Happy Thanksgiving!!

Before I get started on my MANY hours of cooking, I thought I would do a quick post.

I am thankful for so many things today...
Family
Friends
Health
The Gospel of Jesus Christ
and all the other wonderful blessings I enjoy in my life.  Life is good.  Somedays it is harder to remember than others.  That is why I LOVE Thanksgiving.  But I must confess that my love of today is often muddied by the hours and hours of cooking I have to do just for our small family to have one meal.  We have so many years (like this year) where it is just us...and it is hard to simplify since there are so many favorites and we ONLY make them at Thanksgiving.

So this is what we have decided on...
Turkey Breast--cooking right now in the crock pot!! Hooray!  So EASY!! I was adamant that I did not want to do a big bird.  I am a person that doesn't want turkey leftovers, so I just bought the smallest one.
I put it in breast side down with some minced onion, salt and pepper, one can vegetable broth and about 3 T butter.  (p.s.  It was AMAZING.  Hands-down the most moist turkey breast we've ever had.  We have found a new tradition!!)

Sourdough Artichoke Stuffing--my FAVORITE thing.  I never liked stuffing until I found this!

Corn with Wild Rice--from the Pioneer Woman...she really should have been on my list of things I am grateful for!!  ; P  My whole family L.O.V.E.S. this recipe!  It is a must have!

Mashed Potatoes--this has become strictly my husband's affair.  While I avert my eyes, he adds all sorts of yumminess including butter and cream cheese.  I just can't bring myself to pour in the amounts that he likes, so I just try to turn a blind eye and add a few extra minutes to my workout the next day!  ; )

Sweet Potatoes--I have done these all sorts of different ways.  Growing up, my mom made a sweet potato and apple dish that I loved.  But when I make it, I am the ONLY one who eats it and it is just not worth the effort!  This year, I was just planning on some brown sugar/marshmallow goodness.
(p.s.  My neighbor ended up calling me right after I posted offering a pan of her sweet potatoes that she had quadrupled.  They were mashed with lots of butter, I'm sure, and topped with brown sugar and pecans and they were a HIT!  They were the only thing I went back to for seconds, thirds, and much much more than I should have eaten! ; )

Whole Wheat Rolls--Homemade of course!!  Those were the ONLY thing I got done yesterday...well, and I made the crust for the MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE WHOLE MEAL....

THE PIES....We are doing three pies this year...

Lemon Meringue...my kids favorite thing to make!  It really is a fun recipe to involve your kids in.  They love watching the filling go clear and get thick.  And then watching the egg whites beat into creamy white fluff and getting to spread it over the pie...what's not to love?  My four-year-old did the peaks all by himself...he was so very proud!  I have always thought that this was the prettiest pie of all!

Apple...I can my own apple pie filling every fall, so this one is SUPER easy.  I make the crust, dump in a jar, and top it with crumb topping.

Pumpkin...we LOVE pumpkin pie around here and this year I am trying a new recipe.  I got it off of a blog I follow...Ancestral Pumpkin Pie.  I'll let you know what we think!!  (p.s.  YUM...very rich and flavorful.  I think it's a keeper!)

Hope you all have a wonderful day!  If you'd like to see some cute and simple Thanksgiving crafts my kids did,  check out my other blog post HERE.