Thanksgiving

11.24.16
0
WE ARE GRATEFUL If I could go back and tell my 12-year old self that life that one day, the real version of “let’s play house” would be a reality, and I would be sitting in a beautiful kitchen preparing to have 30 people at my house for Thanksgiving with a new puppy in my lap, a baby asleep in a crib, a 9-year old kicking a ball outside (okay, playing on the iPad, but dreams are fun), and an amazing partner/husband at work, and I’d be happy, like really, really happy, I wouldn’t believe you. At 12, things suuuuuck. You can’t see past tomorrow. You have no idea how things are ...Read More
My Top Holiday Hosting Tips In just a few days, my house will be filled with 26 adults and 3 children (and 1 baby!) for Thanksgiving. While it may be totally nuts to take such a big hosting “gig” on with a newborn, I love this holiday and am excited to open our home to our favorite family and friends. Luckily (and I say this with lots of love in my heart, dear family), we do not have any out-of-towners. This means that no one is spending the night(s)… hence, the arduous task of laundry loads, changing out sheets, and a fridge stocked morning, noon, and night. However, with 29 people, ...Read More
Growing up in Southern California, every year my family had a tradition of going to Knott’s Berry Farm during the holidays. When the temperature dropped, and Thanksgiving/ Christmas Break mode kicked in, we headed to Knott’s for a day of fun and of course, funnel cake and fried chicken. As a mom, it’s now such a joy to recreate this tradition and introduce my son to the holiday season at Knott’s Merry Farm. Knott’s is such a great destination for our family that we’ve decided to become Season Passholders. Right now, New passholders can purchase a 2015 Season Pass today and use it for one 2014 visit! Plus, visit additional days ...Read More
This morning, I intended to share this delicious Giada DeLaurentiis Eggplant Capanata recipe and sort of brag about the fact that I am “woman hear me roar” because I’m making an Thanksgiving appetizer that will also double as a fantastic leftover dish to add to pasta (okay, so I still kind of roared). But right as I started to craft the post and upload my ever so stylized and glamorous iPhone -push the mess aside so it looks just like Pinterest minus the blur photos, I remembered the date:   Exactly one year ago today, I went to Haiti. One year ago today, (which happened to be the week after Thanksgiving), I ...Read More
Thanks to Pinterest, I’m now well aware of the fact I’m not the only woman in the world who falls asleep at night dreaming of beautiful table-scapes, perfectly baked pies, and unbelievably organized pantries. Apparently, we all want things to look and taste just perfect. While I had every intention on showing you one amazingly thought out and decorated Thanksgiving mantle and table display, the reality of time, a full time job, a child with green stuff oozing from his sinuses (TMI?) and what I think might be a broken thumb (mine, not his), set in. Things can only be so perfect for so long. Or at least close to perfect, ...Read More
Is this fancy iPhone work, or what?! As if life isn’t hectic enough, (and that doesn’t include wedding planning), I’m hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year for 23 people. Thankfully, everyone is bringing a dish, so all I have to do is cook the turkey (hi, mom), and make the table look pretty (hi, Pinterest). Needless to say, this past week has been a little crazy. In an effort to stay sane (and healthy) during “go, go, go time,” I’ve been leaning on some “go to” recipes that I know I can whip up easily.  Some of my go-tos are meatloaf, crockpot turkey chili, shredded chicken tacos and takeout ...Read More
11.24.11
0
… for family. The traditions new and old, the questions that my mom asks repeatedly (still), the goodbyes that take forever (even though we’ll see each other tomorrow). It means I have family. It means I have support. … for my health. The extra stuff around the middle, the puffy eyes in the morning (and at night), the muscle cramps and aches after a hard workout (or bad night of sleep). It means I have health. It means my body works. … for my home. The loud and unfriendly neighbors, the (always dirty looking) tile that I would not have chosen, the clutter that waxes and wanes, ebbs and flows ...Read More
In addition to the “Minty Mallows” that sucked me in at Trader Joes, when I saw a Gingerbread Man kit for $3.99, I couldn’t resist. I instantly had visions of Jonah and I sitting together, decorating this darling cookie while drinking hot cocoa in our winter PJs… establishing a holiday tradition which one day would include me even baking a gingerbread house (mansion really) and inviting all the children to come and decorate it using “snow caps” that I had hand crafted… in my craft studio… next to the cozy fire place…. and our heavenly smelling Christmas tree. Sure we’re Jewish and I stopped getting Martha Stewart magazines years ago… ...Read More
11.30.08
1
Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone. This has been a pretty eventful week and I have so much to be thankful for…. This year, everyone came to our house for dinner. It was our second year hosting and once again, was a great success. (Check out a recent post I wrote for MomLogic about dealing with Four Families during the holidays).  Here’s a little recap/ list of highlights from the holiday: 1) T-Ko made a kick ass turkey for the 2nd year in a row. I must confess that I was a little nervous considering he found the recipe from Food Network star Sandra Lee (“Semi Homemade”). Her food is as ...Read More