we have a winner...

Thanks to all who played along and left me comments

some of you still are a little shy...

Maybe next time.

so the winner is

Becky from One Shabby Old House.

turkey bowl...

One of our newer family traditions

We started this as an *official* tradition

when the grandsons were old enough

to start playing football

As you can see this is usually

when they start *walking*

this is for Grandpa


aunts and uncles

brothers and sisters

the whole family

Even *Grandma* comes out for this one game

Look at that catch!

And the look

watch out, Mom!

A time...

to give thanks

Let us give thanks and so worship God

Hebrews 12:28

preparing for the feast, part 2

Shh,

don't tell anyone.

But I haven't made a pie crust in years.

This is what happens

when you train your children.

#1 daughter learns,

oh , around 1992,

and takes over until she gets married ( 2000)

Then , wanting dessert again

we tell daughter #2,

time to get to it!

She has taken this very seriously,

and

has become the family chef and pastry baker.

After much study and experimentation,

during which time we were obliged to do taste tests,

she has found this recipe from Cook's Illust. to be her favorite so far.

Basic Pie Dough

(makes 1 double crust 9-in.)

2 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp salt

2 T. sugar

1/2 c. chilled shortening

12 T. cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4" pieces

6-8 T ice water

1. Process flour , salt, sugar in food processor until combined. Add shortening & process until mixture has the texture of coarse sand, about 10 sec. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture; cut into flour until mixture is pale yellow & resembles coarse crumbs, with butter bits no larger than peas, about 10 1 sec. pulses. Turn mixture into a med. bowl.

2. Sprinkle 6 T. of water over mixture. With rubber spatula, use a folding motion to mix. Press down on dough with the broad side of spatula until dough sticks together, adding up to 2 T. more water if the dough will not come together. Divide the dough into 2 balls and flatten each into a 4-in. disk. Wrap each in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour, or up to 2 days, before rolling.

As you can see

I'm currently working with daughter #3She made the filling.

I like the good ole' Libby's recipe the best.

Just use 3 cups of fresh pumpkin.

And top with freshly whipped cream.

Yummy!



On a lighter note

but still very dear to my heart
are these


Thanksgiving decorations

that I just pulled out of the drawer
to put in their special place of honor.




I bought these years ago.

They were always the centerpiece during Novemeber

As you can see, one night,

I suppose dinner was taking a little too long ,
with 5 hungry children (2 of them being boys),

they were de-nosed!

I'm sure I was quite put out at the time

and the *talk* given.

You know the *respect other people's property*
and *you think you're hungry* talk .


But now I look at them and smile.

They remind me of a special time,
a time when the table was full,
and laughter abounded ,
a time when my boys were here to tease me,
and a time of many lessons to be learned.

A time to be thankful for.

Have a very blessed day giving Thanks,

love to all,

Rene'

preparing for the feast, part 1

Have you ever had fresh pumpkin pie?

It is quite easy.
I learned how
during what I call my
*Little House on the Prairie* days
and the taste is really uncomparable!


Quarter the pumpkins

throw them in a roasting pan,

(seeds and all)

Add 1 cup water to pan, cover tightly.

(with a lid or foil)

Bake 350 for about an hour, until tender with a fork.

Scoop out seeds

peel skins

and process until smooth and creamy.


There you have it~

ready to go!

We use *pie* pumpkins

they are sweeter and not as stringy as *jack o'lantern* types

We also do up quite a bit and freeze what we don't use for Thanksgiving

for more pies, muffins, and cake.

Tasty and easy!

my bountiful harvest...

It all started with this

and this

(I found this pretty soup tureen at Downtown Treasures)

I don't normally buy brown

but there was something about this

that just spoke to me.

OK, yelled at me:)

Kelly at Rose Vine Cottage Two

posted these photos

from the fall Creative Home magazine

I don't normally even look at this one

but this caught my eye

a little shabby

a little vintage

very romantic

I started gathering

and it led to this

I like to call this my "harvest" centerpiece

Most of it is from my thrifting.

It is the fruit of my labor

All of these treasures found thrifting:

large oval mirror used as base

glass compote

sweet little brown mug with roses

apothocary jar

old lace

jar with rusty lid

buttons

pearls

*R* hankie

brooch

old books

old flowers

clip-on earring with rhinestones

I'm lovin' the look,
Hmmm...

is this the beginning of something *new* ?

Have a great week preparing
for the celebration of thanks!

Rene'

bloggy anniversary...

Well, it's been a year of blogging.

You all have made it such a fun one.

I've reached out and been creative in a whole new way.

I've *met* lots of new friends.

I really do care about you.

To celebrate I thought I'd try one of those *give-away* things.

I've never done one before.

I want to meet all of my readers

soo, leave me a comment here and I'll have a drawing.

I'll send you this Victoria magazine

and a Christmas cone with a handmade tag.

I'll be drawing next week, Friday, Nov.28.

I concede...

I have pushed the limits as much as I can.

It is now officially over.

After waiting for 2 hours for my paint to dry,

and then messing it up because it really wasn't,

my outdoor paint season has come to an end.

Time to move inside!
Come on back and

I'll show you what I've been doing here!

tagged!

I've been tagged by the lovely Miss G.

Where is your mobile phone? what 's that?
Your hair colour? Brown
Your mother? my friend, my accomplice
Your favourite thing? my family
Your dream last night? Where am I going to put that display shelf?
Your dream goal? contentment
The room you're in? worse than cluttered
Your hobby (hobbies)? Junking
Your fear? empty nest
Where do you want to be in 6 years? wherever God has me
Where were you last night? home making more applesauce
What you're not? a clean-freak
One of your wish-list items? organization
Where you grew up?Idaho
The last thing you did? paid the paint bill
Your TV? who cares?
Your computer? my link to the outside world
Can't live without? HOPE
Your mood? roller coaster
Missing someone?always
Your car? my junkin' van
Something you're not wearing? make-up
Favourite shop? Monticello Antique Mall
Your summer? busy and blurry
Love someone? my husband of 28 years
Love/Hate Relationship?Junking
Current addiction? Junking
Your favourite colour? currently it's creamy soft-off-white
When is the last time you laughed? yesterday
When is the last time you cried? yesterday

Just use one word to answer the questions! LOL, try to use only one word, anyway! Oh, and if you read this blog... consider yourself tagged, then tell me if you did the quiz in my comments.

Where I've been...

This

is why I've been MIA.

Both holiday open houses are this weekend

so I've been busy.

I've been reading your blogs ~ just not commenting.

I'll be spending the day with my girls

canning applesauce.

Mmmm...

I'll be back to visit.

talk to ya then.

Rene'

name that baby...

OK. Can this Grandma tell

which one is which?

At first glance...NO,

but then look again.

Closest is Blake with the cheeks,

next is Madison with her female delicateness and

then Cameron with those eyes.

Their individual personalities

are beginning to show, too.

Isn't it amazing, the uniqueness from the beginning?

just for fun...

This is soo me.