Thanksgiving

Reynald and I love Thanksgiving.  It's our favorite holiday.  My favorite used to be Halloween, but now everyone likes Halloween, so it's lost some appeal for me.  Thanksgiving seems to get passed over, looking ahead toward Christmas and all the hype about shopping and Black Friday etc.  For me, Thanksgiving is a warm and cozy holiday.  I love spending a couple days preparing for our feast.  I love setting the table.  I love the gathering.  Most of all I love "singing for our supper" as we begin our time together in song.  This is a family that sings and it sends chills up and down my spine, as I play the piano and listen to the spectacular voices raise up in praise and thanksgiving.

First a few photos of Thanksgiving eve, and some of the prep work going on!

Alicia cubed the left over dinner rolls from the wedding and we popped them in the freezer to use for dressing!   Also added some homemade cornbread, and let that sit on the counter for a few days to dry out.

Bread cubes and cornbread, drying on the counter.
Thanksgiving morning I add sauteed mushrooms, onions and celery to the bread cubes, sauteed in lots of butter.  This is not a day to think about cutting back on fat calories!  Also add chopped hazel nuts, sliced water chestnuts, some fresh sage from the herb garden, the cooked giblets from the turkey and the liquid that I cooked the giblets in.  SOOOO  GOOD!!!!

I roasted a blue Hubbard squash a few days ago to make the "pumpkin" pies.   We favor the Hubbard squash over pumpkin.

"Pumpkin" pie ingredients.

Two pies ready to pop in to the oven.  I make sloppy crust, I know, but it tastes good!

Beth made pumpkin shaped dinner rolls for our quilt retreat so I decided to try it for dinner and use them as place card holders.  I thought they turned out cute......and tasty!

Pumpkin shaped dinner rolls

These are a thyme and honey glazed dinner roll which is a family favorite.

Setting the tables is always fun.  I don't go all out, but like to make it look festive and colorful.  For the dining room table we use the Johnson Bros. "Frozen Up" dishes.  Auntie Marge gave me three plates years ago and I loved them so much that over the years I have purchase enough to bring the total up to 12.

Dining room table

A better look at the Thanksgiving dishes.  I really love them.

 The garage is set with Fiestaware plates...color persimmon and brown, which I also love!

Garage dining!

I put some of the silk fall garlands on the plant shelf in the garage to make it feel a little more decorated.  

A beautiful sunrise started Thanksgiving day.  Much to be be thankful for.....

 Some images of folks that were able to spend the afternoon with us.  This is not comprehensive!  Just  a few photos that I managed to snap through out the day.

John and Lisa were here for dinner, traveling from the village of Downs!

Cousin Sue and her daughter Krista always drive over from the west side to join us for the day.

My parents, Jim and Jo,

Nathan and Torri, newly wed this summer!  And what a beautiful wedding day and celebration they had.

Chris and Leslie came from Bend OR. They introduced us to 7 month old Luke, who is an absolute doll.

Grandpa Don totally monopolized Luke!  Don let some of the rest of us hold him, for a few minutes, then right back to grandpa he went!