I am thankful for...

Our thanksgiving meal was spectacular. In case you didn't fill up on the three different kinds of turkey on the table, there were sides and pies galore. It was a lovely meal with lots of love and good conversation. And it was early to bed for me, because I got up at 5 AM to go Black Friday shopping with my best friend from high school.

On the menu...

Smoked turkey

Roasted turkey

Fried turkey

Challah bread

Mashed potatoes and gravy

Cornbread stuffing

Sausage stuffing

Collard greens

Corn souffle

Cranberry relish

Bourbon sweet potatoes

Kentucky Derby Pie

Apple Pie

Pumpkin Pie

Fresh whipped cream

Fry it if you've got it

We spent Thanksgiving in Sweetwater, Tennessee with old friends and family. Although we missed most of the autumn leaves, which had already dropped, East Tennessee was still as beautiful as ever. Sweetwater is just a three hour drive from Atlanta, so we loaded up in the trusty Honda and arrived around noon, just in time to munch on cocktail shrimp, drink a beer, and help fry the turkey.

Turkey frying is not as easy as it might look. The lead turkey fryer is a med student, as is his girlfriend, and we speculated on how many turkey frying related injuries the Sweetwater Hospital would see that day. It was chilly, and while Stephen was getting the turkey from the kitchen, Bailey and I warmed our hands over the heating oil. Ummm...turkey frying rule number one is apparently to stay far away from the oil. Oops.

Beer and frying on Thanksgiving, what could be more American. That bird smells like freedom.


I have to say, fried turkey is one of the finer things in life. Once it was done and we had a taste, we started to brainstorm other things we could deep fry before the oil went cold. Twinkies? Corn dogs? Just straight butter? We settled on bacon, which had already been smoked with the other turkey (there were three). Smoked, fried bacon is absolutely delicious.

Happy Thanksgiving - Make a Wish

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I am enjoying the holiday with my family and friends in my hometown of Sweetwater, Tennessee. Here are some adorable turkey cupcakes for you from Cupcakes Take the Cake.

Don't forget the wishbone, y'all. Print by LuckyBluebirdArt.

No budget thanksgiving decor

I've done a few autumnal, harvest-y decor projects around the house this season. I made some harvest garland, had it up for a few weeks, got tired of it, and decided to go for round two of the DIY fall decorations. The challenge? Do it on the cheap, really cheap, as in shop my own house and spend no money cheap. I had eyed fall wreaths in Target, but didn't want to plunk down the $20. I had some leaf garlands in my stash that I have had for at least 3 or 4 years, and little red berries that I put out every Christmas. I bought those berries the first year I moved to Atlanta, so I've had them for 8 years now? They are super versatile. I pulled out a wire hanger and wrapped everything around, and voila, a new fall wreath.

I also made a little bookshelf vignette from things I had around the house. I filled a clear vase with acorns I collected a while back. I learned from blogging friends that there are little worms that live inside them. So, I baked them at low heat for a few hours, which did the trick. I collected some bare branches from the yard and hot glued little fabric leaves I had leftover from the garland project. I always keep white pillar candles on hand, and stuck them in galvanized planters and tins, one borrowed from my desk, the other I grew basil in this summer. A little fall ambiance to tide me over until I can bring out the winter holiday decorations.

And on the theme of thrift, here is a really cool story from NPR on the recent rise in popularity of thrift stores.