Day of Thanks 2012!

Ahh Thanksgiving...one of my fav holidays. A day to reflect and really think about all that you are  grateful to have in your life. Also a day to prepare & feast on amazing food.

FOOD

That word is much too easily taken for granted.

It is easy to forget how lucky we are to actually have plentiful amounts of food at our disposal...when there are SO many in the world that may go days without a bite of food. According W.H.O. (as referenced here), it is estimated that "Approximately 815 million people are undernourished and over 16,000 children die PER DAY from hunger-related causes." - that's seriously shocking and very upsetting. 

My biggest 'thankful for' - would be our ability to put food on the table & provide for my family every single day.

 This year we split the day into two. One at my MIL's house last week...

Then actual Thanksgiving day hosted at our house again...though it was wayyy more intimate and scaled down from last year's craziness. It was only 7 of us, with a kitchen full of goodness. We prepped:

...and cooked an 18 lb turkey... (pre-brined from Trader Joes!) which I lovingly slathered both over AND under the skin with a thyme/rosemary/sage butter rub...mmmm. Then we stuffed it with sliced oranges and popped it in the oven for 4.5 hours...paired with a few cartons of Trader Joe's gravy...it was perfection! 

I also tried my hand at my first ever sweet potato casserole...so proud of myself. It was THIS one, pinned like CRAZY all over Pinterest...and it did not disappoint! Definitely added to my list for yearly side-dishes in the Mejia household.

My sister brought sweet Hawaiian rolls, pumpkin cheesecake and a Julian crumb-apple pie with vanilla ice cream (my FAV!!). My mom, uncle & other sis brought over perfect mashed potatoes, delish stuffing and homemade cranberry sauce.

Prior to the fam arriving, James, Kapri & I went on a little walk/bike ride to gather some branches, leaves & flowers to decorate the table with...this is why "nature" has a perfect spot on our Thankful Board! 

These yellow leaves were perfect to use as little place 'cards':

special "THANK YOU" to our neighbors for letting us borrow their table/chairs again this year!!

Just as the food was finishing up, we went outside for a few fam pics:

Once the turkey was beautifully carved by the hubs, we all filled our plates and sat down together. We all went around the table & briefly shared a few words on what we're thankful for this year. Love these moments!

Then we found some room for some pie and lounged on the couch for the rest of the evening... and had a little silly pic sesh with the auto-timer (while James hung out upstairs watching football... away from all the loud, intense "Watkins" estrogen, hahaha...love you babe!):

After all the leftovers were split up and packaged...everyone left and this tired mamma took a 3hr snooze before having to get up for Black Friday madness. It was a perfect evening...so thankful for all in my fam!

I can't believe Thanksgiving has come & gone...and next up is my birthday. And not just any birthday... my 30th...which just happens to be my GOLDEN birthday (30 on the 30th) - in VEGAS...eeeeeee cannot wait!!!