When people meet me they think I’m a native Floridian. People who know me for a long time think that I’m either from here or from Ohio, PA, maybe Connecticut, but they never imagine that I was born and lived for 22 years in the Bronx, NY.

I’m the kind of person that picks up the accent from where I live. So you don’t hear me saying, “cowfee” or anymore. It’s just gone. But my love for NY isn’t. I miss Manhattan terribly. I miss the sounds, the sights and the food. Give me a slice of pizza and I’ll be happy for a week. Let me ride the subway, see a Broadway show or a visit to Central Park and I’ll be in my glory.

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I just love leftover turkey, stuffing, stuffed mushrooms, mashed potatoes and of course the desserts from Thanksgiving dinner the day before. It always seems to taste even better the next day. I’m not sure why but it does. So yummy and easy to heat up and clean up too.

Peanut and I hit a few stores today, not early in the morning but we still got some really good sales anyway. She desperately needed new clothes as she’s growing tall as a weed. So it was nice to save money but get what she needed. I even treated myself to a dress, a skirt and a couple of shirts – all on sale plus an extra 10% off.

Bargains and leftovers – a Black Friday tradition fulfilled.

I didn’t think I could feel hungry tonight. Not after our Thanksgiving feast where we all left the table with our pants unzipped a little to let our enlarged waists get a bit of relief. Not after I felt like I was rolling around instead of walking. Not after I actually said, “no” to a piece of cake.

But when I saw Fannie May’s website, I started to feel my stomach rumble a little. My mouth was definitely salivating (and that’s really unusual for me – Ms. Desert Mouth). The pictures alone brought back memories of my parents buying my sister and I a treat from Fannie May after a day of shopping. Then of me buying my daughters some chocolate candy at the mall. And the taste…oh it’s just divine!

Fannie May has changed with the times but all for the better. I noticed they offer a Pink Selection where a portion of their profits from special items go towards charities dealing with Breast Cancer. There’s even caramel pops. I don’t remember seeing those from their stores. But for me there’s nothing like a box of chocolates to open on Christmas or New Years Day. And knowing Fannie May’s quality. ordering from their web site wouldn’t be a problem at all. Let’s face it, chocolate just goes with everything.

And yes I am hungry for a snack now. I just wish I had some of those gourmet chocolates from Fannie May.

It’s been a bittersweet day today. We’re still praying for and concerned about my Uncle who is critically ill. I was able to speak to my cousin this morning to get the latest news and not much has changed. He’s now heavily sedated so that he can rest as he’s been fighting to get off of the respirator. This news of course dampened our day.

Having Lady Ali here and her boyfriend here since last night made me put things in perspective though. To see them as a couple planning their future, knowing that Lady Ali’s graduation is just three weeks away and realizing how responsible and grown up she’s become made me a proud Mom.

They both helped with cooking. BF even brought us bagels and lox which is something we eat on holidays. It was kind of him to think of us that way. He also brought along some extra garlic as he bought a lot of it at Sam’s club. It just seemed like a family thing to do.

When we said grace we reflected on the loss of my other Uncle in September. The sadness that came along with that brought out some really positive things in my family. So when we prayed for healing of my Uncle we thanked God for having Uncle in our lives and for his love and kindness towards us.

I know that even through sad, difficult times God finds a way to make it work out for the good. I hold myself to that thought this day and try to do that always.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I pray that you had a day to not only eat really good food but time with loved ones and time to realize the goodness we often overlook in our lives.