Preparations Have Begun!

How do I not post something to this blog the day before Thanksgiving?

This was the question I asked myself this morning as I was cutting open the pumpkin for our pumpkin pie and reflecting on the brine recipe I conquered last night for the turkey. My excitement for home cooking couldn't have been spared from this blog and therefore, I bring it to you.

Luckily I was able to have the day off work, which only fueled the Holiday To Do list. Before cleaning my house, which for some reason I always save for my days off (sick and twisted, I know), I prepared my pumpkin for the pumpkin pie my daughter and I would be making this afternoon. My daughter has never had pie before and she has been talking about this pumpkin pie we would make and eventually eat together for the last week and a half (let's all keep in mind that she is two). I figured I would get a jump start on the pumpkin pie this morning while she was at daycare, so that later we could easily make our crust, mix the mashed pumpkin with necessary ingredients, bake and voila!

As I was seeding the pumpkin, I figured I would save the seeds, soak them in salt water and eventually bake them as well for a tasty snack tomorrow. Now, when I refer to 'tomorrow', there to two very big events happening for my little family: First, we are going to go cut down our Christmans Tree and second, we are going to pig out on some down home cooking! ....I figured we could snack on pumpkin seeds while we're up hiking in the snow scouring for the 'perfect' tree. What a day of festivities tomorrow will bring for my little family. *If you're interested in the home-made pumpkin pie from scratch recipe I'm using or the apple-cider brine, I have posted it under the Baking, Crochet, Creativity column to the left.

As we speak, my pumpkin is baking, dressed in tin-foil and my house is cleaned! My turkey has been sitting in the Apple-Cider Brine since last night and will continue to soak up the cider-goodness until baking time tomorrow. As I continue prepping for the feast my family will enjoy, my excitement for this small Thanksgiving grows with intensity. This is the first year my daughter will understand what Thanksgiving is and the first Christmas where she knows a Christmas Tree, Christmas Presents, and Santa Clause.

With the baking of my pumpkin pie tonight, the cooking of homemade cranberry sauce tomorrow and the feasting on apple-cider turkey, my family is truly beginning the first of many traditions to follow. I hope for the rest of my life (yes, this is a stretch, I know) my daughter and I can bake pumpkin pies the night before Thanksgiving and enjoy the spirit of the season as we are this year.

I'd like to leave you with one final thought today, before I run out the door to purchase our Christmas Tree Permit. This saying first entered my life when I found out I was pregnant with my daughter two years ago and I often find myself returning to it. I feel it's quite appropriate for the day.

Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way. ~Native American Proverb.