Greetings! I trust you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I did and now I'm gearing up for a sweet Christmas. I hear that both my geliguck (helicopter) collection and truck collection might be growing. But first, a recap of Thanksgiving and what's been shakin' at Casa Stewart-Jackson.

At Thanksgiving, I took the opportunity to share with everyone (truly) what I am thankful for.

First, I love when Mommy is able to help me cook. Sometimes she is slow and maybe gets the measurements wrong, but God bless her - she tries.



I am also thankful for my "geliguck muscles." Yes, that's right. I've named my muscles. No one is sure why, but I call them this always.

Nothing like a tight white t-shirt to show off your guns.



With Daddy gone, I've been pitching in with my share of man-work. Much like cooking with Mom, I'm thankful for the opportunities I have given Poppy. Here I am helping him drive the tractor. The clutch was tricky, but he got it.



Here I am doing more important man-work. I am thankful for fences that need mending. It was difficult given that I was not supplied with the proper tools. A standard hammer would have been better but I keep getting handed this rubber mallet. What gives?



OH! I am loving gloves. I recently learned how to wear them properly and holy cow! They are really useful. I wish I hadn't resisted them for the last 2 1/2 years of my life. Oh well... lessons learned.



I am thankful for tree bark. Here I am studying some up close. It fascinates me and I like to talk about it. I like to talk about how it cracks when you hit it and how it doesn't taste all that great. Overall, a great find this winter.



One thing I am still working on being thankful for is grooming and maintenance. Here I am getting my haircut. It went okay (note sucker stick coming from my mouth), but this is still an area I maybe could show a little more appreciation.



And last but CERTAINLY not least. I am thankful for trips to the mall to meet Santa. I was very excited and practiced my best face for our big picture.

When I woke up, a great idea hit me. Mom vetoed it quickly.



Then I tried this on for size... Also did not get a good response.



How about this? Yeah, that's right... I can turn it on and off like a light switch.

By the time it was my turn to actually meet Santa, I realized that maybe he is kind of cooey (scary). But after watching a couple of kids in front of me get on his lap, I put my fears behind me and jumped on in. From there on out - magic. Plus, I got a free cookie when I was done!