It’s coming to the end of a busy and food-filled Thanksgiving day, so I thought I’d reflect on a few things I’m thankful for right now:

My new niece, Ruby Elizabeth. And not just because her middle name is the same as mine. She was born on Monday, the second for my brother and sister-in-law, who is also an old and great friend of mine (I had her first, John! heh heh…) and I got to share the last few days of the pregnancy with them, which was also a lot of fun in that frustrating, boring, hurry-up-and-wait-for-baby-to-show-up kind of way. Anyway, ain’t she sweet?

Words. I’ve read a ton this month, maybe because the changing weather has made me want to curl up in bed with a book much of the time. And maybe also because I’ve finally become really acquainted with my new library here in Chicago. It took us a while to warm up to each other, the new library and I. For one thing, the books are sorted using the Library of Congress classification system rather than the Dewey Decimal System, which really screws with my head. But anyway, I’ve made a few trips, and have read an eclectic bunch of books from Jane Austen to Joan Didion to Jack Kerouac–okay, I’m still working on the Kerouac; is it somehow sinful to admit that I’m having a hard time getting into it?–to Anne Lamott. I finally read Operating Instructions, which I’ve been meaning to read since I became a parent–so that would be over ten years worth of meaning to read a book. It did not disappoint–was probably the most unique “momoir” I’ve read (next to Mommies Who Drink by Brett Paesel, which I have read cover to cover three times and still laugh hysterically through much of it.) And though I did not exactly stick to the blogging-every-day thing and will probably not finish a novel this month, I have been blogging more, and I’ve written over 15,000 words of fiction. This November has not held much in the way of deadlines, but when it comes to words, I’ve consumed and produced quite a lot of them.

Food, family, fun. Today, I’ve had a healthy helping of all three, and I’ve got that cozy, sleepy feeling…so I’m off to bed. Good night, and Happy Thanksgiving.