for the love of leftovers

We decided long ago that since we would be staying in Utah for Thanksgiving, that we'd have a quiet holiday by ourselves, probably for the only time ever now that we're moving back to Washington and all our family. With the prospect of eating with our dear friends the Millers, we determined that we would still have to make our own meal just for the leftovers of turkey and cranberry sauce and cream cheese sandwiches. Mmmmm. So after a weekend of thesis writing (Jon), move organizing (Meghan), packing (Meghan), and chasing around the house (Emory and Paisley), we made our meal yesterday. Or I should say, I made it, which is actually kind of monumental. For the past several years, Jon and I have enjoyed cooking the feast together, with help from family, and it was a little strange to be by myself in the kitchen most of the day. Strange, but good, because our house is so tiny that I could feel his presence extremely near, even from the next room. And if I do say so myself, I'm good at Thanksgiving.

Possibly one of the best things about cooking this meal for just the three of us: all the homemade cranberry sauce our little hearts could ever want, without having to be mindful of several other people needing to take a spoonful. I think cranberry sauce is the prettiest part of the meal, and for me, it ties it all together. Am I right? I like to make it with the zest and juice of an orange, and less sugar than recipes normally suggest.

It snowed all. day. long. And it was absolutely beautiful. At this point we're saying, "bring on the snow!" (at least in Utah). Jon actually shot these photos hours before the skies halted their project. We ended up with twice as much of the powdery goodness. Today the skies were clear and beautiful, making everything glisten.

Emory, seriously looking like a kid these days in all his big boy 15-month-old glory. What you can't tell is that he's still shy of 21 pounds.

Though the kid loooves turkey (with cranberry sauce, of course), so who knows... maybe after partaking of this beauty he'll be heavier. We cooked less than a 4.5 lb breast and had enough meat to feed 8 people. I didn't know that was possible.

The spread, and Emory's miniature plate, which he devoured immediately after this photo ended. Yams and potatoes much? You'd better believe I had mashed potatoes for breakfast this morning.

Also, this is the little man's "more" face. We laugh so hard because he opens his mouth as absolutely wide as it can open, sometimes moving his head a bit to make sure we get the point. And he locks his gaze on whatever he wants more of; in this case, sparkling cider.

Until next year, bounteous feast.