Fil In The Blanks: Fill & Download for Free

This wasn’t a direct ask but it’s still the most disturbing thing. This was something told to someone else with the implicit understanding that it would get back to me.When my first-born was about 2, my MIL (now ex) told my sister that she would finance another child. I was appalled, freaked, disgusted, fill in the blanks. Who says stuff like that? A child is not a monetary transaction and I’d love to know how she would have ‘financed’ this anyway. Was she prepared to pay for everything from nappies to college?As an addendum, I also heard from my FIL that she wanted to adopt my firstborn. That gave me serious chills. Then when I had a third child, she accused me of ‘trapping’ my husband, the man I’d been with for 12 years.‘

What is the strangest dish I have served with a Thanksgiving dinner?An Oyster dressing. And some might think, Pheasant instead of turkey, only while in Iowa though, (Bam! 12 gauge style)Not strange for me at all. Briny, fresh oysters really pair well with Turkey.(and Pheasant).It was a staple of my earliest childhood, where my dad’s dad, my grandfather, would pull out all the stops for Thanksgiving.The stuffing, for me, with just a few slices of his succulent, moist Turkey was the highlight of Thanksgiving. Now add the satellites, the side dishes, cranberries not from a can, but with a hint of finally diced citrus peel, orange juice, and chopped buttery sauteed pecans.I just now got hungry, and inspired, thank you!The man, was a master with mashed potatoes, and gravy. (Bam! Emeril no buckshot) Mashed potatoes that taste like potatoes, with just a festive hint and look of tiny, tiny red potato peel. Mm good.An accomplished baker, yeasty Parker house rolls.Back to the stuffing, oysters, oyster liquor, salty ham chunks very similar in taste to prosciutto, (but thicker sliced and then diced) day old Baguettes, celery, thyme. Apple some years.As a child, I wish I had acquired his recipe, if ever “one” existed:)What makes this “strange"??? Many people in the midwest have never had oyster stuffing. Some rarely if ever, even eat oysters??? This tradition got revisited when I lived close to the Texas Gulf coast, the first truly great, huge oysters harvested in late Octobe(r) and Novembe(r). Months ending in “R"Not uncommon in New England, and elsewhere, but the reactions evoked by seeing oysters in stuffing is (fil in the blank), for me, comical, and at times, almost rude.(Chop ’em up to where it is difficult to tell what they are? Like meals for kids!)Funny. The same stuffing in the bird with finely chopped oysters, made with the oyster liquer gets “demolished". Demolished too, outside the bird,“Omg! Delicious!!!”“What do you put in your dressing???”and a grown adult nearly dropped her fork…This year, this dressing is being prominently featured. It is delicate, sublime with hints of the sea, (same with the ham) and quite frankly, makes any Turkey taste that much, much, much better imo.If I must, and I probably will…a dressed up Store bought stuffing will be made available for those that insist on picking through the stuffing, breadcrumb by breadcrumb…

A quality education for the price. It’s listed as one of the top 10 schools for upward mobility and consistently is in a top 10 list for best (fil in the blank).