My first turkey!

So yesterday I made my 2nd entire Thanksgiving (last year was my first for Corey and I down in Hilton Head). This year was different though, because I made my first turkey! Although there was only going to be 4 of us at dinner, I figured I'd try a whole bird instead of buying just a turkey breast or a roasting chicken (like I did last year). I was a little worried, but felt okay because I had a recipe and it seemed pretty easy to follow. Well, as I was readying the turkey for oven, I decided I wasn't too sure about the recipe (it called for paprika and I wasn't sure about that) and there were small logistics I wasn't sure about. So what did I do? Did what any girl would do - I called my mom! She very patiently answered my questions and helped me get the turkey in the oven.

Later in the day, Kelli came over to help make the rest of dinner, including mashed potatoes, stuffing, brussel sprouts, corn, and bread. I tried to make the mashed potatoes in my food processor thinking it would cut down on mashing time ---bad idea! We ended up with what Kelli and I dubbed "potato paste." So we boiled a couple extra potatoes, hand mashed them and mixed them in with the paste in order to salvage the mashed potatoes. The turkey was nicely browned and the correct temp when I took it out of the oven. It had to sit a little longer than I'd planned, so it probably was a little cooler than I would have liked, but it tasted okay. I still have some practice to do before being able to replicate the turkey my mom makes. Everything else turned out well! My favorite part of the meal? The pumpkin pie! I used a Paula Deen recipe which used cream cheese and half-and-half --needless to say it was rich, but rather fluffy. I liked it much better than the traditional pumpkin pie.

Kelli and her dad joined Corey and I for dinner and we had a great time. We swapped stories and had great conversation, including Kelli's dad's jokes. Despite not being with family on Thanksgiving, I had a wonderful day!

Now its on to prepping for Christmas - we're putting up the tree and other decorations tomorrow and I've already started some Christmas shopping. Whew - hard to believe its less than a month away!