Thanksgiving 2014: From Our House To Yours

We had such a lovely Thanksgiving lunch yesterday. Thanksgiving is about gratitude and family. It is our joy each year to host a dinner for staff members who are far from home on this holiday. This year we had the largest group we've ever had.

CC set up our den so that we could all eat at one big table.

It worked well. We had adults at the long tables, teens on the end, and little ones at the coffee table. All 26 had a seat and a plate!

We got our Fall decorations right outside in the apartment yard.

Our guests came at noon, each loaded with food to contribute.

I handed off my camera and laughed at the shots I got later. I am not sure if these were taken by our ESL teacher or Miss Middler. Clearly, they had fun.

CC carved our turkey. Our turkey gave me a scare. I thawed it for 4 days, but it was still solid inside. I couldn't get the neck out! So I googled it to see if I was doing something wrong. What turned up was "How to get rid of turkey neck without surgery." I had no idea "turkey neck" was a condition, but I sure hope I don't ever get one! Finally our turkey was done and on the table.

We started with some wassail. I bought a little paperback cookbook in Dec. 1996 when I had only been married for a month. I have made the wassail recipe in it every year since.

Almost the entire traditional Thanksgiving meal has to be imported. Turkeys can be hard to find, no ham at all. Sweet potatoes, marshmallows, cornmeal to make cornbread stuffing, green bean casserole ingredients...none of it can be found here. But every year the Lord has provided the ingredients to pull it together.

This year we were honored to have 6 Turks at our meal. CC read a little bit about the first Thanksgiving.

And then the meal. I have never had so many guests, and I have sure never had so much food on my table.

This one got the camera for awhile.

Miss Middler and Sweet Cheeks went outside, gathered fall leaves, and created this display in our apartment hallway. I loved it

At one point, our discussion turned to Pinterest, and messy up-do's, and how one dad there knows how to create them, and then I said, "I am not even sure Ross can braid. Ross, can you braid?" He wanted to show us that he could. Firstborn marched right over and gave him the chance. He said he missed the braids like when they were little, where it had a rubber band at the top and bottom. She just had to get a picture of the finished product! (Notice CC peeking on!)

The kids enjoyed some games afterwards.

Here's the whole crowd.

And here's the reason we celebrate..."Isa" (Jesus-Turkish)