Thankful!

Yep, so today was an absolutely great day!  I really enjoyed a wonderfully peaceful day with my family.  It was also the first time that I've ever taken care of all the food for the entire Thanksgiving meal!  I really wanted to do a Sandra Lee sort-of 'semi-homemade' dinner.  So here's how it went down with the menu:

• Cajun Deep Fried Turkey (Popeyes....oh so good and moist...will do it again for Christmas since it only take 1 hour and 45 minutes to reheat....you literally do nothing at all to it).
• Spiral Glazed Ham (Yep, you know it, take it out of the wrapper, heat for 2 hours and add the brown sugar glaze...yummy!)
  
• Collard & Kale Greens Mixed (used the bagged pre-washed, pre-cut greens and just created a broth to cook them in with 3 smoked turkey legs)
• Mashed Potatoes & Gravy (used Trader Joe's frozen potato medallions...just add milk, butter, salt and they are oh so creamy!  The gravy came from Popeyes because I love it sooo much!)
• Candy Yams (used Trader Joes' sweet potatoes that are already cut, skinned, and ready to be cooked...i boiled them, add a homemade syrup, baked them and then let the broiler hit them for a little while to get that carmelized effect.)
• Apple & Sage Sausage Dressing (no shortcuts here...all homemade)
• Macaroni & Cheese (used my mom's simple macaroni and cheese recipe that will be in the adoption cookbook.  the only thing i changed was that i used medium pasta shells instead of elbow macaroni....very, very good!)
• Cranberry Relish (this came from Sam's club.  it was their Member's Mark brand...perfect balance of sweetness and citrus tangy flavors)
• Buttered Carrots (used gourmet petite carrots that are often found in veggie trays.  they are smaller than the baby carrots.  i just put them in a pot, added butter, a little sugar and salt and voila!)
• Rolls (that would be old faithful....brown and serve.  from the time that i was a little girl, i've loved the brown and serve rolls on thanksgiving day more than any other bread so i couldn't deviate here.)
• Pumpkin Tart (this came from Trader Joe's.  if you like Sweet Potato pie, you'll love this tart.  CJ - our 10 year old killed this pie.  the poor pie never had a chance....thankful that i had them put 2 of them on hold for me so there's more left for tomorrow!)
• Gingerbread (this came from the Dutch Amish market.  MJ - our 8 year old started sneaking out with this EARLY in the morning!)
• Poundcake with Strawberries (i went with Entemann's All Butter Pound Loaf.  i took strawberries, sliced them, added sugar, and allowed them to marinate in their own juices.)

While I am thankful for all of the goodies that I had today, here's a short list of what I'm MOST thankful for:

• My relationship with God.  I love the way that He is maturing me into a woman that is a better contributor to my family and society.
• My husband.  Although he fits into that big category of family, he really does deserve his own line of thanks.  We've been through so much together and I'm so appreciative of the greatness of his love and the way he exhibits his love for me...thank you baby.
• My family.  They really help me stay focused on remembering that family is so much greater than everything else that tries to crowd out my life.  Even when I mess this up, they are so generous with their love.  Thank you!
• The adoption.  I am so honored by the way that our lives and hearts are changing because of this little girl who has possibly not yet been conceived nor entered our lives yet.  I am thankful to God for putting this burden on my heart  for orphans and then giving us the vision and courage to adopt in spite of the obstacles.  Thank you God for breaking my hearts for orphans.  I cannot see their plight and then not be moved to action. 

What about you, what are you most thankful for?

-Michelle