Today

Larry texted this evening. 

Today marks four years since Dad died.

I'd thought about this a couple of days ago, but somehow completely missed it today until my phone buzzed with Larry's text.

The loss of Mom has been more acute for me this fall, and I wondered if I'd have that strong sense of loss about Dad again, or if that part of grief was over. It's kind of crazy how I don't really want it to be over. It is good to miss them both. And the reminder from Larry brought that stronger sense of Dad back for me. 

Facebook reminded me of the other loss that happened just before Dad died.

At the time, it was pretty tough to lose Harvey, but by now that sting is gone. He was a great dog. I'm glad we had him and sorry his life was so short. He made friends with a lot of people.

Today my focus was on preparation for having my family here for Thanksgiving. Part of the work was preparing the dining room for twenty-one people. We did some pushing tables around to see what will fit, and the floor got washed.

I'm not making a turkey. I really miss turkey the way Mom made it, stuffed with raisins and prunes, with the rich dark brown gravy that comes from that combination. But being out of town two days kind of eliminated that as a possibility.

We are having several soups, bread, and dessert. Chuck is chopping up the ham for our soup right now. He wanted ham and green bean soup enough that he added a trip to the grocery store to his errands today. The ham went into the oven and we enjoyed some of it for supper along with baked potatoes and carrots. 

Fritz is hanging out with Chuck. He likes to be in the kitchen when one of us is there, especially if there is a scent of meat. But he knows better, most of the time, to show interest in the meat. Begging or trying to snatch meat will not work for him. But resting on the floor looking uninterested can have a pay off. 

The goal is for him to never grab food unless he is released to take it. We aren't completely there yet, but we are well on our way.

Chuck doesn't always have time to help with the food prep for an event so I'm really appreciating this. I don't love carving meat. But he loves this kind of soup, so the flavor of broth from a bone-in ham will make it worth his effort.

The dining room will be full on Saturday. I'm looking forward to it.