Cooking for Thanksgiving

Wow, how is it that Thanksgiving is tomorrow? I'm looking forward to the meal that my sis-in-law Aimee and I will be preparing. Today the girls have the day off so I hope to get them involved in the kitchen with me as we prep what we can ahead of time.

L has always loved cooking with me, but it seems like she loves it even more these days. In fact, yesterday I was going to let her watch a little PBS Kids before naptime, but the tv was on ABC when I turned it on. She didn't want me to change the channel. Was it cartoons? No, it was The Chew. My little 4-year old wanted to watch a cooking show. Today we had a repeat experience, but it was Rachel Ray this time. Maybe I should get her a cooking-themed gift for Christmas?

But, I digress...I originally wanted to just post about some of the things that I'll be making for our feast. Aimee and I will be cooking the turkey together, but we've divided up the other dishes. This is what I'm planning on making:

Dessert
Originally, I was going to make one dessert and Aimee was going to make one. Apparently, my hubby doesn't think that 2 desserts will be sufficient for 4 adults and 4 kids (under the age of 8). So, he talked me into making more. I'm not kidding, I think his family thinks that dessert is the most important part of Thanksgiving. So, I'll be making:

• Crumb Topped Apple Pie - I think that I might get the girls involved with this. I'll teach them how to make Gramma John's Pie Crust and let them help peel the apples with our apple peeler/corer/slicer. I'll freeze it today and then bake it in the morning. I think it tastes better when it's made that way.
• Pumpkin Cheesecake - I haven't made this in ages, so hopefully I'm not too rusty. And hopefully my unpredictable oven won't destroy it. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Instead of individual ones, I'll make one big one.

Side Dishes

• Green Bean Casserole - Usually, I make the traditional recipe from the back of the fried onion can, but use french cut green beans instead of the regular. This year, I'm trying for a fresher, but still easy, version. Jessica omitted the fried onions, but I'm going to add them. I was planning on frying some shallots for the top, but my hubby prefered that I put that time into making another pie.
• Mashed Potatoes - I love this recipe. I usually peel my potatoes, so you actually don't need to use quite as much butter and half-and-half as this recipe states. But man, are these good!
• Bread - I'm supposed to bring the bread. I'm hoping to try the recipe for Butterhorns that is in my sister's cookbook Not Your Mother's Make-Ahead and Freeze. I think I'll let the girls help me roll them up.

Whatever you end up eating tomorrow, I hope that you all have a wonderful day with your loved ones!

Thanksgiving Fun for Kids

I was looking at a calendar last night and realized how close Thanksgiving is -- only 9 days away! Wow, I've got lots to do! First off, I need to make a coffee date with my sister-in-law Aimee to plan out our meal. But, I'm also thinking about the other fun things that we can incorporate into this very special family day. I have a feeling that Aimee and I will be pretty busy with the cooking, so I'd love to have some father-supervision-friendly activities for the kids to do before we enjoy our feast.

Here are a few things that just might be happening at our Thanksgiving:

• Thanksgiving Apple Turkey Placeholders - It has become a tradition with my girls to make "turkeys" out of apples on Thanksgiving day. Originally, we used spice drops on toothpicks to make the "feathers" for our turkeys. Last year, we got a little more health-conscious and used dried fruit instead. It's fun craft that keeps the kids busy for a bit...and it can be a snack for them as well to tide them over until the feast.
• Thanksgiving Printables - I'm planning on having a few printables for the girls to keep the girls busy if they tire of playing. Family Fun has some cute ones like an Activity Placemat, a Thanksgiving Fill-Them-In Tale, a Leaf-Diving Fun Coloring Page, and a Cornucopia Coloring Page.
• Gratitude Journal - Life Your Way is offering this FREE collection of 32 printable cards to create your own gratitude journal. I think we'll print out a bunch of these cards and let the girls create their own little journals. They can either draw pictures, write the words, or have an adult help them write the words. This could be such a fun little keepsake for them.
• Paper Chain Garland - I never got around to decorating my mantel for Fall, but I plan on doing it for Christmas. E has expressed interest in helping with the decorating, so why not let her be involved where she can? A paper chain garland is an easy, kid-friendly craft - check out Life Your Way for this easy paper chain garland tutorial. I'm thinking of having pre-cut strips of paper that the girls can put together in a garland. It will keep them busy...and it will help us decorate after Thanksgiving.

Do you plan any fun things for your kids to do on Thanksgiving?

DIY Braided Vine Napkin Rings

Thanksgiving will be upon us before we know it! My sister-in-law Aimee and I are going to start planning our feast soon. I must say, we prepared a pretty delectable meal last year...and I can't wait for what we create this year.

I know some folks keep things easy with paper plates, but I love having a pretty table for Thanksgiving. Today at DIY Your Way, I've got a fun little tutorial on how to make your own napkin rings with braided "vine" wire. I just love how they turned out -- stop by and learn how to make your own!

Thanksgiving Plans

How is it that Thanksgiving is just days away? A few days ago, I met with my sister-in-law and we finally got around to planning our Thanksgiving meal. Since heading to the West Coast to be with family is an expensive undertaking, we won't be headed out there for the holiday weekend. Instead, we'll be hanging out with our local family and enjoying a fancy meal together. We're going to divide and conquer to get the meal on the table, except for the turkey. That will be a join effort. Aimee's never cooked a turkey, and I've only done it once. But, together I think we'll manage to pull it off. Here's what we've got planned:

Appetizers

• Mini Quiches
• Relish Tray

Main Meal

• Turkey (not sure what recipe we'll use just yet)
• Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
• Sausage & Apple Stuffing (can be made ahead of time!)
• Green Beans
• Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots with Rosemary and Pecans
• Cranberry Relish

Dessert

• Apple Pie (made by my brother-in-law!)
• Pumpkin Pie
  

While Aimee and I get this feast ready for the table, our little girlies will be supervised by their daddies in making some of the cute Turkey Apple Placeholders (made with apples and dried fruit instead of spice drops this year). Well, the daddies don't know it yet...but they will. I'm hoping to get some felt busy bags ready for the girls to play with as well. The Thanksgiving Fun printable from LifeasMOM is full of easy and fun ideas for kids.

Although I will miss seeing all of our West Coast family, I really am looking forward to a nice meal and quality time with our family here in town.

Thanksgiving Fun

Today is a good day. Why, you ask? Well, LifeasMOM has a FREE Thanksgiving Fun printable today. It's full of fun recipes, crafts and other Thanksgiving activites for the kiddos. It's part of Fishmama's A Simpler Season series. If you haven't checked it out yet, be sure to do so. There will be free downloads each week from now until New Year's.

Personally, I LOVE the idea of this Thanksgiving printable. A few years ago, we spent Thanksgiving with my husband's family. He has a rather large family (just like I do), so I planned ahead and got some activities together for the kids to do. They got to make Turkey Apple Placeholders (a tradition that I started with my girls) and play some fun printable activities. My niece and nephew both loved it. It was a simple thing to do, but it made them feel special and remembered on a day when so much of our focus is getting a good meal on the table in a timely fashion. This printable really makes it easy to be that rockstar mom, or auntie as the case may be.

What fun thanksgiving things do you plan at your house?

Thanksgiving Craft: Turkey Placeholder

A few years ago, our church liaison for our local Mothers of Preschoolers group shared with us one of their Thanksgiving family traditions. Each year before the Thanksgiving dinner, everyone in their family makes a "turkey" using an apple, toothpicks, spice drops and construction paper. Later at the meal, these turkeys serve as placeholders.

I thought that it was a cute idea at the time but Ella was still rather young to do it. Then, two years ago, Ella was nearly three so I thought that we'd give it a try. I was heavily pregnant with Lucie so we decided to stay closer to home and celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. It was a more subdued holiday -- Mom was away supporting her sister through breast cancer treatment, Dad had decided to start some kitchen remodeling just days before Thanksgiving, and my sister Jessica was still living halfway across the country with her brood. So, it was just out little family along with my Dad, my two brothers and my sister Jamie. Despite the fact that Ella was the ONLY child at Thanksgiving, I still insisted that everyone make a turkey. At first I wasn't sure how my brothers or father would take to the idea, but actually everyone participated and we had a good time. Granted, my brothers were excited about the prospect of seeing how far their turkeys could fly across the wash behind my parents house, but they still made them! It made for a sweet memory. I'm hoping to try these again this year with my husband's family. I'm not sure that I could convince all 17 of them to make turkeys, but I think I'll try to get the kids to make them.

Turkey Placeholders

Supplies Needed:

Red Delicious Apples

Toothpicks

Spice Drop (or Gum Drop) Candies

Brown Construction Paper or Cardstock

Markers

1. Make a turkey neck/head out of brown paper or cardstock. Draw an eye on both sides and a red wattle. (You can also use red paper for the wattle if you wish.)
2. Lay the apple on its side and cut a slit on the stem end of the apple. Stick in the paper head.
3. At the other end of the apple, use two toothpicks for legs to stablize the turkey on the bottom.
4. On the top, make as many "feathers" as you like by skewering the spice drops on toothpicks and sticking them into the apple.
5. Use your finished turkeys as place holders at your Thankgsiving meal!