A Thanksgiving Feast

Thanksgiving came and went so fast this year. It seems like before I even realized it, I was planning the meal and going grocery shopping. I have been blessed to be the hostess for both my family and my husbands family for Thanksgiving the last several years. This year we were a smaller group with only 25 people. But like usual, we had plenty of food!

We had a smoked turkey, a barbecued turkey, a ham and lots and lots of side dishes. My favorite this year was Pioneer Woman's corn and wild rice. It was so good that I am going to make sure it is on the menu again.

After my sister got her plate she told me to get my camera. I am glad she did because her plate looked so pretty. I just love white plates, they make your food look so good!

This was suppose to be the drink table but some of the many desserts made it here. My mother in law makes the best punch and my sister in law again brought some outstanding wine! She also made the cupcakes. They were so pretty and tasted great too.

She did such a great job on them. She must be taking after her mother when it comes to baking. My mother in law always brings the desserts and she didn't disappoint this year. She made cookies, fudge, peanut butter balls, lemon meringue pie, two chocolate pies, two pumpkin pies, pumpkin cheese cake, peach cobbler and pumpkin roll! Can you say stuffed!

Before dinner the kids were out playing in the backyard. They even let me take a picture of them all together.

We were also fortunate to have our parish priest, Father Mike, come for dinner. I don't have the pull to get him to my house, but my sister does. She works at the parish office and she invited him for dinner. We were glad that he came.

I don't know what I would do with out Auntie D! She is my brother in law's sister and also my husband's 2nd cousin; confusing I know. But Auntie D always makes the turkey gravy and she makes it so good! It would not be Thanksgiving without her.

My husband's side drinking and chatting before dinner.

My mother in law making the punch.

I didn't get very many pictures because I was busy cooking. I hardly took any of my family. I hope my sister got better pictures and shares them.

I had a great time once all the food got on the table. There was a brief time when I was wondering what I was thinking when I set the time for dinner at noon. We didn't eat at noon, but since my sister made great appetizers, everyone patiently waited. Since all the food was so good, it was worth waiting for!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I am getting ready to load the dishwasher one last time before I go to bed. I am having twenty four of my favorite people over for dinner tomorrow night and I just put the last dish in the refrigerator. I was getting ready to turn the laptop off (I have been on Pioneer Woman all day preparing her recipes) and thought I would post a Happy Thanksgiving to All! May the Lord bless us all, with many things to be thankful for. May we all be safe, happy and full on this day!

A beautiful thought

"When the time comes, as it surely will, when we face that awesome moment, the final judgment, I've often thought, as Fulton Sheen wrote, that it is a terrible moment of loneliness. You have no advocates, you are there alone standing before God -- and a terror will rip your soul like nothing you can imagine. But I really think that those in the pro-life movement will not be alone. I think there'll be a chorus of voices that have never been heard in this world but are heard beautifully and clearly in the next world -- and they will plead for everyone who has been in this movement. They will say to God, 'Spare him, because he loved us!'"

-- the late pro-life hero, Congressman Henry Hyde

I read this quote after the election on Let the Little Ones Come. It has crossed my mind over and over since then. What a beautiful thought this is. It gives me hope in the midst of this depression.

The Cutting Room Floor

I was looking at the pictures that I rejected from for our Christmas card. There were several that I liked for various reasons, but they just didn't make the cut for one reason or another. I hate that no one will see them, so I thought I would share them here. A little too tilted and my son is slightly fuzzy. But their smiles are great.

Too squinty. I was trying to keep the shadows off their faces put the sun was just too bright. But that girl is too cute!

If I could put my daughter from the last shot in this one, what a great picture that would have been.

Sand angels, not such a great idea!

The lighting was so bad in these shots, but the background looked good.

One of my favorites, but couldn't bring myself to put it in the card.

A great serious shot, but not very Christmassy. I like how her hair is not in her face!

The thinker!

This one looked to grainy to me.

A great profile, but that strand of hair on the next bugs me!

I guess that is why professionals take so many pictures. Out of about 300 shots, I got about 10 t0 15 that I liked. Thank God for digital!

Christmas Cards

I have been working on creating our family Christmas card for the last week and a half. It has been so frustrating!!!! It is hard when you have an idea in your head, have some decent pictures of your children, have little money in your pocket, and zero ability to do technical things on the computer! I had such high hopes for a great original card, but I don't think it is going to happen. I finally just ordered what I had after doing and redoing the card on at least five different card sites.

I remember as a child the hard part was getting a decent picture of six kids with a film camera. Oh, how great digital photography is! You can at least see if you have a picture before the kids get undressed. But at least back then, Mom just took the picture down and had them print 200 copies of the card! Today you have to be creative and create one, or at least that is what I have been thinking. I guess I should just go retro and do a simple, one photo, photo card. Yeah that is it, I'll go retro! Too late, I all ready ordered the other ones. I hope they turn out okay. I guess it really doesn't matter because it is the thought that counts, right? Merry Christmas!

39 Days until Christmas!

Oh I can't wait for this! In case you don't know it, but we LOVE Christmas at our house!

Veterans Day

God Bless Our Troops who sacrifice so much for our freedoms! May God also bless their families who sacrifice everyday. May God Bless Our Country and May we remember what it takes to have freedom and liberty!