Thanksgiving

 We had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving at home this year with Todd's mom (Linda) and sister (Elizabeth).

Every year I get better at getting the meal done on time and on the table, and this year was by far the easiest.

(...except for the fact that when I checked the turkey the night before, it was still frozen SOLID.  It turns out some curious little hands turned the dial in the fridge in our garage and everything was frozen: broccoli, milk, sour cream, and the turkey.  I put the turkey in the sink in some water, and got up twice in the night to make sure the water was still cold.  At 6:30 AM, I turned the water to hot, and wrestled with that naked bird until he was thawed, and stuck him in the fridge.)

Apparently, Butterball turkeys do not come with string to "truss" the turkey. In case you were wondering, 

using blue dental floss instead will leave a blue line on your turkey.

 Linda ordered our rolls from Golden Corral, which freed up the oven for the stuffing and sweet potatoes, 

while I made the gravy and snitched the "guts".

  

I love the "guts". The liver is my  favorite.

I set the table the night before, and Elizabeth and I came up with the "turkey" napkins all on our own, 

with no help whatsoever from Pinterest.

Linda brought that cute turkey shaped butter, and the boys had lots of fun slicing its head off.

 We also had pumpkin pie, and this cake:

 No, I didn't make the cake.  I don't make pretty cakes.  Costco made this pretty cake. 

 I just transported it to my pretty cake plate (which was no easy task). 

We spent the afternoon watching White Christmas.

A few days later, Linda taught the boys to crochet.  They've been chaining up a storm, and even though he's not pictured, Caleb has the longest chain so far.  It's at least as big as a full size afghan.  In their next lesson, they'll learn to attach row 2.

(Brayden is wearing his PE uniform, hence the reason his name is broadcast in large letters on his shirt)