Wahhhhhhhhhhhhhh. (That's code for We Ate Horrendous, Horrendous amounts of food.)

YUUUMMM!

 What a terrific Thanksgiving we Olson's had! Early to rise (but later than normal); I made the rolls and fed the boys breakfast while Papa prepped the turkey for the roaster and got 'er started. Then he magnanimously offered told me he'd make everything else. Since I made the pie yesterday, I said I'd make the green bean casserole--one of my favorites--and, okay, he could make the rest. :) So before 10:15 a.m. he'd made the mashed potatoes, the stuffing, the glazed sweet potatoes; prepped the corn and the gravy to make later; set the table; and washed all the dishes. I KNOW--he's amazing!

Then, after I got the boys and myself dressed between reading stories and watching some of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (isn't that a tradition?), we all piled into the car and drove to Good Sam, where Papa led the residents in a short Thanksgiving Day service. It was terrific. Everyone was very kind, and the boys behaved wonderfully. We were glad to see some shut-ins from our church and talk to other residents, too. We enjoyed it so much, we hope to do this every year if it works out.

Then we headed home to EAT. And eat we did! Everything miraculously turned out--there's always some snafus that make us think something isn't going to taste right--and all of us, even the little guys, spent the first ten minutes after the prayer stuffing our faces and not saying anything. Which, if you know us at all, almost never happens. So the roughly four hours of prep paid off in the roughly ten to fifteen minutes of eating. The return doesn't seem great, but with enough leftovers to last us a week (and mighty good leftovers, too!), we'll take it. Especially since Mama did so little work. :)

P: Did someone say "TURKEY"?! S: Gimme some milk.

Ready to dig in!

The Menu:

Roast Turkey
Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Lydia's Schnitzel Beans
Buttered Corn
Cranberry Relish (from the can, per Papa's favs)
Beth's Best Buns
Milk
Pumpkin Pie (not pictured)

Papa, a.k.a. The Chef, spooning up. No, that's not his plate.

 

Then I cleaned up most of the remnants while Papa took the boys downstairs to start watching the DVR'd Packer/Lions game. The little guys went down for naps after a bit, and so did Mama, while Papa spent an enjoyable few hours watching the Pack beat on the hapless helpless hopeless downtrodden Lions. (He then spent the rest of the day telling me how great of a game it was. It really made his Thanksgiving!) Then we drove over the the Smidt Family Thanksgiving and saw and visited with lots of lovely people while we ate dessert. They invited us last year, so this is becoming somewhat of a tradition, too--what a blessing!

It reached almost sixty degrees, which has to be near a record. At any rate, it was gorgeous out, so we all played at a nearby park before we headed home and started getting out the Christmas decorations. I've put my Christmas dishes in the hutch--one of my favorite seasonal activities is to switch out dishes and flowers; nerdy and old-school, but I can't help myself--and after some shopping yesterday, we rearranged the living room furniture (hey--I helped push the couch a few inches--once), which always precludes the annual Christmas Tree Decorating Extravaganza. I love this time of year!

We're so thankful to God for all of His gifts. And, as S said on Thursday, "Happy Thanks" to you all.