Happy Thanksgiving, 2011

Eric and I hosted our very first Thanksgiving in our 7 years of marriage, and it was a success! I was able to use my china & silver for the first time, and it was fun to pull it all out for our family. I had such fun shopping for table cloths, napkins, and napkin rings since our dining room is new to us as well. We wanted to be a simple, inviting host & hostess yet with a little flair. I feel like we achieved that!

Before I continue about our actual Thanksgiving day, Madeline and I created this feather of thankfulness for her class. I was the slack Mom that didn't attend her Thanksgiving feast because I was super crunched for time, and I had to run my miles. However, she didn't seem to miss me (according to some of my friends), and we had fun putting her feather together. I totally dig all of these little projects especially when they depict my child to a tee!
Moving onto our Thanksgiving Day, Madeline was very excited that her McCarthy family would be joining us for "a great feast"! Yes, those were Madeline's exact words with arms outstretched! She enjoyed the "fancy table" with "beautiful pink flowers" (again, her exact words)! I was looking for more of a fall flower arrangement, but Miss Pinkalicious had other ideas. She insisted that the pink bouquet was "perfect"! Notice my super star in the background!

Madeline is the hostess with the mostess. She loves a good party, and her Daddy & I love to entertain, so it's a win-win!

I know, lots of table shots, but I was so excited to pull out my dishes for the first time!

At my mother's request, we gathered for a family picture, and amazingly, everyone stifled the giggles & cooperated! Lucky Grandma! She already has her Christmas card photo!

My family tends to snack and visit for the day, and our turkey dinner takes place about 7 PM. I wish I could take all the credit for our delicious meal, but I can't. Luckily, my mom lives close to us, and she walked me through the preparations of the meal. My mom and I cook well together, so it's nice for us to spend that time together. I've decided that I'm not going to ever completely relinquish her of her cooking duties. :) We were all quite fat and happy after our meal.

Obviously, I didn't spend much time behind the camera since I was visiting, relaxing, and cooking, and I'm okay with that. Our Thanksgiving was warm, fun, and exactly what everyone needed --- a nice day with those that matter the most! I am most definitely blessed to be surrounded by my husband & children, my parents, and my brothers & their families at the holidays.