It doesn't get any better than this.

Thanksgiving Day is by far my favorite holiday. I get to cook, decorate the house in my favorite fall colors, and best of all - my family is all (mostly) here, under one roof. I think that this is year #20 for Glen & I hosting this holiday. We've come a long way from that first year of shoving a 20 pound turkey in the microwave with the therometer probe (remember those things?) to finish cooking. My friend, Colleen, likes to remind me of that year when I was buying that big old frozen turkey the night before. After dinner the sink backed up and we had to wash all the dishes in the bathtub. But we still kept doing it and this year was about my favorite. I had prepared the time consuming dishes, like turkey and mashed potatoes, the night before so I could actually sit and visit with family instead of staying in the kitchen while everyone else had a good time. Also, my sweet niece, Katie, came the night before and helped me decorate the house which was mostly cleaned by my sister last Saturday. Mom stood at the counter in her back brace and made the pumpkin pies. Glen cleaned and dressed the turkey. He asked me why everyone assumed that this was his job. I told him that if it wasn't done by him that we'd be eating a Honey-Baked turkey. He finished his task. Linda is always in charge of the dinner rolls at the last minute. This year my sister was helping her and neither one of them could read the baking time on the back of the package. Then they had to try to set the timer. Another challenge. Finally they decided just to throw the things in the oven and pull them out when they were browned. Those two have brains, I tell ya'.
Chloe proudly wore her Indian shirt, headress, and necklace she made in school. She happily told anyone who would listen to her the half hour long story she had written in "Indian" on the front of it. She's a very clever little girl and OH SO SWEET!
Peyton would NOT take off his orange hunting hat that Grandpa Glen had given him.
And this is what I mean when I say................................
it doesn't get any better than this!
I am thankful for my family.
They are quite a bunch.
I love each and every one of them.
Happy Thanksgiving!

ps.....I simply detest Christmas decorations being put on display before Thanksgiving. I decided this year to put my Irish tree in the dining room so everyone who has given me the beautiful ornaments over the years could see it. Chloe & Peyton reminded me how strongly I feel about people who do this, so we decided that we will just call this the Celebration of Folk tree. It will now become a new Thanksgiving tradition for us to put this one up early.