The one in which Charlotte tackles Thanksgiving

Each year I get a little bit more "adult."  I remember getting my first checking account and using a debit card vividly.  There was that whole buying a house thing, and then babies.  But this year was a big one.  I hosted Thanksgiving.

Dave and I only celebrate with my family every other year.  During childhood, we usually did Thanksgiving at my grandparents' house.  There was no "over the river and through the woods" for the kids this year.  There was only "into the kitchen, do some work, now get out of my way."

I carefully planned my meal.  You always read about fun and fancy dishes in magazines, but how often do you actually get the chance to make them.  I've been known to clip recipes from People Magazine and Real Simple. I was excited to put them to use. (I'm happy to share the recipes)

Here was the menu:
Drinks: cider, mulled wine
Appetizers: fancy crackers with a roasted ricotta and parmesan herb dip
Main:  Turkey
Sides: mashed potatoes, roasted lime sweet potatoes, roasted balsamic and honey brussel sprouts, fire-roasted corn with lime and ginger, cranberry parmesan sourdough stuffing.

I outsourced to the guests: wine, pies, salad, rolls, and crudite.

In the lead up to the big day, I wrote up a time sequence of when to prep foods, cook, and at what temperature.  I borrowed an electric roaster from my mother-in-law to free up the oven. This helped alleviate some of the stress.  On Wednesday, the kids and I spent about three hours toasting bread for stuffing and chopping herbs and vegetables, and setting up the table and chairs.

On Thursday my mom came over early to teach me how to do a turkey.  After getting the mulled wine and turkey going, my mom, Linus, and I were able to relax, drink some coffee, and play Phase 10.  Around 1 pm it was go time.  It all went pretty smoothly.  Dave and Eileen pitched in to set the table.

The food was delicious. The company was lovely.  I'm really proud of the feast I created.  The only downside is I didn't get much to socialize.  Luckily, my sister snapped a few pics.

 Grandpa, Robin, and Eileen needed some time to recover after dinner.

I've now got two years to make adjustments (half the stuffing recipe, more than double the cheese dip).  I am hoping by then the kids will have changed their eating habits slightly.  Because honestly, slaving away for 8 hours for them to only eat a roll is a bit annoying.