Turkey Day Fun

Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching and I thought it would be fun to share some interesting Thanksgiving facts. Being the history nerd that I am it only makes sense :-)  I hope you enjoy these random facts. Some of them I just know for some strange reason and others came from various websites across the internet realm.

1. The first Thanksgiving took place in 1621 and lasted for 3 days! By the time you factor in leftovers and travel I think we still experience that even today.

2. Here is a sample of the first Thanksgiving menu: turkey, deer, duck, corn, fish, shellfish, squash, beans and nuts....the one that grossed me out the most was eel!! I've got three of these covered on my menu...turkey, squash and corn. Trust me, there will be no eel!

3. Abraham Lincoln was the first president to proclaim Thanksgiving as a holiday in 1863. However, it wasn't made a national holiday until 1941 by Congress. It is nice to know Congress gets some things right :-)

4. Thanksgiving is the busiest travel holiday of the year. Of all the people that travel, 91% travel by car.  I have experienced this fact when driving to and from Atlanta...it is awful!

5. Benjamin Franklin wanted the Turkey to be the national bird of the US. 

6. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade began in 1920. I have watched this as long as I can remember. It brings back great memories

7. 280 million turkeys will be sold for Thanksgiving. That is a lot of Turkey!

8. Stuffing vs. Dressing - Southerners make dressing using cornbread while most everyone else in the country makes stuffing using white bread. All I can say is that it is great to be a Southerner :-)

9. 40 million green bean casseroles will be made in the US on Thanksgiving. My mom spoiled me by making some of the best green beans known to mankind. We never had green bean casserole growing up. I will be making mine like my moms this year so I wont be included in that number. For those of you that do, enjoy those crispy onions for me...they are the best part :-)

10. Last but not least, of the amount of cranberries consumed throughout the year by Americans, 20% of them are eaten at Thanksgiving. I don't know about you, but I can't have Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce. It is a must! This year I am making a Turkey breast in the crock pot and I love the recipe because it includes cranberries. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Hope you enjoyed the fun facts! In closing I wanted to share a Thanksgiving memory. After all, Thanksgiving doesn't mean a thing without the memories.  My grandpa...lovingly known as Peepaw..loved any holiday that included his family and some good food. I think my favorite part of Thanksgiving was late in the day after the meal had been eaten and the football games watched, Peepaw would declare that it was time for leftovers. He had a flare for some fun leftovers. His culinary creation was the Thanksgiving sandwich. This was long before the Food Network made it popular. This was a Peepaw original.

I can remember watching him take some bread and pile on turkey and dressing and gravy and cranberry sauce and every other leftover he could find. Then he would take a bite and get that grin that only my Peepaw could have. I can remember one Thanksgiving toward the end of his life on this earth when I got the privilege to make "the sandwich." Oddly enough it's pretty good. But more than anything I was just happy to make my Peepaw happy. My Peepaw has been rejoicing at Jesus' feet for the past 9 years. Not a holiday goes by that I don't miss him. Even now, a tear slides down my face just thinking about him. But, I know I will get to see that grin again when we gather around the throne of our Savior. Memories like these only make life here and the hope of eternity that much sweeter.

So, that is all for now. Thanks for coming along the fun fact train that took a detour down memory lane. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with much love and some good food too! Love to you all from our little corner of the world!

Sweet & Salty Wednesday

Hi friends!  Just wanted to share a quick recipe with you. I made these yummy cookies last night for an event at work today. They were super yummy and quite the hit....so much so that there are none left. I shall be making more in the near future. These cookies are called White Chocolate Cranberry Pretzel Cookies.  Yep, you saw the word pretzel. The pretzels make the cookies so delicious. It adds that bit of salt you look for after you have had something sweet. 

These cookies will be especially nice for Thanksgiving but I think they will be quite good at Christmas too. The cookie base lends itself well to adding any other kinds of fun ingredients you like. Some examples are Andes mints, crushed Oreo's, crushed candy canes (the soft version), any kind of nut, chocolate covered raisins and the list goes on and on. As long as the ingredient will hold up in the oven it is fair game. Just remember to use the pretzels....they are a must and make this cookie divine. 

I have posted the link where I got the recipe below. I made two modifications to the recipe. Instead of 2 cups of white chocolate chips I only used 1 and instead of 1 cup of pretzels I only used 3/4 a cup. Otherwise, it is all the same. So special thanks to the Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice blog for this recipe. Make them...you will thank me later :-) 

Have a great week! I must now go throw myself at the mound of dirty dishes in my sink and then try to finish the Christmas shopping online. Yes, there will be a Hallmark Christmas Movie involved during the shopping. I am nothing if not predictable where Hallmark is concerned. Love to you all from a very cold WF, NC!

White Chocolate Cranberry Pretzel Cookies

Holiday Preparation

Howdy friends...yep, I said howdy...just tapping into my southern roots today. Hope your weeks are going well! We Dickerson's are still busy but I have found that writing a blog post helps me chill a little and not feel so busy. Today's topic is Holiday Preparation :-)

Did any of you happen to blink and it is was November?!  I'm not really sure where September and October went but all of the sudden November is here and I find myself getting a little panicked at all that has to be done. Since Mike and I are headed to East Asia to visit my sister and family for the better part of December, Christmas preparation must be done before we leave on December 5th. However, I don't want to be like our materialistic crazed culture and skip all the wonderfulness that makes up Thanksgiving. So, what does my Type A "must have a plan" personality do?!  Make lists!!!

Since we are staying home just the 2 of us this Thanksgiving I am in charge of the whole meal. This makes me happy and scared all at the same time :-)  So my solution is to make lists. I have a list of the menu and all the ingredients involved and a list that shows the schedule for that week of when each item will be assembled and cooked. OCD you ask? I have no problem admitting it. With work and church and other commitments I gotta stay on a schedule people. I highly recommend making a list for the food prep the week of Thanksgiving. It will actually make your life easier and you will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving with your family instead of being stuck in the kitchen and wanting to pull your hair out because your turkey looks like the Griswold's from Christmas Vacation :-) 

Now on to the Christmas shopping....does anyone else love it and dread it all at the same time like I do?!  I love giving gifts to people but I also want it to be something useful, needed and fun. Trying to find that for each person you buy for can be difficult. And lets face it, nobody wants to fall into the worst gift giver category. You know, the person your family members talk about all year long and say "I can't believe she thought that was a good gift!" or "what was she thinking?!" or "just another gift to add to the garage sale pile." Oh the pressure.... 

Anyway, I digress. Online shopping has become my favorite holiday "weapon" of choice. It is so easy to sit at home and browse the "stores" while watching my Hallmark Christmas Movies (I am addicted to these cheesy movies my friends...is there a 12 step program for this?) So in honor of my online shopping love I have listed a few of my favorite fun websites below.  Hopefully you will enjoy browsing through.  They span the monetary spectrum so don't freak when you see something outlandishly priced. There are other items that are well within the poor seminary student category :-)  

On a personal note, tomorrow is mine and Mike's 4 year anniversary!  I am so thankful for our marriage and all the many blessings from God. It is hard to imagine loving Mike more than I did 4 years ago at this time, but I truly do. Marriage is a precious gift and I try not to take it for granted at any time. Many of you were a part of that special day and we love that you were there as we began this journey. To those who we met in the past 4 years we are so happy you are a part of our journey now. I love my man and I am blessed to call him mine!

Thanks for indulging the mushiness :-)  Have a great week my friends! Love to you from the Forest! 

MacKenzie Childs

Enchanted Leaves

Waxing Poetic

Williams Sonoma

You can't go wrong with Bed, Bath & Beyond for a whole plethora of gift options and there is always a 20% coupon around somewhere!! 

These links and photos are simply a recommendation of things I like. I am not paid to advertise for any of these fine retailers....although that would be nice :-)