Thanksgiving 2016

Another Thanksgiving come and gone.

We roasted a twenty pound turkey with all the traditional sides ... special mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole, corn, candied yams, cranberries, and a pan of sweet corn bread. We also sampled some sparkling pumpkin cider, and it was surprisingly good!

Katie baked two apple pies, Grandma Joyce's recipe, of course.

We invited Patty and Richard over again this year, and Richard brought a pumpkin pie he'd made from pumpkins that were grown in his own yard.

Mark and Mom brought Dad a slice of pumpkin pie later on. He said that Mom's pumpkin pie was spicier. Then the next day, we brought him a slice of Katie's apple pie, which tasted much like it did when Mom made it. It was sad that he wasn't able to be with us at the dinner, but I guess I need to accept the changes that life keeps bringing us.

The day after Thanksgiving was not a day of shopping. Instead, I had a mammogram, and stopped by for a workout at Curves since it was close by. The familiar routine felt good.

Today we had homemade turkey soup with crusty bread dipped in the bowl. And of course, more apple pie.

Jake helped me drag the tree up from the basement and we put it up in front of the living room window. Minnie Mouse has already claimed it as her tree, and has been giving Punk and Tristin the evil eye even when they just start to casually stroll by. We'll see if we hang the ornaments up soon or wait until closer to Christmas. It could be a long month if I have to constantly chase them away!

Anyway, I am thankful for all that we have. It's been a challenging year, but there are so many others in the world who are hurting more, and have way less than we do. It's something worth thinking about.