* Give Thanks*

Well, this year, I took off essentially the entire week of Thanksgiving in order to give thanks to the beauty around me, my home, and my family, and do something for each of them.
This week some of my goals are to:
Assist a friend in packing up her home to move
Teach Lisa how to make miracle rolls taught to me by Martha
Organize my kitchen with my new pots and pans (Thanks special Costco in Vegas)
Make a Christmas banner for work
Send off my paperwork to begin the completion of my basement renovation
Merchandise my closet and make it appropriate for my scrap-booking
Put up the rest of my Christmas decor (Since I will be in Texas for Christmas, I want to squeeze every moment from it)
Get the pantry repaired and sorted
Sort the basement and then put away seasonal items
Do laundry
Go to twilight
Oh, and make a huge Thanksgiving dinner

On the menu this year, I am considering the following:
Turkey-20 lbs
Julia Child's mushroom stuffing
Green Beans Fresh rolls with honey butter
Spinach salad with strawberries, candied pecans, and blue cheese
Goat cheese mashed potatoes
Southern sweet potato casserole
Cornbread pudding
Apple pie
Pumpkin pie
Peanut butter pie
Chess Pie
Tollhouse Pie

I have decided to be more casual than I usually am at this time and do a rustic burlap themed Thanksgiving with beautiful sticks, leaves, and twine rather than crystal, as I typically use at my parties. I will post photos as I get them as well as the recipes I end up using and any modifications. Bonne chance to you all~