pecans on their days off.


And my cousin had to do it, too.

For today, we're thankful that Austin killed a nice buck (sorry, deer), and that my cousin got to taste some chicken-fried deer meat. And though I am still miserable because of this illness that developed into a BAD COLD, and therefore ruining whatever little plans we had for my cousin's visit, I am thankful that it was not just Joseph and me while I had been sick the whole weekend. And I will be VERY thankful if Joseph somehow gets spared from having my cold.

Day 13

I woke up pretty sick this morning: horrible sore throat, headache, achy joints and a little fever. Felt bad about the possibility of having exposed Joseph to an illness, and not being able to entertain my cousin. You know that I've not been feeling well if I have yet to post pictures of Joseph with his Ninang. Anyway...
I am thankful that everything worked out well today. Ms. Frances was able to come on short notice to take care of Joseph while I stayed in the bedroom. My cousin Cristina is such a low-maintenance guest that she didn't need me to entertain her. And tonight, tomorrow and until Friday, Brady is off work, so I know for sure that I won't have to unnecessarily expose Joseph to whatever it is that I have. Whether Joseph, or anyone else, will get sick as well, only the next few days will tell. I do hope that me wearing an isolation mask, constantly washing my hands and being careful what I touch, where I cough, would somehow keep them from being infected.

Day 12

Today Joseph stayed home with Ms. Frances as usual on a Friday. I took my cousin to Alex while I returned some stuff to Old Navy and Target. We had a looong late lunch at a chinese buffet restaurant and before I knew it, it was time to head home. I was thankful to have a relaxed lunch with someone whom I could be totally comfortable with. It was very nice to catch up on things like family and life and be "real" about how and what I think about these days. 'Been missing that kind of company and acceptance/understanding for a long time now.

Day 11

Very thankful that my cousin got here safely tonight. Her flight was delayed for two hours, therefore Joseph had to stay home with his Dad because it would have been way past his bedtime. I'm very curious and excited to see how he would react the first time he sees his godmother tomorrow. It's been three years since they last saw each other. Now I miss my Mom and my sister....okay, my brother, too.

Day 10

I had an awful dream just when I was about to wake up this morning. I'm thankful that it was just a dream. And I am thankful, too, and excited because a cousin of mine is coming tomorrow. She is one of Joseph's godmothers. We plan to surprise her by taking Joseph with us when we pick her up from the airport tomorrow night.

Day 9

I'm thankful to have a husband who is not afraid to try new dishes/food and who loves to cook. Tonight he cooked a Filipino dish -adobo- for supper and it was very good. Just what I needed since I'm feeling a bit under the weather.

Day 8

Still a lot to be thankful for today, particularly my loved ones, job, good weather, etc. But for today, I'm thankful that I'm just three days away from my weekend!

Day 7

I am very thankful for the Internet and assistive technology that has allowed our son Joseph to have some semblance of independence. With the use of his computer, Joseph is able to draw, paint, dance, surf, play a musical instrument, etc. Although it's uncertain for how long Joseph will be able to use his clicker and joystick to operate a computer, given the progressive nature of SMA, for now I am just so grateful that my son has a way to express his personality and amazing skills and abilities.

Day 6

We're thankful that Joseph had the opportunity to go to his cousins' birthday celebration. He enjoyed it greatly: he tasted the food and the cake and had fun with the birthday favors. We're glad that Nana came to help us and that it was a beautiful day albeit a bit chilly.