The fourth Thursday in November

For Americans, the fourth Thursday in November is our national Thanksgiving holiday. Canadians, you have a Monday in October. But we have a long weekend, a parade, a dog show, football, and of course, the Godfather Marathon. I'm not Italian, but I love the Godfather. Call me crazy, but I like the loyalty and tradition in killing mobsters. And of course the cannoli. "Don't forget the cannoli." I've been watching the first one and I still seem to miss the very beginning. I'm sure they'll be doing the marathon again.
So back to Thanksgiving. It's a great day- it was a beautiful here in Vermont- a bit warm and very sunny. I should have soaked up some sunshine, but instead I watched some (too much) television and then cooked up a storm.

My wonderful cousin Steffi came up for the weekend and didn't arrive until 5-5:30, so we (I) delayed most of the cooking until later. Most was easy- cooking up fresh butternut squash that my friends Becky and Kurt grew, cooked up mashed potatoes, and cut up and cooked fresh brussel sprouts with onion and garlic. That was easy- just a lot of prep work. My mom made her cranberry and orange relish (it might actually be my father's mother's recipe, but my mom does it proud). She also prepared the turkey and stuffing and made the gravy when Steffi arrived. I made the crust of my apple pie late (after everything else) so we had pie for breakfast and it was de-lish! I'm not a fan of the crust- it had more of a sugar cookie consistency instead of the old fashioned flaky crust- but it had Cabot Cheddar in the crust, so it ultimately was great. (I found the recipe in Women's Day if you want to check it out..)

So now that the eating and feasting is done (though we have tons of leftovers! Whoo hoo!), it is time to think about Christmas. Some wonderful retailers have had their decorations up since SEPTEMBER! They're just eager is all. I can now play Christmas music, decorate with old and new decorations, finish my Christmas shopping, and wrap my gifts. I have just about everyone done- an order from Amazon to purchase soon (make sure I have enough money) and then a couple odds and ends between now and Christmas. And of course ship a few boxes and mail Christmas cards (and a Hanukkah card thrown in there, too)

I AM READY! Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!