Greetings!

Dear Family,

It was a close game, but the Falcons came out on top of the Packers last Sunday. I was also happy to see the Bears beat the Eagles, even though it put the Packers in second place.

Thanksgiving in Atlanta turned out to be a beautiful and relaxing day. This weekend has been rainy and gray: Great weather for music and writing; not so good for scraping and painting.

I'm thinking about what I might like to have for Christmas or the Fourth of July. It's true that I have not replaced most of the tools that were stolen last March. I'm not that interested in having a big collection of tools again. I can get tools and hardware items at a discount, although they're still not necessarily cheaper than Wal-mart or Home Depot. One thing that I can't get at the hardware store, and that would be nice to have is a small compressor. A Bostich trim nailer would be nice to get to go along with the trim nails I still have, but that's an expensive item and not something I need right now.

I bought a mixer for my stereo at a thrift store for $6 and I finally got it to work last night, except that I can't get it to produce sound for the phonograph, which is the main reason I wanted a stereo in the first place. Chances are I will not get the mixer to work before next July, and I wouldn't complain if someone bought me a new one. Come to think of it, the tape player, which I bought for $4 only works on one side and it buzzes, so that would be a good thing to replace, although I have other tape players. I also have 5 CD players, but none of them work. If I want to listen to a CD, I have to listen to it on the computer. It also might be neat to have an mp3 player to listen to while I work out. The TV programs they have on at the gym are not always all that interesting. I'm not sure it's a good idea to listen to the radio while I ride my bicycle, but it would be nice to be able to listen to Prairie Home Companion on my way home from work Saturday night, and This Old House music program on Sunday mornings. I love bluegrass, Americana, gospel, and blues music. I seem to have so little of these in my tape collection. I heard a song by Ricky Skaggs recently. I wrote something like Gaither Gospel H- down next to his name, but can't read my writing very well.

I continue to play hymns and Christmas Carols on the piano almost every day. It would be nice if I had Clementi's Sonatinas and John Thompson's Third Grade book! Other piano books would be appreciated but I don't know how much I would actually play them.

I'm not a person who is very much inclined to take pictures, but it would be nice to have a digital camera; another item that was stolen.

I no longer get stock loss produce from the More House, as they have decided to implement a different system for processing and distributing it. However, I still think it would be useful to have a good food dehydrator with temperature control.

That's all I can think of for the time being!

Love,
Stephen

Happy Thanksgiving! from Lisa

Hello my Family,
How are you all this Thanksgiving week? It's still warm here in Jordan but the leaves on the fruit trees do change color which is pretty. I'm ready for some RAIN as are the farmers and fellow cloudy/rainy day lovers. We'll have Thanksgiving dinner with my friend Kristina and her family for the fouth year this year. This year is her house but we always share making the food.

Thanks for your Christmas wishes Becky. I'm up for waiting till Lake Geneva but will post some wishes in advance :). I'll take Trale's idea and ask for any old (or new) family pictures. Also, I'm interested in a subscription to Cook's Illustrated magazine that can be sent to our PO box in JO. I'm always up for a good book too. Speaking of books, there's a new website for books called bookdepository.com that ships anywhere in the world for FREE. I used it for the first time a few weeks ago and got the book within two weeks no problem. This is nice for anyone who wants to send books to freinds/family overseas and not pay for shipping.

Looking forward to hearing about all your Thanksgiving celebrations. I'm counting the months until Lake Geneva when I can see you all again.
Love,
Lisa

Christmas Exchange

I hate to be the first, but I can say that I stopped myself from ordering a cheese making kit that I read about in Barbara Kingsolver's book for making mozzarella. I've made a little cream cheese, and think it would be great to try others.

OR - I love to get good reading ideas - if you have a book you think is good.
OR - a back packing sleeping bag (at least to go as low as 10 degrees farhenheit)(for when Jon wants to use his and I don't have one)
OR - giving to a charity - I like the idea of providing an animal for a farmer...

I've just finished visiting Steve, and hiking in the North Georgia mountains. It was a beautiful time of fall, and the companions I had on the hikes made it all the more fun. Also, visiting Dad, Connie and Linda for a day in Chicago (and Ned) was a good boost for me. Family is wonderful:)