Give Thanks in All Things

Sometimes I do. Most of the time I don't. But it's always a good motto to have hanging around.

Thanksgiving this year was at our house. It was the first time I've ever hosted it! And it was pretty dang fun. I think I prepared enough so that it wasn't too stressful. Except when I thought Brandon ran away and I had to go hunt him down. That wasn't fun. He hadn't run away - just so you know.
We also had the blessing of having Beau and Isabella come again this year - man I love that kid. Beau's okay too. :)

Preparing for things is always my favorite part. I'm good at that. Lists and organizing. It's the completion that I'm a little weak on. But I think I did alright.

Menu:

Turkey with garlic, rosemary, sage, thyme & lemon
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Sausage and Apple Stuffing
Sweet Potato Souffle
Broccoli and cauliflower Gratin Mac n Cheese
Cranberry Orange Relish
Devilled Eggs
Collard Greens
Gravy

People also brought: Peas, Corn, Rolls, Green Bean Casserole, Punch & Chex Mix

But let's back up a second.
Time for a couple of pictures.

A stop in Raleigh on the way back to BV. We dropped by Crabtree mall to go to the Disney Store and to help Izzy stretch her legs.

It's such an awesome hat! (Especially because it was only $3 on clearance after Halloween!)

Okay, back to Dinner.
I planned for days for Thanksgiving. I had recipes on the computer and printed them out and had them all in a special binder. Beau said I was taking things a little too far... but I don't think so. The night before I made a huge chunk of the food:
Turkey prepped.
Mac & Cheese and Stuffing prepped.
Cranberry Relish done.
Devilled Egg filling done.

The Big Day!

All ready to go! She looks so naked.

Basting is obnoxious, but it's also the greatest thing ever. So is chicken stock.

oooh Yeah. She's all tan and beautiful.

My new favorite ingredient:

For the Collards, of-course.

And here we are! Voila!

I wish I had gotten some cooler pictures of the food before we devoured it. But I was running around a bit like a turkey with her head cut off. I'm just glad I was able to shower and get my makeup on (unlike my birthday party...when I was able to shower, but my hair was gross and I had no makeup).
The table:

Now that I look at it, I should have had flowers or something.

The Dinner Party

Thanksgiving: Done.

Here are a few other cute pictures from that week:

Izzy helped put up the tree. The day after Thanksgiving, of-course.

You probably can't tell, but those are my hand prints from when I made this apron in the third grade.

Taking a break from watching Hannah Montana and Sonny with a Chance for hours.

Another fall season over...
Next up:
Christmas Season!
See our Shuterfly Account for more fall pictures.