Thanksgiving Here We Come!

Another year has flown by, even though it feels like it was only yesterday that I was making my first Thanksgiving turkey in my new kitchen! It's hard to believe that it's already been a year, and thinking back I have so much to be thankful for that I don't even know where to begin.



This past year has been full of ups and downs, but with most of my life I'm thankful for all of the good times as well as the bad. I firmly believe that you can't truly appreciate the good things in life if you don't trudge through the muck every now and again. And as much as I wish I could say that my life is nothing but butterflies and baby bunnies...we all know that everyone has their shit days, weeks...or months!

One of the best things about the past year was the article that came out in July about this little blog! It was so amazing to see the outpouring of love that came from people near and far! And it amazes me still that even though I haven't been posting much as of late...the number of hits to my blog stays steady! You all are so awesome, I can't even tell you how thankful I am for each and every one of my readers.

Yesterday I received an e-mail from a reader who thanked me for my throw back to the blog post "Parental Plea." They echoed my sentiment about parents needing to love their children unconditionally, and told me of their own story. It's sad to hear other people's stories about the struggles with their families when it comes to their lives. But it reminded me of a quote by RuPaul during the last season of Drag Race, "We as gay people get to choose our families." And that line couldn't be more true.

There was a time in my life that I didn't have the support of my entire family and I turned to friends who loved and supported me for who I truly was. This isn't only true for gay people, but for anyone who's family doesn't understand or accept them for who they are. Do you know anyone who is in this position? Have you been or are you currently in this position? I urge you to seek out those who will love and support you for YOU!

Okay, I'm going to step off my soap box! Back to Thanksgiving! :) I already have my turkey swimming around in it's lovely brine! And tomorrow I'm going to head to the store to get the rest of the ingredients for my big meal! What am I making? Well let me see if I can remember off the top of my head. (I'm currently sitting at Magic Toyota while the car gets an oil change lol) I'm doing Anne Burrell's Big Brined Herb Turkey along with her Sausage and Mushroom Stuffing. Then of course there will be mashed potatoes with gravy made from the turkey drippings (my mouth is watering!). For the side dishes I'll be making Garlic and Parmesan Green Beans, crescent rolls, homemade cranberry sauce and for dessert will be a Pear Butter Pumpkin Pie. :) Okay...I already can't wait for it all...maybe I should have had breakfast this morning! :)

What are you having for your meal? Do you brine your turkey? What is your favorite side dish? I would love to hear because I don't think you can ever have enough new recipes!!!

Speaking of recipes, did you all get a chance to see my second column on My Edmonds News? I updated my chicken stock recipe from the blog post and video I did a few years ago! :) Chicken stock is such an easy thing to make, and you truly can tell the difference between the store bought and home made! I LOVE having it on hand, and even more so now that I pressure can it, so it's always ready to go! On Thanksgiving day I always have chicken stock simmering on the stove...it's great if you need to baste your turkey, make your mashed potatoes creamier, or even rescue stuffing that was cooked too long!!! Keep it on the stove ALL DAY! :) There's my Thanksgiving tip for you. You're welcome.

In other areas of my life...it feels weird not to be doing the Parent/Child Support Group with Safe Crossings each Tuesday! The six weeks flew by!! I won't lie...the kids in this group were a bit of a handful, and through all their energy I realized that this was just the way they were getting all of their big emotions and feelings out. So as the volunteers in the group, it's your job to help them get those feelings out, while making sure that they stay safe. I recently volunteered to help with the Grief and the Holidays workshop they did as well. Many people forget that grief stays with you long after the death of a loved one, and it hits even harder during the first holidays without them. I feel so blessed to be a part of these people's journey and hope that what we are doing is helping them even just a little.

Now let's talk about those feathery things in my backyard...man are they getting big! And I have a feeling that one or more of them are roosters! :-/ EEK! But as anyone who has ever raised chickens knows...you never truly know until they crow or lay an egg. I have a friend coming over today to give me his opinion...lol. WE all have our opinions as to what they are...but in the end we all know that it really is out of our hands. **I HATE not being in control!** But other than that, all is peaceful in the hen house, which is a blessing in its own right! But in the coming weeks I'll be letting a few or all of them go, especially if they turn out to be boys....so that should be interesting especially if Miracle is one of the ones that has to leave.

Well I suppose that I've rambled on long enough...I hope that you all have a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving, and that the time with your loved ones, be them family or friends...is full of fun times and great memories. Check out my column in My Edmonds News, and leave me a comment there!

Until next time...Keep Cooking!