Thanksgiving Day

Happy Thanksgiving! The celebration was a little different this year because we didn't travel and decided to just have Thanksgiving at home with the four of us. It was kind of quiet at times, but it was great to have the time together as a family. And it was definitely nice to have Brent home for a change without wondering when he was going to have to go back into work.

We had a few firsts for us- our first time to use our china (after 7 years we figured it was time) and our first time to cook Thanksgiving dinner. It was nice to just cook for a few people to get some practice before we would host for a bigger group someday. I decided to brine the turkey overnight since I had heard so much about that. It was relatively easy- you just soak the turkey in a solution of water, salt, brown sugar, sliced lemons and oranges, onions, and garlic. Then in the morning, you just roast the turkey as usual. We also made stuffing, squash casserole, Rachel Ray's green beans (very good), and pumpkin pie. There is still a ton of food leftover, but that is just how it goes. Griffin was very excited about eating turkey. He kept saying, "I never saw anything like this before. I love turkey".

While I was cooking, Brent and Griffin went outside and did some yardwork. We had a ton of leaves on our deck and in the backyard. Griffin had a great time jumping in the leaf piles (and Brent did too).

We had a little fun with Gray too. We are always in awe of his chunky thighs, so we put him in the roasting pan. It gives new meaning to "turkey drumsticks".

Here is some video of Gray trying (and somewhat succeeding) at crawling. He is reallly trying but he hasn't quite figured it all out yet. With a little determination, he can still make it across the room. I knew this would happen right around the time we had our Christmas tree and decorations up.