Thanksgiving

Mmmm....
What a wonderful break I've had! 
I love Thanksgiving.
It is my favorite holiday, especially of the winter holidays, and this year's was a really good one.

My sisters and some friends came out to my house and we had a blast! 
We cooked.  Boy did we cook!
We ate, we talked, we played games, we laughed.
It was cozy, comfortable, and calm.
(Like that alliteration?)

Julie and I agreed.  This was one of the best meals we have prepared together.  We believe in doing things traditionally with a few twists here and there.  It was YUMMY!
We are also of the opinion that things should be made from scratch.  So...with the exception of the stuffing and cranberry sauce, we made everything from whole foods, from scratch, and by hand:

• Herb roasted turkey and herbed sage gravy
• Stuffing (cornbread and herb stuffing)
• Creamy mashed potatoes
• Mashed sweet potato streusel casserole
• Sauteed brussel sprouts
• Wheat rolls
• Raspberry Pretzel Jello
• Parsnip Pudding
• Pies & whipped cream
• Pumpkin (from a pumpkin, not a can!)
• Peach
• Berry Rhubarb

(The links aren't the exact recipes we used, mostly because we do a lot of hybriding, and making up our own recipes, but they are close).
I'm totally kicking myself for not taking pictures, but believe me, it was GOOD!

Everything was delicious and we had lots of leftovers (my favorite part!).
The best part was having friends and family to eat with and share the day with.  We love to cook, but it is even better to have someone to share it with. 
I have so much to be grateful for and I am so glad we have this special day to celebrate our blessings.  I hope only to be able to share my blessings with others so they might know of the same joy I feel so lucky to have in my life.

And now, bring on the Christmas music!