Hi Everyone - Happy Thanksgiving! Deb, glad it got to you before the holiday. Thought you'd like the gold - LOL! The little knife is handy for opening all these packages, but I reckon you've lost that one! ha! We'll probably talk to our families on the phone this evening, but DH worked night shift last night, so it's pretty quiet around here today. Guess you can tell that since I seem to be the only one posting. LOL! Anyhow, just wanted to wish all a Happy Thanksgiving. Susann Here's a thought I just wanted to share. BE THANKFUL By Author Unknown Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look forward to? Be thankful when you don't know something, for it gives you the opportunity to learn. Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow. Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement. Be thankful for each new challenge, because it will build your strength and character. Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons. Be thankful when you're tired and weary, because it means you've made a difference. It's easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks. Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they can become your blessings.

Oh, this is such a hot button for me! I am a retired/disabled paramedic who spent over 20 years working on the ambulance in the streets of Atlanta and then several more years in the ER and PICU at one of our large children's hospitals. During that time, I saw countless infants and children who were severely injured or deceased, simply because their parent was too lazy/stubborn/ignorant/etc. that day to put their child in a PROPER child safety seat. It is so very sad to see a parent lose a child in ANY situation. It is especially difficult to see it when you know they will have to live with the guilt for the rest of their lives. One thing that really frustrates me, too, is that many parents do not know that it is not just babies and toddlers who need to be restrained in a safety seat. ALL children should be in a safety seat until they are AT LEAST 80-100 pounds AND 4'9" tall. MANY parents don't know/understand this because in many states it has not been made into law. However, in order to keep your child as safe as possible, they must be restrained in a booster seat until they are big enough to fit properly in a regular seatbelt. Seatbelts are specifically designed for ADULTS ONLY. If a small child is in one without a proper safety seat, they can be decapitated by the shoulder strap that is sitting too close to their neck, they can have severe pelvic/abdominal injuries due to the ill-fitting lap belt or they can be ejected if the shoulder strap is placed behind their back, which many children are taught to do. MANY parents do this, not knowing that it completely renders the entire seatbelt non-operational as it interferes with the mechanism of how it is supposed to work. When I was still working with EMS, I was also a member of SafeKids of GA. SafeKids has SO much info about Child Safety, especially Child Safety Seats. Here are a few links you all might be interested in: (They also have pamphlets, posters, etc. they will sent you.) Car Seat, Booster and Seat Belt Fact Sheet Find A Safety Seat Inspection Station I hope things work out for your family and that your brother and SIL decide to do what is right for their precious little one! Blessings, ~Addy~ Here is a link that might be useful: SafeKids USA

I finished a bunch of books this summer while hunkered down. My favorite was Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. It is the story of an unlikely nanny to two high profile children who have the annoying habit of combusting. It is so wonderfully done and the nanny is a jaded badass with a soft side. Highly recommend. (Plus, every reviewer--NPR, NYT--has loved it.) In a close-second is Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara. In this book, the impoverished inner city of Delhi (I think) becomes a character. The story is about three nine year olds in India who try to solve the disappearance of a classmate. The main character, Jai, gets his detective smarts from what he sees on crime shows, although it is his smarter female friend who seems to ask the right questions, much to Jai's annoyance. The story is rich in details about community living, from schooling to the public toilets, to street food. It has a lot of "Slum dog Millionaire" about it. And like that movie, (which I loved,) It is both funny and heartbreaking as the book is loosely based on the huge numbers of children in India who go missing each year. Yes, life for Jai and his family is unimaginably difficult, but it would be wrong to say it isn't joyful as well. I also read Louise Penny's A Better Man. I love the Inspector character, but I felt the plot on this one was really weak. But in the end, it wasn't so much of a whodunnit than a conscience wrestling match. And for that this book was good. Eta: I also read 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand. Meh. It's a hallmark movie by an author who writes two novels each year. If you like your chick lit set in Nantucket, you'll love it. I found it formulaic and the characters did nothing for me. It should come with a bottle of Barefoot brand white wine. I also read The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris. It was captivating, sad, joyous and funny, though usually never at the same time. I passed it along to my parents who both loved it too.

Eons ago,and almost certainly here, someone introduced me to the Literature Map website. If you type in the name of an author you enjoy, the screen pops up with other authors who write in a similar vein. It hasn't been perfect for recommendations, but it has occasionally introduced me to a new-to-me author that I've loved. https://www.literature-map.com/ I just finished Ann Patchett's The Dutch House and it was terrific. She has a gift for writing family dynamics. The narrative hopped around in time quite a bit, but I felt that by doing so, she added layers to the story as each segment helped to bring the main characters' lives more clearly into focus. It was a really good book, and one that I'd meant to read quite some time ago.