Sitting at the “Cool Kids” Table on Thanksgiving!

people tend to drag christmas out so i’m going to drag thanksgiving out (i know some of you are still eating leftovers). we left South Carolina yesterday, drove to Atlanta and then flew to Houston so a day of traveling meant no recap about our amazing thanksgiving so here it is because we had a superb time!

the day was spent by me being lazy and smelling the delicious skills of people in my family that can cook while i sat and ate 17 of these cookies (i am not even joking. i kept track because it was getting ridiculous and i couldn’t stop). the recipe makes 12 dozen so i was being generous with my portions. my grandmother makes these and they have sesame seeds in them. i. love. sesame. seeds. and sugar. so put the two together and whoa. i am going to have a whole new batch of friends when i bring these to my next social gathering!

basically i was also like a little puppy being glued to my sister and mom since i have been missing being around them like crazy. and yes, we wear scarves inside…it’s a fashion statement. this was a test shot with my camera taking timed photos so we could take a whole group shot!

here’s the whole gang that made it to Dataw Island, South Carolina for thanksgiving 2013!

getting 12 people to all look in one direction with all of their eyes open and 70% of everyone’s faces being shown is pretttty impressive. included in the picture is my sister and her fiance, my aunt and uncle with their 2 awesome kids in the front, my mom and stepdad in the back and his parents/my grandparents in the front. oh and my husband and me. these are some solid folks right here!

let’s get to the grub. my sister was very kind and let me help her make the pumpkin pies she was in charge of. i ended up doubling the clove spice so she handed me a glass of wine and told me to watch. usually i can bake well…not that day. isn’t she cute?!

here’s the spread for the feast later. we ate around 5:00pm because my aunt pointed out that it allowed plenty of time for “go-backs.” i loooved that saying-well done Meg!

we had 2 turkeys, one that was baked and one that was fried. first time for me to have fried turkey and it was outrageously delicious. amazing stuffing, green beans (i ate 3 so please be proud of me), mashed potatoes (i ate 1/4 of that), squash and cranberries on the end.

the gang sitting around a gorgeously set table (that also happened to completely break 5 hours early and one end was being held up with a large stack of books). oh, are you wondering where the cool kids are?

we sat at the cool kids table of course! we also dubbed this the “generation Y table” since technically there were kids in the other room. we find ourselves to be hilarious.

because i saw so many images on facebook of people’s plates…here’s mine:

i tried my first brussel sprout and my stepdad is an amazing chef so he made them with bacon so that was pretty tasty. i ate a whole one so i gave it a fair shot but i’m not sure it’s making my list of favorite veggies but i definitely ate all the bacon around it. i had ‘go-backs’ on fried turkey and taters. mmm.

after some people unbuttoned their pants (they will remain nameless) we moved into the first round of dessert. my grandfather pulled out this delicious concoction! pumpkin liqueur-i loved it. fair-warning that it’s super sweet and not for everyone but i will gladly take your serving.

this got us ready to then have actual pumpkin pie along with pecan! the little pumpkin pies are the leftovers that wouldn’t fit in the pie crust that you are never allowed to throw away. always eat it or send it to me and i’ll eat it!

we had a truly wonderful thanksgiving (and enjoyed reminiscing about our first thanksgiving together 7 years ago when i flew to see my husband, then boyfriend,  while he was studying abroad in the Czech Republic). it was exceptional to be surrounded by part of my family in a gorgeous home with lovely view and eat home cooked meals. happy happy happy.

the new wifestyle: thanksgiving is a wonderful time to be grateful for many things but also try to incorporate it throughout your daily life!

questions:
1) did you try anything new this thanksgiving?
2) does your family fit around one table or is there often a “cool kids” table?
3) favorite leftovers?