{Thanksgiving 2011}

hi friends

gobble gobble and happy belated turkey day

we had a wonderful thanksgiving this year.

just the 5 of us.

after three days of painting and curtain drama...(I washed our family room curtains per instructions and they shrunk about 4 inches!!!! so i spent some unhappy moments last week on the phone with pottery barn and frantically looking for new curtains. decided to go with the new ones from the kitchen....and shh....i like these a lot better!!:) )...we all decided that thanksgiving was going to be about family and fun. we were going to take it slow and spend every second together. no hauling out the Christmas decorations after the meal like we typically do....we were taking it easy. and we did.

we woke up leisurely and watched the parade.

played games

(aubrey looks like she's really playing doesn't she....that lasted for about 3 minutes...then i hear "mom!!! aubrey's pulling up all the tiles!")

and had some unexpected guests all dressed up and waiting for us at the thanksgiving table

dave cooked a wonderful meal.

as usual:)

smoked turkey

cornbread stuffing

mashed potatoes and gravy

turnips

squash

cranberry compote

crescent rolls

and pumpkin and pecan pie for dessert

riley helped with the cranberry compote and the potatoes.

janey did the gravy, the rolls and the pies.

i played with aubrey. (really...i DO do a lot of work around here!:) )

isnt' it just wonderful how my daughters are learning to cook!!:)

our weather was unseasonably warm-ish.

nothing like a little back patio skating to get you ready to eat a big meal.

we ate in the dining room to be fancy.

but one of the down sides about not having company is
it's hard to make it not seem like any other wonderful meal together.
we said grace, added what we were thankful for
then it was sadly over in about 7 minutes!:)

but it was a wonderful day.

thanksgiving 2010

****************

anyone else hit the black friday sales?

i'm usually not this die hard of a shopper, but there was a good deal on something we really wanted so

i headed to target at 9:30.

yes i said 9:30....they opened at midnight.

remember that warm-ish weather i mentioned.....forget it.

felt cold to me as i stood there

alone

in the wind

shivering

waa-waa i know...i did this to myself!:)

i chatted with dave till about 10:30 when he went to bed.

then two of my crazy shopper friends came by between stores to keep me company my last half hour.

but i got what i came for and was out of target by 12:32.

and the line was still stretched about 100 yards down the sidewalk. it was CRAZY!

then i headed to the mall for a few more quick deals.

i was home in bed by about 2:30.

and up around 7 to get ready for riley's soccer game and the day ahead.

later that day we began to slowly bring up the Christmas goodies.

i just couldn't wait and either could the girls.:)

we also managed to sneak in a quick photo session.

here's a peek.

got some pretty good ones.

not sure if they will work for the Christmas card yet or not...we will see.

*************

saturday and sunday we packed up fall and completely decked the halls.

more pics to come.

now i am digging those unpacked lunchboxes out of the cabinet and getting ready for the week ahead.

whew...know the  expression "i need a vacation to recoup from my vacation".

that is how dave and i feel about now.

so....we are canceling our dentist appointments this morning. (who makes dentist apts for the day after a long weekend anyway!!:) ) 

and heading to grocery shop and out to lunch at our favorite mexican place.

we need it

we deserve it.

{thankful for}
1. my honey alwasy knows "what's for dinner?"
2. a home full of Christmas cheer
3. the health of my family
4. moscato
5. Christmas music

hope your long weekend was wonderful and your monday is even better.

have a happy day,

cindy

sorry...this post feels really jumbled and unfocused...but that is how my brain feels about now!:)