A Different Kind of Holiday

We stayed home this year instead of making the trek "over the river and through the woods" to Mimi and Papa's or Memaw and Pop-Pop's house. This isn't the first Thanksgiving we stayed put...but it is the first one that we were all alone and decided to cook the entire traditional dinner. Despite a bit of stress (there were still three demanding children in the house!), Daddy and I worked well together, sharing the responsibility of making the dishes. The 21 pound turkey cooked for a bit more than 5 hours and was super-yummy! The only major problem was that the turkey filled the oven and we couldn't cook the other dishes! Luckily our across-the-street neighbors ate earlier than us and shared their oven space so we could eat everything at the same time. By dinnertime, we enjoyed the aforementioned turkey, homemade mashed potatoes, Pop-Pop's filling, creamy corn, sweet potato delight (a la Aunt Crystal) and rolls. Daddy and Tater even made a homemade pumpkin pie that was fresh out of oven and gobbled by three little mouths (and one big one!) before an early bedtime!

It was a different kind of day. There was quality time with each of the children, two Skype sessions with family far away (and one even "shared" their meal with Sassy!), and a laid-back relax feeling over all. As much as we missed the time spent with family, we have been craving this time in our home, without overloaded schedules, to just enjoy one another.

Hope everyone had a fabulous day...whether you spent it with your small family or your extended one!